Question for users of bare wire ends speaker cable

Bare wire is SUPPOSEDLY best. This takes into consideration that the metals being used ( wire material and speaker terminal i.e. binding post, spring terminal ) don't react to each other. Dissimilar metals tend to corrode quickly. To help protect the wire from corroding, you might treat the wire and the terminal with something like Caig Pro Gold Liquid. This supposedly cleans and treats the metals, minimizing oxidation.

As to using some type of connector, a "real" crimp is supposedly superior to soldering the connector on. This would be "preferred method #2". Soldering the connector on is third in terms of a good connection. Crimping and soldering is supposedly fourth. I take this from information presented by Jon Risch on AA and others that are pretty well versed in things of this nature.

Having said that, i prefer to crimp and then solder any type of connection. You have to make sure that all the connecting surfaces have been properly prepped and cleaned, crimp the connection using a REAL crimping tool, use good quality solder, allow the solder to completely flow into the joint, let the joint set up and cool ON ITS' OWN ( no blowing on it to help it along ) before moving or disturbing it, etc...

Here's why i do this: crimping makes a metal to metal bond between the connector and wire. This assures low resistance. Soldering the connection seals the joint from oxidation. It also fills in any gaps and increases the surface area that is making contact. All bases should be covered if done properly.

The argument against soldering is that most solder is not very "pure" or a great conductor on its' own. That is why i crimp first, as this makes the basic connection and does not rely on the solder itself. Besides that, i see NO "theoretical" losses since there are HUNDREDS or THOUSANDS of solder joints in the signal chain. If someone was truly worried about the poor conductivity of solder, i would HIGHLY suggest re-flowing all of the connections on the circuit boards of each component using a high grade solder.

If you are not used to soldering, always use a THIN solder. You can always feed more as it melts and is needed. On the other hand, using a large diameter solder can tend to cool the solder joint / solder tip too quickly. This can end up in a high resistance / low strength connection that look poor and is not secure. Some good solders that i have used are Wonder Solder and Cardas. I find that Wonder melts easier and flows better. The Cardas requires higher heat and a little more attention. Supposedly, Jena Labs states that Cardas is the best sounding solder ( in their opinion ). Silver Bearing solder is MUCH harder to work with and not for beginners by any means. Common "generic" solder such as Radio Shack will work, but tend to degrade much more drastically over time. It becomes brittle and can become resistive as it gets older. Kester is a good alternative to this without costing an arm and a leg. The "no residue" solders that i have tried worked like junk, so skip them.

I think that much of the differences in the various formulations are not so much the metals used to make the solder, but the actual rosin. Keep in mind that you should never use Acid core for electronics unless you want a big mess with potential damage to components. Hope this helps. If you have further questions, try doing a search over at AA. Sean
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Good post Sean. I'm always intrigued by the concept that soldering connectors (on interconnects or speaker wires) is going to degrade the sound. After all there are a gazillion solder joints on the PCB of each component, including the power transistors in the amp, and the speaker binding posts. Fusing the metals together is obviously better, but beyond the means of most of us.

PS I also keep some electrical cleaner handy to wipe off flux residue (brown gunk) which is messy and can be damaging over the longer term.

Fbi, sorry, I can't remember whether I cut off the tinned ends and started with bare wire to solder on the spades. But would it matter? It got plenty hot and any tinning that might have been there would have been melted into the new solder, wouldn't it?

I don't like using bare wire because copper oxidizes immediately upon exposure to air, and continues to oxidize further as time goes on. The same is true of silver, and of all solders. Best to crimp to gold-plated spades which gives a true high-pressure metal-to-metal interface. (If using a proper dedicated crimping tool, that is. A pair of pliers from your toolbox isn't worth squat.) Gold is not as good a conductor as copper but is vastly more corrosion-resistant, so in the real world it is a lot better. I don't believe that solder is necessary if the crimp is done properly-- it's like wearing both a belt and suspenders:). I have disassembled good crimped connectors that were many years old and the copper in the crimped area is as bright as the day it was made, while everything else is dark brown. But on the other hand, soldering after the crimp is done probably doesn't hurt anything either, and if it lets you sleep better at night, then do it.

Karls, you state that all of the exposed copper is oxidized EXCEPT for where the actual crimp is making connection. Since "skin effect" is a common term used in wire / cable conversations, don't you think it would be better to treat and seal the entire stripped and exposed area than to have corroded copper /good connection at the crimp / corroded copper at the end with all of that being in the signal path ? After all, once something begins to corrode, that corrosion tends to "wick" into other areas. Kind of like "rust" on a metal surface. It starts small and gradually works its way into everything. Sean
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