"Secret" Speaker Wire

In MarkB's thread about his DIY silver speaker cables, I posted a blurb about the wire I used for my Cornwalls. I have a friend that has worked for different telecommunication companies all of his life. His area of expertise is in the switching systems. He worked at the local (what used to be) Pacific Bell office. He was also there when they switched from the old mechanical switches to the new E7(?) computerized switches. (That model may be obsolete now). Anyway, the cable is what they use for some of the DC power supplies. Whenever they had any work done on a new installation, he'd grab any scraps the installers left behind. It's apprx. 10 ga., 104 +- strands silver plated copper, teflon insulated, with a gray fabric woven outer wrap. The wire comes in pairs that are twisted together, with the "positive" lead marked with black lines. I found the mfg. name on the wire and sent them an e-mail to get the specs. All I sent them were the markings on the wire, which include AWM (appliance grade). I got a response this morning saying they couldn't ID the wire from the info I had sent. I had two different pieces, one about 10 years old, the other about a year old. I thought it odd that they couldn't give me any info, so I called my friend who is currently working in Arizona, and asked him.

According to what he's been told, the company has this wire made specifically for them by this mfg., and they will not sell it to anyone else. The markings on the wire have nothing to do with common identification. That's why, when I sent the email to them, I got the "I don't know" response. The wire doesn't come in rolls, but rather something like 100' lengths (paired) with special connectors on one end, and the other end to be cut to length and field serviced. Hence, the scraps. Installers have told him that they are supposed to keep the leftovers and scrap them. Maybe due to liability.
I know it sounds a little "James Bond", and reverse engineering is a piece of cake these days, but maybe it's just not worth it to have it done. Anyway, I have about 150' (paired) so I should be good to go for quite awhile. Unfortunately, my hearing is bad and they all sound the same to me, but what the heck........I'll use it!

if you should find yourself with some extra ....

I know you have a camera and a son who knows how to operate it and upload pics on the net.

Get it Larry?

Jorge

YES, I GET IT, JORGE!

Let me go get the camera

Here ya go..........................

Attached Image (Click thumbnail to expand)

I have a slight suspicion, due to the color, that the wire might be nickel plated, not silver. I have a customer who is a jewler, and the next time he comes over I'll have him check for me.

Those look cool, Larry.

I believe you are right, those cables are probably nickel plated.

Jorge

I don't think it's bright enough for silver.

I think US quarters and dimes are mostly nickel, but appear strangely silver(y).
It's like that "chocolatey" coating we hear so much about.
It's BROWN, just like real chocolate!

Silver oxidizes very easily. Have a small sample sit in a 1:1 mixture of vinegar/peroxide. You should quickly see some black precipitate. ANY METAL WILL GENERATE EXCESSIVE BUBBLING. the soultion will eventually turn blue from the copper. Nickel makes greenish colored solutions. BTW use the vinegar/peroxide solution ONLY for this type of application. It's good for a number of other naughty applications (with a little tweaking).

That clinches it - no vinegar/peroxide baths for any of my speaker cables!

I wouldn't let anything metal get near it. I think gold is about the only one that would stand up to it (Maybe Pt). I unintentionally discovered this reaction when I was around 18, only to later to discover what it was really used for (both good and bad), in a proper setting. I used to have all types of fun toys until a few years ago before I decided to sit behind a desk. UV lasers, rocket fuel, night vision googles, radioactive hormones, radioactive pharmaceuticals, liquid Nitrogen etc. good times good times

Lord almighty.

In the 60´s they had just as much fun with only one toy: LSD.

Jorge

When my mentor was in gradute school his first year, he worked in an inorganic chemistry lab that generated alot of sodium metal waste. He once asked his boss what to do with it and the guy basically shrugged him off. He threw in one of the campus lakes, where it proceeded to explode and release a cloud of sodium hyroxide. It destroyed every car's paint job within reach. Gotta luv chemistry.

This post has been edited by xxxrv on June 01, 2007 05:20 pm

I use fuming nitric acid occasionally. It turns monel green.