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#41
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speaker wire connector and tool
"Jerry G." wrote in message ...
You would be better off with 14 or 12 gauge for speaker wiring. It makes a difference. For connectors, you will have to purchase the wall types, and solder or use crimp spades to the screws. You should ask the vendor of the wall connectors for the details. They should be able to sell you the necessary options required. You would be best off to hire a tech for this job, if you do not know how to do it. -- Greetings, Jerry Greenberg GLG Technologies GLG ========================================= WebPage http://www.zoom-one.com Electronics http://www.zoom-one.com/electron.htm Wow! The advice in this thread is not even close to the recommendations of the three dedicated audio stores I visited, or even other usenet group postings. Every one suggested I use 16, or maybe 14 gauge wire and gold plated banana plugs for the wire (except a couple said to use pins instead of banana plugs). They said I would not be able to tell the difference between 16 gauge and 14 gauge wire. And they all said to connect the plugs directly to the speakers and receiver. Maybe this was the recommendation because I watch TV 70%/music 30%. Or maybe because my speakers and electronics cost in the $3500 range, not the $6000 area. Do you think these sources are just telling me this to meet a price point, or might their experience tell them that this is all that is needed? Howard ========================================= "Howdego" wrote in message m... I am building a new home and having my electrician lay in 16 gauge speaker wire. However, he will not install connectors to the wire. I am somewhat mechanically inclined and would like to install crimped (no solder), gold plated pin or banana connectors to ensure good long term connectivity at the interfaces. I am using new Boston Acoustics speakers and a new Yamaha AV receiver for my surround sound system. I would appreciate it if the group could recommend a brand and type connector and tool to use, and a good source for purchasing them. |
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#42
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speaker wire connector and tool
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#43
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speaker wire connector and tool
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#44
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speaker wire connector and tool
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#47
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speaker wire connector and tool
In , on 03/24/04
at 07:11 AM, (unitron) said: I am building a new home and having my electrician lay in 16 gauge speaker wire. However, he will not install connectors to the wire. ---snip--- Why not? Do you mean that he refuses to? That would make me very curious and probably very nervous about letting him wire the place in which I was going to live. [ ... ] Sounds like the electrician sticks to what he knows. I can usually work with this sort. He can run the wires and I'll make the connections. Some electricians are difficult to deal with because they are sure that they know more than I do about these things and want to keep all the money for themselves. A couple weeks ago an electrician insisted that the customer could use a sleek looking "rheostat" (pointing to a solid state lamp dimmer -- the kind with a little slide beside the toggle) rather than my large and clunky looking autotransformer control. He was slighty bemused that I couldn't agree that his control would work just as well and look better. He also couldn't quite grasp the concept of stereo needing two amplifier channels. I can't wait to see how he hooks up that "rheostat". (This is the same house where the do-it-yourself client grumbled about his system shutting down. I told him that one or more of the autotransformer controls were wired backwards. He insisted that they were installed correctly and something had to be wrong with the receiver or my controls. Finally, he hired me to look into things. --backward control-- QED) ----------------------------------------------------------- spam: wordgame:123(abc):14 9 20 5 2 9 18 4 at 22 15 9 3 5 14 5 20 dot 3 15 13 (Barry Mann) [sorry about the puzzle, spammers are ruining my mailbox] ----------------------------------------------------------- |
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#48
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speaker wire connector and tool
In , on 03/24/04
at 07:11 AM, (unitron) said: I am building a new home and having my electrician lay in 16 gauge speaker wire. However, he will not install connectors to the wire. ---snip--- Why not? Do you mean that he refuses to? That would make me very curious and probably very nervous about letting him wire the place in which I was going to live. [ ... ] Sounds like the electrician sticks to what he knows. I can usually work with this sort. He can run the wires and I'll make the connections. Some electricians are difficult to deal with because they are sure that they know more than I do about these things and want to keep all the money for themselves. A couple weeks ago an electrician insisted that the customer could use a sleek looking "rheostat" (pointing to a solid state lamp dimmer -- the kind with a little slide beside the toggle) rather than my large and clunky looking autotransformer control. He was slighty bemused that I couldn't agree that his control would work just as well and look better. He also couldn't quite grasp the concept of stereo needing two amplifier channels. I can't wait to see how he hooks up that "rheostat". (This is the same house where the do-it-yourself client grumbled about his system shutting down. I told him that one or more of the autotransformer controls were wired backwards. He insisted that they were installed correctly and something had to be wrong with the receiver or my controls. Finally, he hired me to look into things. --backward control-- QED) ----------------------------------------------------------- spam: wordgame:123(abc):14 9 20 5 2 9 18 4 at 22 15 9 3 5 14 5 20 dot 3 15 13 (Barry Mann) [sorry about the puzzle, spammers are ruining my mailbox] ----------------------------------------------------------- |
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#49
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speaker wire connector and tool
In , on 03/24/04
at 07:11 AM, (unitron) said: I am building a new home and having my electrician lay in 16 gauge speaker wire. However, he will not install connectors to the wire. ---snip--- Why not? Do you mean that he refuses to? That would make me very curious and probably very nervous about letting him wire the place in which I was going to live. [ ... ] Sounds like the electrician sticks to what he knows. I can usually work with this sort. He can run the wires and I'll make the connections. Some electricians are difficult to deal with because they are sure that they know more than I do about these things and want to keep all the money for themselves. A couple weeks ago an electrician insisted that the customer could use a sleek looking "rheostat" (pointing to a solid state lamp dimmer -- the kind with a little slide beside the toggle) rather than my large and clunky looking autotransformer control. He was slighty bemused that I couldn't agree that his control would work just as well and look better. He also couldn't quite grasp the concept of stereo needing two amplifier channels. I can't wait to see how he hooks up that "rheostat". (This is the same house where the do-it-yourself client grumbled about his system shutting down. I told him that one or more of the autotransformer controls were wired backwards. He insisted that they were installed correctly and something had to be wrong with the receiver or my controls. Finally, he hired me to look into things. --backward control-- QED) ----------------------------------------------------------- spam: wordgame:123(abc):14 9 20 5 2 9 18 4 at 22 15 9 3 5 14 5 20 dot 3 15 13 (Barry Mann) [sorry about the puzzle, spammers are ruining my mailbox] ----------------------------------------------------------- |
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#50
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speaker wire connector and tool
The electrician is used to doing "basic" work. He runs wire and
installs lights ok, I assume, but he just started to do home runs for tel, catv, etc. about a year ago. I saw the OnQ box modules he installed in a completed house and it looked ok. He says he doesn't have the tool to crimp or solder the pins to speaker wire. I think he just doesn't want to get involved in anything that might cause maintenance visits after construction. The question of using conduit never came up, but I think he would charge plenty if I requested it. So the way it looks right now, I will install some kind of pin or plug on the wires, but probably with a good crimping tool. Guess I won't have the highest quality setup, as those who were kind enought to respond to my original post are used to, but with only two rear speaker runs barely over 40', I should still get a decent sound for my 60 year old ears. BTW: the audio dealer providing my speakers uses gold plated nickle banana plugs on their installations. He charges $6 a pair for the plugs. Does this seem a little low for good plugs? Howard (unitron) wrote in message . com... (Howdego) wrote in message om... I am building a new home and having my electrician lay in 16 gauge speaker wire. However, he will not install connectors to the wire. ---snip--- Why not? Do you mean that he refuses to? That would make me very curious and probably very nervous about letting him wire the place in which I was going to live. Since you're building new, install a lot of conduit (not necessarily the metal kind, see what the local codes will allow for low voltage wiring) for all your current and future low voltage wiring needs--telephone, television, computer networking, stereo, home automation, intercom, alarm, thermostat--think of everything that you can. Then you can decide later what kind of wires or fiber-optic or whatever to run for whatever and not have to tear up any walls to do it or to upgrade it later or to replace it in the unlikely but not impossible event of it going bad. |
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#51
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speaker wire connector and tool
The electrician is used to doing "basic" work. He runs wire and
installs lights ok, I assume, but he just started to do home runs for tel, catv, etc. about a year ago. I saw the OnQ box modules he installed in a completed house and it looked ok. He says he doesn't have the tool to crimp or solder the pins to speaker wire. I think he just doesn't want to get involved in anything that might cause maintenance visits after construction. The question of using conduit never came up, but I think he would charge plenty if I requested it. So the way it looks right now, I will install some kind of pin or plug on the wires, but probably with a good crimping tool. Guess I won't have the highest quality setup, as those who were kind enought to respond to my original post are used to, but with only two rear speaker runs barely over 40', I should still get a decent sound for my 60 year old ears. BTW: the audio dealer providing my speakers uses gold plated nickle banana plugs on their installations. He charges $6 a pair for the plugs. Does this seem a little low for good plugs? Howard (unitron) wrote in message . com... (Howdego) wrote in message om... I am building a new home and having my electrician lay in 16 gauge speaker wire. However, he will not install connectors to the wire. ---snip--- Why not? Do you mean that he refuses to? That would make me very curious and probably very nervous about letting him wire the place in which I was going to live. Since you're building new, install a lot of conduit (not necessarily the metal kind, see what the local codes will allow for low voltage wiring) for all your current and future low voltage wiring needs--telephone, television, computer networking, stereo, home automation, intercom, alarm, thermostat--think of everything that you can. Then you can decide later what kind of wires or fiber-optic or whatever to run for whatever and not have to tear up any walls to do it or to upgrade it later or to replace it in the unlikely but not impossible event of it going bad. |
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#52
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speaker wire connector and tool
The electrician is used to doing "basic" work. He runs wire and
installs lights ok, I assume, but he just started to do home runs for tel, catv, etc. about a year ago. I saw the OnQ box modules he installed in a completed house and it looked ok. He says he doesn't have the tool to crimp or solder the pins to speaker wire. I think he just doesn't want to get involved in anything that might cause maintenance visits after construction. The question of using conduit never came up, but I think he would charge plenty if I requested it. So the way it looks right now, I will install some kind of pin or plug on the wires, but probably with a good crimping tool. Guess I won't have the highest quality setup, as those who were kind enought to respond to my original post are used to, but with only two rear speaker runs barely over 40', I should still get a decent sound for my 60 year old ears. BTW: the audio dealer providing my speakers uses gold plated nickle banana plugs on their installations. He charges $6 a pair for the plugs. Does this seem a little low for good plugs? Howard (unitron) wrote in message . com... (Howdego) wrote in message om... I am building a new home and having my electrician lay in 16 gauge speaker wire. However, he will not install connectors to the wire. ---snip--- Why not? Do you mean that he refuses to? That would make me very curious and probably very nervous about letting him wire the place in which I was going to live. Since you're building new, install a lot of conduit (not necessarily the metal kind, see what the local codes will allow for low voltage wiring) for all your current and future low voltage wiring needs--telephone, television, computer networking, stereo, home automation, intercom, alarm, thermostat--think of everything that you can. Then you can decide later what kind of wires or fiber-optic or whatever to run for whatever and not have to tear up any walls to do it or to upgrade it later or to replace it in the unlikely but not impossible event of it going bad. |
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#53
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speaker wire connector and tool
The electrician is used to doing "basic" work. He runs wire and
installs lights ok, I assume, but he just started to do home runs for tel, catv, etc. about a year ago. I saw the OnQ box modules he installed in a completed house and it looked ok. He says he doesn't have the tool to crimp or solder the pins to speaker wire. I think he just doesn't want to get involved in anything that might cause maintenance visits after construction. The question of using conduit never came up, but I think he would charge plenty if I requested it. So the way it looks right now, I will install some kind of pin or plug on the wires, but probably with a good crimping tool. Guess I won't have the highest quality setup, as those who were kind enought to respond to my original post are used to, but with only two rear speaker runs barely over 40', I should still get a decent sound for my 60 year old ears. BTW: the audio dealer providing my speakers uses gold plated nickle banana plugs on their installations. He charges $6 a pair for the plugs. Does this seem a little low for good plugs? Howard (unitron) wrote in message . com... (Howdego) wrote in message om... I am building a new home and having my electrician lay in 16 gauge speaker wire. However, he will not install connectors to the wire. ---snip--- Why not? Do you mean that he refuses to? That would make me very curious and probably very nervous about letting him wire the place in which I was going to live. Since you're building new, install a lot of conduit (not necessarily the metal kind, see what the local codes will allow for low voltage wiring) for all your current and future low voltage wiring needs--telephone, television, computer networking, stereo, home automation, intercom, alarm, thermostat--think of everything that you can. Then you can decide later what kind of wires or fiber-optic or whatever to run for whatever and not have to tear up any walls to do it or to upgrade it later or to replace it in the unlikely but not impossible event of it going bad. |
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#54
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speaker wire connector and tool
Howdego wrote:
The electrician is used to doing "basic" work. He runs wire and installs lights ok, I assume, but he just started to do home runs for tel, catv, etc. about a year ago. I saw the OnQ box modules he installed in a completed house and it looked ok. He says he doesn't have the tool to crimp or solder the pins to speaker wire. I think he just doesn't want to get involved in anything that might cause maintenance visits after construction. The question of using conduit never came up, but I think he would charge plenty if I requested it. So the way it looks right now, I will install some kind of pin or plug on the wires, but probably with a good crimping tool. Guess I won't have the highest quality setup, as those who were kind enought to respond to my original post are used to, but with only two rear speaker runs barely over 40', I should still get a decent sound for my 60 year old ears. BTW: the audio dealer providing my speakers uses gold plated nickle banana plugs on their installations. He charges $6 a pair for the plugs. Does this seem a little low for good plugs? Actually that is about right, if you insist on staying with banana plugs, with their known faults. What are the connectors on the back of the speakers? --Dale |
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#55
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speaker wire connector and tool
Howdego wrote:
The electrician is used to doing "basic" work. He runs wire and installs lights ok, I assume, but he just started to do home runs for tel, catv, etc. about a year ago. I saw the OnQ box modules he installed in a completed house and it looked ok. He says he doesn't have the tool to crimp or solder the pins to speaker wire. I think he just doesn't want to get involved in anything that might cause maintenance visits after construction. The question of using conduit never came up, but I think he would charge plenty if I requested it. So the way it looks right now, I will install some kind of pin or plug on the wires, but probably with a good crimping tool. Guess I won't have the highest quality setup, as those who were kind enought to respond to my original post are used to, but with only two rear speaker runs barely over 40', I should still get a decent sound for my 60 year old ears. BTW: the audio dealer providing my speakers uses gold plated nickle banana plugs on their installations. He charges $6 a pair for the plugs. Does this seem a little low for good plugs? Actually that is about right, if you insist on staying with banana plugs, with their known faults. What are the connectors on the back of the speakers? --Dale |
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#56
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speaker wire connector and tool
Howdego wrote:
The electrician is used to doing "basic" work. He runs wire and installs lights ok, I assume, but he just started to do home runs for tel, catv, etc. about a year ago. I saw the OnQ box modules he installed in a completed house and it looked ok. He says he doesn't have the tool to crimp or solder the pins to speaker wire. I think he just doesn't want to get involved in anything that might cause maintenance visits after construction. The question of using conduit never came up, but I think he would charge plenty if I requested it. So the way it looks right now, I will install some kind of pin or plug on the wires, but probably with a good crimping tool. Guess I won't have the highest quality setup, as those who were kind enought to respond to my original post are used to, but with only two rear speaker runs barely over 40', I should still get a decent sound for my 60 year old ears. BTW: the audio dealer providing my speakers uses gold plated nickle banana plugs on their installations. He charges $6 a pair for the plugs. Does this seem a little low for good plugs? Actually that is about right, if you insist on staying with banana plugs, with their known faults. What are the connectors on the back of the speakers? --Dale |
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#57
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speaker wire connector and tool
Howdego wrote:
The electrician is used to doing "basic" work. He runs wire and installs lights ok, I assume, but he just started to do home runs for tel, catv, etc. about a year ago. I saw the OnQ box modules he installed in a completed house and it looked ok. He says he doesn't have the tool to crimp or solder the pins to speaker wire. I think he just doesn't want to get involved in anything that might cause maintenance visits after construction. The question of using conduit never came up, but I think he would charge plenty if I requested it. So the way it looks right now, I will install some kind of pin or plug on the wires, but probably with a good crimping tool. Guess I won't have the highest quality setup, as those who were kind enought to respond to my original post are used to, but with only two rear speaker runs barely over 40', I should still get a decent sound for my 60 year old ears. BTW: the audio dealer providing my speakers uses gold plated nickle banana plugs on their installations. He charges $6 a pair for the plugs. Does this seem a little low for good plugs? Actually that is about right, if you insist on staying with banana plugs, with their known faults. What are the connectors on the back of the speakers? --Dale |
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#58
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speaker wire connector and tool
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#59
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speaker wire connector and tool
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#61
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speaker wire connector and tool
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#62
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speaker wire connector and tool
In , on 03/25/04
at 07:44 AM, (Howdego) said: The electrician is used to doing "basic" work. He runs wire and installs lights ok, I assume, but he just started to do home runs for tel, catv, etc. about a year ago. I saw the OnQ box modules he installed in a completed house and it looked ok. He says he doesn't have the tool to crimp or solder the pins to speaker wire. I think he just doesn't want to get involved in anything that might cause maintenance visits after construction. In the overall scheme of things a good crimp tool is not a major expense for a business. Personally, you would probably balk at spending $60.00, for a low end professional tool -- just to do a few connections. Really good tools are much more expensive. Relatively few home electricians will use crimp connections. I'm not exactly sure why. Younger electricians are more likely to use them. Home electricians are mostly concerned with power wiring which is tightly regulated. There is a book, the NEC (National Electrical Code -- in the US), that covers most situations that they are likely to face. There are also some local code issues to consider. If the electrician follows all the codes, they are less likely to get into legal trouble or cause a fire. In home power wiring there is no place for crimp connections. An electrician who solders is very rare. The question of using conduit never came up, but I think he would charge plenty if I requested it. Running conduit takes time. So the way it looks right now, I will install some kind of pin or plug on the wires, but probably with a good crimping tool. Guess I won't have the highest quality setup, as those who were kind enought to respond to my original post are used to, but with only two rear speaker runs barely over 40', I should still get a decent sound for my 60 year old ears. All you need is a clean tight connection. You don't need any lugs or bananas. The advantage of a banana plug is that quick changes are easy. Banana plugs are very poor stationary (plug once and forget) connectors. Crimps make a fast reliable connection. In any case you should break down your connections once or twice a year to break-up any oxides that might form. BTW: the audio dealer providing my speakers uses gold plated nickle banana plugs on their installations. He charges $6 a pair for the plugs. Does this seem a little low for good plugs? That's a decent price for gold plated dual banana plugs, but I still don't like banana plugs. The gold plating may improve the banana plug's performance (if it is plugged in to a gold plated jack) in a stationary situation, but the gold wears off rapidly in a high traffic application. Don't throw away those 60 year old ears, they've just been broken in. How many young world class orchestra conductors do you know? ----------------------------------------------------------- spam: wordgame:123(abc):14 9 20 5 2 9 18 4 at 22 15 9 3 5 14 5 20 dot 3 15 13 (Barry Mann) [sorry about the puzzle, spammers are ruining my mailbox] ----------------------------------------------------------- |
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#63
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speaker wire connector and tool
In , on 03/25/04
at 07:44 AM, (Howdego) said: The electrician is used to doing "basic" work. He runs wire and installs lights ok, I assume, but he just started to do home runs for tel, catv, etc. about a year ago. I saw the OnQ box modules he installed in a completed house and it looked ok. He says he doesn't have the tool to crimp or solder the pins to speaker wire. I think he just doesn't want to get involved in anything that might cause maintenance visits after construction. In the overall scheme of things a good crimp tool is not a major expense for a business. Personally, you would probably balk at spending $60.00, for a low end professional tool -- just to do a few connections. Really good tools are much more expensive. Relatively few home electricians will use crimp connections. I'm not exactly sure why. Younger electricians are more likely to use them. Home electricians are mostly concerned with power wiring which is tightly regulated. There is a book, the NEC (National Electrical Code -- in the US), that covers most situations that they are likely to face. There are also some local code issues to consider. If the electrician follows all the codes, they are less likely to get into legal trouble or cause a fire. In home power wiring there is no place for crimp connections. An electrician who solders is very rare. The question of using conduit never came up, but I think he would charge plenty if I requested it. Running conduit takes time. So the way it looks right now, I will install some kind of pin or plug on the wires, but probably with a good crimping tool. Guess I won't have the highest quality setup, as those who were kind enought to respond to my original post are used to, but with only two rear speaker runs barely over 40', I should still get a decent sound for my 60 year old ears. All you need is a clean tight connection. You don't need any lugs or bananas. The advantage of a banana plug is that quick changes are easy. Banana plugs are very poor stationary (plug once and forget) connectors. Crimps make a fast reliable connection. In any case you should break down your connections once or twice a year to break-up any oxides that might form. BTW: the audio dealer providing my speakers uses gold plated nickle banana plugs on their installations. He charges $6 a pair for the plugs. Does this seem a little low for good plugs? That's a decent price for gold plated dual banana plugs, but I still don't like banana plugs. The gold plating may improve the banana plug's performance (if it is plugged in to a gold plated jack) in a stationary situation, but the gold wears off rapidly in a high traffic application. Don't throw away those 60 year old ears, they've just been broken in. How many young world class orchestra conductors do you know? ----------------------------------------------------------- spam: wordgame:123(abc):14 9 20 5 2 9 18 4 at 22 15 9 3 5 14 5 20 dot 3 15 13 (Barry Mann) [sorry about the puzzle, spammers are ruining my mailbox] ----------------------------------------------------------- |
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#64
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speaker wire connector and tool
In , on 03/25/04
at 07:44 AM, (Howdego) said: The electrician is used to doing "basic" work. He runs wire and installs lights ok, I assume, but he just started to do home runs for tel, catv, etc. about a year ago. I saw the OnQ box modules he installed in a completed house and it looked ok. He says he doesn't have the tool to crimp or solder the pins to speaker wire. I think he just doesn't want to get involved in anything that might cause maintenance visits after construction. In the overall scheme of things a good crimp tool is not a major expense for a business. Personally, you would probably balk at spending $60.00, for a low end professional tool -- just to do a few connections. Really good tools are much more expensive. Relatively few home electricians will use crimp connections. I'm not exactly sure why. Younger electricians are more likely to use them. Home electricians are mostly concerned with power wiring which is tightly regulated. There is a book, the NEC (National Electrical Code -- in the US), that covers most situations that they are likely to face. There are also some local code issues to consider. If the electrician follows all the codes, they are less likely to get into legal trouble or cause a fire. In home power wiring there is no place for crimp connections. An electrician who solders is very rare. The question of using conduit never came up, but I think he would charge plenty if I requested it. Running conduit takes time. So the way it looks right now, I will install some kind of pin or plug on the wires, but probably with a good crimping tool. Guess I won't have the highest quality setup, as those who were kind enought to respond to my original post are used to, but with only two rear speaker runs barely over 40', I should still get a decent sound for my 60 year old ears. All you need is a clean tight connection. You don't need any lugs or bananas. The advantage of a banana plug is that quick changes are easy. Banana plugs are very poor stationary (plug once and forget) connectors. Crimps make a fast reliable connection. In any case you should break down your connections once or twice a year to break-up any oxides that might form. BTW: the audio dealer providing my speakers uses gold plated nickle banana plugs on their installations. He charges $6 a pair for the plugs. Does this seem a little low for good plugs? That's a decent price for gold plated dual banana plugs, but I still don't like banana plugs. The gold plating may improve the banana plug's performance (if it is plugged in to a gold plated jack) in a stationary situation, but the gold wears off rapidly in a high traffic application. Don't throw away those 60 year old ears, they've just been broken in. How many young world class orchestra conductors do you know? ----------------------------------------------------------- spam: wordgame:123(abc):14 9 20 5 2 9 18 4 at 22 15 9 3 5 14 5 20 dot 3 15 13 (Barry Mann) [sorry about the puzzle, spammers are ruining my mailbox] ----------------------------------------------------------- |
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#65
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speaker wire connector and tool
In , on 03/25/04
at 07:44 AM, (Howdego) said: The electrician is used to doing "basic" work. He runs wire and installs lights ok, I assume, but he just started to do home runs for tel, catv, etc. about a year ago. I saw the OnQ box modules he installed in a completed house and it looked ok. He says he doesn't have the tool to crimp or solder the pins to speaker wire. I think he just doesn't want to get involved in anything that might cause maintenance visits after construction. In the overall scheme of things a good crimp tool is not a major expense for a business. Personally, you would probably balk at spending $60.00, for a low end professional tool -- just to do a few connections. Really good tools are much more expensive. Relatively few home electricians will use crimp connections. I'm not exactly sure why. Younger electricians are more likely to use them. Home electricians are mostly concerned with power wiring which is tightly regulated. There is a book, the NEC (National Electrical Code -- in the US), that covers most situations that they are likely to face. There are also some local code issues to consider. If the electrician follows all the codes, they are less likely to get into legal trouble or cause a fire. In home power wiring there is no place for crimp connections. An electrician who solders is very rare. The question of using conduit never came up, but I think he would charge plenty if I requested it. Running conduit takes time. So the way it looks right now, I will install some kind of pin or plug on the wires, but probably with a good crimping tool. Guess I won't have the highest quality setup, as those who were kind enought to respond to my original post are used to, but with only two rear speaker runs barely over 40', I should still get a decent sound for my 60 year old ears. All you need is a clean tight connection. You don't need any lugs or bananas. The advantage of a banana plug is that quick changes are easy. Banana plugs are very poor stationary (plug once and forget) connectors. Crimps make a fast reliable connection. In any case you should break down your connections once or twice a year to break-up any oxides that might form. BTW: the audio dealer providing my speakers uses gold plated nickle banana plugs on their installations. He charges $6 a pair for the plugs. Does this seem a little low for good plugs? That's a decent price for gold plated dual banana plugs, but I still don't like banana plugs. The gold plating may improve the banana plug's performance (if it is plugged in to a gold plated jack) in a stationary situation, but the gold wears off rapidly in a high traffic application. Don't throw away those 60 year old ears, they've just been broken in. How many young world class orchestra conductors do you know? ----------------------------------------------------------- spam: wordgame:123(abc):14 9 20 5 2 9 18 4 at 22 15 9 3 5 14 5 20 dot 3 15 13 (Barry Mann) [sorry about the puzzle, spammers are ruining my mailbox] ----------------------------------------------------------- |
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#66
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speaker wire connector and tool
Barry Mann wrote:
snip Relatively few home electricians will use crimp connections. I'm not exactly sure why. Younger electricians are more likely to use them. Home electricians are mostly concerned with power wiring which is tightly regulated. There is a book, the NEC (National Electrical Code -- in the US), that covers most situations that they are likely to face. There are also some local code issues to consider. If the electrician follows all the codes, they are less likely to get into legal trouble or cause a fire. In home power wiring there is no place for crimp connections. snip They're very common in appliances, though. Are you aware of anything in the NEC _forbidding_ their use? -- The e-mail address in our reply-to line is reversed in an attempt to minimize spam. Our true address is of the form . |
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#67
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speaker wire connector and tool
Barry Mann wrote:
snip Relatively few home electricians will use crimp connections. I'm not exactly sure why. Younger electricians are more likely to use them. Home electricians are mostly concerned with power wiring which is tightly regulated. There is a book, the NEC (National Electrical Code -- in the US), that covers most situations that they are likely to face. There are also some local code issues to consider. If the electrician follows all the codes, they are less likely to get into legal trouble or cause a fire. In home power wiring there is no place for crimp connections. snip They're very common in appliances, though. Are you aware of anything in the NEC _forbidding_ their use? -- The e-mail address in our reply-to line is reversed in an attempt to minimize spam. Our true address is of the form . |
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#68
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speaker wire connector and tool
Barry Mann wrote:
snip Relatively few home electricians will use crimp connections. I'm not exactly sure why. Younger electricians are more likely to use them. Home electricians are mostly concerned with power wiring which is tightly regulated. There is a book, the NEC (National Electrical Code -- in the US), that covers most situations that they are likely to face. There are also some local code issues to consider. If the electrician follows all the codes, they are less likely to get into legal trouble or cause a fire. In home power wiring there is no place for crimp connections. snip They're very common in appliances, though. Are you aware of anything in the NEC _forbidding_ their use? -- The e-mail address in our reply-to line is reversed in an attempt to minimize spam. Our true address is of the form . |
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#69
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speaker wire connector and tool
Barry Mann wrote:
snip Relatively few home electricians will use crimp connections. I'm not exactly sure why. Younger electricians are more likely to use them. Home electricians are mostly concerned with power wiring which is tightly regulated. There is a book, the NEC (National Electrical Code -- in the US), that covers most situations that they are likely to face. There are also some local code issues to consider. If the electrician follows all the codes, they are less likely to get into legal trouble or cause a fire. In home power wiring there is no place for crimp connections. snip They're very common in appliances, though. Are you aware of anything in the NEC _forbidding_ their use? -- The e-mail address in our reply-to line is reversed in an attempt to minimize spam. Our true address is of the form . |
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#70
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speaker wire connector and tool
CJT wrote:
Barry Mann wrote: snip Relatively few home electricians will use crimp connections. I'm not exactly sure why. Younger electricians are more likely to use them. Home electricians are mostly concerned with power wiring which is tightly regulated. There is a book, the NEC (National Electrical Code -- in the US), that covers most situations that they are likely to face. There are also some local code issues to consider. If the electrician follows all the codes, they are less likely to get into legal trouble or cause a fire. In home power wiring there is no place for crimp connections. snip They're very common in appliances, though. Are you aware of anything in the NEC _forbidding_ their use? They are allowed under the NEC. They are less popular because instead of just grabbing the right size wire nut and twisting it on, you have to grab the right crimp sleeve, the correct size tool and crimp it on, then put the insulating cap on over the crimp. Basically it is more of a hassle for an electrician to hang all that more crap on his/her belt. For a production line application, the greater reliability of a crimp connection wins. Crimp connections are more common in heavy power applications. --Dale |
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#71
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speaker wire connector and tool
CJT wrote:
Barry Mann wrote: snip Relatively few home electricians will use crimp connections. I'm not exactly sure why. Younger electricians are more likely to use them. Home electricians are mostly concerned with power wiring which is tightly regulated. There is a book, the NEC (National Electrical Code -- in the US), that covers most situations that they are likely to face. There are also some local code issues to consider. If the electrician follows all the codes, they are less likely to get into legal trouble or cause a fire. In home power wiring there is no place for crimp connections. snip They're very common in appliances, though. Are you aware of anything in the NEC _forbidding_ their use? They are allowed under the NEC. They are less popular because instead of just grabbing the right size wire nut and twisting it on, you have to grab the right crimp sleeve, the correct size tool and crimp it on, then put the insulating cap on over the crimp. Basically it is more of a hassle for an electrician to hang all that more crap on his/her belt. For a production line application, the greater reliability of a crimp connection wins. Crimp connections are more common in heavy power applications. --Dale |
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#72
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speaker wire connector and tool
CJT wrote:
Barry Mann wrote: snip Relatively few home electricians will use crimp connections. I'm not exactly sure why. Younger electricians are more likely to use them. Home electricians are mostly concerned with power wiring which is tightly regulated. There is a book, the NEC (National Electrical Code -- in the US), that covers most situations that they are likely to face. There are also some local code issues to consider. If the electrician follows all the codes, they are less likely to get into legal trouble or cause a fire. In home power wiring there is no place for crimp connections. snip They're very common in appliances, though. Are you aware of anything in the NEC _forbidding_ their use? They are allowed under the NEC. They are less popular because instead of just grabbing the right size wire nut and twisting it on, you have to grab the right crimp sleeve, the correct size tool and crimp it on, then put the insulating cap on over the crimp. Basically it is more of a hassle for an electrician to hang all that more crap on his/her belt. For a production line application, the greater reliability of a crimp connection wins. Crimp connections are more common in heavy power applications. --Dale |
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#73
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speaker wire connector and tool
CJT wrote:
Barry Mann wrote: snip Relatively few home electricians will use crimp connections. I'm not exactly sure why. Younger electricians are more likely to use them. Home electricians are mostly concerned with power wiring which is tightly regulated. There is a book, the NEC (National Electrical Code -- in the US), that covers most situations that they are likely to face. There are also some local code issues to consider. If the electrician follows all the codes, they are less likely to get into legal trouble or cause a fire. In home power wiring there is no place for crimp connections. snip They're very common in appliances, though. Are you aware of anything in the NEC _forbidding_ their use? They are allowed under the NEC. They are less popular because instead of just grabbing the right size wire nut and twisting it on, you have to grab the right crimp sleeve, the correct size tool and crimp it on, then put the insulating cap on over the crimp. Basically it is more of a hassle for an electrician to hang all that more crap on his/her belt. For a production line application, the greater reliability of a crimp connection wins. Crimp connections are more common in heavy power applications. --Dale |
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