hookup wire

[dude]

Buying wire, most is 300 volts, figured it ok as the amp draw is low? Generally, I figure 22 solid gauge - wire to bd. and tubes, ok. But from power filter caps, stand-by, on/off, from rectifier tube to bd, would one use stranded 20 gauge or thicker, 22 stranded ok..?


Basically asking where do you use stranded vs. solid gauge, and is 20 gauge stranded and 22 solid all I need?


thanks,
al

[sluckey]

I use 20AWG and 22AWG Teflon insulated stranded wire only. No solid for me.

[PRR]

Haven't we had this argument over and over again??

Voltage and current are entirely different limits.

NEC draws a line at 300V, covers 120/240V work, anything higher is special. There are few special needs in today's 3.3V world. So most wire just is not tested for higher voltage.

A good coat of paint will stop 300V. We always have MUCH more plastic than that, to resist mechanical abuse, not electric stress.

The 300V is for tightly bundled wires. If you run your 450V wires out in the open, the air takes most of the voltage stress.

I can't imagine the 450V wires in any amp under 150 Watts need to be "big". You pick a gauge which will survive road-trips, the world tour, the jeep-ride up Rocky-Top, etc. #20 stranded ought to be ample.

[dude]

Sounds good to me, 20 gauge stranded for power supply, 22 for hook-up, solid, stranded...?  Preference stranded.., but hard to do heaters with stranded 20 gauge, even 22, at least for me.


 

[Willabe]

Isn't 600v in 20g/22g about the same $$ as 300v, when you buy spools of it?



 

[sluckey]

Preference stranded.., but hard to do heaters with stranded 20 gauge, even 22, at least for me.

Learn how to properly tin the wire.

[dude]

I hear ya, properly tin stranded wire can be close to the thickness of solid, same gauge. I assume to properly tin stranded wire, strip, twist tightly, tin..., correct?
Beside conductivity what are the benefits of stranded vs solid? To me solid will break more easily when over stressed, (excessive bending), on the other hand, it stays put. So, I guess the only reason to use stranded is it doesn't break as easily as sold. It also seems that wrapping a strained wire around a turret can get a little messy vs solid...? Just an opinion, but as Sluckey says there is a proper way to use stranded wire, I'll have to search some of your work. Probably could use a lesson, hopefully Sluckey's work will provide that.
One other thing, Fender uses overhead filament wiring but the green cloth they use is like 18 gauge, why so thick?


Willabe, 600v wire is a more expensive even on the spool then 300v.
And PPR, I totally get the 300v vs the 600v overkill, wasn't questioning that but I'm 100% with you, thanks for posting that.


al   

[PRR]

> Beside conductivity what are the benefits of stranded vs solid?

Stranded should have the same amount of copper, conductivity, as solid of the same gauge.

Conductivity is not an issue on the B+ side of an amplifier. (When wiring heaters on quad EL34, check it.)

Note that the usual "300V rating" is really a house-wire test. You keep it fully-volted for 50+ years inside the walls of your house.  No guitar amp stays powered-up 24/7/365 for 50 years. (ALL insulations will break-down over time; we usually figure wiring to survive centuries or more so it will NOT breakdown in our lifetimes.)

I happened to find HIGH-voltage hookup wire in a 1950s ad. I've contrasted it with a modern "300V" hookup wire. The hi-volt stuff was 32,000V puncture, 10,000V suggested working, and had 0.0355" PE insulation. Today's Alpha "300V" is 0.016" of PVC, about half the thickness of a really better plastic. So it would be conservative to work the "300V" stuff at say 4,000V, at least in a flying-lead situation like a CRT HV. Say half that in bundles, 2,000V. Disregarding OT plate leads (always use what the OT maker put on it), this is a 4:1 margin above any g-amp's internal voltages, on top of the 3:1 margin Hickory took for the 10KV working rating. So "300V wire" is likely 10X better than you need.

[EL34]

Haven't we had this argument over and over again??

This is one of those things that should be in the favorite post board if it is not already?
Then just post a link every time the 300v thing comes up again

I have had people email me pissed off because they bought 300v wire
Then I am pissed because I don't have the time to educate them
Sending them a link would be way better

[dude]

Since I started this post, I wasn’t asking if 300v hookup wire was sufficient, I was asking about gauge used not rated volts. Don’t know how this thread got to be about rated voltage. But yeah, for people that do ask, a link would be good.