Lets start by examining a few popular connectors available for the DIY enthusiast.

Here is one of Home Grown Audio's rhodium plated silver connectors. Very simple morphology. Some may find these "cheap" looking. Well...they are designed with simplicity in mind, and the cost is very reasonable. Acoustically, I really like the sound. High frequency extension is great, though with very resolving equipment, a tad to "bright". Still, a great buy. As far a durability goes, they are quite tough. But, with the stress testing that I do, after completing the cable, there is a tendency for the crimped-on negative portion to disassociate from the head. Keep in mind that I apply way more tension than would be encountered under normal operating circumstances. Overall, a very nice, inexpensive connector.

Next shown is the Audio Note RCA connector. This is a very well built RCA. Acoustically, a little more tamed in the upper frequencies compared to the HGA....