re: mic cables

[Joe Mahan <joe.mahan@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

From: "Howard Herrnstadt"

>I wonder if cables can be tested to show which ones have less resistance. If
>a cable has a lower guage wire (i.e. thicker) it might function more
>efficiently.


The resistance won't be much of an issue for typical cable lengths. The 
more important factor is the tribolelectric characteristic of the wire. 
Good quality microphone cable has carbon-like powdery material in between 
the shield and the insulator to reduce the tendency of the cable to act 
like a piezo pickup and create electrical noise when the cable is moved.

You can do a crude comparison of the triboelectric effect in cables by 
shorting one end, plug in the other end, and wiggling the cable.

Joe