Live and Let Tie?

[PeruvianSkies]

I am sure that this question has gone around quite a few times and I personally have gone back and forth with various outcomes. The question is:

Should you use any type of 'ties' to keep your cables together?

Years ago I tied everything together to make it look neat and clean. Then I realized that this might not be a good idea with power cables, audio cables, and video cables to all be gathered together.

Next I kept "like items" together and tied only similar products and cable-types together to keep power isolated from video or audio.

I have also tried no-ties and usually get frustrated with how sloppy it looks. I really like things to look clean, but not if it's going to have an effect on the quality.

So what is everyones viewpoint on this issue? I can personally vouch that having power cords near my speaker cables is a BIG NO NO as I get tons of interference.

[Luvin Da Blues]

I keep all "like" cables isolated from other cables also. Instead of ties I use split foam tubes that they put around plumbing pipes for frost protection. Makes for a real neat install.

I've see people use that plastic wire loom that you find under the hood of your car.

[Dusty Chalk]

If I could, I'd use spacers to keep all cables apart. Unfortunately, that's not realistic.

[Rich-n-Texas]

I like my cables orderly too. I used tie wraps and anchors to route the audio cables out of the cabinet and down to the floor. This also provides strain relief for the speaker wires because I used the bare wire connection method at the receiver terminals. I did separate power cords, but unfortunately the current power strip I'm using has only a 3' cord so it's in the path behind the cabinets. That'll change though with the Tripp Lite strip that's on its way. IIRC, power wires can intersect with A/V, but they shouldn't run in a parallel path over "long" distances. The speaker wires and sub cable bunch and unbunch along the route and I used bread wrapper type twist ties when I laid them out.

I needed to replace the Component video cable from the DVD to the TV, and it seemed as though 3 piece video cable sets were readily available, so I decided to buy one. I didn't do any research into the advantages or disadvantages of using three separate RGB wires as opposed to one molded set, but maybe there are reasons for separating them that would also apply to other A/V cables. I'm going from a 6' molded cable to a 12' AR (couldn't find 10' and the 6' was straining the ends) so I may not see a difference.

I'm sure a lot of people would like to see a definitive answer to this question.

[westcott]

I prefer cable trays\ducts. The industrial style that allows a cover to be snapped on and off while cables can still be allowed to enter and exit the length of the tray.

I use separate trays for power, speakers, and audio video cables.

I agree, power is the biggest concern and how it is routed and try to keep it as far away as possible from other cables. If I do have to cross power with AV cables, I try to make it a 90 degree intersection, reducing its affects considerably.

I really don't have a problem with cable ties. Good cables should tolerate this configuration and we use them in Emergency Shut Down and turbomachinery control systems all the time. Our primary concerns are with RFI and EMI, so shielding is important when it comes to cables.

http://cableorganizer.com/wire-duct/

Hope this helps.

[Micycle]

when you were young, and your heart was an open book, you used to say, "live and let live." You know you did, you know you did, you know you did...

Sorry, no help there, but I couldn't resist