Avoid Binding Post with what cost?

[5th element]

Add some slack in the run. At least enough to sense the snag before you snap something.

I wasnt talking about me snagging it, Im not going to do that and I dont the cables are not in an accessable area to allow that to happen.

What I was meaning is if you have a 2 year old taring round the house and they trip on the wire whilst running or moving at considerable speed, they dont sense a snag then. But your equipment sure will.

 

[chris ma]

I'd mount short shafted posts (individual posts) above or below a pass-through for the speaker wire coming out of the cabinet and connect the afore mentioned wire with the cable coming from your amplifier in the posts (bare wire clamped down via the post).
It won't give you a straight path per se but you won't have to listen through the shaft of the post.

This is what I did before the use of wire nut. The binding post can not handle the 12awg solid core. I used to have the braided wire and the solid core soldered with spades and clamp down by the binding post. But then again unless I am using very good and expensive spades there is still a middle man I want to get rid of.

The Butcher

 

[Tim Moorman]

chris

My various posts have different lengths and diameters, but the larger diameter posts (3/8" or 7/16") all have a whole bored clear through the shaft, which will take up to maybe 8(?) ga wire. The binding "nut" ordinarily covers the opening when fully tightened. You may just have the small posts without the size to accomodate the larger hole.

I assume you have tried smaller gauge wire and arrived at this size for a reason, but there are many different posts available, some even for the goofy-sized audiophile cables.

Tim

 

[Tim Moorman]

Here's the "nothing special 1/4" shaft type:

http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&DID=7&Partnumber=091-1245

Or am I missing something?

Tim

 

[chris ma]

Tim,

The problem for mating a 12awg solid core with 16awg braided wire as I found out best solution is to use a wire nut. The 12awg wire were left overs from wiring the basement last Christmas. The binding posts were left over from the dismantled JLH. The 16awg were dismantled quad star speaker cables from HT used before.

Due to the two different gauge sizes the clamp of binding posts can not really provide a secure or tight contact for them.

The Butcher

 

[Tim Moorman]

I see. Well, not to start a wire war or anything, but you may want to try something a little more forgiving than 12 ga. romex. That stuff can levitate a small speaker. I found it dull sounding as speaker wire.

Cat 5 is made up of 24 ga solid core, but teflon insulated. A single run works fine for low power tube gear. I've twisted up all manner of it using from 5 up to 15 pair braided, as I'm sure you have seen mention made elsewhere. Cheap, and works well.
Radio Shack sells spools of magnet wire, if you want to experiment, as well as just solid core copper with poly insulation.

Also some buzz about the Home Depot 14 ga extension cord thing.

Trivial pursuits, these, but worth an hour on a cold winter's day, maybe.

Tim

 

[ERICSPEEd]

This is what I did before the use of wire nut. The binding post can not handle the 12awg solid core. I used to have the braided wire and the solid core soldered with spades and clamp down by the binding post. But then again unless I am using very good and expensive spades there is still a middle man I want to get rid of.

The Butcher

I don't mean to be mean but...wire nut schmyer nut. (thought that be fun to say).

There are binding posts that can handle 10 gauge wire ya know WBT (yes their costly). Also Why not go straight from the crossover to the binding post to the amplifier? Why create two connections?
I'm no genius but your left with two options, run wire out the cabinet directly from the crossover (bearing in mind you have to decide upon an acceptable length) or use some means of intermitent connection between the speaker and the amplifier.
I believe if you connect bare wire to bare wire via a compression device, ie binding post (or low grade wire nut, yuk!) would be an acceptable option. Also I believe if executed properly the binding post option would work and "look" better than the wire nut alternative.
I would like to add if you know the distance from your speakers to your amplifier, I would go straight (I think you know what I mean).
I agree with what I belive to be your complant...that you do not wish to listen to your speakers though the treaded shaft of a binding post.
I will meditate on this matter and inform you if I so happen to be inlightened.
There is always an option, yet that option may not be acceptable to all.

PS the picture shows some really small guage wire connected to the wire nut... what's the point?

 

[ERICSPEEd]

I also wanted to say, this "middle man" you speak of probably is less of a problem than you think. You'd be hard pressed to find "the" perfect speaker cable in the first place (and many so called perfect cables more than likely cost more than your entire project, do you have $275 to spend per foot for Goertz Silver AG?). And when you factor in the effect of air(o2) on exposed copper...well any quality spade, post, etc. will do fine (of course that is my opinion, but there's some fact there). Yes I know it will take some time to find the approperate option, Silver is the best, bar none (but corrodes more readily).

Like all of us you want the best you can get for what you got.

I'd worry more about the Drivers, Cabinet design and construction, crossover design and parts used before I'd worry about the use of binding posts or straight wire.

 

[ERICSPEEd]

I wanted to add in my previous post this simple comment...

THE LAW OF DIMINISHING RETURNS

 

[Joules]

The red wire nuts sound better

 

[ERICSPEEd]

The red wire nuts sound better

ARE YOU "NUTS"?