Robust, very low capacitance cables?

Greatape

Have been looking for very low capacitance cables for home/recording. A coloured jacket would be useful to help tell them apart. Is there anything appropriate available in the UK? I've got a Shootout cable at 52pF / m (doesn't appear to be selling any more), but can't find anything that low elsewhere. 

strtdv

Sommer Spirit LLX is 52pF/m and available at Thomann

ICBM

If it’s for home recording you could just use a very short cable and achieve the same result. Halving the length is the same as halving the capacitance, in terms of overall effect.

goldtop

I'd identify the problem first and then find the best solution. IME, few normal/everyday cables cause so much treble loss as to be a problem for home recording. And ICBM is right.

Danny1969

All the cables I make fo studios are generally very short, 2M normally. 

The capacitance of the cable is affected by the length and how close the inner conductor is to the surrounding shield. As this performs the same function as a capacitors dielectric (acting as a very poor dielectric)  ... with this in mind you could disconnect the shield from both jacks and then use alloy tape to shield the cable and complete the ground connection externally if the cable uses metal jacks.   

Never tried it, could have handling noise but would certainly have less capacitance as long as the tape has a very low resistance. 

I have never, ever found a cables capacitance to be an issue though unless it's more than 4 metres. Generally it's other things like poor shielding, shit jacks, handling noise etc. Sure some so knock a tiny bit of treble off but nothing that makes much difference unless the amp has no tone controls 

Greatape

Common sense and physics - thank you. Needed a bit of second brain input. 

PAL

George Ls Studio Cable.

robinbowes

Greatape said:

Have been looking for very low capacitance cables for home/recording. A coloured jacket would be useful to help tell them apart. Is there anything appropriate available in the UK? I've got a Shootout cable at 52pF / m (doesn't appear to be selling any more), but can't find anything that low elsewhere. 

I could make you some with the same cable - Sommer Spirit LLX, although I’d have to order it in. I have XXL in stock, and Van Damme XKE, which are both around the same capacitance - 86, and 90 respectively.

DM me if you’re interested.

R.

ICBM

It’s also worth mentioning that plugs have capacitance too - it’s quite small, but if you have an all-true-bypass pedalboard with a lot of short patch cables, the number of plugs relative to the total length of cable starts to make it significant, since the overall capacitance when all the pedals are off is the sum of all the cables and plugs.

Surprisingly, Neutriks are actually some of the worst, and cheap ‘pancake’ plugs some of the best. Among the best of all are those super-cheap moulded plastic ones you get in packets of six different colours… really . (OK, that’s because they’re not very well shielded, it’s a trade-off.)