Banana plugs

[kingnothing83]

Do i need banana plugs to connect a rotel ra-04 to some tannoy custom f1's? Is there a dramatic difference to the sound and does the amp and speaker support the plugs?

Looking to order from superfi although cant afford their QED AIRLOC PROFESSIONAL-FIT 4MM BANANA PLUG if im going to need 8 of the things! Would their PROFIGOLD PGA8103 4 x GOLD-PLATED 4MM BANANA PLUGS do the trick? Thanks a lot

 

[Anonymous]

[quote user="kingnothing83"]
Do i need banana plugs to connect a rotel ra-04 to some tannoy custom f1's? Is there a dramatic difference to the sound and does the amp and speaker support the plugs?

Looking to order from superfi although cant afford their

QED AIRLOC PROFESSIONAL-FIT 4MM BANANA PLUG if im going to need 8 of the things! Would their PROFIGOLD PGA8103 4 x GOLD-PLATED 4MM BANANA PLUGS do the trick? Thanks a lot

[/quote]

Banana plugs allow quick plugging and unplugging. If you don't need that then don't bother with them.

 

[Andrew Everard]

[quote user="Nigel Proctor"]Banana plugs allow quick plugging and unplugging. If you don't need that then don't bother with them.[/quote]

And when properly fitted can also make the cable ends airtight, thus avoiding oxydisation, which can affect the sound, and also avoid stray 'hairs' of wire causing shorts, etc.

You don't need them, agreed, but they do make a clean, reliable connection simpler. But how well they'll work for you does depend on how good your soldering skills are - if you're no good or have never done it before, it might be worth buying cables pre-terminated with plugs. Or stick to bare wire and be prepared to strip the cable back ever six month or a year to get a clean connection.

 

[Anonymous]

Maybe you could do what I did. I bought two pairs of three metre QED Silver Anniversary Cable terminated with the QED Banana plugs. I paid £70 for it and got it for A1 Sound in Sheffield. Since I needed advice I phoned them up and they gave me excellent service. I'm very happy with the product and hope I get many years out of it. I went back to A1 Sound and just bought a NAD C445 Tuner at a grat price. The Banana plugs will save you alot of hassle. I don't think you will have any regrets buying terminated cable.