Recommend DIY audio wire?

[Jameson1895]

Hey guys. I am pretty new to building equipment (and posting!). I am going to build a couple remap boxes, a couple DI's, and some pads. Which wire should I buy? I have found some Beldon spools, but want to make sure I am looking at the right stuff before I buy it. For messing around, I was just stripping bad xlr cables, and using that. Probably.....not good?

Beldon 9921 - 22agw
and or
9740 - 18agw

Any recommendations would be really helpful for the applications I have listed. Should I buy multiple gauges for different applications? I'd like to have the stuff around for when I need it.

Thanks guys.

[ricercar.record]

I just bought some 22 and 18 awg PTFE stranded wire in a bunch of different colors from steve slater over at apex jr. a couple weeks ago for diy projects. Great price and excellent customer service. I emailed with my order and received a call from him making sure I was getting exactly what I wanted, updated the order and it got to me super fast. Highly recommend buying from him.

use 18 awg for mains power, 22 awg for everything else.

[The Scum]

I like my wire made from copper.

I've got a dozen colors of 22 ga stranded on my workbench for general purpose usage. Mostly Alpha brand wire...looks equivalent to the Belden 9921 spec sheet. 22 is hefty enough that I can work with it without destroying it, but not so beefy that its hard to work with.

I've also got various other types of wire around...16 ga green for a heavier ground wire when called for, Kynar for PCB repairs, 30ga winding wire for making inductors...

One thing I'm running across more recently is that the PVC insulation has a relatively low melting point. It was mostly OK for lead solder, but lead-free has a higher melting point, and it can be tricky to work quickly enough to get the solder to flow, but not melt the insulation off the wire.

There are other insulation types that are better behaved - Teflon doesn't melt like that.

For audio-specific wiring, Mogami, Canare and Gepco make good snake & mic cable. The Redco house brand (TGS) is also quite usable.

For messing around, I was just stripping bad xlr cables, and using that. Probably.....not good?

Really, it depends on the quality of the cable to begin with, and how it's been abused over time.

9740 - 18agw

What are you intending to use it for? The application will make a difference. In general, you probably want shielded cable...

[Jim Williams]

I like my wire made from silver.

I have around 50 lbs of silver/teflon military wire I use for everything. The teflon is the best dialectric. The wire is copper with silver plating. I also have some silver/teflon shielded balanced wire from Rockwell that was used on the Space Shuttle.

The best I have is from Ray Kimber. It's pure silver/teflon and sounds amazing next to anything else. At $80 per foot, it ought to. I don't wear jewelry, I listen through it.