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Audio Root Distro to DNS-2: DC cable gauge


Rachel Cameron

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I'm building a right angle DC cable that goes from my Audio Root distro to my Cedar DNS-2. The wall wart that shipped with the DNS-2 was built with 22AWG.

In the wall wart graveyard, I found some 24AWG and some 18AWG, but no 22AWG. In a quick search of the site here, I found advice regarding 22-24 being fine..but my question is: Could I make this DC cable build a bit sturdier? I was wondering if it was okay to do the build with the 18AWG.

Any advice for my build here?

Thanks for any help,

Rachel

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  • 1 month later...

Closure. Looks a bit rough, but I took the liberty of clipping the 1 and 4 solder cups flush and stuck soldered the ends down inside. I pulled 2 and 3 completely, since they were only vestiges from a previous life. I trimmed the little nylon wall between them. Hot melt glue and a razor. The cable is mighty burly for bag work now. 22-24 ga. was wimpy. I can sleep now. 

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Edited by Rachel Cameron
Added better pic, phrasing clarification
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Very true, Vin. But since it didn't matter...inside a busy bag, it'll just last longer. I've had wall warts with 24ga. coming out of them. I always think it's scary thin, and then they eventually break under heavy use, or fray. But this one's tough as nails. I love my sturdy cable.

And I got permission from the wiring lords here, anyway.

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Most of the devices we use draw very little current, and therefore the voltage drop over short runs is of little consequence, which means that using small gauge cable is fine for that application.

However -- Even in a bag, and especially on a cart, using heavier gauge cable will result in less issues with ground loops.

 

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Rachel, sounds like you didn't solder the conductors to the XLR-4 pins? You clipped the pins flush and just pushed them in? I'm confused by why you wouldn't just solder to the pins. Is it because the conductor was too fat to fit in the cup?

 

John, how does having heavier gauge DC power cables result in less ground loop issues? I thought ground loops were more about electrical path and having more than one 'ground'.

 

Thanks,

Derek

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4 hours ago, Derek H said:

John, how does having heavier gauge DC power cables result in less ground loop issues? I thought ground loops were more about electrical path and having more than one 'ground'.

All wire has resistance.  That resistance causes voltage drop.  Ground loops are about the different ground potential between circuits. 

Yes, if there is only one path to ground, then you don't have different potentials to ground (or between gear).  

However, each piece of gear needs a path to ground or you don't have a completed circuit.  In most cases that path to ground is via connecting cables.  The lower the resistance of those cables, the less difference in potential between grounds.

Note that ground potential isn't just about ground loops causing hum, it also figures into RF susceptibility.

 

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  • 1 year later...

Doubling back for a report that my burly RA DC cable is doing fine, and It's been in and out of three bags several times since.

 

But above all: I also wanted to qualify something I suspected for a while. I pulled the unused pins (2,3) on the XLR, and the corresponding pins on the Hirose for a good reason - so there was nothing to cross to in the case of a bad joint (except of course, pin 1). This happened one day, and it made the DNS-2 go dark for a while. When it came back I was pretty relieved. It happened again before I began to suspect this: I couldn't tell if it was crossing to pin 1 or 2 or 3 in the Hirose, really. Also compounding the problem, was that the chuck on the Hirose would not clamp down on the tiny 24AWG (hence the 18 ga.). I cleaned up the solder joint, and added a tiny dab of hot melt glue at the Hirose end, and filled the XLR at the other end. It hasn't happened again since, so I figure that was what it was... 

 

Any similar power experiences with this item?

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  • 4 weeks later...

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