Z-5500. ok to use 16 gauge cables?

[houndawg]

greetings,

the Z5500 comes with 18 gauge cables & i'm contemplating on upgrading them to better quality ones. but i can only find 16 gauge cables at the local AV store. will they work just fine? one more thing, are the incuded cables considered good quality? will changing them yield better audio results or should i just stick with the stock wires & save my dough?

thank you for your insight.

oh yea, whats the meaning of 'gauge'? is it the thickness of the cables?

 

[Shaftatplanetquake]

Well, 16 is thicker than 18.

It will work.

Whether it will make a difference or not is an argument only suitable for the most anal of audiophiles.

In short, it ain't gunna make a difference.

 

[InlineFour]

it won't make a difference because the included wires aren't very long.

 

[TriggerHappy101]

Originally posted by: Shaftatplanetquake
Well, 16 is thicker than 18.

It will work.

Whether it will make a difference or not is an argument only suitable for the most anal of audiophiles.

In short, it ain't gunna make a difference.

Its not going to make a difference becuase the speakers are crap. No matter how clean you make the signal - if the speakers are ******, you are going to get ****** sound.

 

[InlineFour]

Originally posted by: TriggerHappy101

Originally posted by: Shaftatplanetquake
Well, 16 is thicker than 18.

It will work.

Whether it will make a difference or not is an argument only suitable for the most anal of audiophiles.

In short, it ain't gunna make a difference.

Its not going to make a difference becuase the speakers are crap. No matter how clean you make the signal - if the speakers are ******, you are going to get ****** sound.

you could have phrased that in a better manner.

 

[houndawg]

what i would like to know is if these speakers are indeed every bit as loathesome, how then did it obtain THX certification?

 

[czech09]

Originally posted by: houndawg
what i would like to know is if these speakers are indeed every bit as loathesome, how then did it obtain THX certification?

Honestly the speakers are great, unless you listen to your music insanely loud - we're talking volume on the device (Computer, TV, etc) all the way up and the volume on the unit (the Z-5500 control) to at least 3/4 of the way - they're fine. Over that they just don't hold around with the sub. I bought mine for $125 shipped here on the forums and for that price it was an insane deal. I would recommend these to anyone who's in for some nice speakers yet not a complete audio fanatic.

 

[0roo0roo]

lower guage is better. but 18 is not limiting a cheap system like that at all. redoing cables people generally just buy 16 guage since it costs the same

 

[NanoStuff]

It won't matter. You don't necessarily need great sounding speakers to benefit from a cable upgrade, even if you were using something high-end, a 16awg cable would be mostly unnecessary. It does depend on the length of the run and the impedance of the speakers, but not much more than that.

 

[CrispyFried]

another vote for no difference with a short run like those speakers have. gauge=wire diameter, lower=thicker.

 

[PurdueRy]

Originally posted by: houndawg
what i would like to know is if these speakers are indeed every bit as loathesome, how then did it obtain THX certification?

Because THX certification doesn't mean much in the audio world

 

[Kaido]

Originally posted by: PurdueRy

Originally posted by: houndawg
what i would like to know is if these speakers are indeed every bit as loathesome, how then did it obtain THX certification?

Because THX certification doesn't mean much in the audio world

My brother has the z-680s in his home theater; they sound great to me!

 

[TriggerHappy101]

Originally posted by: houndawg
what i would like to know is if these speakers are indeed every bit as loathesome, how then did it obtain THX certification?

THX means crap. Its just a marketing ploy. All you need to do is pay THX some good ammount of money - and they give you permission to write THX on your speakers.
Hell - im sure if you wanted to make cell phone speaker THX certified - you could.

 

[CVSiN]

I adore my 5500s
they sound great (better than my 2 DEAD sets of klipsch promedia 5.1s)
and have the built in decoders to decode DTS as well as havign optical in, and Coax in as well as direct connect so I can have my DVD.. 360 and PC all hooked at one time..

the speakers are great for a small home or appartment and are plenty loud and crisp enough to piss of every neighbor around you at meduim levels.

sounds great for movies.. sounds great for games... sounds great on the 360...
that beign said no the cables will not make that big a difference if at all..

but 1 question.. how are you changing the cables? they are hardwired.. not quick disconnects (like normal stereo speakers) and have an RCA plug on the end of each speaker...

 

[TriggerHappy101]

You sir are tone deaf and ignorant.

 

[CVSiN]

Originally posted by: TriggerHappy101
You sir are tone deaf and ignorant.

You sir are just an asshole troll..

 

[PurdueRy]

Originally posted by: Kaido

Originally posted by: PurdueRy

Originally posted by: houndawg
what i would like to know is if these speakers are indeed every bit as loathesome, how then did it obtain THX certification?

Because THX certification doesn't mean much in the audio world

My brother has the z-680s in his home theater; they sound great to me!

They aren't bad...no. But they are near-field speakers...meaning they aren't designed to be listened to at distance. In larger rooms they will die. But for the money, I agree, they are pretty decent. I would favor the Klipsch's for the fact that they have a tweeter.

 

[ChiSoxFan]

Originally posted by: TriggerHappy101
You sir are tone deaf and ignorant.

Good lord, is acting like an ass difficult for you or does it just come naturally. I'd vote for the latter. Back on topic I don't think it would be worth the time or money to change. I got a set of Z5500's a couple weeks ago and love the speakers especially for the price. Sound quality is incredible with my X-fi card and I haven't even thought about different cables.

 

[TriggerHappy101]

No - I just get frustrated when people don't know the difference between good sound and bad.

The 5500s are utter crap. I had my friend bring his system over and we ran a blind demo run and the difference is unbelievably obvious. Not only did the satellites on the 5500s sound like TV speakers - but the sub was a one note wonder. The z5500s just can not compete with the Klipsch promedia 4.1, 2.1s or the 5.1 ultras.


If you don't like getting ripped off, and you like nice full sounding speakers - get the Klipsch ultra 5.1s

 

[erikistired]

Originally posted by: Kaido

Originally posted by: PurdueRy

Originally posted by: houndawg
what i would like to know is if these speakers are indeed every bit as loathesome, how then did it obtain THX certification?

Because THX certification doesn't mean much in the audio world

My brother has the z-680s in his home theater; they sound great to me!

his home theater must be the size of a closet. while nice speakers, they certainly aren't designed to fill up a whole room with sound.

 

[jondl]

Originally posted by: TriggerHappy101
No - I just get frustrated when people don't know the difference between good sound and bad.

Some people just can't afford audiophile level speakers and haven't heard REAL speakers so you can't really blame them. For most people that just want something better than the crap stock speakers that came w/ their computer, the 5500s is all they will ever need.


[/quote]The 5500s are utter crap. I had my friend bring his system over and we ran a blind demo run and the difference is unbelievably obvious. Not only did the satellites on the 5500s sound like TV speakers - but the sub was a one note wonder. The z5500s just can not compete with the Klipsch promedia 4.1, 2.1s or the 5.1 ultras.


If you don't like getting ripped off, and you like nice full sounding speakers - get the Klipsch ultra 5.1s
[/quote]

I personally owned the z5500s and a friend of mine owned the promedia 5.1 ultras and sure, the klipsch sounded a little better but i wouldn't go as far as calling the 5500s complete crap.. just my 2c

 

[Kaido]

Originally posted by: PurdueRy

Originally posted by: Kaido

Originally posted by: PurdueRy

Originally posted by: houndawg
what i would like to know is if these speakers are indeed every bit as loathesome, how then did it obtain THX certification?

Because THX certification doesn't mean much in the audio world

My brother has the z-680s in his home theater; they sound great to me!

They aren't bad...no. But they are near-field speakers...meaning they aren't designed to be listened to at distance. In larger rooms they will die. But for the money, I agree, they are pretty decent. I would favor the Klipsch's for the fact that they have a tweeter.

Definately true. But if you're buying z-680s or z-5500s, you're probably on a budget, which probably means that you don't have a huge house/apartment/condo.

 

[shoegazer]

Sound quality is extremely subjective. Nearly as much as musical taste. What's good for one person is horrible for the next.

Personally, I think that the higher end logitech's sound better than the higher end klipsch computer speakers. The highs on the klipsch are irritatingly over the top. The logitechs sound smoother and don't really need a tweeter because they feature relatively high quality full range drivers that are often used in DIY speakers.

As for the cables...it shouldn't make any difference..

 

[SparkyJJO]

Originally posted by: jondl
I personally owned the z5500s and a friend of mine owned the promedia 5.1 ultras and sure, the klipsch sounded a little better but i wouldn't go as far as calling the 5500s complete crap.. just my 2c

QFT

The Klipsch may be better than the Logitech Z5500 but not everyone has the extra cash just lying around. The Z5500's are in no way crap - they sound better than my old Z560 speakers and those were great already.

Originally posted by: TriggerHappy101
You sir are tone deaf and ignorant.

and you sir need to take your elitist attitude someplace else. Just because some ppl aren't as picky as you on speakers doesn't mean they are tone deaf and ignorant :roll:

 

[SparkyJJO]

by the way, lets keep this on topic as to answering the OP's question, not arguing about personal opinions on speakers.

16 gauge will work fine