Matching cables for car audio, a difficult task?

The selection of audio signal cables available in the market can be a daunting task. You have to first understand the character of your equipment and find a matching cable to augment your system.

Same goes for car audio, but honestly speaking the selection is less intimidating that home audio. Cables are like equalizers, where picking the wrong ones may destroy the whole tonal balance.

Car audio branded interconnects comes in many varieties, from the conventional two channel to even four channel in one jacket. Popular lengths are 2 meter, 3 meters and 5 meter pairs, depending on where the amplifier is placed. Personally, I prefer mounting the amplifiers under the front seats if space is available. This option allows me to invest in better signal cables that will not cost me an arm and a leg as compared to longer lengths.

Most car audio cables focus on shielding as the main priority because in general the car has a higher noise floor than home. Some cables reject noise better than others and therefore, most people will question the suitability of using home audio cables in car audio, arguing that shielding is insufficient. My answer is simple: understand the construction of the cable and try them. I have seen many home audio cables that is way quieter and performs leaps better than the best available car audio cables.

As a very basic sound guideline to using home audio cables in your car is to pick a cable with not too much emphasis on the highs. Remember, the sitting position in your car does not give you the distance compared to home audio and thus, the tweeters are much closer. A detail freak will most likely select a cable with only emphasis on highs and the end results will be a rather fatiguing and thin sound. My advice is to pick a cable that has good, clear and heavy but not overly done lows or a blend of clarity on the highs, mids and lows. Cables with good separation and imaging is a plus but it should never make the music thin or emotionless. Good lows tend to give a thicker and more analogue sound that is less tiring at loud volumes.

More on cables soon..... nothing beats trying!