Using a 6" length of 28 AWG IDC10 cable for audio hookup?

Is it feasible to use a 6" length of 28 AWG IDC10 cable to hookup a front panel to an audio PCB? The front panel contains: input and output stereo jacks, a volume control potentiometer, and a 12 VDC 1A power input jack.

Thank you in advance, 73,

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Don Kuenz KB7RPU 
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Don Kuenz
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I would say only if the conductors are shielded or twisted pairs. 6 inches is not very long (15cm for everyone else) and if in a metal cabinet and well shielded power supply should be OK, but I'd still want twisted pairs for signal lines.

John :-#)#

Reply to
John Robertson

I would put a ground wire between each signal lead to minimize crosstalk, but otherwise it shouldn't be an issue. So 10 wire may not be enough.

Not sure 28 gauge is enough for 1 amp of current. That wire will be pretty warm. Use two and it won't be a problem.

So 2 power, 3 ground, 4 input/output and whatever you need for the potentiometer which may also need isolating grounds.

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  Rick C. 

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Rick C

The power input jack is on the front of the enclosure? kinda odd.

I might feel OK putting local regulated/well-filtered DC bus voltages in an IDC cable next to line-level signal but not the main PSU input from the $5 switching wall-wart with 200mV of dreck riding on it, no.

Reply to
bitrex

I've seen line-level signals to and from front panels sent over runs of a foot or more of just zip-tied random wire bundles connected to the PCB with plastic female headers into male terminal header pins; it might not be "best practices" but it's cheap and seems to work well enough for rock-and-roll. a hundred million pieces of prosumer "kit" have been built that way.

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bitrex

To be correct in terms I mean plastic female connectors into male box-headers.

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bitrex

keep the impedance down or make the inout differential & you can get away with it over fairly long distances.

NT

Reply to
tabbypurr

Thank you everyone for more-or-less confirming my suspicions that using unshielded 28 AWG ribbon cable as audio and power hookup wire is a poor choice for this case, a 2 3/4" X 4" Bud box literally and figuratively crammed full of components.

Rick C, the 12 VDC 1A wall wart output is a worst case scenario. The circuit theoretically ought to draw no more than a few hundred milliamps. But that's too darned close to the 28 AWG wire's 228 milliamp current carrying capacity at 700 circular mils per amp.

bitrex, you may refer to Intel's AC97 standard. Although it's a step in the right direction its 9 pin IDC header is too limiting for this particular project.

John's twisted idea works best. It inspired me to solder like a mad man last night. The whole point behind my now discarded ribbon cable scheme was to

1) avoid a tangle of hookup wire and 2) enable easy disconnection. Twisted wire is a great compromise that achieves both goals /and/ cuts the hookup length down to a mere 3". A triple twist is used for stereo signals. It looks like this:
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Plain vanilla twisted pair is used for the power connection. The PCB end of the hookup bundles are inserted into SIP sockets, which provide the easy disconnect:
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Allow me a small rant about the Cat 5 twisted pair solution that was discarded along the way to my ultimate hand twisted 26 AWG wire solution. Although the printed label on the outside of every piece of Cat 5 twisted pair cable examined by me clearly states "24 AWG," in actuality, it's 28 AWG every single time.

Thank you, 73,

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Don Kuenz KB7RPU 
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Don Kuenz

??????

the +5V power connector on the AC97 header is fed from a well-regulated and filtered rail for the audio codec circuitry on the mobo designed to supply relatively small current for e.g. a front-panel mounted headphone amp or status LEDs, they don't route the whole +5 system supply bus thru that.

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bitrex

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