rca plugs - comparisons?

a connector that i like a lot is the neutrik pro-fi spring loaded rca connector.

I like plugs that I can tighten for maximum contact. One should on occasion remove the cables to service that contacts to remove any oxidation, etc. This might be the best thing you can do, and it is free.

I have made identical ICs with 99.99 % pure copper cryo'd solid core wire, good metal-to-metal contact and Cardas solder with the following RCA plugs:

WBT Midline, WBT solderless, WBT nextgen gold and silver, Eichman gold, Xhadow, Cardas silver/rhodium, Cardas gold, DH Labs top-of-the-line OFC plug (I do not recall the model) Vampire Cx7CB and Vampire 800 CB.

In my system, from most liked to least liked:

Analog:
Vampire 800CB -very musical, best bass, quiet, smooth, analog-like;
Vampire CX7CB -very musical, quiet, smooth, analog-like;
WBT Nextgen Gold -very musical and transparent; actually sounds about the same as C7XCB, both are low mass conductors.
Xhadow Small- very musical and transparent, slightly emphasized treble/air;
WBT solderless - OK, musical, does not excell in any area except coherence;
Cardas Gold -OK, musical; good for the price;
WBT Midline -OK, fairly musical; restricted bass and treble, too expensive for what if offers;
Cardas Rhodium (slightly steely sound, great bass)
Eichman (weird distortion/grunge in the midrange)
DH Labs (bright-sounding)

Digital ICs (pure Silver):
WBT Nextgen Ag - just wonderful; Numero Uno for digital!
Xhadow Large - very close to WBT Ag and more robust;
WBT Nextgen Gold - Great, loses a little transparency as compared to the above connectors;
Cardas Silver - good sound, but not magical as Nextgen Ag
I have not tried the remaining connectors on digital ICs

My biases:
On analog, I prefer slightly smooth and "mellow" ICs than super-transparent, hyper-detailed cables.
On digital, I want the cable to pass very low-level detail and soundstaging clues (in adddition to souding even-handed)

System:
Audio Aero Capitole CDP directly into ASR Emmiter II, Electrocompaniet or Hyperion SET tube amps, Hyperion 968 speakers, Tara labs Air 1 Series 2 ICs, VDH Supernova bi-wire speaker cables, Fusion Audio Predator, Impulse and Enchanter power cords.

I hope this helps

I have tried quite a few, but now I have realised that the wire you use and type of solder has a lot to do with how you get on with various RCA plugs.

 I think it is a good idea not to swap around after you find a series you find reliable . I have come to rest with Belden 1812 twin core cable for interconnects. It is easy to use and very reliable. I have tried Van Damme co-axial , but they don`t sound quite as good. I like WBT plugs very much as they are easy to use and very well built. One thing I find annoying is when the negative is too near the positive cup, can`t see the point of this. I also use the "japanese " system where only the positive is soldered , the second black wire being tucked in with the gauze and squeezed together rather than soldered. Not too easy with the WBT plugs. But the captive affect by the plugs is  very good and strong. 

 Monster plugs seem to be popular, but they are not captive and I find rather too tight on the female. (lost two sockets this way even with twisting. )  Other cheap plugs don`t seem worth the extra saving. Canare are very good with the cable strain relief but are not captive. so I rather use WBT..                                                    I am trying a WBT copy with silver plating. In theory they should be good , but I  am not so sure, I will tell , against  such fine gold plate. I have Focal 926 speakers , B&W with a new pair of Monitor Audio 100 7g to test. I like Monitor Audio, my very first speakers. I shall report on the silver plated RCA plugs.

 I  

Good ole fp 126 has always been musical solid little connector and is still reasonable $.I am using the Eti,aeco and will eventually make a pair using klei's.Wbt solder