I'm replacing old wiring and adding two additional surround speakers in the TV room. The TV and receiver are on an exterior wall, and between a vaulted ceiling and relatively flat pitch of the roof, there's really no way for me to climb up there without putting myself and my ceiling in jeopardy.

The rear speakers were prewired, I assume when the house was built. The wire is old and ratty, and I'm not sure I trust using it to pull four runs of 14 gauge sheathed speaker cable or even that it would be possible given some of the cut corners I've already uncovered in the house. So one option is running everything out the wall and up under the soffit. I've already got a hole where they installed the cable. Is it just a matter of getting some PVC conduit and running everything that way?

If so, best ways to do that or are there pitfalls I'm not thinking of? Open to any other suggestions.

You might be a redneck if.....

Use the old speaker wire to pull a pull line, then use the pull line to pull your 14g wires.

agdoc2001 said:

---

Use the old speaker wire to pull a pull line, then use the pull line to pull your 14g wires.

---

That was my primary plan, but I'm hesitant to try it because I've seen where they stapled other speaker wires to studs which is annoying. I'll probably just go for it and come up with an alternate plan if I have to.

Is replacing the surround sound with a new wireless System an option?

saltydog13 said:

---

Is replacing the surround sound with a new wireless System an option?

---

Not really. I've got a strong traditional system setup; just want to get the huge bookshelf speakers off the wall and add the extra surround channels.

Just do it


I did it on old house... just ran wire up against ledge. No pvc. Planned to paint it to match but after install it wasn't as noticeable as I thought it would be.

Quote:

---

Open to any other suggestions.

---

I've seen folks pull the baseboards and fish a the lines down a small hole in the sheetrock and run the wires behind the baseboards. This won't work as easily if you have door ways in between where you start from and where you want to go

If you have Crown Molding all the way around the room I'd carefully pull it and run the wires behind it.

Another way would be the route electricians take. Cut holes in the drywall and fish it through how ever many openings you need to get it to someplace accessible.

Be very neat when cutting a piece of drywall out and you should be able to use the piece you remove to fill back in with a little mud and paint.

Those are good ideas, but I'm shockingly bad at dealing with drywall, especially this crap with skip trowel (I think that's what it's called) texture.

I ordered some fish tape, so I'm going to try and pull using the in place stuff. If that doesn't work, I'll slum it like cjo and hope for the best.

I'm in the same shape. My ceiling is a low pitch and pine tongue and groove. Would've been simple if the builder had run wires before the ceiling went up. I'm going to be running mine on the outside with a combination of raceway, slotted trim, etc etc etc.

I have to do the same thing with new lights and electrical in the main living area. For that I'm going to run 1/2 metal conduit that is painted a hammered bronze after I measure and get it ready to install.

To me, you are asking for confirmation on something you have no other option on. Also, to me, if I'm running wire on the outside of the wall, then I'm going to make it look nice but I'm also going to own it and not try to hide it. You can't hide it. Anyway, just sharing my idea.

Yeah that's pretty much it; just hoping for an easier way. I'm not got to try that hard at fishing the wires before going through the wall

When I wired my speakers for my pergola I used low voltage lighting wire upon a recommendation by a landscaper. It's durable by default because you can bury it. I then painted it to match the wood. I also went one step further even though the speakers are wet-rated and applied silicone sealant to the speaker terminals after connecting them. Knock on wood, but going on 5 years with zero issues.

Just an update on the process. I did the install this weekend, and it was a success. Probably 4 hours on Saturday and 4 on Sunday.

Ended up running PVC against the wall and up through a 5x5 hole I cut in the soffit to have the angle to run the wire. Then cut an oversized panel with PVC through it to close everything up. All that's left is a little paint and touch up with silicone sealant.

Appreciate the advice, and I'll add pics when I get a chance

The best speaker wire EVER was claymore mine wire.

Scriffer said:

---

The wire is old and ratty,

---

What do you mean by old & ratty?

Is it shorting out anywhere or missing any insulation? Do you have a meter to test for an open or short?

Is the original cable unserviceable or just ugly? If it is cosmetic, you might be able to leave it in place. If it is the wrong gauge or the insulation is breaking down then it should go.

If the insulation is just ugly, you can get expandable wire loom in many colors. Just cover up the short run of wire from the wall/celling to the speaker (unless flush mounted).