stereomaniac Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 My amp takes two types of speaker connections bare wire via spring clips and bananas. I have always been a fan of bare wire. Less impedance, fewer metal to metal transitions. My amp is 20 years old and the spring clips are getting a little worn. My new speaker cable is 16 gauge and I was told 18 is max for spring clips. Is this true??? Would I lose a lot of sound quality by going to banana plugs???? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BobG Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 There are a lot of different spring clips. Some can take nothing larger than 18 g but many can accommodate larger wire. One problem with spring clips is that they actually make little surface contact with the wire. Think of a knife edge on a solid core wire. In that case, there is only one very small point of contact on each side of the wire. If you use stranded wire, it compresses so there is more contact surface, but still not a lot. What bananas give up in adding another metal to metal interface, they make up in larger contact surface. I think you can safely use bananas to replace your spring clips and this will also allow you to use most any size wire you want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colterphoto1 Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 I'm a big fan of dual Bananas, mostly because I change things around so much. If you get the good quality ones, there is quite a bit of metal-to-metal contact. There is a reason they're used in so many pro speakers (until Neutrik's came along). Spring clips have the same problem as 1/4" plug/jacks- as Bob mentioned, it's a round surface tangent to a flat one, so the actual contact area is nearly nil. If you do wish to use your spring clips with 16 ga wire, there is no harm in removing a few strands of wire at the end of the conductor so that the wire fits into the 18 ga spring clip. Since the distance of thinner wire is nearly nothing, there would be virtually no detriment to the signal. But I'd go with the bananas myself. Remember that traditionally, the side with the 'tab' used to be marked GND for ground. I fear than many people will consider this 'marked' terminal the positive side and many systems may conseqently suffer phase problems. Just be consistent. M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
picky Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 I gotta vote along with Bob and Michael: Bananas are the way to go! Besides, they're an excellent source of potassium! [] BTW: Welcome to the forum! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyKlipschFan Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 I love nanners too! Radio shack, Parts express, both carry gold plated ones that seem to be extra strong, well built too. I have no idea at all, hearing wise, if that extra few dollars per speaker makes it sound any better over traditional Banana ones, but I did it anyhow. ( I figured only the best for my Klipsch!) Go with the Nanners!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigerwoodKhorns Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 Don't believe all of the audiophile hoopla you read. You will not hear any difference at all. Use the Bannana plugs and be happy. A seller on ebay sells "altona" bananna plugs (or somethign liek that). Cheap and very good. Just remove the outter aluminum shell and use heat shrink tubing. I just made up some cable a week ago, they work great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 Banana plugs are very convenient to use, but I've switched to BFA plugs, since they have more contact surface and are a tighter fit in the binding posts. They're about the same price as banana plugs. Pat on the Island Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Groomlakearea51 Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 Agree with bananas, BFA's; also on eBay is a couple of folks who also sell the GL Audio ones; little more pricy, but are good quality. I've just finished upgrading my amps from their old original "insert then screw down" bare wire types to Dayton brand speaker terminal jacks/ binding posts that take both 12 gauge+ or bananas. Those came from partsexpress if I'm not mistaken. I have also converted all of my old "spade clip" terminal jacks/ binding posts on my Klipsch speakers to these "dual" types. Like Mr. Colter, I move stuff around all the time, it's extremely convenient, and I don't get the wire leads mixed up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colterphoto1 Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 Mr. Colter was my Dad. Michael is just fine for me. [] I got some of those GLS connectors from Parts Express and do not like them. Although they will accept very heavy guage wire, have strain reliefs and heavy duty outer shells, the shells are metal. Since they are pretty long, any strain on the wires can cause two of the shells to touch, shorting the outputs. Not good. Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Groomlakearea51 Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 Mr. Colter was my Dad. Michael is just fine for me. [] I got some of those GLS connectors from Parts Express and do not like them. Although they will accept very heavy guage wire, have strain reliefs and heavy duty outer shells, the shells are metal. Since they are pretty long, any strain on the wires can cause two of the shells to touch, shorting the outputs. Not good. Michael Mike's absolutely right!! After assembly with the GLS' types, I also got some large shrink tubing (in red and black) for the "metal". Thanks for posting the "heads up" on problems that can be encountered with using metal shell bananas (GLS brand). Selection was actually made due to the strain relief. I also use wire ties by the gross (they are cheap now), and make "harnesses" for the amps and speaker wire "bundles" to keep things organized. For any "new person", the #1 axiom should be, turn everything off, and unplug before doing any connections. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigerwoodKhorns Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 Here you go: http://item.express.ebay.com/Consumer-Electronics_Home-Audio_Home-Audio-Video-Accessories-Cables_10-PAIR-ATLONA-QUALITY-SPEAKER-BANANA-PLUGS-CONNECTOR_W0QQitemZ9724067790QQihZ008QQptdnZHomeQ20AudioQ2fVideoQ20AccessoriesQ20Q26Q20CablesQQddnZConsumerQ20ElectronicsQQadnZHomeQ20AudioQQcmdZExpressItem Great seller too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldtimer Posted November 25, 2006 Share Posted November 25, 2006 I'll be the lone voice for bare if it's doable, but hey, I just like the feeling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colterphoto1 Posted November 25, 2006 Share Posted November 25, 2006 Mr. Colter was my Dad. Michael is just fine for me. [] I got some of those GLS connectors from Parts Express and do not like them. Although they will accept very heavy guage wire, have strain reliefs and heavy duty outer shells, the shells are metal. Since they are pretty long, any strain on the wires can cause two of the shells to touch, shorting the outputs. Not good. Michael Mike's absolutely right!! After assembly with the GLS' types, I also got some large shrink tubing (in red and black) for the "metal". Thanks for posting the "heads up" on problems that can be encountered with using metal shell bananas (GLS brand). Selection was actually made due to the strain relief. I also use wire ties by the gross (they are cheap now), and make "harnesses" for the amps and speaker wire "bundles" to keep things organized. For any "new person", the #1 axiom should be, turn everything off, and unplug before doing any connections. That's a good simple fix- I'll try that. Is it 1/2" HST? M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Groomlakearea51 Posted November 26, 2006 Share Posted November 26, 2006 Generic "eBay" 1/2 HST. Very cheap, also tested it with a battery and a meter just to make sure it wasn't some "looks ok but bad batch" stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capin-Newbie Posted November 26, 2006 Share Posted November 26, 2006 Radio Shack is clearing out the Monster brand Quick Lock connectors for under $5.00 for a set of four. Not sure if anyone uses them, but I thought I would pass the info along. http://www.monstercable.com/productPage.asp?pin=1062 They might be better than just using bare wire and low cost. Just a thought... Brian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Groomlakearea51 Posted November 26, 2006 Share Posted November 26, 2006 Re: GLS metal connectors, heat shrink tubing that you can use over the assembled metal GLS connector, and general insulation supplies. Comes in red, black and other flavors, etc. This is good stuff and meets the Department of Defense specs (MILSPEC). We also use it at work on coax leads, etc. for our boats. http://cgi.ebay.com/1-2-2-1-RED-Heat-Shrink-Tubing-10_W0QQitemZ330052762748QQihZ014QQcategoryZ73132QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem Capin-Newbie: Cute kids! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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