DIY RCA interconnects with locking RCA plugs

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invenio

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I made some custom RCA interconnects for my system as I could not find ideal cables for less than $1000. I really like how they came out. Check out the gallery for full step by step instructions and many pictures... I had a fun time making them!

Comments and suggestions always welcome!

Step by step instructions

103183.jpg
 
Excellent, it is quite satisfying and enjoyable making your own cables, that's how I started and gradually gained the confidence to try other projects. You work neatly which is good to see, well done.
Regards,
Paul
 
Excellent, it is quite satisfying and enjoyable making your own cables, that's how I started and gradually gained the confidence to try other projects. You work neatly which is good to see, well done.
Regards,
Paul

I know what you mean. I think the next project will be custom power cables. That will take some more planning!
 
Impressive step-by-step documentation... and they look beautiful!

So how do they compair sonically to other cables you've tried in that system? Any obviouse differences? If so, can you describe? Also, did you use a high silver-content solder? The solder contact between terminator and cable can be a weak point.

Really great post! Thanks for sharing.
 
Impressive step-by-step documentation... and they look beautiful!

So how do they compair sonically to other cables you've tried in that system? Any obviouse differences? If so, can you describe? Also, did you use a high silver-content solder? The solder contact between terminator and cable can be a weak point.

Really great post! Thanks for sharing.

Thanks for the great comments TomDac and tsv_1.

To answer your question I just finished the project yesterday, but I did get a couple of hours of listening time in them today on a couple of records that I recently listened to on the older setup. It's always difficult to make an exact approximation of audible changes but I think there is more soundstage and precision. The greatest improvement I noticed was clarity. This was most prominent when I was listening to the song "The Friends of Mr. Cairo" on the Jon and Vangelis CD (I got that CD from the music recommendation part of this site). There are some areas in the song where it's slightly difficult to understand the lyrics and that has greatly improved, also, the subtle sound effects are more clear and audible. As for the solder, I got an electronics grade thin solder (the thin type allowed me to really control how I was placing the solder and didn't have any of those big nasty "globs". I was also able to impregnate the ground mesh wire with the solder as it ate the solder up almost like paper would water and then I just attached it to the housing). It would be interesting to make the same cable and just change the solder to see what effect it had on the sound. Luckily, the locking RCA plugs had nice and large contact points so it was easy to solder both the signal wire to connecting pin and the ground to the body. I hope that these good connections will help.

tsv_1, do you have specific recommendations of solder type, or where I could buy it. I had a lot of fun making these cables and plan to do more. After noticing the improvement from my preamp to my amp, I now want to make more for the connections to my other components. Also, I wouldn't be surprised if a friend or two will ask me to make a set for them. I really think these cables can compete with ones on the market for over 500 or even 1000 dollars and it costs me less than $100 for a pair.
 
Thanks for the great comments TomDac and tsv_1.

To answer your question I just finished the project yesterday, but I did get a couple of hours of listening time in them today on a couple of records that I recently listened to on the older setup. It's always difficult to make an exact approximation of audible changes but I think there is more soundstage and precision. The greatest improvement I noticed was clarity. This was most prominent when I was listening to the song "The Friends of Mr. Cairo" on the Jon and Vangelis CD (I got that CD from the music recommendation part of this site). There are some areas in the song where it's slightly difficult to understand the lyrics and that has greatly improved, also, the subtle sound effects are more clear and audible. As for the solder, I got an electronics grade thin solder (the thin type allowed me to really control how I was placing the solder and didn't have any of those big nasty "globs". I was also able to impregnate the ground mesh wire with the solder as it ate the solder up almost like paper would water and then I just attached it to the housing). It would be interesting to make the same cable and just change the solder to see what effect it had on the sound. Luckily, the locking RCA plugs had nice and large contact points so it was easy to solder both the signal wire to connecting pin and the ground to the body. I hope that these good connections will help.

tsv_1, do you have specific recommendations of solder type, or where I could buy it. I had a lot of fun making these cables and plan to do more. After noticing the improvement from my preamp to my amp, I now want to make more for the connections to my other components. Also, I wouldn't be surprised if a friend or two will ask me to make a set for them. I really think these cables can compete with ones on the market for over 500 or even 1000 dollars and it costs me less than $100 for a pair.

Hey... I just noticed you're way down south in NH :) Hope you're not getting too blodgeoned by the caucus tumult.

I'm a big proponent of silver in my interconnects. I dismiss the stigma that "silver is bright". While some earilier attemps to use silver by certain cable companies resulted in subpar products, there are other companies who have taken full advantage of silver's excellence wrt audio connectivity. I know you didn't ask me about my opinion on this subject, but I just couldn't help myself :)

Here's the solder I like when I'm trying not to burn myself in the "lab" :) It ain't cheap, but neither is an excellent scotch. You get what you pay for.

I would also recommend to you (and anyone else reading this) this stuff. I've applied it to all my system contact points (IEC receptacles, RCA plugs, XLR male connectors, and speaker terminals). Great stuff if a tad unruly (apply cautiously are suffer the horrors of silver paste on any/all surfaces in close proximity).

Cheers
 
Hey... I just noticed you're way down south in NH :) Hope you're not getting too blodgeoned by the caucus tumult.

I'm a big proponent of silver in my interconnects. I dismiss the stigma that "silver is bright". While some earilier attemps to use silver by certain cable companies resulted in subpar products, there are other companies who have taken full advantage of silver's excellence wrt audio connectivity. I know you didn't ask me about my opinion on this subject, but I just couldn't help myself :)

Here's the solder I like when I'm trying not to burn myself in the "lab" :) It ain't cheap, but neither is an excellent scotch. You get what you pay for.

I would also recommend to you (and anyone else reading this) this stuff. I've applied it to all my system contact points (IEC receptacles, RCA plugs, XLR male connectors, and speaker terminals). Great stuff if a tad unruly (apply cautiously are suffer the horrors of silver paste on any/all surfaces in close proximity).

Cheers

I have heard many people say silver is too bright, but at the same time I hear it can be more detailed if done well. I would love to try and make some silver interconnects in the future. I have seen DIY instructions where they take silver strands from the local jewerly shop and put them in a teflon tube. I don't think they really sell ready made cables that are widely available (or at least I have not been able to find them).

I checked out the solder. Definitely looks of high quality. I wish they sold a smaller amount as spending nearly 100 bucks for solder when I know I will only use 1/4 during my entire lifetime is a shame. Still a worthwhile consideration if I continue to make cables. I wouldn't be surprised if a friend of mine will ask me to make some cables for him.

I also looked at that silver "goop". Looks interesting. I would like to try that out. The only thing that scares me is that I'll probably make a huge mess! Does it come off with a simple cloth if I get to zealous?

As for the political stuff.... I just retreat into my listening room.... put on a good album... and it seems like all the troubles of the world disappear. :)
 
I have heard many people say silver is too bright, but at the same time I hear it can be more detailed if done well. I would love to try and make some silver interconnects in the future. I have seen DIY instructions where they take silver strands from the local jewerly shop and put them in a teflon tube. I don't think they really sell ready made cables that are widely available (or at least I have not been able to find them).

I checked out the solder. Definitely looks of high quality. I wish they sold a smaller amount as spending nearly 100 bucks for solder when I know I will only use 1/4 during my entire lifetime is a shame. Still a worthwhile consideration if I continue to make cables. I wouldn't be surprised if a friend of mine will ask me to make some cables for him.

I also looked at that silver "goop". Looks interesting. I would like to try that out. The only thing that scares me is that I'll probably make a huge mess! Does it come off with a simple cloth if I get to zealous?

As for the political stuff.... I just retreat into my listening room.... put on a good album... and it seems like all the troubles of the world disappear. :)

There are a few reasonably priced teflon-sheathed-pure-silver-strand-interconnect vendors out there. I buy from these guys and love their products. and hey... I just notices they use the same WBT solder I mentioned to you. I honestly did not notice that before, but good to see they are like-minded in their preferences.

And the silver goop does not permanently stain... wipes up (and/or washes out) without too much toil and trouble.

Cheers
 
There are a few reasonably priced teflon-sheathed-pure-silver-strand-interconnect vendors out there. I buy from these guys and love their products. and hey... I just notices they use the same WBT solder I mentioned to you. I honestly did not notice that before, but good to see they are like-minded in their preferences.

And the silver goop does not permanently stain... wipes up (and/or washes out) without too much toil and trouble.

Cheers

Looks like they make some very nice cables. Do they sell the cable alone without the plugs? I couldn't find it on their site, and if so, how much per foot. Their higher end silver w/ shielding looks really cool!
 
Looks like they make some very nice cables. Do they sell the cable alone without the plugs? I couldn't find it on their site, and if so, how much per foot. Their higher end silver w/ shielding looks really cool!

I've not asked if the sell unterminated lengths - you'd need to check with them. I did have some conversations with them about speaker cable using the same basic construct and they said they'd be happy to fabricate whatever I wanted, so I imagine they would be similarly flexible with you.

Cheers
 
I've not asked if the sell unterminated lengths - you'd need to check with them. I did have some conversations with them about speaker cable using the same basic construct and they said they'd be happy to fabricate whatever I wanted, so I imagine they would be similarly flexible with you.

Cheers

I may give them a call as it would be pretty interesting to make some silver cables.
 
Hey... I just noticed you're way down south in NH :) Hope you're not getting too blodgeoned by the caucus tumult.

I'm a big proponent of silver in my interconnects. I dismiss the stigma that "silver is bright". While some earilier attemps to use silver by certain cable companies resulted in subpar products, there are other companies who have taken full advantage of silver's excellence wrt audio connectivity. I know you didn't ask me about my opinion on this subject, but I just couldn't help myself :)

Here's the solder I like when I'm trying not to burn myself in the "lab" :) It ain't cheap, but neither is an excellent scotch. You get what you pay for.

I would also recommend to you (and anyone else reading this) this stuff. I've applied it to all my system contact points (IEC receptacles, RCA plugs, XLR male connectors, and speaker terminals). Great stuff if a tad unruly (apply cautiously are suffer the horrors of silver paste on any/all surfaces in close proximity).

Cheers

I just ordered some of the WBT silver solder as you suggested. Hopefully it will get here by next week and I plan on making a 2nd set of my cable but this time will use it for interconnects between my components and preamp. I will try to report on any audible differences once all done and after some listening time.
 
I got the WBT solder and I decided to make a 2nd set of cable to connect my CD player to the preamp. This was a shorter 2 ft cable.

103517.jpg
 
You should be proud, those are more attractive than most anything on the market... and given the materials used, I would guess at least as good sounding. Great job! Has your friend ordered a pair of "Invenio Scotch Bonnets" yet? (tagline... the hottest ICs on the planet! ;))
 
Very nice looking cables, congrats on a great job! I made a DIY pr of interconnects last year but went the solid silver wire route and teflon insulator path. Curious what brand/model RCA plugs you used? One very highly recommended type are the Eichmann bullet plugs.
 
Very nice looking cables, congrats on a great job! I made a DIY pr of interconnects last year but went the solid silver wire route and teflon insulator path. Curious what brand/model RCA plugs you used? One very highly recommended type are the Eichmann bullet plugs.

I have read a lot of people doing the silver interconnects. I am thinking about doing this although I had some reservations as some have complained that silver can be too "bright." My system actually got a lot "brighter" with these two interconnects that I made. I think it's definitely some thing that I would like to try in the future as many just rave about silver. I used WBT solder which has silver in it so there is a hint of that in the interconnects.

I have also heard a lot of good things about the Eichmann bullet plugs. I use speaker cable by a company named Signal Cable and they seem to highly recommend getting the Eichmann's on their interconnects. As for my cable, I decided to use Locking plugs by GLS audio. I really wanted "locking plugs" for my cables as I often do switch them out and locking plugs put almost no wear and tear on the equipment and provide a much tighter connection when on. I looked at locking plugs from WBT, vampire, and GLS and found them to be of very similar build quality and essentially identical design. I decided to go with GLS as they were a fraction of the cost of the more expensive brands. :) Needless to say, I am very happy with them.
 
You should be proud, those are more attractive than most anything on the market... and given the materials used, I would guess at least as good sounding. Great job! Has your friend ordered a pair of "Invenio Scotch Bonnets" yet? (tagline... the hottest ICs on the planet! ;))

Thanks for the comments! Unfortunately, I only bought a pack of 10 plugs and I have made two sets of cables (8 plugs total). I checked and the same plugs are on back order! That means no more cables (or this design at least) for some time. I am too selfish to give these to anybody else as I just love the sound they created with my system...... who needs friends anyway? :)
 
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