Single Strand Or Multistrand Wire?

[steve00]

I've noticed that all the strats I've worked on all use 7 strand wire (20 gauge?). I ran out of wire when installing some new pickups and bought some 22 gauge single strand copper wire. Is multistrand the way to go when wiring guitars? Will this single strand copper wire that I have work OK for guitar wiring? Thanks,

Steve

[rubber314chicken]

yeah, no problems. all it does is add a LITTLE resistance, but when we are talking about 8,000+ ohms, you woln't hear a difference (as is adding 3 ohms of resistance.)

[Southpa]

Both can be used but multistrand is the best alternative. Solder soaks into the braid which gives a more solid joint. Single strand is more likely to break inside the insulation from fatigue (too much pinching / bending in one spot).

[steve00]

Thanks for the info. What is the preferred gauge for guitar wiring? Can anyone recommend a good online retailer to purchase this?

[Jonathon]

Also, with single core wire it's much harder to manipulate and use. Multi core wire is what you want for most things really...

[GregP]

How so, Jon? Single-core wire of sufficient thickness will just bend into shape and stay put, making it easier to manipulate. Though, multi-strand wire with the right jacket would also be easy to use.

[Jozer99]

I was under the impression that each had its advantages and disadvantages:

Solid Core Pros

- Stiffer

- Lower resistance/length

- Higher current carrying capacity at a gauge

Solid Core Cons

- Stiffer

- Brittle (won't stand up to tons and tons of bending without metal fatigue and even breakage)

- Harder to solder with (you may need pliers to twist it, requires more solder for a solid connection)

- More stress on solder joints (stiffer wire means more stress on the mounting points when it is moved)

- Usually more expensive

It seems to me, in a guitar application, many of the "pros" of solid core wire are unimportant (you aren't carrying much current, and you are already dealing with a super high impedance circuit, a couple 1/10ths of an ohm won't matter).

However, the cons are important. If you tinker with your guitar, you may actually move the internal wires around enough to cause metal fatigue. It will certainly be much harder to wire up a tight control cavity with stiff wire.

Anyway, that just my humble opinion.

How so, Jon? Single-core wire of sufficient thickness will just bend into shape and stay put, making it easier to manipulate. Though, multi-strand wire with the right jacket would also be easy to use.

[GregP]

No doubt-- you'd have to plan out the solid-core scheme a bit better, so that you're not just sending wires all over the place and needing to redirect them. But if you have it all planned and mapped out, the stiffness would then be an asset. And depending on your approach, you wouldn't always have to twist it around the lug, either. Unlike flexible multi-strand, you can press it solidly up against the surface, making positive contact, and solder it in place.

Each probably has its advantage. I think it'd be easier to wire up a tight control cavity with stiff wire, though-- IF you plan it out properly. It'd be easier to solder with the multi-strand wire if you're going to need to weave in and out of wires that are already in place.

Greg