Spades or bananas

I think that a good set of locking banana's are a good alternative to spades. I've got a few sets of cables with locking WBT banana's and have GREAT confidence in the quality of connection that they make. Prior to using these, i had large reservations about banana's.

As our pal across the water stated, much of any connection is based on how "clean" it is. You might be surprised how dirty contacts get even though they appear to be "clamped" together. Sean
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Any votes out there for bare wire? Having gone from the fanciest spades "backwards," I can't find any reason to reverse course, at least in my system (CJ Prem. l2s to Gallo Ultimates via Mapleshade wire). Just my 2 cents.

I doubt it makes any audible difference which you use. In a double blind listening test, I wonder if anyone would know?

Bare wire is great until is oxidizes to the point where the signal is degraded. The problem with speaker wire is you are transfering a current across a mechanical connection. Therefore my vote goes for whichever connector can be fastened the tightest and provide a good contact area to the speaker terminal.

Bare wire gets my vote! Makes a good argument for purchasing bulk, IF you can find what you want. Spades would be my second choice. Though they are less convenient than bannanas, a tight connection is always assured. I've experienced variation in fit snugness with bannanas, though generally they're an OK choice except for stiff/heavy cables and/or near wall speaker placement.