A question on xlr cables and fitting

[cafe67]

Hiya , 

 

I have xlr cables fitted to the cd player and phono stage running down the hegel integrated , however to align the xlr plug to fit the amp, I have to twist the cable rather than the cable neatly fitting in a “straight line”.

 

Hopefully that makes sense. 
 

is this normal for xlr cables ? I know my xlr cables are a shorter length ( 60cm or 75cm) rather the standard metre - could this be causing the need for the twist ? 
 

Edit -hopefully the attached photos explain it better than I do 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 9, 2023 by cafe67

[Neo]

59 minutes ago, cafe67 said:

is this normal for xlr cables

Yes. Have a think about how the cable is constructed then try to visualize the path that it needs to take to align both xlr plugs so they orient correctly in a V at each plug end. 
If you connected via xlr on the same shelf there would be no twisting as both plug orientations are the same. 
Neo
 

Edited November 9, 2023 by Neo

[rockeater]

2 hours ago, cafe67 said:

I have xlr cables fitted to the cd player phono stage running down the hegel integrated

Hopefully that makes sense. 

No it does not

CD players do not have phono stages. Amps do

 

But your pics explain it well.

If you do not live too deep South of the River, a bottle of VSOP cognac (for lubrication purposes) will solve your problem.

XLR plugs have strain relief which can be re-adjusted by a skilled and appropriately lubricated professional, to form nice and even loops.

O, they can be shortened by few centimeters to be just the right length for the particular setup.

[075Congo]

I have used different brands of XLR's to connect my SACD player to my Integrated amp.....either .75 or 1 meter.......TA Fractal F1, SR Excite, and now Kimber Carbon 8.......never had that 'twisting" occur. Wonder if it related to something in the Aurealis Audio construction but from memory the R1 Dragon is a very flexible cable. Wondering how much space you have behind the rack? If Geoff has recovered wonder what he would say about this. As of Nov 4 he seems to be making progress and is contactable.

Looks like the other Aurealis Audio (AgCu?) cables is twisting as well.Weird question..if you disconnect both cables from the rear of the amp how do they "sit".....does the twisting disappear?

Edited November 9, 2023 by 075Congo
More questions

[psychometrics1]

I have occasionally had it happen with various brands, eg Audience which were horizontal connections not a separate shelf

Edited November 10, 2023 by psychometrics1
Additional detail

[ray4410]

 i understand your problem as i have the same kind of situation with my Luxman amp because in their wisdom or lack of they decided to fit the xlr sockets sideways which means you have to twist the cable to connect and with some cables they just don't like to be  

[cafe67]

1 hour ago, 075Congo said:

I have used different brands of XLR's to connect my SACD player to my Integrated amp.....either .75 or 1 meter.......TA Fractal F1, SR Excite, and now Kimber Carbon 8.......never had that 'twisting" occur. Wonder if it related to something in the Aurealis Audio construction but from memory the R1 Dragon is a very flexible cable. Wondering how much space you have behind the rack? If Geoff has recovered wonder what he would say about this. As of Nov 4 he seems to be making progress and is contactable.

Looks like the other Aurealis Audio (AgCu?) cables is twisting as well.Weird question..if you disconnect both cables from the rear of the amp how do they "sit".....does the twisting disappear?

They just hang down from the cd player and phono stage ? 

[Neo]

The xlr plugs are oriented on the same plane just, just back to back with three conductors in between. Obviously some types of routing between the equipment can lead to slight twisting in order to align the plug/receptacle. Not entirely sure why we even discussing this let alone suggestions to contact Aurealis with this trivial inquiry. 
Neo

Edited November 9, 2023 by Neo

[cafe67]

2 minutes ago, Neo said:

The xlr plugs are oriented on the same plane just, just back to back with three conductors in between. Obviously some types of routing between the equipment can lead to slight twisting in order to align the plug/receptacle. Not entirely sure why we even discussing this let alone suggestions to contact Aurealis with this trivial inquiry. 
Neo

Because I’m curious about the why ! 

[Neo]

4 minutes ago, cafe67 said:

Because I’m curious about the why ! 

Wow, no real mystery here but let’s see how many pages this analysis will take. 
Neo

Edited November 9, 2023 by Neo

[cafe67]

1 minute ago, Neo said:

Wow, no real mystery here but let’s see how many pages this analysis will take. 
Neo

lol no honestly I was curious, I  just figured that xlr cables would be designed so they aligned with what I again figured would be a “ “standard” orientation of plugs - perhaps excluding wierd luxman side ways plugs

[075Congo]

If I had spent $633.95 plus postage on a set of R1's and they were twisting as in the photo I'd be giving Geoff a call......maybe a construction problem? Trivial or not! The XLR connections on the Hegel amp and on the CD player are identical so that should not cause the twisting.

Edited November 9, 2023 by 075Congo

[sir sanders zingmore]

This is a bit confusing I must say. Let’s say XLR connections are identical on two components and they can be connected side by side with no twisting. Now leave the cable plugged in and move one of the components to the shelf above. What happens to the cable - it must twist by 90 degrees. That’s simple geometry, nothing to do with cable construction. 
 

Or am I missing something?

[Hydrology]

28 minutes ago, sir sanders zingmore said:

This is a bit confusing I must say. Let’s say XLR connections are identical on two components and they can be connected side by side with no twisting. Now leave the cable plugged in and move one of the components to the shelf above. What happens to the cable - it must twist by 90 degrees. That’s simple geometry, nothing to do with cable construction. 
 

Or am I missing something?

No, I believe you are 100& correct. It is indeed simple geometry.

 

Of course, we could ask why XLR cable manufacturers don't centrally twist the cable to counteract geometry, but then this doesnt work if someone has components being connected in the horizontal plane rather than vertical...

[Analogueage]

I don't think I own a cable that does not require some sort of minor twist. I think the OP is fine with what he has, it's frustrating aesthetically but should not hinder performance.

Rob

[rantan]

 

I have been using the R1 Dragon XLR cable from my cd to my amplifier for several years and I have never has any "twist" issues, even with the Luxman sideways configuration. The player sits directly below the amplifier on the shelf below and the cable length is one meter.

I think shorter cables may be more prone to twisting and I never buy IC cables less than one metre in length.

Edited November 10, 2023 by rantan

[rockeater]

Solid core internal wiring will always cause some kind of twist, particularly on shorter cables.

Some dielectric material which is stiffer than usual and solidly glued to conductors would have the same effect.

Easy to remedy, but requires cutting of the heat-shrink to readjust plugs.

On these cables this is not an issue, because heat-shrinks are not (no longer?) joining plugs.

[Addicted to music]

Think about being those  electrons that have to travel the length of wire,  all of a sudden they need to go right angles due to a twisted wire path and they are hanging with there bare hands to get to where they want to go.   Also unwind the cables and don’t loop them,  if you do it’s like a roller coaster ride for them,  no wonder the SQ is different every time you move those cables.   Avoid getting the cables knotted,  because that restricts current flow.

Edited November 10, 2023 by Addicted to music