QED Airloc Banana Plugs

[Coll]

Are the QED Airloc Banana Plugs any good, I am getting some new speaker cables and wondering if they work ok.
What I mean is do they grip the cable well or do users find that they come loose as a special tool is required if they do to secure them .
Would I be better off with twin screw banana plugs.

 

[hoopsontoast]

They grip the cable very well, but downside is that they cant be re-used or transferred to another cable, or if you need to shorten it for example.

 

[drummerman]

They are expensive. You are unlikely to hear any difference.

Get some bananas and red/black 6 or 6.4mm shrink wrap of ebay. Cheap and neat. Discard the plastic covers. You can easily do that yourself in a few minutes.

I'd go for solder bucket type ones but the twin scew or crimp connectors do the job too. If you want to get a better conductor, buy the silver plated type (use silver content solder for that type if you get the solder ones)

regards

 

[Coll]

They are expensive. You are unlikely to hear any difference.

Get some bananas and red/black 6 or 6.4mm shrink wrap of ebay. Cheap and neat. Discard the plastic covers. You can easily do that yourself in a few minutes.

I'd go for solder bucket type ones but the twin scew or crimp connectors do the job too. If you want to get a better conductor, buy the silver plated type (use silver content solder for that type if you get the solder ones)

regards

What is the shrink wrap for.
Also I realise that the airlocs are expensive I am looking for long term maintenance free connections but prefer bananas.

 

[richardw42]

I've had them.

I wouldn't bother again. Not worth the money.

 

[Big Chris]

QED do a 'screwloc' banana plug for those who want to D.I.Y but it ain't cheap.

To eliminate stress on the plugs, I have sellotaped my speaker cables to the back of my stands, allowing for a natural curve into the back of the speaker

 

[Juzzie Wuzzie]

BC: Rip ties would do the same, for what it is worth?

In regards to the general post, I'm linking my Nait 5i-2 to the Neat Iotas with some £1.50/m Maplin copper speaker cable, and some fundamentally basic spades (speaker) / banana plugs (amplifier). Sounds perfectly good to me, although I would chop and change to see if I could perceive difference, except I've custom installed the cables, and can't be bothered with the pfaff.

If you're doing it yourself, I'd go for some banana plugs with screws, as they are nice and easy to install. All depending on your DIY score!

 

[Big Chris]

BC: Rip ties would do the same, for what it is worth?

Indeed they would, but you'd see them from the front of the stand. :shame:

🙂

 

[Coll]

I've had them.

I wouldn't bother again. Not worth the money.

Why would you not use them again and what are you using now.
As I said I realise that the airlocs are expensive but I am looking for long term maintenance free connections.

 

[chebby]

I have always used soldered banana plugs. (Preferably the standard nickel plated ones that are perfectly up to the job and don't cost much.)

 

[drummerman]

duplicate

 

[drummerman]

... and again. xx@~ forum ... |(

 

[drummerman]

They are expensive. You are unlikely to hear any difference.

Get some bananas and red/black 6 or 6.4mm shrink wrap of ebay. Cheap and neat. Discard the plastic covers. You can easily do that yourself in a few minutes.

I'd go for solder bucket type ones but the twin scew or crimp connectors do the job too. If you want to get a better conductor, buy the silver plated type (use silver content solder for that type if you get the solder ones)

regards

What is the shrink wrap for. Also I realise that the airlocs are expensive I am looking for long term maintenance free connections but prefer bananas.

You only use the plug, not the plastic cover. Perhaps look at how Chord, for example, terminate theirs http://www.futureshop.co.uk/chord-cables-chord-speaker-cable-c-211_214.html After mating the cable to the plug, cut off some shrink wrap, fit over the plug, heat and you're done. It is sometimes easier to fit the shrink plastic over the cable before making the connection. You will have a good, solid and trouble free connection. Shrink wrap is not absolutely necessary by the way, it just finishes the job nicely.

regards

 

[richardw42]

I've had them.

I wouldn't bother again. Not worth the money.

Why would you not use them again and what are you using now. As I said I realise that the airlocs are expensive but I am looking for long term maintenance free connections.

when I ordered the cable (Chord Rumour 2) one of the Airlocs had come off, so they had to go back. Then when I sold the cable although they were well packed the buyer reported one had come away.

They aren't cheap and having to use the tool makes them not easy to fix. Never had the problem with regular (screw type) plugs.

No need to use speaker cables now as I use active speakers.

 

[Coll]

I've had them.

I wouldn't bother again. Not worth the money.

Why would you not use them again and what are you using now. As I said I realise that the airlocs are expensive but I am looking for long term maintenance free connections.

when I ordered the cable (Chord Rumour 2) one of the Airlocs had come off, so they had to go back. Then when I sold the cable although they were well packed the buyer reported one had come away.

They aren't cheap and having to use the tool makes them not easy to fix. Never had the problem with regular (screw type) plugs.

No need to use speaker cables now as I use active speakers.

Thats the sort of problem that puts me off using them, if it only happens once it is one time to many.

 

[Captain Duff]

The shrink wrap helps keep 'standard' terminals (i.e., not the airlocs) as airtight as possible, and that in turn slows down the oxydisation process that happens to exposed copper (i.e., the speaker cable wire!). Oxydisation is bad because it means you will get a 'dirty' connection and possible signal degregation. The alternative is to make sure your cables are too long, then once a year or so cut the ends back and inch or so to clean wire and re-fit whatever terminals you use(if any).

As to the advice to get cheap terminals from ebay - DON'T! Many of them (partticular the 'Nakamachi') plugs are from China rather than Japan (even from UK sellers - as I found to my cost), and the problem with these cheap fakes is that they are often not actually brass (good conductor) based - eg, mine stuck very easily to a magnet, indicating that they were iron based (and iron is apoor signal conductor compared to copper/brass).

So I then got the QED screw-locs instead (decent price and good service from Lancashire-based Audiovisual online) - and no, they didn't stick to a magnet!

 

[Coll]

The shrink wrap helps keep 'standard' terminals (i.e., not the airlocs) as airtight as possible, and that in turn slows down the oxydisation process that happens to exposed copper (i.e., the speaker cable wire!). Oxydisation is bad because it means you will get a 'dirty' connection and possible signal degregation. The alternative is to make sure your cables are too long, then once a year or so cut the ends back and inch or so to clean wire and re-fit whatever terminals you use(if any).

As to the advice to get cheap terminals from ebay - DON'T! Many of them (partticular the 'Nakamachi') plugs are from China rather than Japan (even from UK sellers - as I found to my cost), and the problem with these cheap fakes is that they are often not actually brass (good conductor) based - eg, mine stuck very easily to a magnet, indicating that they were iron based (and iron is apoor signal conductor compared to copper/brass).

So I then got the QED screw-locs instead (decent price and good service from Lancashire-based Audiovisual online) - and no, they didn't stick to a magnet!

Do you use the shrink wrap yourself with the QED Screwlocs. I suppose the other option would be to wind some insulation tape round the back of the plug to seal it which can be removed later if required.

 

[Coll]

Thanks for your comments, I think I will probably use the twin screw srewlocs.
Definately not Airlocs

 

[k77stan]

nakamichi banana gold plugs can be bought on ebay 8 of them for 7.99 delivered,or 9.99 incl. heath sinks..these are the 2 screw ones..pretty good and a great value..

 

[Captain Duff]

nakamichi banana gold plugs can be bought on ebay 8 of them for 7.99 delivered,or 9.99 incl. heath sinks..these are the 2 screw ones..pretty good and a great value..

Yes they can, but I bet they are Chinese made fakes and stick to a magnet!

 

[k77stan]

nakamichi banana gold plugs can be bought on ebay 8 of them for 7.99 delivered,or 9.99 incl. heath sinks..these are the 2 screw ones..pretty good and a great value..

Yes they can, but I bet they are Chinese made fakes and stick to a magnet!

don't know about that,but i'm using them and fnd them no better or worse than the camb.au. which are 2 for 10 at rs

p.s. and no,they don't stick to a magnet,so sleep well captain duff :cheers:

 

[AV4Home]

Although this reply is quite late, I have just found this through internet search and needed to comment as some of the information detailed on later replies is just wrong and/or not relevant to QED cables and interconnects.

QED Airloc connectors are some of the best terminations available for speaker cables. They form a pressure joint, known as a cold-weld, between conductor and connector to become 1-piece of metal. They are Gold-plated over Brass to reduce oxidisation to ensure the finish will last the lifetime of the speaker cable, but also because this Gold plating has a resistance almost as low as Copper to minimise the interruption to the audio signal. This cold-welded connection is very unlikely to work loose or free and AV4Home have numerous customer comments as to the quality of this cable and its termination, these are all visible on the independant review site, Feefo.

QED also sell a Screwloc connector which is a completely different type of connection and allows customers to change/remove any self-terminated speaker cable at any time. This type of connection is not as strong as the cold-welded Airloc connection, as this is held in place by only 2 screws. These screws clamp onto the conductor to provide a good quality connection for everyday audio customers with entry-level upto mid-range hifi systems. Top-of-the-range systems and audiophiles would not entertain this type of connection due to the oxidisation factor, reliablility and strength of connection, and if you want to get really detailed and techincal, due to the difference of resistance that would become apparent due to different interconnection point breaks. QED have invested much time, money and effort in a superb report published back in 1995 that offered customers genuine information based on scientific research and experimentation, regarding important aspects of loudspeaker cable technology and is well worth 5 minutes to read relevant information about speaker terms used to describe products. Internet search "QED Genesis Report" and also see the new updated version of this report "Genesis Report II".

Other comments with my replies here:-

Solder Bucket - Solder has a massive electrical resistance, and unless you have access to Silver solder, AV4Home would really recomend not to use Solder in any audio installation. Although this option is a quick and diy-friendly option, this material will affect the quality of the audio signal but more importantly to most audio users solder can be subject to audio vibrations that can cause micro-cracks in the solder which further increase the resistance or worse can cuase the joint to fracture completely.

I wouldn't botther again - Although this customer is certainly entitled to his opinion in a later reply when asked to further qualify his opionin he states a speaker cable that is not a QED cable. AV4Home has an excellent customer history for QED speaker cables without termination issues and they just dont occur with Airloc connections produced by QED trained sellers, although we have no history of use of these connectors with non-QED cables. This 2nd reply also makes comment to a tool used to fix the issue, which is not available to non-QED dealers and so have no idea what cable or termination this customer has but suspect this is not QED or an Airloc termination problem.

Nickel Plated plugs - This material has over double the resistance of the cable conductor, which is not good for signal quality. This reply also mention Solder bucket type and if these materials (Copper conductor - Solder joint - Nickel connector) were combined the resulting loss would be clearly audible. AV4Home would not recomend this material for use with any audio installation.

This reply is not intended to discredit any reply or post here but to clarify specific QED information regarding Airloc and Screwloc connections.

 

[ReValveiT]

Although this reply is quite late, I have just found this through internet search and needed to comment as some of the information detailed on later replies is just wrong and/or not relevant to QED cables and interconnects.

QED Airloc connectors are some of the best terminations available for speaker cables. They form a pressure joint, known as a cold-weld, between conductor and connector to become 1-piece of metal. They are Gold-plated over Brass to reduce oxidisation to ensure the finish will last the lifetime of the speaker cable, but also because this Gold plating has a resistance almost as low as Copper to minimise the interruption to the audio signal. This cold-welded connection is very unlikely to work loose or free and AV4Home have numerous customer comments as to the quality of this cable and its termination, these are all visible on the independant review site, Feefo.

QED also sell a Screwloc connector which is a completely different type of connection and allows customers to change/remove any self-terminated speaker cable at any time. This type of connection is not as strong as the cold-welded Airloc connection, as this is held in place by only 2 screws. These screws clamp onto the conductor to provide a good quality connection for everyday audio customers with entry-level upto mid-range hifi systems. Top-of-the-range systems and audiophiles would not entertain this type of connection due to the oxidisation factor, reliablility and strength of connection, and if you want to get really detailed and techincal, due to the difference of resistance that would become apparent due to different interconnection point breaks. QED have invested much time, money and effort in a superb report published back in 1995 that offered customers genuine information based on scientific research and experimentation, regarding important aspects of loudspeaker cable technology and is well worth 5 minutes to read relevant information about speaker terms used to describe products. Internet search "QED Genesis Report" and also see the new updated version of this report "Genesis Report II".

Other comments with my replies here:-

Solder Bucket - Solder has a massive electrical resistance, and unless you have access to Silver solder, AV4Home would really recomend not to use Solder in any audio installation. Although this option is a quick and diy-friendly option, this material will affect the quality of the audio signal but more importantly to most audio users solder can be subject to audio vibrations that can cause micro-cracks in the solder which further increase the resistance or worse can cuase the joint to fracture completely.

I wouldn't botther again - Although this customer is certainly entitled to his opinion in a later reply when asked to further qualify his opionin he states a speaker cable that is not a QED cable. AV4Home has an excellent customer history for QED speaker cables without termination issues and they just dont occur with Airloc connections produced by QED trained sellers, although we have no history of use of these connectors with non-QED cables. This 2nd reply also makes comment to a tool used to fix the issue, which is not available to non-QED dealers and so have no idea what cable or termination this customer has but suspect this is not QED or an Airloc termination problem.

Nickel Plated plugs - This material has over double the resistance of the cable conductor, which is not good for signal quality. This reply also mention Solder bucket type and if these materials (Copper conductor - Solder joint - Nickel connector) were combined the resulting loss would be clearly audible. AV4Home would not recomend this material for use with any audio installation.

This reply is not intended to discredit any reply or post here but to clarify specific QED information regarding Airloc and Screwloc connections.

Work for QED much? 😉

edit : No, but you do sell QED. Same thing.

 

[nima]

I think that QED Airloc Banana Plugs are best thing since sliced bread.

 

[hybridauth_Google_109176203586343003415]

I would agree , if you you want permanent termination go for them but I would try the cables out at first as I learned to my detriment. £10×4? The plugs cost the same as the speaker cable.