Wiring suround sound speakers

Workaholic

Well Lcd came last week. Got it on the wall with a tilt mount. Very easy to deal with. Got all our componets hooked up. Moved our big bulky entertainment stand in our master.
I hooked up our yamaha receiver, yet i need to hook up the three behind speakers. I do not want to have speaker wire running on the wall. I want to run it thru the attic and down thru the walls. Any tips for doing this? Should i just fish it through like wiring? What tools will i be needing to use? Thanks any info will be appreciated.

Or is the flat wire a good way to go.

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Sean

maverick214

I am not entirely sure but in order for you to be in compliance from an electrical coding perspective, I would think that you want to make sure that that the speaker wire is rated for in-wall usage. Or is that not applicable? Anyone confirm?

NightOwl888

Well, the amount of current going through surround sound speaker wire is not sufficient enough to start a fire, so that is a minimal concern.

However, I would probably go for a nice finish personally. Find some spring clip or binding post wall sockets and install them to the drywall using coarse screws.

Fishing the wire through the wall can be a challenge, especially if there is insulation or firebreaks in there. You might want to use an electronic studfinder to make sure there are no firebreaks in the way before you start drilling. Fishing it out is probably easiest with 2 people, drill the hole in the wall and then one directly above it in the attic through the top of the 2x4 on the wall. Make it big enough to put a small washer on a string and then have someone down below pull it out of the wall with a magnet or a magnetized screwdriver. Then you will be able to tie the string to the wire and pull it up - and on the second side, pull the wire down.

tribe_fan

I could be wrong - but even low voltage wiring ( cable too) is supposed to rated for in -wall. I think it has something to do with the fumes should there be a fire.

Sammy

The low volatge cable does not need to be rated for anything fire related unless its run in a plenum return which would be extremely unlikely in a residential application.

If the walls your dropping the cables in are interior, then they probably are not insulated which is good.

The stud finder is good just to see where things sit before you start.

I prefer fishing from the top down by drilling a hole in the top plate with a spade bit and dropping a string with a weight [old bolt, nut, fishing weight etc.] and using that to pull the wire. Coat hanger with a hook to grab the wire and somebody working above/below works well.

Blank electrical plates with a small hole for the cable to pass are nice. They allow you to make a bigger hole to fish, and still get a finished look when done.

hummin40

For the work involved with fishing it thru walls and attics why not try the wireless box from Best Buy. I saw one for $99 which makes your back speakers not wireless but wireless from the front system, whether it be the TV or DVD.... You only have wires from the back (wireless) remote to each speaker and those are easily hidden. No more wires around the room... just a thought.

NightOwl888

Wireless is an option if you don't mind spending a bunch of money on surround sound and then having the performance degrade over a wireless connection. Read the specs - wireless applications very rarely perform as well as wired speakers do. I once saw a device that allows you to wire your speakers through the AC wall outlet - if they have improved this it might be an option for ONE speaker, but it won't work for stereo (or 5.1 or 6.1 surround) applications.

But then, it all depends on what you expect from your sound system (and how much money it cost) vs how much time and energy you are willing to spend on it to wire it properly.