I need to get a longer interspeaker cable for my LS50Ws.
I stumbled upon this online; https://m.int.kef.com/products/k-stream and co-incidentally I need exactly 6m of cable. But kinda pricey and I’d have to import one here to NZ.
Got me thinking, might be worth it if it was an analogue signal, but if it’s just data, couldn’t I just get away with a regular shielded CAT6 cable?
Any insights or thoughts?
If it’s just data between the 2 speakers, get a run of Cat6.
“high-speed oxygen free conductors, low-loss low-density polyethylene insulation” is marketing nonsense (well, it’s not complete nonsense - LDPE is a plastic, but it’s not like nobody else is using it to insulate wires).
Source: I work in marketing. Part of my university degree included plastics technology.
I just got a reasonable Cat 6 from Amazon. It’s worked perfectly for 14 months so far.
It was the following, but any decent Cat 6 should do.
Just got 20ft of cat7 from Amazon for precisely this purpose. Works like a charm.
Try and avoid shielded (STP) cable with metal connectors.
Shielded ethernet cables can potentially be a pathway for ground / leakage current loops, depending on the overall system.
Some helpful quotes from HQPlayer’s @jussi_laako (who knows a little about networked audio) on CA Forum:
Boring standard CAT6 UTP cables work just fine, since you get transformer isolation at every connector. Problem with STP cables is that it allows ground currents because the shield connects grounds of two devices, so it can be used only in carefully ground controlled environments.
STP cables which many audiophile network cables are, create ground links through the shield and thus spoil the galvanic isolation it would otherwise provide (because ethernet is transformer isolated by default).
When people ask me when they can use STP, my answer is generally that within a normal machine room 19" racks that are carefully grounded to a common ground using at least 4 mm2 copper wire and all equipment is powered through 3-pin IEC power from common power feed.
Here is the link:
Thanks @dabassgoesboomboom have you got a link to the CA Forum post? Would love to read a little more before I buy anything. I assumed getting the best quality shielded cables would be the best option.
Bought a 5 metre run of Cat6 from Amazon: not one complaint or concern. Did not pay outrageous sum for magic audiophile promises; just standard fare.
I remember my first HiFi interconnects where Chord - got them as a gamble thinking ‘they can’t make any difference, but what the heck…’
I was amazed!
30 years later, I bought some Cat6 for my LS50W too, worked fine.
Then I read K Stream and Chord and I thought ‘surely, that can’t make any difference at all?!
I was amazed!
It’s not night and day, but another of those veils has lifted - they’re on repeat now, burning in
Ho ho, I’m sure this’ll be of interest 
Andy
Thanks for the insight Andy, in the end I couldn’t find an NZ supplier that would bring them in, so I settled for CAT6A. Sounds like I will have to put back on the wishlist.
I bought a CAT7 thinking it was only data and it did not matter, but it failed me after 4 months:
Cat 7 Ethernet Cable 25 ft Shielded - Solid Flat Internet Network Computer patch cord - faster than Cat5e/Cat5/cat6 network, Slim Cat7 High Speed Lan Wire with Rj45 Connectors for Router, Modem- White
Jadaol Technology
https://www.amazon.com.mx/dp/B01B4705I4/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_-JBoEbF17F6M3
I can confirm this, bought this: https://www.amazon.com.mx/dp/B01B4705I4/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_-JBoEbF17F6M3 and it stopped working after 4 months (right speaker was dithering horribly, I thought the DAC had failed). I got back to the original cable but now I will buy a standard CAT6A as you say.
Thanks
A CAT 5e cable will work just as well. The CAT 6A (or higher) is not giving you anything more in a home based scenario.
I went with a Dynamix 5M CAT6 cable and have had no issues.
The KEF upgrade is good
