I used locking bananas to great effect when I had this amp,just pop out the safety plugs. The trick will be figuring out how to get inside of the thing.
Need help re Quad 909 Binding Posts
I would like to replace them but the shop I have used locally (ACI in the metro Washington, DC area) does not want to take on the job. Any suggestions for shops in MD or VA suburbs of DC, or in DC? (The posts don't take anything other than bare wire very well, and even that method of connection gives me pause, because the holes in the posts do not go all the way through.) Thanks!
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I don't own the Quad 909 and I'm not familiar with the binding posts they use. However, I have owned other modern amps from British companies that used some odd binding posts (by US standards). I believe they may be posts that comply with the BFA standard. If this is the case, you may have plastic buttons installed in the ends (as stated by Geared4me). You may be able to pry these buttons/plugs out of the ends and use bananas. Also, if they are BFA type post, the may actually have a pin in the center that prevents using standard bananas. If that is the case, the BFA type of banana plugs, like the Nordost Z-plugs or similar BFA compliant models, work great. I used a pair of cables using Nordost Z-plugs on my Arcam Alpha 10 with outstanding results. The BFA banana plugs make an excellent mechanical connection with these types of binding posts. Enjoy, TIC |
I found a picture of the back of the 909 and it does look as if all you have to do is get the plugs out of the center of the binding posts, as Geared4me suggested. I've at time had to resort to drilling a very small hole into the center of the plug to give a place to get a small screwdriver tip into the plug and work it out. If you accomplish that, the BFA-style banana plugs that Reubent suggests are the way to go. A good option in addition to the Nordost Z-plugs are the Audioquest plugs. |
I too own the 909, and had the same frustration. I went a much cheaper (and lazier) way: the side hole made for bare wire fits one of the prongs of my spade cables. The other prong stradles the side mount, away from the other output post for the respective channel. In fact, the geometry of the back of the amp also serves to hold it snug in place. I covered the other ("free") prong with some insulating caps, and it seems to work OK. Not ideal, I know, but a whole lot easier than changing the binding posts. You will leave a mark on the spade prong that goes in from the fastener, but if that's OK for you it may at least be a temporary solution. Of course, if I set my house on fire doing this I will give you an update... |
The plugs are out, so in theory the binding posts will take banana plugs. But I am finding that Vampire's SB bananas, which lock on to my Premier 11A binding posts just fine, do not lock on to the 909 very well. Maybe I need to try the BFA style or Nordost Z or Audioquest plugs. Thanks for all the suggestions! |
Adamsmo, The binding post may have a pin in the center that prevents normal bananas from being used. The BFA style bananas should work just fine. For a good example of what the BFA connectors look like, take a look at this link to 6moons review of the White Lightning Moonshine speaker cables: http://6moons.com/audioreviews/whitelightning/moonshine.html In the review there is a e-mail address of a vendor that sells the Multi-Contact USA BFA style banana. They are significantly less expensive from Multi-Contact USA than they are from Nordost. They look like the same connector to me. Enjoy, TIC |
You can open up the Quad 909 and unsolder these strange binding posts and install conventional/cardas binding posts to take spades. I did this in my own unit, and it took one hour. It does make me wonder regarding differences in expensive/exotic speaker cables when internally the output board to binding post wires are some inferior grade wire albeit a short run. |