Banana plugs (1 Viewer)

[Robert_Ea]

I just bought 20 GLS banana plugs for my new Definitive Technology speakers but then I noticed my reciever took raw wire but can I get the Banana in there? It looks like a large enough hole. Thanks

 

[Bob McElfresh]

Banana plugs mate with something called "Binding Posts". These are red and black knobs with openings in the end and the plastic-cap un-screws to expose side-holes.

Many recievers do not offer binding posts, but "spring-clips". These have a small button/lever that opens up a hole into which you can insert speaker wire.

Banana plugs dont work well with spring-clips. Go to Radio Shack and check out the "Pin-Connectors" (279-309 i think). These connectors can take 12 ga, but taper down to a pin that fits into spring-clips very nicely.

Hint: Shorts are a problem and if your reciever does not hold the pin-connectors tightly, you can wrap the body of the pin-connector with some scotch tape to insulate the body's from touching over time.

 

[Robert_Ea]

Hi,

Thank you for your response. I guess I made a mistake buying 20 of them. I took a look at the RS pin ones and I may buy it but say if the banana will fit with out to much of a problem do I risk hurting anything? Thanks again.

 

[Allan Jayne]

If the banana plug end fits into the terminal post or clip without excessive force and without having metal to metal contact with neighboring plugs or terminals, you can use it that way.

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

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

If you have the dual bananas, they probably won’t work. As Bob indicated, they are made for so-called 5-way binding posts. While they will physically fit into the hole of the spring-loaded clips, the clips probably do not have the proper spacing between them to accommodate the dual bananas (which is 3/4”, I think).

The pins are okay, but if you have the kind of problems Bob mentioned, where you have to wrap tape around them, I think I’d just use the bare-wire approach. It seems awfully silly to pay a premium price for something that doesn’t work right.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt