BillA Posted July 4, 2004 Share Posted July 4, 2004 Ok I have all Klipsch speakers, and have been upgrading lately (from my quintets) to new fronts (RF-35's), new center (RC-3) bigger sub (KSW-15) etc etc anyways I am basically stepping it all up a notch part by part quality wise slow but sure... Here comes the question, with the Quintets I never felt the need to have good wires or good connectors, I just went and bought a cheap spool of thin 22 gauge wire from radioshack, actually just someting I had for surrounds but used for mains and center too cuz I had extra, cut it and screwed the terminals down pos and neg on each speaker. Now that I am in the process of re-doing my home theater room and have started to upgrade equipment (to something I want to do right, those quintets are something I had for 3 yrs on their own before upgrading) & of course I am questioning the thin cheap wire I bought and the way I connect them. When I was at a local shop listening to the Klipsh line, the guy had these long gold spike type connectors, bam bam he was in and out of those connectors putting another set of speakers on (plugging them into the center hole of the terminals not unscrewing them and using the side holes), what are those types of connectors called and are they better than running wire thru the side hole and screwing it down? Secondly, wire wise, what is the gauge or brand (at a reasonable cost per foot) that I should look into for my fronts and center (RF-35 & RC-3) I know the thin cheapo stuff I am currently using is probably not good... Lastly and I bet this does matter when asking about this stuff is the amp, its an Onkyo DS 575 with 5 channels of 75 watts each, LOVE the amp gets PLENTY loud enough and seems pretty clear and smooth match for my Klipsch's so for now or until it breaks I am not looking to upgrade that piece. Thanks so much for helping me on what is probably such a basic question, I just feel like now that I am upgrading the equipment for maximum enjoyment (based on my pocketbook) hehe that I should also do the wires up right too and those connectors he was using looked really fast sweet and neat so I was hoping you all could fill me in on a good choice for both wire and connectors at a reasonable price point. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meuge Posted July 4, 2004 Share Posted July 4, 2004 You're absolutely right - there is no need for an ultra expensive set of wires, but you're also right in thinking that 22-gauge will probably not do. I have found a very good deal (in my opinion) for wire in the Acoustic Research Pro II line. It claims to be 12-gauge, but it's so thick that my wire strippers that go down to 8 could not strip it and I have to do it by hand. You can find it online for about $25-30 for a 50ft spool and it's about 3 times bigger then Monster XPHP, which is incidentally more than double the price. I am just using it for the fronts, and using the regular Acoustic Research 16-gauge (like $35 for 100ft) for the rears, due to my own budgetary constraints and the fact that I had old wire left over and didn't want to spend money on new. As far as connectors go, you're definitely talking about banana plugs. I got mine at Radioshack, for about $6.50 for a pair, which is not a bad price considering they're pretty nice. Just remember that you need 2 pairs for every speaker, since you need to connect it at the amp terminal as well. Terminating the wire yourself is easy, just follow directions. Hope it helped. P.S. If you wind up getting the wire I recommended, remember that there is a core of dielectric material in the center of the cable, so when you strip the 1/2" needed to terminate it, remember to bend the copper strands to the side and cut off the inner fiber core (which is also stranded), so it doesn't interfere with a proper connection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Istari Posted July 4, 2004 Share Posted July 4, 2004 You could look here: http://www.partsexpress.com/webpage.cfm?&DID=7&WebPage_ID=40 pricing is good for the cable and its Oxygen Free so you won't have to worry about corrosion. Price is way less that Monster. They also have bananna plug connectors too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.