Flexible RCA cables

I am in need of some flexible RCA cables of good quality.
I have been looking at Monoprice and Blue Jean cables, but they look to be a stiff cable which will be problematic for me.
Another cable I am looking at is the Belkin cables.
I have many old rca cables that I am starting to experence trouble witch is the reason I am going to replace them all.
Any insight into good quality flexible cables will be apreciated.

I am confused about the degree of flexibility that you are looking for. Are you talking about cables that are so flexible you could use them to for shoelaces (pretty much like the cheapies that come with every piece of electronic equipment that has an RCA jack)? Or are you concerned that the cables you described cannot make the bend from component A to component B if stacked upon one another?. If its the later, the premium Monoprice RG-6 based cables can certainly fold in half (with a bulged loop at the closed end).

How flexible do you need? The Blue Jeans cables I have are a little rigid, but not unmanageably so. The MonoPrice cables I've used were more flexible than Blue Jeans, but it depends on what you get from them - they offer all the way from decent quality down to the throwaway stuff that comes packed in with cheap DVD players.

Cabinet is only 21 5/16 deep.
Have an amp that is 19' deep.

Will be using all the pre outs and ins on the 990, which with stiffer cables is problematic due to space constraints.

All cables will exit left from 990, out thru 2
3/8 " holes and re-inter the cabinet thru 2 3/8 to the respective components There are (6) 2 3/8 holes, cabinet is divided into 3 section, left and right sections for components, center for Center speaker and lower drawer.
The two outside compartments are 4" deeper than center compartment..
There is a removable back panels on both sides , the holes for the cables are on the sides near the back.
Another option I am looking at is making my own , but still need help on choosing a good flexible cable compatable with the comnectors.

It sounds like the bigger problem is the diameter of the cables. How many do you need to get through each 3/8 inch hole?

I am looking for decent cables.
I do have a good number of Dayton cables which I have had some problems with, so I am looking for something better. The Dayton's are flexible enough, just poor quality IMO.

2 and 3/8th inch holes . The problem is not the size of the cable per se ,but flexibility of the cable. If I need more hole space I can always cut in another.

Use a hole saw to drill more holes. You can also put two holes parallel to each other and use a saw to connect them forming a slot. Either sand them smooth or purchase flexible banding material to clean up the cuts and you can make most of your runs with very little cable bending.

I did this on the "entertainment system" in the family room which is really a curio cabinet that is only 12" deep. Once I found components that fit I cut the holes and routed the cables. With careful planning you'll never be able to see the holes and slots.

Note: Most of my cables are MonoPrice.

I second EEman, matter a fact he took the text from my fingers.

Anything that tight will get warm anyway, the new holes will help with air flow as well as the cable management issues.

What EEman describes is similar to what I did with our cabinet. I created cut-outs behind the power amp and surround processor, and I have contemplated doing something similar behind the Blu-ray player since I am still hooking up my player via multichannel analog as well as HDMI.

in post # 13 there are some pictures as to what this cabinet looks like http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1173635
This is exactly what I am having built here localy. The open back in the first picture shows what it is I am dealing with. Stiff cables will be a problem. Drilling holes in the back panel is not what I prefer to do.

Blue Jeans has this on their site. It is more flexible than others and will work fine for your application. If you really need extra flexibility, I suggest getting the cables long enough so you can let them rest on the floor for support and then they can avoid real sharp bends and twists. Just remember to keep some distance between them and power cords for best performance. You could also try removing the back panel altogether. Cutting more/bigger holes is what I would try first.

Belden 1505F:
Belden 1505F was our recommended audio cable prior to the introduction of LC-1. It also has double-braid shielding, and is a bit thinner, more flexible, and more economical. If you will be wanting to have your audio cables bundled together in Techflex wrap (see below), we recommend 1505F because LC-1 becomes quite thick and heavy when bundled and can pull hard on equipment jacks. View the technical specs for Belden 1505F.

I looked at you pictures (that is a very nice credenza). It looks like from the picture where the back of the credenza is shown, that you need to route the cables through the large predrilled and finished holes either down or across the back into another bay. Is that correct? If so, I believe the Monoprice premium RG-6 based cables would easy be flexible enough. They are certainly cheap enough that you shouldn't really be hurt by ordering one and testing it.

It is correct.

I should have posted that if you buy a single monoprice cable, you can also determine if these cables are of sufficient quality to meet your needs. Besides Blue Jeans and Monoprice, Outlaw has its own line of interconnects plus resells part of the Perfect Path line.

Wow. That looks like a challenging run.

What about using some Right Angle Adapters for the connects close to the hole? Some combination of right angle and straight cables might get you what you need.

Looks to me like you are going to run out of room real quick.

I was thinking about right angle adapters, too, but those create a whole separate problem with wiring (namely conflicts with adjacent connections).

This may be the engineer in me pushing against aesthetics, but I am a big proponent of having decent access to the back of my gear. It makes ventilation better, it reduces headaches during setup, it leads to fewer mis-connections and loose connections, and it tends to make for tidier wiring.

How will you access the units to make the connections? Will they have to slide out (meaning you need 18" of slack to allow the equipment to come forward while remaining connected), or do you have a way of connecting the gear once it's on the shelf?

My 990 and 886 are too deep for my cabinet so I built a shelf extension on the back of the cabinet and cut the back panel out to allow the whole back of the 990 to stick out back. It made for great ventilation but it also makes it a lot easier to access. I use right angle connectors for my sub inputs and can tell you they won't work on the back of your gear because they take up so much space and they are not deep enough to let your cables attach without a lot of stress on the jacks.

My equipment will slide in from the back asthere is a removable panel.
I could be happy hving all my gear sitting on cinder block with wood planks. It is my wife of 37 years that has a problem with it. I am no closer to winning this battle than I was 37 years ago. Aesthetics is everything to her, and seeng wires is a phobia she has yet to overcome.
Some of my " cheap " rca cables will work fine but are over 30 years old, so failures with them could be more problematic as time goes on. I plan on replacing all of them .
The flexibility I am looking for that, I can make work, is that of Radio Shack Sub cable
The sub cable has no markings.

I'd suggest ordering a couple sample cables from MonoPrice and Blue Jeans (the Belkin 1505F that is available for analog audio as well as digital audio & video), testing them, and then ordering a batch of new cables once you find ones that have the combination of flexibility and sufficiently short plugs that you need.

It does seem that the RCA conectors themselve need to be short.
I have thought long and hard about builing my own cables , knowing that Belden 1505 bulk cable can be bought for $1 a foot,,

That's also an option...

I don't know if its still in the archives but a poster with a handle similar to Soundhound (its changed over the years) put together a great DYI on building your own cables. Needless to say it was meticulous. I am guessing it was over 5 years ago, so if you look I would start there.

I don't know if 73Bruin is referring to me but I built my own RCA cables using RG59 cable with Permaseal 75 ohm connectors. I documented the process in this thread . I got a lot of help from other forum members and the cables have worked well. Let me know if you have any questions.

AvFan - I was referring to an even older link which as I recall now was removed from this forum. But to prove that very few things of value really go away once posted on the Interet, I found the following by googling soundhound rg-59 diy.

However, on the original topic on this thread, it looks like the RCA's that soundhound recommended from Carnare are pretty long and may not be a good fit for the OP's need.

Ahhh. Thanks for finding a 2003 (!!) thread on soldered connectors. Now we've got the info for another few years. Altec/Soundhoud's DIY cables were pretty elegant and I suspect they'd hold up better than my compression style connectors if they were plugged in/out often.

intial thoughts are these :
After buying
100 ft Beldin 1505f cable @ 0.66 a foot
(38 ) Liberty RCA compression fitting @ $2.04 a peice
Coax cable stripper and Compression tool ?
I will be looking @ close to $200
Cost per pair of cables less than $20,half the cost of BJ cables, 9X the cost of Monoprice.
I know the pleasure that comes with DIY projects that are successful. I also know the devastation when failure consumes one fadding ego.It all seems simple enough that I will take the risk.

It was fun reading back through the search result of sounhounds post. The Salon was hub of great activity just a few years back.Thanks for the help .

Bill, I have the same Standout Designs unit as the picture in the post. I am using Blue Jeans Cables to connect my 1070 to my 7500. I have the back extender (as in the picture) and just run the cables from the 1070 directly to the 7500. I don't go outside through the wire management holes for these connections.

I am having it built to be 24" wide instead of the 22". At the time I thought all I would need is the 24", and not the 26" an extender would give me.
It looks as if I may have not given myself any wiggle room.
I have some wood working tools that I can use if I need to add some more depth by making an extender
I believe it all should work except for the APC J15. The power cables that plug into it are just to stiff . I will probably have to cut out the back panel behind the J15 and add some depth.
The shelving will be one inch narrower than the inside dept to allow the cable to run top to bottom as you describe
There should be only 12 av cables that exit/enter the cabinet
8 speaker wires and 5 power cables

On the one side I will have
990
Carvin 2 channel amp
Oppo DVD P
Cambridge Audio CD P

On the other
APC J15
Parasound 5 channel amp
Direct TV box


I ordered all the parts / tools to make my own RCA interconnects yesterday.
Hopefully everything works as it is supposed too.This could turn out to be one of those coulda shouda woulda moments I have come all too familar with. The cabinet my not have any back panel after I get finished.

I recieved my cable yesterday and it is flexible , not as flexible as microphone cable, but close enough.
Surprised that the Cable I bought from Rawcable.com shipped from Blue Jeans Cable .
They are getting my money one way or the other.

Wish I had just bought the Blue Jeans Cable instead of making my own .
Only half the cables made work..The braided center did not work in the compression fitting me thinks. I cut each cable two inches longer than I need because I know I may just screw up . There is no room for two screw ups though.
I have some extra compression fitting, so I will cut the RCA connectors off the cable, solder the braided center core ( lightly ) and istall in new compression fitting and see if that doesn't solve the problem.

I never had enough patience to do it myself knowing that if I screwed it up I couldn't send it back.

Did you ohm out the cables after you built them? Test continuity of the center conductor and the shield then test for a short between the shield and the center conductor.

Sometimes it easy for one little strand of the wire to bend back on insertion to the connector and short out to the shield. If you don't have a short but one of the conductors is open then you didn't strip back the insulator far enough or didn't slip the connector on the wire far enough.

There's a how to video on the Liberty site and they also have a tech support phone number. You might give them a call and see if they can provide any insight. According to their specs the connectors are supposed to work with Beldin 1505f.

The Liberty connector was supposed to be for Belden 1505F, but installing the cable into the fitting I could never push it in as far as the viewing slot. The fit was so tight it pushed back the outer jacket back .My hands were sore as heck from pushing twisting pushing twisting etc.
The other problem was the inner braid was missing that ity bity hole. By removing the compression ring, and slidding it up the cable, I was able to push the cable in ( to the viewing slot )and test , if it was good, slide the compression ring back onto the RCA plug and compress it.If it wasn't , remove the cable and start over.
( When it didn't work the inner braid was balled up.)