# Westco RCA cables review



## minbari (Mar 3, 2011)

With so many RCA choices out there it is sometimes hard to decide what to go with. Do you choose a cheaper cable, save some money but risk poor build quality and the possibility of poor sound quality and noise? Buying a high end cable can easily be $50-100 or more.

A member on here has started offering an alternative at about half the cost. At around $25 avg for a 2.5' cable these are not the cheapest one on the market, but certainly not the most expensive either. They use a high quality Rean gold plated RCA connector and Canare L-4E6S 4 conductor microphone cable. This is a high quality studio grade cable.

My only negative for the cable is that it is quite a bit thicker than most RCAs you buy for car audio, about 1/4" thick, so it might be a little harder to install. The rubbery jacket might also tend to get stuck on things as you pull it, but these are minor complaints. It is very flexible.

Build quality is very good. I disassembled the cables to inspect the soldering work done and it is very good. (I have been solder certified as Abet level III for years) Solder flowed nicely on the connectors and didnt wick up into the wire, making it brittle. The insulation is not melted, which can be hard to do when soldering in such tight quarters. There is a small plastic insulator that provides some compression and strain relief to the cable. There is no compression collar on the RCA fitting itself, so some care should be taken when removing the cable by always pulling on the connector and not the cable. 

here are some pictures of the RCA connectors soldering work.




























One of the pictures that Westco has been providing with his sales and marketing pitch has been how low the ohms are on his cables. Although I have been somewhat hesitant about this since the amount of resistance in an RCA cable doesnt have much to do with how it will sound. There are consierations for it as well, since resistance and capacitance will form a filter and that could have negative effects on sound quality. So how do these cables stack up?

To do these kinds of tests you really need a DMM that will do "LoOhm" readings. most DMMs simply will not read accurately below 1 or 2 ohms. So to that end I am using a Fluke model 289. Good to about .001 ohms. That should be sufficient for our tests.

Here is the resistance in the test leads.










This is the resistance in the shield. subtract out the test lead resistance and we get 0.021 ohms.










This is the resistance in the center pin. Again, subtract out test lead resistance and we get 0.024 ohms










Both of these are low enough to be disregarded. But as mentioned above we need to also find out what the capacitance is to see is any filter effects are present.

Since 4 conductors are used for EACH signal signal wire (and conducts separated by insulators makes a capacitor) I was curious if there was any stray capacitance in the center pin conductors. Please note, This is a DC test, I dont have an AC capacitance tester. As you can see, there is none that my meter can read. The resolution of my meter is 1 nF.










This is the capacitance reading of the center pin and the shield. 0.379 nF










So here we get our answer. The collective resistance of 0.045 ohm and 0.379 nF gives us a cutoff frequency somewhere around 9.3Ghz. If you cant live with that, then I dont know what to tell you 

I will add to this review again once I have had some time to listen to the cables in my car. I plan to replace the cables I have in there now for my HLCDs. These are very sensitive drivers and differences in cables can be detected quite easily.

more to come......................


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## WestCo (Aug 19, 2012)

AWESOME!

HAHAHAHA!!!!

Thanks very much for this. I will be sure to send you my 99.99% silver conductor RCA's as well so that you can preform a similar test if you agree.

I am working to improve my soldering as well, you can see that I don't skimp on solder.
My soldering connection can withstand a good amount of force, with or without the plastic insert. I also warranty the cables for 5 years so I am happy to put new plugs on if needed. 

Would be great to see a comparison of other cables in the price-range. 

Many thanks for doing this, I am working on getting a low ohm meter... just need to make some more sales before it's in the budget. It's good to know the values I was giving people were in the "ball park" and with your more accurate equipment are actually lower.

I do listening based testing (from my friends in the field), if I don't get positive feedback from them... then I don't make the cables. 

We will be selling these under the company name "SounDrive" from SSA, wooferswarehouse, and vertex audio. Custom cable length, customization like Techflex, or 90 degree connectors can go directly through me. 

I am doing my best to keep up with all the orders!


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## minbari (Mar 3, 2011)

You still have my address. Go ahead and send me a set and i will do an eval on em 

sent from my phone using digital farts


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## WestCo (Aug 19, 2012)

minbari said:


> You still have my address. Go ahead and send me a set and i will do an eval on em
> 
> sent from my phone using digital farts


This is a proto-type set and they aren't pretty to look at. lol

But I greatly value your opinion. I will get them out to you.


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## Alrojoca (Oct 5, 2012)

Subscribed!


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## miniSQ (Aug 4, 2009)

i buy my cables from Blue Jean Cable..and i get the special application mini wire...which no doubt i'm sure westco could use. Super flexible and works great in tight spaces.

Miniature Stereo Audio Cables from Blue Jeans Cable


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## WestCo (Aug 19, 2012)

miniSQ said:


> i buy my cables from Blue Jean Cable..and i get the special application mini wire...which no doubt i'm sure westco could use. Super flexible and works great in tight spaces.
> 
> Miniature Stereo Audio Cables from Blue Jeans Cable


They are quality as well.
I should be able to make any of their offerings and I will pricematch with free shipping and a 5% discount.

Just sayin


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## Alrojoca (Oct 5, 2012)

How about the Connectors, are they so tight they feel like you will destroy your map when you remove them like most are?

The canare connectors are the best, The ones Blue Jean cables uses are the best but they are video connectors, no clue why BJ uses them since they are crimped and not soldered, the gold tip crimps on the tip of the conductor and clips inside the connector.

The Canare audio connectors are very nice, silver and they connect and disconnect very smoothly never giving the feeling that I am going to destroy my equipment, that is what I have on my CD player cables, the video RCA connectors feel even better connecting them and disconnecting them due to their patented spring design.

The problem is they are close to $5.00 each not $0.50 each


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## Thunderplains (Sep 6, 2009)

Rean is a very good connector, made by Neutrik which makes top of the line connectors. I've used the ones Westco is using, they are solid and probably should be at a higher price point.

Great write up Minbari, I will be doing some RTA tests on noise later this month after Joe ships me my lot of cables. I am going to drop them in the car and on my HT (where it is deafening silent) 

Already have the tracks selected for the test. So far, very impressed.


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## WestCo (Aug 19, 2012)

I know people use the "snake oil" argument against me, but I have to say a gold plated copper plug, is a gold plated copper plug. You will find that Nakamichi makes some of the WORST plugs in the industry and they cost much more than the Reans, which get good reviews and are very user friendly and hold up.

They do not pinch the amp or source inputs/outputs. And for the most part they will sound the same. Unless you are going to use silver wire, there is no point in getting crazy expensive RCA plugs.


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## WestCo (Aug 19, 2012)

Also avoid silver plated nickel plugs... at all costs.


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## Alrojoca (Oct 5, 2012)

Thanks
It is more about how they feel connecting them and removing them, most are extremely hard to remove or install. I know in a car is not a big deal, I had an issue once removing one, the connector came off the amp, it was easy to put it back on since it was just the metal over the plastic. Since then I use a coupler to connect them or get them loose before I connect them on the amp.


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## minbari (Mar 3, 2011)

Ok, As promised, here is the audio portion of my review.

After a couple week of listening to them I have to say that they sound very nice. Midrange is smooth, highs are uncolored. Everything you would expect from a decently built cable with good quality parts. The connectors fit nice and snug without being so tight that pulling them back off damages equipment. (there is no reason for RCAs that are soo tight that they cant be removed. its doesnt make a better connection)

The cable is super slinky and easy to route around on my amp board. I was able to route it exactly the same as the RCAs I had there. FYI, the ones that these replaced were my own design. RG-174 mini-coax was use for its quad shield and low capacitance. These have no noise, so the Westco cables had big shoes to fill. 

I will add, I dont subscribe to the idea that cabling has a large impact on audio quality. As long as the cabling is made with some thought and the correct type of cable is used for the application, most cables sound pretty much alike. (I know this is hottly debated) That said, for what Westco charges for these cables, they are a bargain! They perform just as well as cables that are 2-3 times as much. Add the fact that you can order them to length and the value keeps going up.

****edit

one other observation, these cables are only appropriate for use in unbalanced applications. (shielded with center signal.)


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## WestCo (Aug 19, 2012)

Here was an impedance comparison with my cables going up against SMD's offerings; both are 20 foot lines.





SMD's


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## rashk$ (Dec 29, 2014)

how much for 3 sets around 16.5 feet long.


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