17th December 2012
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#1 | | Gear interested
Joined: Nov 2012 Thread Starter | can i use shielded cables for cabinet?
hi guys, i check out my marshall class 5 amp manual, it said '' Always use an unshielded loudspeaker cable to connect an amplifier to a loudspeaker cabinet, never use a screened (shielded) guitar cable.''
i wonder what will happen if i plug a normal guitar cable between the head and cabinet, will it still work ?.. or will it cause damage to my gears?
thx,
carlos
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17th December 2012
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#2 | | Lives for gear
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 1,856
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You may damage your amp, as only an unshielded speaker cable can carry the power correctly from the head to your speaker cab. Doesn't have to be an expensive speaker cable (don't bother with Monster, etc. -- <$20 will be fine) but use the right cable for the job.
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18th December 2012
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#3 | | Gear Head
Joined: Sep 2012 Location: SW Michigan
Posts: 67
| Quote:
Originally Posted by nedorama  You may damage your amp, as only an unshielded speaker cable can carry the power correctly from the head to your speaker cab. Doesn't have to be an expensive speaker cable (don't bother with Monster, etc. -- <$20 will be fine) but use the right cable for the job. | I'll play devils advocate & say absolutely go for monster or mogami and I'd rely on your own ears before taking suggestion that cables have no effect.
Unless you're doing a lengthy run from control room to live room, a 3-6 ft high quality speaker cable will not break you & you'll never have to buy one again with their lifetime warranty. 
As for doing damage, when I was younger I played shows with an instrument cable between my marshall head and cab without doing damage. Did I dodge a bullet? Probably, but who knows. Even if it did no damage, I'm sure you love your amp. Is it worth the risk? Its a good bet to just use the proper tools.
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18th December 2012
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#4 | | Lives for gear
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 1,444
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I prefer lamp cord. Just grab an old lamp cord with the two conductors running side-by-side. You know, the one that plugs the lamp into the wall. Then cut it at both ends and strip away a bit of the rubber sheath. Then solder on whatever connectors you need. I've bought more expensive cables before, and maybe it's just psychoacoustic, but to me it's the best sounding cable I've used. Not that there's much difference between cables. But their thick gauges at least ensure that they're not restricting your sound.
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18th December 2012
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#5 | | Gear maniac
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 162
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Yeah, lamp cords make great speaker cables. No fooling.
Monster is the most over-hyped, over-priced garbage on the audio planet. And they're a pack of litigious bastards who browbeat smaller cable manufacturers with unwarranted patent infringement suits.
Yeah, I don't like them.
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19th December 2012
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#6 | | Gear interested
Joined: Nov 2012 Thread Starter |
ok i will go for the speaker cable, thx everyones advice!
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20th December 2012
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#7 | | Lives for gear
Joined: Jan 2009 Location: Brooklyn |
Yeah forget about monster cables!! Over marketing.
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22nd December 2012
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#8 | | Lives for gear
Joined: Jan 2010 Location: Sydney
Posts: 553
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I use twin core power cable for mine. Here in Australia you can get a twin conductor power cable with a nice big thick rubbery sheath around the outside. As its designed for extension leads etc, its super durable. I have for ages just used that. Got a role of it so if ever I need a speaker lead, a length of that and a couple of Neutrik's does the trick.
I would stay away from guitar cables. The shield probably doesn't have enough meat in it to carry the sort of power that your guitar amp is outputting. I wouldn't be surprised if you could short a guitar cable using it as a speaker cable.
I have seen people do it, but I wouldn't risk it if it were up to me.
-Rob
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22nd December 2012
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#9 | | Lives for gear
Joined: Apr 2003 Location: Chicago
Posts: 881
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Shielded cable will mostly work but the inside conductor is very small and the shield will be carying current. It's also easier for shielded cable to short when it fails internally instead of just failing open which can kill your amp. Just get some 14-16 guage wire and put 1/4 ts on the ends.
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23rd December 2012
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#10 | | Lives for gear
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 1,648
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If using the correct cable was not important, do you suppose they would bother telling you that in the manual?
Use the right cable!
Guitar cables are used for signals that are millivolts, and very tiny light guage wire.
Speakers cables are made to carry much higher level voltage and don't
Need shielding, and are much heavier guage.
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24th December 2012
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#11 | | Lives for gear
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 4,664
| .You MIGHT get away with using a shielded cable between an guitar amp and speaker, but I sure wouldn't:
In addition to what has already been mentioned, there is also the problem that the capacitance is WRONG on a shielded cable (which can be problematical when running certain amps really hard).
...And after all, the right stuff is actually CHEAPER anyway. - I mean even the big fat "zip-cord" stuff sold for AC cable use is pretty damn cheap compared to most decent shielded cable.
Hell, I'd even use the power cord off an old vacuum cleaner before I'd waste a shielded cable on a guitar speaker.
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