I like using pure unplated copper spades. The Pangea Audio Xtreme Spades are made from Tellurium Copper (C14500?) so conductivity should be about 90-93% IACS (International Annealed Copper Standard), which is as good as it gets for a copper alloy. I doubt you would ever hear a difference between those and pure copper.
The conductivity differential becomes more pronounced with materials like C36000 Brass, C54400 Phosphor Bronze, C17500 Beryllium Copper, which have low conductivities in the range of about 19% to 40% IACS. My old Classe' Twenty Five amplifier had brass binding posts. Most banana plugs are made from a copper alloy, which is why the KLE bananas that are made from silver plated pure copper are so well respected.
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I went with pangeas xtreme spades and bananas at amp from audio advisor.
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Eric, not only will you hear many improvements between your old and the new speaker cables ( I do question the higher frequencies of the newer cable ), you will enjoy, and question, the break in period, as there WILL be a break in period. I remember re-terminating my Deltron bananas for the Furez. Deltron = single hold down screw. Furez = crimp, no solder. After a very long break in period ( 3 weeks of 24/7 play ), the Furez started to compliment my system, as the performances were enhanced. After 2 months, they had completely broken in. Good luck.....Enjoy ! MrD.
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Should I? All kidding aside, I offered that as encouragement to "other folk" to not avoid solder. Your reason for the choice wasn't stated. I'm a rank beginner DIY unlike others here. Among the posters here, there are a handful I always read and learn from and you're among them. Thanks for the Sir reference though. Wait, doesn't that make me sound old?
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Erik, after my first time DIY IC cable build I’d agree that soldering (well) can be hard, but it IS definitely hard for KLEI RCAs
Sir, who do you think I am?? 😤 😂
@akgwhiz the issue isn’t whether I have the kit, it’s whether I like soldering for speaker connections. No, I do not. Mechanical connections are better. This is why your house panel with 200 Amps doesn’t use any soldering at all, nor do any of the breaker connections.
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I like banana plugs. My most important criteria is that they have to be locking. You can heat shrink over anything but the appearance can be crude if that matters to you.
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Erik, after my first time DIY IC cable build I'd agree that soldering (well) can be hard, but it IS definitely hard for KLEI RCAs. However the bananas are quite easy if you use the toothpick trick i was given. Just jam it inside the solder tube to hold the wires flush and secure while working. Pull out when set. I know you'd knock it out and Partsconnexion has them on sale. $99 now $74. Like others claim, they have a tapered tip but fully round shaft, and spring-like fit once in. They are very tight.
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I was fortunate to grab a 1500’ spool of Belden copper wire. It’s a four wire cable. I picked up a set of Z banana plugs from AQ-the AQ Sure grip 300 bfa/ banana beryllium silver plated going into my receiver and bare wire to my speakers…it is a nice step forward to my second had AQ type 2 quad helix speaker cables. The cost 60.00 with tax and they are the only banana plugs that will fit my receiver.
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@auxinput
I noticed the pins on the Cardas male chassis mount XLR becoming loose when I changed cables and it progressively got worse to the point where it no longer made the connection. The manufacturer of my amps/preamp indicated other customers had similar issues with that same part. I did the replacement work myself and used a Furutech chassis mount XLR, which has performed flawlessly.
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I agree with saving money, goodness knows my IC and speaker cables are super cheap compared to what most A'goners probably spend, but there are so many good looking fakes out there I'd rather just buy affordable through a known good dealer than try to get something boutique through a path I don't know.
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I love saving money, not compromising on quality, it’s the IDENTICAL item
Ortofon, XLR to Locking RCA, 2 meters, version 8nx
ebay, +/- $100. incl tax and PayPal fees., that's a hellova low price
aliexpress, EXACTLY the same, $42. total.
you could pay a lot more if you don't shop around or too impatient to wait.
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I have found that the Neutrik XLR gold-plated connectors are pretty good on resolution and speed (i.e. they are not warm and slow), but they have a dirty sound, almost like a distortion. The Furutech XLR are the best I have used -- the gold-plated are very smooth and clean but very warm and slow (if you like this type of sound, they are excellent). The Furutech rhodium is high resolution and transparent (although requires a very long burn in period).
I have only used Oyaide Focus XLR connectors on digital AES/EBU cables, but they ended up being the absolute best for a digital cable application (better then gold/rhodium Furutech). The Oyaide XLR had the best resolution and provided a neutral uncolored character (for digital cable). I don't know how they would sound on an analog cable.
@mitch2 - Mitch, if you are talking about the Cardas 3455R power cord connectors, I completely agree. The shell case pretty much breaks off as soon as you touch it. I had to glue several of these together once they were put on. Total waste of money, and the Furutech FI-15 (R) series is much better and more durable. However, I cannot see how the Cardas XLR connectors would "break". They are a solid metal pieces that thread onto each other. I refuse to even try their new expensive E-5 plugs because Furutech FI-15(R) are so good and about a quater of the price. Can you explain more on what Cardas items actually break?
I have used the Cardas binding posts on several occasions with excellent results. I like them because they are a heavy piece of metal with easy mounting capability if you use their BPMP mounting plate. The sound on the rhodium/silver models are very good and I would say the Cardas connectors are a "poor man's Furutech". They are billet copper alloy, but also plated with rhodium/silver. About half the cost of Furutech XLR connectors.
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I also agree on the Sonic Craft heat shrink.
I like Furutech XLR connectors, both chassis and plugs. I would also not hesitate to use Vampire chassis connectors. I have made many cables using the expensive Furutech 601/602 connectors but more recently I have been just as happy with cables I have made using Vampire and/or DH Labs (which appear to be Vampire) XLR connectors. The money I spent on the 601/602 connectors was probably overkill. Vampire’s upscale Xhadow connectors should also be very good, if you want to spend more money. Do not use Cardas chassis connectors (they break IME). Neutrik of course is an industry standard and can be found on moderately to expensively priced cables and/or equipment.
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Good point on Sonic Craft! Great source.
I use a heat gun to remove the adhesive lined heat shrink pretty easily with no mess. Cut a slit being careful not to gouge the connector barrel and then apply heat. The shrink separates and pulls away. Let it cool a little, then pull the rest off with minimal residue. Sometimes none!
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A note on heatshrink. Not all heat shrink are created equally. I have used some pretty horrible heatshrink that wrinkles and kinks when shrunk. The end result looks like absolutely crap. The Polyolefin 3:1 heatshrink from Sonic Craft is really nice. I'm sure many other places have good heatshrink.
The heavy duty adhesive lined heatshrink can be used, but keep in mind that if you ever want to remove those banana plugs, the adhesive lined heatshrink is going to be a pain to remove and it's going to leave a glue film on the metal/cable. For instances where I want a heavier duty heatshrink, I just use two heatshrink tubes to provide a double-wall (one on top of the other).
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Wow! Just looked. Interesting. The DH Labs is the same part based on my use of them when Vampire was out of stock. They are equally good. PC has far too many out of stocks.
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Vampire is out of business, and the PCX stock is, AFAIK, the very last of it.
Neutrik makes very affordable XLR’s with silver contacts, and I use them exclusively. Now that I’ve simplified my gear though I only have 2 analog line level connections:
- XLR cables between my DAC and integrated.
- RCA cables between the AVR and the integrated for which I use Eichmann bullets for.
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I like the Vampire XLR connectors at Parts Connextion for the money. Pure copper and solidly built. If you have the budget, then I bet the ETI’s would sound a bit better.
I only used the Vampire in my builds as they represented great sound at reasonable cost.
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@grannyring my speaker binding posts are ETI, might swap out the ones on my amplifier to match as well.
grannyring what XLR connectors would you recommend to try out?
Sorry erik_squires - not trying to spoil your thread.
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Parts Connextion is a good choice for adhesive lined heat shrink. I have had good luck with these also,
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@rixthetrick
I have used ETI RCA plugs only. I liked then. In the end I liked the KLEI just as much for lower cost. I have not tried their bananas and bet they are very good!
The Viborg option was based on the great value they represent. Good sound and affordable.
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At first, I thought, at this price, if it's junk, I'll return it.
Everything I have ordered from wish and ali has been genuine high quality parts, I adapter posts, spades, bananas, cables, locking connectors, ....
try something in-expensive just to learn, return if junk. you will be very happily surprised.
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@grannyring - there’s some history between Keith Eichmann and ETI, which is why they are rather similar in may ways.
Have you personally tried the ETI Research LINK Banana plugs?
I am curious, these have double screws.
Also, have you any personal experience with the ETI Kyro connectors (stupid expensive I know), in particular XLR? I understand from a mutual friend you are very
well versed and experienced in connectors, and cables.
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@grannyring
Thanks so much! Those are exactly what I’m looking for. Sorry I missed your original posting.
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Erik, the ones I linked you to are a great choice. I have used a plethora of brands over the years. These are the real deal and priced right.
The only ones that sound better are the KLEI bananas, but they are fragile and solder only.
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I'm all for discounts, but there's no way I'm buying boutique plugs from Alliexpress. 🤣
I'd rather get cheap stuff from Amazon I trust than potentially fake stuff I don't.
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@mijostyn - I like Monosaudio spades, and these look nice, but fail on one important aspect: Need the outer shell to be an insulator. Actually need to check if the Aeco is plastic or not, but it looks thin enough I can heat shrink an insulator around it.
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ETI Research LINK Banana speaker cable connector, however are somewhere around 50% more than your budget.
@brunomarcs - dual wall heat shrink is the generic name for heat shrink with hot glue inside the heat shrink.
@mitch2 - those Furez copper spades look pretty effective and cool too.
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I have struggled over the years to find just the right heat shrink for particular projects. I do like the 3M heat shrink for most things and it does come either with/without adhesive. However, sometimes I have looked for thicker heat shrink for certain projects such as the ends of power cables, or even speaker cable connectors that will get a lot of handling over time. I have sometimes found what I wanted at Partsconnexion but you might also look at what is available at this place.
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@grannyring Where do you suggest I get me some really heavy duty heat shrink as such. Needed for speaker and power cords. The parts express stuff I bought is not up to the task
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These are great. Use double walled, adhesive lined heat shrink tubing over the barrel as your finishing touch. Sound good and lock in very securely. Build quality is high.
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@erik_squires
@mitch2 Only 1 in stock, need 2.
That is strange Eric - I loaded 2 and then 4 sets into a cart and they seemed to be in stock. However, the AECO bananas you chose look pretty good too. Tellurium Copper adds durability over pure copper and is typically listed between 90-95 percent IACS, which is much better than the other copper alloys sometimes used, which are Phosphor Bronze at about 48 percent IACS and Beryllium copper at about 30-38 percent IACS.
I was fortunate to purchase a bunch of the set screw style Furez copper spades and copper bananas (like these) before the pandemic. I don't know why Furez seem to have stopped production of those because they were/are pretty nice. The larger sized bananas and spades they formerly offered were also useful because they accommodated the larger 7awg cables I have made. I also like the rubber inserts inside the bananas that seem to add stability and damping, and resist deformation.
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Back when I purchased my Furez bananas, I contacted Furez, told them what I wanted, and purchased directly from them. As mentioned above.......I like the products very much. Those Furutech bananas have " lots of different metals ", for what it's worth.
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I think I've settled on a good, relatively affordable set:
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Look at DH Labs pure copper and 2 screws for good physical contact .
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I have not seen any "locking" banana plugs that worked at all.
Well for grip strength and reliability I do recommend the WBT line.
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I have not seen any "locking" banana plugs that worked at all. The problem is exactly like you said -- the plugs just do not grip tightly at all. The same exact problem exists on any other "locking" connector. I don't like locking connectors of any type, banana, RCA, etc.
If you go to this following link, scroll down and look at the picture of the bare banana plug:
Audiophonics site - FP-200B
This model is not a "locking" type banana. The plug itself is formed using a slightly larger diameter than the standard banana socket. The stiffness of the metal acts as a "spring" to hold the plug in the binding posts. I have used these many times and the connection is extremely tight! The gold-plated models are $19 each and the rhodium-plated are $22 (not that much of a difference).
Once you clamped down the set-screws, you can either use the existing screw-on shell or just heatshrink the ends.
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Ive invested heavily into Furutech, Should I be concerned about my furutech plugs not lasting!
Hey @brunomarcs - I'd say if they are working for you right now you should leave it all alone. I don't think they'll crumble to dust in our lifetimes.
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Erik, why don’t you like Furutech bananas? I have used the Furutech FP-200B bananas on several occasions and have found them to be the best banana plug.
@auxinput
I’ve tried locking, angled bananas from both Furutech and WBT, and there was no contest. The big issue for me was the diameter of the banana and deformation. The Furutech were the rhodium plated models. When I first got them they were used on Focals. In those the Furutech were too small to grip tightly and a couple of the 4 deformed permanently after me trying too hard to expand them. They NEVER gripped very tightly.
The WBT Cu angled bananas on the other hand never deformed and gripped everything extremely well. Never had a problem with them after multiple insertion cycles. I will literally never ever ever use a Furutech connector again.
Unfortunately I’m also too cheap to use the WBT Nexgen equivalent now either. :D
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You could try Audioquest Suregrip 300 BFA series banana plugs. They are Beryllium copper with good set-screws (not brass, but not pure copper). Cheaper than Furutech.
Whatever you do, DO NOT buy the Audioquest 500 or 1000 series bananas. They are absolute crap. Very loose fit and the set screws and case screws are so small that they are usually stripped already.
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Ive invested heavily into Furutech, Should I be concerned about my furutech plugs not lasting!
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Erik, why don't you like Furutech bananas? I have used the Furutech FP-200B bananas on several occasions and have found them to be the best banana plug. The set screws are large and you can really crank them down. The plug itself has a very tight fit when inserted. They are available in gold-plated for $19 each at Parts Connexion. (4 x $19 = $76).
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Neotech NCB-80 over at Sonic Craft $64.00 a set of 4
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@mitch2 Only 1 in stock, need 2.
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