Best Practices For Loop Wire Selection

Loop Wire Selection Guide
BEST PRACTICES FOR LOOP WIRE SELECTION
There are many suppliers and many types of wire suitable for Induction Loop Systems (ILS). Experienced ILS installers will
have their preferred supplier and keep spools of various types at hand.
Amplifiers have a load recommendation, which specifies a DC resistance (or AC impedance) range it can tolerate. For
example, if an amplifier has a load recommendation of 0.5 to 1.5 Ω, the DC resistance of the wire should not be less than 0.5
Ω and it should not exceed 1.5 Ω. For example, 1000 ft of 12 gauge multi strand single conductor wire is approximately 1.5 Ω.
See our cable spec sheet for more cable specs.
A single loop (or run) of wire is generally adequate for most small loop installations. Depending upon the coverage area,
it may be required to run two or more loops to get the desired coverage. Phased arrays (interwoven loops) can also be
considered. Each additional loop can potentially provide as much as twice the power, but it will also decrease the high
frequency performance in the system.
Before selecting the wire type to be used, a room blueprint should be reviewed, or at least a sketch with dimensions of
where the desired loop will be installed. This information can then be used, with the following Wire Resistance Chart, to
determine what type of wire can be used and if the proposed length fits into the load range/recommendation of the amplifier.
If the installation requires longer wire, then a larger gauge wire (smaller number) could be considered to meet the resistance
specification.
Wire Resistance Chart

To select the proper wire for the loop(s), refer to the following chart. Wire resistance of each loop needs to be 0.5 - 1.5 Ω as required by the
amplifier.
DCΩ Max length Min length

Wire type AWG (CSA)
1000 ft (305 m) Approx ft (m) Approx ft (m)
18 (0.82 mm2) 6.5 231 (70 m) 77 (23 m)

16 (1.3 mm2) 4.3 349 (106 m) 116 (35 m)
Single conductor
14 (1.9 mm2) 2.8 535 (163 m) 179 (55 m)
12 (3.3 mm2) 1.9 790 (240 m) 263 (80 m)
Flat 3/4” copper ~14 (1.9 mm2) 2.4 725 (221 m) * 208 (64 m) **
* Flat copper wire is more efficient than single conductor stranded wire at audio frequencies. This allows the maximum length to be greater than
the length calculated using the DC resistance. ** In order to present a minimum resistance of 0.5 Ω to the amplifier, the DC resistance must be
used.
Wire Types
The following wire types are typically used for loop installations. The wire type to be used depends on the application.
In some installations, such as under carpet, flat copper wire generally works best. For other applications, such as a small
room perimeter loop, stranded wire may be adequate.
FLAT COPPER WIRE

Flat Copper Wire (or ribbon cable) from Williams AV is
offered in 3/4” width and is equivalent to 14 gauge wire.
Because flat wire has less Inductance, 10 – 20% increase
in length may be utilized and still be within the load
requirement. Flat wire can be installed under carpet or
glued to the wall. See our installation videos for examples
of flat wire installation. When laying on a concrete floor, be
sure the concrete is sealed before laying the flat wire as the
Alkaline in the concrete will eat into the wire. Flat wire can
be secured using double sided tape, glue or flat wire tape.
Williams AV Part Numbers:
PLW 300 (300 ft spool),
PLW 500 (500 ft spool)
FLAT WIRE TAPE

Flat wire tape from Williams AV is used to secure and
protect flat copper wire when installing a loop under carpet,
wood floors or tile. The flat wire tape is applied over flat
copper wire.
Williams AV Part Number: FWT 001 (2” W x 165 ft Roll)
MULTI-STRAND SINGLE CONDUC-

TOR
Multi-Strand Single Conductor wire can be easily sourced
from many wire distributors. This can be found in various
gauges and colors dependent upon the system needs.
DIRECT BURIAL CABLE
Direct Burial Cable (DBC) is required when burying cable
in concrete, bitumen or soil. This type of wire will resist the
heat effect of curing as well as the caustic effect of over
time. DBC should be used even when scoring and laying
into dry concrete because of the alkaline effect from the
concrete over time.
LEAD WIRE
Lead wire is the wire connecting the amplifier to the loop
wire. Sometimes this lead wire is just an extension of the
loop wire and this lead should be twisted from the amplifier
to the loop to prevent the lead wire from creating additional
EMI areas and cancellation.
The resistance of the lead wire is also part of the wire load
applied to the amplifier, so keep the lead length as short as
possible.
Pictured is an example of Williams AV flat copper wire
terminated with lead wire for connection of the loop to
the amplifier. The wire used here is multi-strand multi-
conductor wire (see “star wire” below) that is twisted inside
the insulation jacket.
OTHER WIRE TYPES

Two conductor speaker wire can be utilized for a standard
single loop install. For a Phased Array loop configuration,
four conductor star wire can be used. This Star Wire
has four color coded wires tightly twisted together and
sheathed. This can be soldered to flat wire or single strand
at the loop.
info@williamsav.com / www.williamsav.com
800-843-3544 / INTL: +1-952-943-2252
© 2019, Williams AV, LLC TCH 008E

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Loop Wire Selection Guide

BEST PRACTICES FOR LOOP WIRE SELECTION

Wire Resistance Chart

DCΩ Max length Min length

18 (0.82 mm2) 6.5 231 (70 m) 77 (23 m)

FLAT COPPER WIRE

FLAT WIRE TAPE

Williams AV Part Number: FWT 001 (2” W x 165 ft Roll)

MULTI-STRAND SINGLE CONDUC-

OTHER WIRE TYPES

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