Cardas Audio Clear Speaker Cable - 4.0 Meter - Spade to Spade - Pair

Cardas Clear Is the Most Musical and Revealing Speaker Cable Cardas Has Made

Cardas calls Clear the most musical and revealing speaker cable it has ever made. It designed Clear to be fully transparent and holographic. It pairs the Cardas sound with fine detail.

Cardas makes it by hand in Bandon, Oregon. Clear is a concentrically wound four-conductor cable, 4x10.5 AWG, with spades or bananas forged on at 10,000 psi. It sits just below the flagship Clear Beyond. This 4.0-meter length is about 13 feet long.

Other length & termination options are available. Call us to discuss your needs.

The Patented Idea Behind Every Clear Cable

Like every cable in Cardas's Clear line, it uses Matched Propagation, covered by George Cardas's 2008 patent. Cardas controls the conductor's internal geometry so its propagation rate matches that of the insulation around it. Clear's conductors sit on a Kevlar core, with gauge sizes ranging from ultra-fine 41 AWG to 25 AWG.

Cardas uses its Grade 1, 99.9999% pure oxygen-free copper, with a clear coating on every strand that Cardas says prevents oxidation. The company says its copper is mined in the Southwest USA and processed in the Northeast.

No Solder, Just 10,000 PSI of Pressure

The spades or bananas are forged on with 10,000 psi of pressure, a solder-free process in which the copper of the conductor and the connector fuse together as one, Cardas says.

Each Litz conductor is built from many fine strands, each with its own coating. The smallest wires sit at the center, and each layer grows in size at the Golden Ratio, 1:1.618, Cardas says. Its Cross-field construction reverses every other layer.

The conductors are insulated in FEP tape and surrounded by anti-static fibers. A flexible TPR jacket finishes the cable, which measures 0.675 inches across. The jacket is printed CARDAS CLEAR rev 1 SPEAKER.

What Reviewers Are Saying

Stereophile lists Cardas Clear rev.1 among its 2026 Recommended Components for loudspeaker cables. John Marks called them "The best-sounding cables I have heard".

Michael Zisserson reviewed Clear for Positive Feedback on October 28, 2019, and concluded, "The Cardas Clear loudspeaker cables are the clear winner."

Who Is This Speaker Cable Best For?

• You want the Cardas sound at its most revealing — Cardas calls Clear the most musical and revealing speaker cable it has made
• You want forged terminations — Cardas forges the connectors on with 10,000 psi, with no solder
• You want a cable reviewers stand behind — Stereophile lists it as a Recommended Component, and The Absolute Sound named it a 2023 Editors' Choice
• You are building a reference system — Clear sits just below the flagship at the top of the range
• Your speakers have two pairs of binding posts — pair Clear with Cardas Clear Jumpers, which use Clear's own conductor

How Does It Connect to Your System?

Turn the amplifier off. Connect the cable to your speakers first, then to your amplifier's speaker outputs, red to red and black to black. Do the same for the second speaker.

The Measuring Mistake That Leaves You Inches Short

Speaker cable is cut for one room. Measure the path the cable will really take, around furniture and along the baseboard. Then add a little slack. As Cardas puts it, "A cable that's just long enough usually turns out to be just not long enough." Keep the left and right runs the same length, as Cardas recommends, even when one speaker sits closer.

Which Connector Holds Up Best Over the Years?

Spades clamp under a binding post and hold tight. Bananas push straight in, so they connect fastest. Bare wire fits almost anything, but we suggest avoiding it. Bare copper oxidizes quickly, and Cardas notes that copper oxide is not a good conductor. If you use bare wire, re-strip the ends when the copper darkens.

Tighten the connections, power up, and play something you know well.

When Is It Time to Upgrade?

Speaker cable often stays put for years, so it tends to be the last thing upgraded. Look again when something else changes. Moving from bookshelf speakers to floorstanders is the big one. In our experience, about nine in ten people who make that move keep their old speaker cable. A stronger amplifier, a longer run, or darkened ends are the other signs.

Pairs Well With

A speaker cable joins your amplifier to your speakers. These are the categories on either end of it.

• Floorstanding Speakers — the best time to rethink your speaker cable
• Bookshelf Speakers — the speaker end in a smaller room
• Integrated Amplifiers — the amplifier end in most stereo systems
• Stereo Amplifiers — the amplifier end when you run separates

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use Clear with bi-wire speakers?

Yes, with jumpers. Cardas makes Clear Jumpers from Clear's own conductor for bi-wire speakers.

Which end goes to the amplifier?

Cardas suggests installing its cables as if they are directional, so the signal flows the same way the text reads on the jacket. Turn the amplifier off, and connect the speakers first.

Does it need to break in?

Cardas says break-in takes at most 200 hours, and usually about half that. Playing music through the cable is the best way to do it.

What warranty does Cardas give?

Cardas backs its cables with a lifetime warranty covering bad or intermittent internal connections, shorts and loose connectors.

Is there a step up?

Cardas Clear Beyond is the step up, Cardas's flagship, built like two pairs of Clear inside one jacket.

See It in Action

Audio Advisor visits Cardas in Bandon, Oregon, to show the solder-free compression forging Cardas uses on its forged speaker cable terminations.

Need a Different Length or Connector?

The most popular configurations are shown on this page. If your system requires a different length or termination, call our audio experts. We’ll help you choose the right configuration and arrange a custom cable for your system.

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Learn More

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