  Context. Slow waves in solar coronal loops are strongly damped. The current
theory of damping by thermal conduction cannot explain some observational
features.\n Aims. We investigate the propagation of slow waves in a coronal
loop built up from strands of different temperatures. \n Methods. We consider
the loop to have a multithermal, Gaussian temperature distribution. The
different propagation speeds in different strands lead to an multithermal
apparent damping of the wave, similar to observational phase mixing. We use an
analytical model to predict the damping length and propagation speed for the
slow waves, including in imaging with filter telescopes. \n Results. We compare
the damping length due to this multithermal apparent damping with damping due
to thermal conduction and find that the multithermal apparent damping is more
important for shorter period slow waves. We have found the influence of
instrument filters on the wave's propagation speed and damping. This allows us
to compare our analytical theory to forward models of numerical simulations. \n
Conclusions. We find that our analytical model matches the numerical
simulations very well. Moreover, we offer an outlook for using the slow wave
properties to infer the loop's thermal properties.
