How far can you run interconnect leads?

[The Excession]

Got a problem as a mate wants to run the audio from his DVD player into his HiFi.

Only issue is that the DVD and HiFi are about 15 metres apart (in a pub you see).

Could I run a set of shielded audio leads (and solder my own phono plugs at each end) over this distance?

There is an optical out on the back of the DVD so I could run that instead, but then I'd need to buy converters to get the input into the back of the amp as it has no optical inputs.

Any suggestions?

Thanks

[Toffer]

Stick with good quality screened signal cables...using the F/O link idea just makes it complicated for no reason.

[The Excession]

Toffer said:

Stick with good quality screened signal cables...using the F/O link idea just makes it complicated for no reason.

Thanks fella! The cheapest option too... I like.

ETA

I'm guessing individually screened cable will be better than overall screening? (Will it make any difference?)

Thanks

Edited by The Excession on Tuesday 10th January 15:08

[TonyRPH]

As it's in a pub, I'm guessing that sound quality is not an issue.

Most likely, you'll lose some treble, that's all.

It just depends on two factors:

1) The quality of cable you use (you want some low capacitance stuff for a long run like this)

2) The quality of the audio output stage on the DVD player - although these days, even the cheapest of players use generic OPAMPS in the audio output stages, and they'll drive just about anything.

[cjs]

15m. Any screened cable will do, done it hundreds of times. Or you can buy long phono cables ready made if you don't want to solder.

Oh and to answer your question "How far can you run interconnect leads". Well I've run unbalanced signal cables, of dubious quality, over 50m+. Anything longer should be balanced though.

Edited by cjs on Tuesday 10th January 18:57

Edited by cjs on Tuesday 10th January 18:58

[Driller]

Another here who has run 15m phono cable with soldered ends with no worries.

Got a 100m drum of stereo phono cable and plugs for £15 from CPC.

[Famous Graham]

Had 10m runs of shielded component and phono done a few years ago by a shop in King's Walk in Reading - can't mind the name now. Think it cost me 50 all in.

[The Excession]

Thanks everyone, good stuff to know.
But one last Q, should I be going for individually screened or will overall screening work?

I'm thinking the way UTP/CAT5 works with unshielded twisted pairs.


I was at our local electrical factors today just inquiring about cables. (They're not the sharpest tools in the box, though happy to help as they loaned me a tone generator cable tracer for a day)

They had some stuff that was two core overall screened - no screening between/around the individual cables but the cable had a shield. What would you do with that shield? Solder it to the black and red ground in the phono plugs?

They also had some stuff that was 2x twin core, each pair screened and overall the whole lot was screened as well. That would work well I think but I coughed at the cost.

And they had some that was all I could call as being bell-wire with no screening...

[TonyRPH]

You want something like this

[buggalugs]

I have actually soldered phonos onto unshielded cat5 to run round the perimeter of my lounge Sounds fine to my heathen's ears.

[cjs]

1 pair overall screened (mic cable) will work fine. It would be better to use the figure of 8 stuff shown above, easier to solder and crimp the phonos.

[The Excession]

Thanks a lot chaps.