Question on Banana plugs? (1 Viewer)

Paul Simmons · Nov 15, 2003

Hey guys, I just bought a new set of floor speakers for my home theater setup, but unlike the speakers I'm replacing which has the snap-back posts, these new speakers have these BINDING POST things, and I wanted to know if it's necessary to actually buy Banana plugs, or can I clamp in bare wire terminals?

Is there a degradation of sound quality if I just use the bare wire setup?

Any input(no pun intended) is appriciated!

Brian Fellmeth · Nov 15, 2003

Banana plugs offer no sound benefit. The only benefits are quicker/easier connect/disconnect when frequently swapping components, and less risk of creating a short with a strand of bare wire.

Bob McElfresh · Nov 15, 2003

I really like the dual-banana plugs from Radio Shack. (27x-308). They have a solid spacer bar to prevent shorts and a over-sized hole in the side that can accept up to 10 ga wire.

Note: binding-post spacing is NOT standardzied. Buy 1 set of the dual plugs and bring them home and test that they fit.

I was using Monster "Twist-Crimp" plugs, but they would pull-loose every few weeks. I have not had a loose wire in 2 years with the RS bananas.

Those binding posts are called "5-way" binding posts because you can use:

1) Bare wire (un-screw the cap to expose a side-hole)
2) Banana plugs
3) Pin connectors (in the side hole)
4) Spade connectors
5) Ring connectors

Hope this helps.

Allan Jayne · Nov 19, 2003

If bare wire fits around or into the terminal post and can be fastened securely, then you don't need banana plugs. Just be careful not to leave loose strands of wire.

Actually, if you do use banana plugs, there is an additional joint at each terminal post, namely from the wire to the banana plug. If this joint is not soldered, it can oxidize or work loose, causing the same kind of problems as you might have worried about with a direct bare wire connection to the terminal post.

Video hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/video.htm

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Question on Banana plugs? (1 Viewer)

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Paul Simmons

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Brian Fellmeth

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Bob McElfresh

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