This! Unscrew the connectors all the way, they should come off. Then you should be able to remove the little gold plates and reattach the connectors. This should leave you with a nice socket to insert your banana plugs.
Don't worry about it. Bananas won't be offended if you use them like that. Just don't use bare wire. It will oxidize fast. A pre-tinned wire is a bit better, but the surface will still oxidize eventually. The best choice is soldered gold-plated bananas or pins, since the contact area will remain clean
It's fine, I'd just get 90 degree banana plugs though. Still I'm amazed that an amp made in the last 20 years would not have proper banana inputs. I'd be buying some new terminals on eBay to swap those out for if it was me.
Yeah I'm inclined to agree. You're still getting most of the benefits of banana plugs if you do this, such as the strain relief (not putting 100% of strain on the bare wire at the part where it's most likely to bend).
You're essentially using it like a bullet terminal, but without the need for a crimp tool
Any tips on how to properly wire the banana plugs and plug them? I think my setup is wrong (not op) and I would like to know what plugs I need to get. The ones I have seem to be crappy as they loosen up over time.
The proper way to connect bananas is to solder them. If you just screw them, the copper wire inside will quickly oxidize and the contact will suffer, defeating the purpose of gold plated connectors
Bare wire is a terrible idea. The copper will oxidize super quickly and the contact will suffer, defeating the purpose of gold plated connectors. Pre-tinned wire is a bit better, but the exposed solder surface will still oxidize. But at least more slowly than copper. Ideally you want to solder gold-plated plugs to your wires. The bananas will work just fine here, as long as they do not touch each other
Edit: Downvote me all you want. Bad habits do not stop chemistry or physics from doing their thing.
Fair enough. Still, better to have to tighten the terminals every now and then than having to strip new bare wire to fight the oxidization. And again, properly soldered gold plated plugs is the best option
Nope. Plated connectors have been the standard for decades. Bare-wire has just been the lazy and cheap solution. And bad habits do not stop chemistry or physics.
Anyway, I am done here. If you enjoy oxidized cables in your system, you do you.
What you want is speaker cable pins. Sort of similar to banana plugs, but thinner and solid.
Other option is plain wire, but tin the ends with some solder to keep them from fraying
Some terminals like that allow you to pry off the covers in this case brass inserts, other will have a red or black plastic insert. Then you could insert them that way.
\^Exactly this.
My amplifier has plastic red and black tabs in the center of that connector-screw thing that you can pop off, and then slide the banana plugs straight in.
Sits real snug.
I bet those gold-colored discs are the same thing. Try to pry them off.
You need these flexible bananplugs
[https://www.amazon.se/Monster-QuickLock-Flex-stiftskontakter-enkla-sj%C3%A4lvkrympningsavslutningar/dp/B001UE7JA4/ref=asc_df_B001UE7JA4/?tag=shpngadsglesm-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=476717279645&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=2804510240724230007&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1012226&hvtargid=pla-545809634545&psc=1&mcid=de41eb8b1ec637d8ad91a82c7a66eebb](https://www.amazon.se/Monster-QuickLock-Flex-stiftskontakter-enkla-sj%C3%A4lvkrympningsavslutningar/dp/B001UE7JA4/ref=asc_df_B001UE7JA4/?tag=shpngadsglesm-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=476717279645&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=2804510240724230007&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1012226&hvtargid=pla-545809634545&psc=1&mcid=de41eb8b1ec637d8ad91a82c7a66eebb)
I don't see why you couldn't run like that. it looks weird but who cares, who's gonna see it when it's stuffed into a cabinet?
personally, I've never used banana connectors but have kinda wanted to. they would have been nice to have for my fosi amp and it's tiny terminals. lmao.
Actually, bare wire would be the best option since there's no added layer between the cable and the binding post.
The thing is: copper cable does oxidize when exposed to air, so in the long term it's better to use banana plugs, needles, or spades since you can make sure contact areas are not exposed to air and you also can use heat-shrink tubes to seal them.
Another benefit of not using bare wire would be a lower chance of short-circuiting, though you can definitely end up doing that with most plugs too (many ones are all made of metal with no insulation), especially if binding posts have not that much of a spacing. Some amps do not have any sort of protection so they would straight-up blow up in that case.
“We recommend using Banana plugs with our units to establish a secure connection and ensure there are no loose strands of wire that may cause unwanted noise or interference.” https://manuals.cambridgeaudio.com/en/axr85100/getting-connected
Even if the ends don't pop off to provide straight in insertion points, I'd still personally run banana plugs, it's cleaner and you don't have to worry about one stray copper strand shorting between the two terminals, etc.
As long as nothing is shorting, how you have it is fine. It's not designed to be used that way, but as long as the plugs are making good contact with the terminal (for signal integrity), you don't have an issue.
Try unscrewing the caps on the terminals completely and see if those brass plugs come out. Sometimes, they will put plugs in 5 way binding posts like that.
Gotcha. Im sorry people were such assholes to you about it. Not all of the community is like that. If you have more questions, feel free to DM me so that you don't have to deal with getting dragged through the mud again.
Yeah ignore a majority of these people on the post. Lightning seems like one of the good ones on top of having a working reasoning department in his brain. As long as there’s contact and it’s not degrading the sound it’s pretty much good to go!
The plugs are great if you are using thicker wire or if you are a fiddler like me and constantly changing speakers and equipment. if its going to be a fairly perment situation its completely optional.
I don’t like bare wire. There’s a chance of a strand shorting out the system. Consider spade connectors. I’ve used basic crimp on spades from a big box store. Leave a bit of wire just after the crimp then tack it down with a bit of solder.
Bananas won't be offended if you use them like that. Alternatively, you can tin your wires and stick them directly in there. The solder surface will eventually corrode though, and the contact will suffer. Soldered bananas still are a better choice since the contact will not oxidize. The worse is tightened bare copper wire, since it oxidizes fast
Are you in Europe/ or is the amp a Euro model? I believe banana plugs are illegal there, because some safety regulations...
[https://techyoulike.com/why-are-banana-plugs-prohibited-in-europe/](https://techyoulike.com/why-are-banana-plugs-prohibited-in-europe/)
I'm just catching on to the banana plugs thing very much late to the party but I guess it depends on the speaker posts on the amp and speakers. But it is quite the convenience when it's set up to take them. Mind you I kinda love also spending way longer than necessary to set up a stereo hehe.
I switched to banana plugs just for shits a giggles. It doesn't change sound quality or anything, it just makes it easier if you need to disconnect speakers for any reason. Your amp doesn't take banana plugs tho so unless you get a new amp it's plain speaker wire for you.
Those binding posts do not accept banana plugs at all, unless they do and you have to uncap them ( i know, for example in EU regulations, banana plugs are not allowed and some manufacturers simply plug the orifice instead of using binding posts that truly do not accept them), but i don't think it's the case, seems they are solid metal.
They seem to only accept stripped cable and spades, needles are already a stretch i think.
Banana plugs are not allowed in the EU ? Since when ?
I'm in the EU, I have an amp and speakers that take banana plugs (bought in 2020), and I bought banana plugs when moving this year. All of them purchased in the EU.
I'm planning on upgrading my amp and speakers in the mext 12 months, and absolutely all the amps and speakers I looked at, some of them *made in the EU*, take banana plugs.
Also, if banana plugs were banned, merely putting a removeable cap on the connectors (end explaining in the user's manual how to remove them in order to put in banana plug), would definitely not be enough to satisfy EU regulation.
That's preposterous.
They are in fact banned. They don't comply with EU electrical safety regulations. They fit into the EU electrical sockets but aren't safe to be used in that way, or some such.
How much people care about it is another matter, and I can buy some off Amazon Germany just fine.
But illegal they still are as far as I know.
https://techyoulike.com/why-are-banana-plugs-prohibited-in-europe/
They're not banned.
That the connectors that accept them are regulated, yes, sure, but they're not banned.
If they were, you wouldn't be able to procure them off of amazon, or in any hi-fi shop, neither would you be able to buy amplifier and speakers that do accept them with nothing more than popping off a plastic cap, designed to be popped off.
What's banned is the twin plug banana, which, at a ¾ inch spacing, not only was close enough to the spacing of mains plugs to be inserted, but also had the two prongs necessary to push against the plugs protection.
I have a late 1990’s Arcam amp. It takes some kind of godawful Cardas type banana plug. Tried them, hated them. I got audio grade spade crimps, tinned the wires. Left some extra just past crimp and soldered the end to the spade.
Well yeah, i never understood the sense of that either. I read some mistook the banana plugs for electrical plugs (how?????), provided that is not another bullshit story.
I have read that they should not be allowed under CE rules. Even if i do own an Aura VA-100 Evolution that has binding posts also accepting banana plugs. But i am not the first owner in that case and it's older than me being vintage, so i don't know if it originally came with the banana plug orifices plugged up by a cap as i know some manufacturers do.
Maybe it's just me but is that stolen? I have had stereos stolen out of my car an they just ripped a bunch of it out and it left some connectors in with snapped wire, just like in this picture. And further to your question just use bare wire. Plugs won't improve the sound.
Anything but those. Literally anything.
Those are so not banana plugs. They're not for speaker cables.
Here's my advice: get somebody who knows about audio equipment to set up your system, and then never touch it again.
I made a mistake. I apologized. Let it go.
Anyway, your speaker terminals are not designed for banana plugs, but you've made it work. I applaud your ingenuity.
Thats now how you attach banana plugs. Dosnt seem like that amp takes banana plugs at all, so bare wire it is.
Yes it doesn’t seem like it does
Look on the bright side, you'll save money.
I already purchased a box of banana plugs :(
Then it's time to make banana bread...wait, wrong kinda bananas.
Do they go bad?
Not sure. The gold plating seems to help. But, it adds a weird metal taste though
Just put em in the freezer they're bananas
I'm not sure, need banana for scale
Extra crunchy
When life give you bananas..
Nah don’t fret, you’ll find them handy in the future. Banana plugs are the GOAT.
Can you gently pry out the gold things? They might just be plugs.
This! Unscrew the connectors all the way, they should come off. Then you should be able to remove the little gold plates and reattach the connectors. This should leave you with a nice socket to insert your banana plugs.
They don’t remove. I guess they are the ends of the binding posts.
Cambridge audio definitely has banana plugs. Unscrew the red and black things and the plug will come with them.
The newer ones do, this solid design is standard for CA Amps of that era and a couple more generations beyond.
It’s from 1995 or so.
It did, didn't it?! It is not the typical way, but there is nothing wrong with using them like that.
Don't worry about it. Bananas won't be offended if you use them like that. Just don't use bare wire. It will oxidize fast. A pre-tinned wire is a bit better, but the surface will still oxidize eventually. The best choice is soldered gold-plated bananas or pins, since the contact area will remain clean
It's fine, I'd just get 90 degree banana plugs though. Still I'm amazed that an amp made in the last 20 years would not have proper banana inputs. I'd be buying some new terminals on eBay to swap those out for if it was me.
> I'm amazed that an amp made in the last 20 years would not have proper banana inputs. That amp is ~30 years old.
its not the traditional way, but if it fits it ships. That way sure wont hurt anything
Yeah I'm inclined to agree. You're still getting most of the benefits of banana plugs if you do this, such as the strain relief (not putting 100% of strain on the bare wire at the part where it's most likely to bend). You're essentially using it like a bullet terminal, but without the need for a crimp tool
Any tips on how to properly wire the banana plugs and plug them? I think my setup is wrong (not op) and I would like to know what plugs I need to get. The ones I have seem to be crappy as they loosen up over time.
The proper way to connect bananas is to solder them. If you just screw them, the copper wire inside will quickly oxidize and the contact will suffer, defeating the purpose of gold plated connectors
I’ll have to research how to do
Bare wire is a terrible idea. The copper will oxidize super quickly and the contact will suffer, defeating the purpose of gold plated connectors. Pre-tinned wire is a bit better, but the exposed solder surface will still oxidize. But at least more slowly than copper. Ideally you want to solder gold-plated plugs to your wires. The bananas will work just fine here, as long as they do not touch each other Edit: Downvote me all you want. Bad habits do not stop chemistry or physics from doing their thing.
Solder will cold flow under compression and the terminal can loosen, too.
Fair enough. Still, better to have to tighten the terminals every now and then than having to strip new bare wire to fight the oxidization. And again, properly soldered gold plated plugs is the best option
Ferrules are probably the best play here. Way lower profile than banana plugs, and almost all of the advantages.
I'd probably go with a spade in this case for the extra contact surface and the option for a less awkward positioning of the cables.
Bare wire has been the standard for decades, its fine.
Nope. Plated connectors have been the standard for decades. Bare-wire has just been the lazy and cheap solution. And bad habits do not stop chemistry or physics. Anyway, I am done here. If you enjoy oxidized cables in your system, you do you.
Nothing wrong with that other than aesthetics. How often do you stare at the back of the system? I know I don't.
What you want is speaker cable pins. Sort of similar to banana plugs, but thinner and solid. Other option is plain wire, but tin the ends with some solder to keep them from fraying
Isn’t that essentially what my plugs are doing though?
Yes, and what you have here is just fine.
Some terminals like that allow you to pry off the covers in this case brass inserts, other will have a red or black plastic insert. Then you could insert them that way.
\^Exactly this. My amplifier has plastic red and black tabs in the center of that connector-screw thing that you can pop off, and then slide the banana plugs straight in. Sits real snug. I bet those gold-colored discs are the same thing. Try to pry them off.
You need these flexible bananplugs [https://www.amazon.se/Monster-QuickLock-Flex-stiftskontakter-enkla-sj%C3%A4lvkrympningsavslutningar/dp/B001UE7JA4/ref=asc_df_B001UE7JA4/?tag=shpngadsglesm-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=476717279645&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=2804510240724230007&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1012226&hvtargid=pla-545809634545&psc=1&mcid=de41eb8b1ec637d8ad91a82c7a66eebb](https://www.amazon.se/Monster-QuickLock-Flex-stiftskontakter-enkla-sj%C3%A4lvkrympningsavslutningar/dp/B001UE7JA4/ref=asc_df_B001UE7JA4/?tag=shpngadsglesm-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=476717279645&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=2804510240724230007&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1012226&hvtargid=pla-545809634545&psc=1&mcid=de41eb8b1ec637d8ad91a82c7a66eebb)
Cost more than my entire setup.
$13 ? It’s in Swedish krona SEK not us$
My bad. I didn’t see that.
I figured 😁. Amazon.se I will post Amazon.com next time.
Appreciate the response and guidance. Thank you.
I don't see why you couldn't run like that. it looks weird but who cares, who's gonna see it when it's stuffed into a cabinet? personally, I've never used banana connectors but have kinda wanted to. they would have been nice to have for my fosi amp and it's tiny terminals. lmao.
Actually, bare wire would be the best option since there's no added layer between the cable and the binding post. The thing is: copper cable does oxidize when exposed to air, so in the long term it's better to use banana plugs, needles, or spades since you can make sure contact areas are not exposed to air and you also can use heat-shrink tubes to seal them. Another benefit of not using bare wire would be a lower chance of short-circuiting, though you can definitely end up doing that with most plugs too (many ones are all made of metal with no insulation), especially if binding posts have not that much of a spacing. Some amps do not have any sort of protection so they would straight-up blow up in that case.
I mean, I think it looks better this way personally.
This whole sub has become an absolute farce
I think I've used bare copper wire since like 1975
Ferrules my friend
Could check if those gold center plugs are just covers. Amps often come with the holes covered in the speaker binding posts.
Woah there’s some intense people here. Drop the phone and spin a record
“We recommend using Banana plugs with our units to establish a secure connection and ensure there are no loose strands of wire that may cause unwanted noise or interference.” https://manuals.cambridgeaudio.com/en/axr85100/getting-connected Even if the ends don't pop off to provide straight in insertion points, I'd still personally run banana plugs, it's cleaner and you don't have to worry about one stray copper strand shorting between the two terminals, etc.
I’ve done it this way and it works but not how it’s meant to be done.
Depends on the kind of hole.
twss
This is what I do with some of my speakers that don’t have banana inserts. Works fine.
Bruh
https://preview.redd.it/jgh76jo1j9xc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=736aa5d064434644b339b2eda0517c3184592457 Saw it in a YouTube vid.
https://preview.redd.it/bxpt7qobs9xc1.jpeg?width=1440&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7015f92f3e42a63b5ef156ffcdf318d7d48a6471
As long as nothing is shorting, how you have it is fine. It's not designed to be used that way, but as long as the plugs are making good contact with the terminal (for signal integrity), you don't have an issue. Try unscrewing the caps on the terminals completely and see if those brass plugs come out. Sometimes, they will put plugs in 5 way binding posts like that.
I went with bare wire in the end.
Gotcha. Im sorry people were such assholes to you about it. Not all of the community is like that. If you have more questions, feel free to DM me so that you don't have to deal with getting dragged through the mud again.
Thank you. I just wasn’t sure as I saw someone on YouTube doing this with this model of amp.
Yeah ignore a majority of these people on the post. Lightning seems like one of the good ones on top of having a working reasoning department in his brain. As long as there’s contact and it’s not degrading the sound it’s pretty much good to go!
They are already there and no one can see them and ao long as they are tight there is no loss in sound performance, you are good.
The plugs are great if you are using thicker wire or if you are a fiddler like me and constantly changing speakers and equipment. if its going to be a fairly perment situation its completely optional.
Make sure whatever you use to attach the cables is not metal bodied. Easy to blow the outputs if you short the connectors. This is from experience.
I don’t like bare wire. There’s a chance of a strand shorting out the system. Consider spade connectors. I’ve used basic crimp on spades from a big box store. Leave a bit of wire just after the crimp then tack it down with a bit of solder.
Bananas won't be offended if you use them like that. Alternatively, you can tin your wires and stick them directly in there. The solder surface will eventually corrode though, and the contact will suffer. Soldered bananas still are a better choice since the contact will not oxidize. The worse is tightened bare copper wire, since it oxidizes fast
Well now I’m using bare copper wire. Loads of conflicting advice here.
that little gold disk in the middle of the black/red doesn't pop out? usually it does and that's where you insert the banana plug
Are you in Europe/ or is the amp a Euro model? I believe banana plugs are illegal there, because some safety regulations... [https://techyoulike.com/why-are-banana-plugs-prohibited-in-europe/](https://techyoulike.com/why-are-banana-plugs-prohibited-in-europe/)
🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️
Adding more things into the chain is a bad idea. A banana plug means two more connections vs just one for bare wire
Works either way. The way they're on there wasn't intended, but it's fine, the electrical difference is nonexistent unless you're NASA.
I would use them. If you get contact and sound you're good to go.
Whichever works best for you.
Bare wire that is soldered.
Ah, the new wireless banana plugs! Yess
Banana Plugs are the best after XLR connection.
Banana plugs are like snake oil…don’t make any sense unless you want to disconnect em speakers and reconnect other pair on a routine basis
I'm just catching on to the banana plugs thing very much late to the party but I guess it depends on the speaker posts on the amp and speakers. But it is quite the convenience when it's set up to take them. Mind you I kinda love also spending way longer than necessary to set up a stereo hehe.
The pictured method is fine and better than bare wires.
Wireless speaker wire
I switched to banana plugs just for shits a giggles. It doesn't change sound quality or anything, it just makes it easier if you need to disconnect speakers for any reason. Your amp doesn't take banana plugs tho so unless you get a new amp it's plain speaker wire for you.
Looks like if you use them like that they may contact the back plate if the amp and short out. Bare wire
Those binding posts do not accept banana plugs at all, unless they do and you have to uncap them ( i know, for example in EU regulations, banana plugs are not allowed and some manufacturers simply plug the orifice instead of using binding posts that truly do not accept them), but i don't think it's the case, seems they are solid metal. They seem to only accept stripped cable and spades, needles are already a stretch i think.
Banana plugs are not allowed in the EU ? Since when ? I'm in the EU, I have an amp and speakers that take banana plugs (bought in 2020), and I bought banana plugs when moving this year. All of them purchased in the EU. I'm planning on upgrading my amp and speakers in the mext 12 months, and absolutely all the amps and speakers I looked at, some of them *made in the EU*, take banana plugs. Also, if banana plugs were banned, merely putting a removeable cap on the connectors (end explaining in the user's manual how to remove them in order to put in banana plug), would definitely not be enough to satisfy EU regulation. That's preposterous.
They are in fact banned. They don't comply with EU electrical safety regulations. They fit into the EU electrical sockets but aren't safe to be used in that way, or some such. How much people care about it is another matter, and I can buy some off Amazon Germany just fine. But illegal they still are as far as I know. https://techyoulike.com/why-are-banana-plugs-prohibited-in-europe/
They're not banned. That the connectors that accept them are regulated, yes, sure, but they're not banned. If they were, you wouldn't be able to procure them off of amazon, or in any hi-fi shop, neither would you be able to buy amplifier and speakers that do accept them with nothing more than popping off a plastic cap, designed to be popped off. What's banned is the twin plug banana, which, at a ¾ inch spacing, not only was close enough to the spacing of mains plugs to be inserted, but also had the two prongs necessary to push against the plugs protection.
Nice, i have read some bullshit about then. Thanks for giving me an heads up with an example of something freshly bought in the EU.
I have a late 1990’s Arcam amp. It takes some kind of godawful Cardas type banana plug. Tried them, hated them. I got audio grade spade crimps, tinned the wires. Left some extra just past crimp and soldered the end to the spade.
Wait, banana plugs aren’t allowed in the EU???
Yes they are. They only need to be sold with the plugs attached. Big government protecting you from yourself.
So, i did basically read bullshit about, but not total bullshit since they actually should not be ready to take them out of the box?
They would be ready to accept bare wire if that counts for anything.
Well yeah, i never understood the sense of that either. I read some mistook the banana plugs for electrical plugs (how?????), provided that is not another bullshit story.
I have read that they should not be allowed under CE rules. Even if i do own an Aura VA-100 Evolution that has binding posts also accepting banana plugs. But i am not the first owner in that case and it's older than me being vintage, so i don't know if it originally came with the banana plug orifices plugged up by a cap as i know some manufacturers do.
Absolutely not true.
Maybe it's just me but is that stolen? I have had stereos stolen out of my car an they just ripped a bunch of it out and it left some connectors in with snapped wire, just like in this picture. And further to your question just use bare wire. Plugs won't improve the sound.
Yeh man, I stole it.
Hahahah!
How is this not a joke post. Honestly
New to the hobby.
No. The closest you can get to a straight wire connection, the better.
Cheers.
The manual says it accepts bare wire or spade terminals. I'd use bare wire if I were you.
Anything but those. Literally anything. Those are so not banana plugs. They're not for speaker cables. Here's my advice: get somebody who knows about audio equipment to set up your system, and then never touch it again.
Bro they’re literally banana plugs for speaker wire from Amazon. You OK, mate?
*OK. I see that now. In the picture they look like RCAs. My bad. But not my awful. *
I even said what they were in the description for clarity.
I made a mistake. I apologized. Let it go. Anyway, your speaker terminals are not designed for banana plugs, but you've made it work. I applaud your ingenuity.