In this review we take a look at the best speaker wires for home theater and audio systems that provide high quality sound transmission. These audio cables are specifically designed for high-end speaker systems to deliver high quality music transmission without any signal loss or degradation in sound quality. We selected speaker wires that are made from oxygen free cooper and are rated for high performance with a multi-twist design. Furthermore, these speaker wires are compatible with banana plugs, spade plugs and bent pins, making them easy to install for home audio systems. These speaker wires are designed to be tough and flexible with a length of at least 100 feet for quality sound performance. Be sure to read our guide on how to choose the right wire gauge as well.
How to choose the right gauge speaker wire
If you are looking to install speakers and connect them to your A/V receiver or amplifier, you might be wondering what speaker wire gauge you should use.
American Wire Gauge (AWG) refers to the thickness of the wire in the cable. Generally, the lower the gauge number, the thicker the wire. This means that a lower gauge speaker wire will have less resistance than a higher gauge speaker wire as a lower gauge wire is much thicker and conducts more power efficiently.
To choose the correct speaker gauge, you’ll need to take a look at your speaker impedance rating. The speaker impedance (resistance) is measured in ohms.
For speaker wire to have no audible impact on your speaker performance, we recommend that the total wire resistance should not be more than 5% of the lowest impedance of your speakers. In this regard, using pure copper wires ensures that the total load output on the amplifier remains as close as possible to the impedance curve of your speakers.
For example, a 16 AWG pure cooper speaker wire would generally have a resistance of 0.8 ohms per 100 feet. If your speaker has an impedance rating of 4 ohms, a speaker wire run should not be more than 0.2 ohms in total. This translates into 25 feet of speaker wiring (16 AWG). Therefore, you should aim to keep your speaker wiring length below 25 feet to avoid any signal degradation and loss in audio quality.
Best Speaker Wire Comparison Table
| Picture | Name | Length | Gauge | Metal |
 | Mediabridge 2-Conductor wire | 100 feet | 14 AWG | Oxygen-free copper |
 | MaxBrite speaker wire | 100 feet | 12 AWG | Oxygen-free copper |
 | Gear IT Speaker Wire | 200 feet | 16 AWG | Copper clad aluminium |
 | eXtreme Speaker wire | 50 feet | 14 AWG | Oxygen-free copper |
 | InstallGear Speaker Wire | 30 feet | 12 AWG | Oxygen-free copper |
 | C&E Enhanced Speaker Wire | 100 feet | 12 AWG | Oxygen-free copper |
 | NavePoint Speaker Wire | 500 feet | 16 AWG | Copper clad aluminium |
 | Monoprice Access Series speaker wire | 250 feet | 14 AWG | Oxygen-free copper |
 | Ultra Series Speaker Wire | 12 feet | 12 AWG | Oxygen-free copper |
 | Cables Direct Speaker wire | 500 feet | 12 AWG | Copper clad aluminium |
View the best speaker wires below
#1 Best Overall: Mediabridge 14AWG 2-Conductor Speaker Wire
Speaker wire gauge: 14 AWG speaker wire
Wire Type: High strand count oxygen free copper wire
Compatibility: Banana plugs, spade tips, bent pin connectors
What we liked: Easy to install, tough and flexible
The Mediabridge 14AWG 2-Conductor speaker wire is one of the best speaker wire you can find for high-end audio speakers and home theater setups. This 2-conductor speaker wire allows you to easily connect your speakers to amplifiers or AV receivers. It is made from high-strand count oxygen free copper (0.16mm x 105 strands) 14 AWG conductors which are designed to deliver high-quality music signal without any degradation in quality. The wires are color-coded to distinguish left/right for matching polarity, making this speaker wire ideal for custom installs.
Furthermore, you can pair the speaker wire with banana plugs, spade tips or bent pin connectors for professional custom installations; it comes wrapped around a hard spool that allows for convenient measuring and cutting. We liked the fact that the speaker wire also has a tough exterior flexible white insulated jacket which is color coded for polarity and marked at 3 feet intervals for easy installation. This allows you to use the wires for undistorted sound performance and quality.
Apart from the quality construction, these speaker wires are ETL listed and CL2 rated which means that it is certified for in-wall usage. The flexibility of these wires is good, making them easy to install without any performance issues.
These speaker wires are ideal for high-end audio speakers and home theater systems, and are compatible with banana plugs. We did not hear any signal or hissing issues while using these cables, and they can provide plenty of signal power through the AV receiver to the speakers.
Overall, the Mediabridge 14 AWG 2-Conductor wire is one of the best speaker wire you can find that works well for any speaker audio installation, and we highly recommend them.
#2 Best Gauge Speaker Wire: MaxBrite High Performance 12 Gauge Speaker Wire
Speaker wire gauge: 12 AWG speaker wire
Wire Type: 65 strand pure copper wire
Compatibility: Compatible with bare wire connectors, banana plugs, spade tips
What we liked: Flexible installation, PVC jacket easy to strip off
If you are looking for the best gauge speaker wire for high-performance audio, go for the MaxBrite High Performance 12 Gauge speaker wire. These are very thick wires designed to transport audio signals across longer distances without signal quality issues, and provide excellent signal transmission for home theater and speakers. These speaker wires come with a flexible clear PVC jacket with red stripe polarity, and allows for fast and easy accurate installations.
The 12 AWG wire gauge is made from 65 strands of pure copper wire per channel, providing clarity and undistorted signal to home theater systems. The wires are made from 99.99% oxygen free copper conductors, and are compatible with bare wire connectors, banana plugs, spade tips or bent pin connectors. These are professional grade speaker wires that can be used for higher-end speaker installations and audio systems.
Furthermore, the MaxBrite speaker wires are UL safety certified and NEC 725 Class 2 Rated for home and commercial use. They are also sequentially marked every two feet in descending order from the start of the reel to the core for easy installation.
While we have to admit that these speaker wires are not the best looking cables around, the performance of these wires is excellent. They are perfect for any speaker to amplifier wiring and provide very good signal transmission without any distortion. The sound that you get with higher-end speakers should be noticeably clearer with these wires.
On the whole, the MaxBrite 12 AWG wires are one of the best speaker wire you can get for higher-end sound performance installations and we highly recommend them.
#3 Budget Speaker Wire: Gear IT 16 AWG Speaker Wire
Speaker wire gauge: 16 AWG speaker wire
Wire Type: Copper clad aluminium wire
Compatibility: Compatible with banana plugs, spade tips
What we liked: Good value for money, flexible installation
If you are looking for the best speaker wire on a budget option, the Gear IT 16 AWG speaker wire is the one you should go for. These are quality speaker wires that you can find on a budget that is made from quality stranded conductors with professional grade speaker wire audio cabling. They are suitable for custom and professional speaker installations – they pair with banana plugs, spade tips or bent pin connectors to connect to your speakers. They also work well for A/V receiver or amplifier connections to your speakers.
Do note that these speaker wires are not made for oxygen free copper wire – they are made from copper clad aluminium wires. While these aren’t as good as OFC wires in terms of signal transmission, they are lighter and more flexible than copper wires. The cost of copper clad aluminium wires is substantially lesser than full copper wires, making them ideal for budget options if you need a reliable set of wires for speaker installation.
The GearIT speaker wires are wrapped around a hard plastic spoof that makes dispensing, measuring and cutting the wires easy. They also have sequential foot markings printed on the jacket which provide accurate measurements and easy setup. The PVC jacket is designed to be tough and flexible to provide undistorted sound for audio speakers.
If you are looking for a quick fix to install your home theater system or car audio system and don’t mind copper clad aluminium wires, these wires should be easy to install and cost-effective. Overall the Gear IT 16 AWG wire is one of the best speaker wire you can get on a budget and comes highly recommended.
#4 High Quality Speaker Wire: eXtreme 14 Gauge Speaker Wire
Speaker wire gauge: 14 Gauge speaker wire
Wire Type: Pure stranded copper speaker wire
Compatibility: Compatible with banana plugs, spade tips, pin connectors
What we liked: High quality wires, great signal quality
The eXtreme 14 AWG wire is a true copper core speaker wire designed for optimal clarity and for a high quality listening experience. It is one of the best speaker wire designed for high-resolution professional audio setups. The wire is a pure 14 gauge stranded copper speaker wire with a PVC jacket, and does not contain any copper coated aluminium or other clad metal. They are built for high quality listening – your audio will be free of unwanted distortion or static, and you can view your favorite movies with pristine surround sound.
The 14 gauge stranded speaker wire is a low resistance / impedance copper conductor that has a max voltage of 300V and is 14 AWG. It is much heavier and thicker since is it made of pure copper, and provides much better audio quality than conventional wires. There is also a polarity stripe at one side of the wire so you can identify where each end plugs in. These wires are compatible with your standard banana plugs and pin connectors.
When setting up our home theater system with this speaker wire, it became clear that this wire is designed to provide better quality and durability. We were pretty surprised by how the soundstage, imaging, depth and tonal balance noticeably improved while using this wire for our home theater speaker setup. Vocal performances sounded much clearer, and the overall sound quality sounded high-resolution. These are truly audiophile grade speaker wires for those who want a premium audio listening experience.
If you are looking for a high-quality speaker wire for home theater or audiophile-grade listening, we highly recommend getting the eXtreme 14 Gauge speaker wire.
#5 Best Speaker Wire for Home Theater: InstallGear 12 Gauge Speaker Wire
Speaker wire gauge: 12 Gauge speaker wire
Wire Type: Stranded pure copper wire (99.99% OFC)
Compatibility: Compatible with banana plugs, speaker terminals
What we liked: Insulation is easy to strip and copper strands are high quality
The InstallGear 12 Gauge speaker wire are thick speaker wires designed for home theater and high-end audiophile listening. It comes as a 30 feet wire (9.1m) and made from oxygen free copper true spec stranded wire. The wires have rugged frosted PVC jackets and two color jacket for easy polarity identification. They also come in a compact spool for easy storage.
The fact that these speaker wires have a high number of very fine copper strands and flexibility make them great for professional home theater installations. The insulation is easy to strip and the fine strands are easy to work with to spread over banana plugs. They are also extremely flexible wires; they lie flat on the floor without retaining any curvature from being on the spool.
These speaker wires are great for home theater installations and come with a rugged PVC jacket which makes it easy to route through car panels or home theater systems. They easily install into most crimp terminals and the PVC jacket easily strips off for an easy install.
Furthermore, these wires have a low memory jacket which makes it easy to route close to wall moldings for in-wall speakers. They also easily install into most banana plugs and connecting pins.
All in all, these 12 gauge finely stranded 99.9% OFC cables are great for speakers and home theater systems, and provide distortion free high-resolution sound performance.
If you are looking for the best speaker wire that can deliver superb sound quality with flexible install options, go for the InstallGear 12 Gauge speaker wire.
#6 High end speaker Wire: C&E 12 AWG Enhanced Speaker Wire
Speaker wire gauge: 12 AWG speaker wire
Wire Type: Oxygen free copper wire
Compatibility: Compatible with home theater systems, TV and car audio speakers
What we liked: Thick wire gauge, high-quality signal transmission
If you are looking for high-end speaker wires for audiophile speaker installations, go for the C&E 12 AWG Enhanced speaker wire. This gauge 99.99% oxygen free copper speaker wire offers very flexible and easy connection for speakers to amplifiers or receivers. The thickness of these wires is just enough for resistance and electrical flow without the risk of overheating. The wires are easy to install – one side of the wire is marked with a red line, making it quick and easy to distinguish the polarity and get your audio system set up properly.
The C&E 12 AWG speaker wire can be cut as needed for specific installation needs. If the plastic jacket is removed, the wire can be left bare or use wire crimp accessories to connect to stereo and speakers. The plastic jacket around the speaker wire helps to deliver high-quality undistorted signals to and from your audio equipment and home theater speakers. This also helps with insulation for in-wall installations.
Furthermore, you can use this speaker wire to pair with banana plugs, spade tips or bent pin connectors to connect your speakers to your amplifier or home theater receiver.
These speaker wires are very good in terms of sound quality and performance – they reduce distortion and sound impurities, providing an optimized audio listening experience. You get the sense that your home theater speakers have much betters sound imaging and vocal performances once these wires are replaced. The flexible clear PVC jacket with red streak polarity allows for fast and accurate installations and strips off easily during the installation process.
On the whole, the C&E is a really high-end speaker wire designed for audiophile-grade speaker installations and quality sound performance, and is a worthwhile audio investment if you want quality speaker wires for your home speaker installation.
Speaker wire gauge: 16/2 AWG speaker wire
Wire Type: Copper clad aluminium wire
Compatibility: Compatible with banana plugs, spade tips, pin connectors
What we liked: Comes as a bulk of 500 feet wire, easy to install
If you are looking for the best in-wall speaker wire, go for the Nave Point in-wall 16/2 AWG speaker wire. It’s one of the best speaker wire designed to connect your speakers to amplifiers or receivers, particularly with in-wall speaker installations. This speaker wire is made from professional grade materials, and features 64 strands of 0.16mm copper clad aluminium. The cable comes in a bulk 500 feet length with white PVC jacket and convenient pull box packaging with clip which makes it easy to store.
Although these speaker wires are not made from oxygen free copper wires, they do provide good flexibility and ease of installation. The sound quality that we got from these wires is pretty good, and we did not notice any difference in sound performance between these speaker wires and high-quality wires. They also come with a convenient pull box for DIY projects and professional installers.
These wires are CL2 rated and are suitable for in-wall installations. The key advantage that these wires have is that they come in a bulk length of around 500 feet – this gives you plenty of room to experiment with these cables and for flexible installs.
The only downside is that these wires are oxygen clad aluminium wires which aren’t the highest grade of wiring that you can get. That said, if you are looking at in-wall installs and require lengthy wiring, the NavePoint speaker wires do provide good value for money.
#8 Audiophile Speaker wire: Monoprice Access Series 14 Gauge Speaker Wire
Speaker wire gauge: 14 AWG speaker wire
Wire Type: Oxygen free pure copper wire
Compatibility: Compatible with banana plugs, spade tips, pin connectors
What we liked: CL2 rated, safe for in-wall installation use
The Monoprice Access Series 14 AWG speaker wire is one of the best speaker wire you can get for audiophile speakers and high-end installations. It is essentially a 14 gauge AWG CL2 rated 2 conductor speaker wire that is made from high-purity, oxygen-free bare copper. It provides really good sound and audio quality transmission which provides clearer soundstage and imaging with low resistance so that you audio signal is transmitted without interference. The entire wiring package comes with 250 continuous feet of 12 AWG 2-conductor speaker wire on a spool.
These wires are suitable for in-wall usage. The white outer jacket is CL2 rated, making it safe for use within walls of residential buildings. Each wire conductor has an individual, color-coded jacket enclosed within the outer white CL2 jacket for easy installations.
We liked the sound quality of the Monoprice Access Series 14 gauge wire. These wires provide very smooth sound transmission without any distortion. They deliver high quality sound that remains consistent at every volume level, and does not add much resistance to the overall sound signal.
The sound quality that you get from your speakers would be noticeably better with these speaker wires and much clearer. Because they are low-resistance wires, the signal is much cleaner when passed from the AV receiver to the speakers, resulting in cleaner sound performance. They are great for multi-purpose use and in-wall speaker installations.
Overall, the Monoprice Access Series 14 AWG wire is one of the best speaker wire you can find that delivers pristine sound quality and we highly recommend them for audiophile use.
#9 Most Versatile: Ultra Series Speaker Cable 12 AWG
Speaker wire gauge: 12 AWG Ultra Series speaker wire
Wire Type: Oxygen free copper wire
Compatibility: Compatible with most speaker terminals, banana plugs
What we liked: Comes with brass/copper banana plugs for custom installs
The Ultra Series 12 AWG speaker wire is one of the best speaker wire from Mediabridge Ultra series. They are designed for high-quality signal connections from audio components to an A/V receiver or amplifier. These wires come with soldered banana plug terminations which create a secure connection with your speaker terminals and are ideal for high-end speaker systems. Furthermore, these speaker wires are CL2 rated for in-wall applications.
The Ultra Series wires have dual conductor 12 AWG, with color coding to distinguish left from right to enable matching polarity. They also come with brass/copper banana plugs for typical and custom installs. The corrosion-resistant gold plated connectors and oxygen free stranded copper wires (high strand count) provide clarity, natural sonic accuracy and minimal signal distortion.
These wires are designed to be very durable and maintain their integrity even when bent and twisted. They have a no-slip PVC Y-Boot and a durable, flexible nylon sheath. They are professional grade wires which are suitable for audiophiles – they are easy to install without the hassle of cutting and fiddling around with your speaker wires.
The Mediabridge Ultra wires are designed for plug and play installation. They are ready to use, and each end is connected to a respective port on a compatible unit (each end has 2 banana plugs). This means that you can use these speaker wires straight out of the box.
Overall, these are some of the best speaker wire that delivers high-quality sound performance, and are very solid cables for heavy duty speakers.
#10 Most Durable: Cables Direct 14 AWG Speaker Wire
Speaker wire gauge: 12 AWG speaker wire
Wire Type: Copper clad aluminium wire
Compatibility: Compatible with most stereo speakers and home theater systems
What we liked: Good set of cables, durable design
The Cables Direct 14 AWG wire is a durable set of quality cables for professional speaker installations. They are some of the best speaker wire you can get that can be used to hook-up speakers to stereo and home theater systems. These speaker wires come with a heavy-duty flexible jacket to protect against scraps and tearing for easy installation. Furthermore, the wires are CL2 rated for in-wall/ceiling installations and are white in color for a cleaner appearance.
We really liked the quality of these speaker cables – they are on par with top speaker wire brands and are made from oxygen-free copper stranded wire. They are great for home theater installations, and also in-wall or in-ceiling speakers due to their CL2 safety rating. The speaker wires can handle signals for up to 500 feet without any discernible distortion or degradation in sound performance quality.
When using these wires for our home theater syste, (AV receiver running 200 watts per channel), we noticed that the sound quality was noticeable better and much more distinct. You can hear the details in the music without any signal distortion. The ‘noise’ that you get while running cables to your speaker is practically non-existent with these cables. They are really good quality speaker wires that are suitable for a wide range of installation applications.
Overall, the Cables Direct 14 AWG speaker wire is one of the best speaker wire for durable and heavy-duty speaker installations and we highly recommend them.