Hi all,
I am asking in general but particularly about IC sockets and pins - which alloys and plating provide the most pleasant tonality and sound signature?
They come in many variants (copper, beryllium copper, brass, phosphor bronze etc), and the plating whether it's tin, gold, silver etc has different thickness as well.
If anyone is knowledgeable on this subject I'd be grateful to have your insight.
Thank you
I am asking in general but particularly about IC sockets and pins - which alloys and plating provide the most pleasant tonality and sound signature?
They come in many variants (copper, beryllium copper, brass, phosphor bronze etc), and the plating whether it's tin, gold, silver etc has different thickness as well.
If anyone is knowledgeable on this subject I'd be grateful to have your insight.
Thank you
The question should be:
which metals have the best low resistance, low corrosion contact with other metals?
which metals have the best low resistance, low corrosion contact with other metals?
Oh PLEASE, not AGAIN.
File this one together with Cable threads, capacitor colour, and all assorted snake oil ones.
Suggest not wasting time answering legitimate real world parameters such as corrosion resistance, elasticity, contact resistance, etc. because that is NOT being asked, only "pleasant tonality and sound signature" which simply do not exist as a connector parameter.
Silver plating as long as it is not contaminated by sulphur is the preferred plating for audio purposes. Silver oxide is actually a better conductor than silver. Also the signals velocity of propagation is faster in silver. This along with skin depth results in silver plated wire often sounding too bright.
Gold of course does not oxidize, so is better if there is a possibility of sulphur contamination from the air.
Another excellent choice is of the palladium alloy know as Western Electric alloy number two.
Of course the actual plating method has a large effect on the quality.
The most important issue is of course contact area and contact pressure. Some connectors will have selective plating limited to just the point of contact.
It used to be possible to get semiconductors with gold plated leads. These should of course be preferred when possible to get them.
Malvado Ed
Gold of course does not oxidize, so is better if there is a possibility of sulphur contamination from the air.
Another excellent choice is of the palladium alloy know as Western Electric alloy number two.
Of course the actual plating method has a large effect on the quality.
The most important issue is of course contact area and contact pressure. Some connectors will have selective plating limited to just the point of contact.
It used to be possible to get semiconductors with gold plated leads. These should of course be preferred when possible to get them.
Malvado Ed
Buy submarine grade platinum plated ones from military surplus.
That will give you bragging rights, and empty your bank account, so you will not this again.
Seriously, buy good quality parts from a reputed supplier, a few extra to save shipping.
Nobody has been able to show changes in tonality on instruments like oscilloscopes.
In plain language, this whole line of thinking is snake oil or animal ****.
That will give you bragging rights, and empty your bank account, so you will not this again.
Seriously, buy good quality parts from a reputed supplier, a few extra to save shipping.
Nobody has been able to show changes in tonality on instruments like oscilloscopes.
In plain language, this whole line of thinking is snake oil or animal ****.
Thanks @simon7000
I agree that contact area and contact pressure is the most important issue.
But beyond that, for example with IC sockets I've found in practice that even the 0.25 micrometer plating has a profound influence on tonality. Not to mention the plating thickness can vary from 0.25 to 8 micrometers.
A trumpet or cymbals will have a different tonality whether they are made of brass, bell bronze or nickel silver.
The Tibetan singing bowls are made of a 7 metal alloy carefully selected for its acoustic properties and ability to create an enchanting sound.
The same phenomenon seems to be observed with electrical conductors as well.
To the less knowledgeable who came here to mock and scorn:
Music is about its ability to create emotions.
Music must measure up to the human ear.
A sound difference that can be measured but not heard is irrelevant.
Relevant sound solutions are more important, even if they contradict common knowledge and indoctrination from engineering schools.
I agree that contact area and contact pressure is the most important issue.
But beyond that, for example with IC sockets I've found in practice that even the 0.25 micrometer plating has a profound influence on tonality. Not to mention the plating thickness can vary from 0.25 to 8 micrometers.
A trumpet or cymbals will have a different tonality whether they are made of brass, bell bronze or nickel silver.
The Tibetan singing bowls are made of a 7 metal alloy carefully selected for its acoustic properties and ability to create an enchanting sound.
The same phenomenon seems to be observed with electrical conductors as well.
To the less knowledgeable who came here to mock and scorn:
Music is about its ability to create emotions.
Music must measure up to the human ear.
A sound difference that can be measured but not heard is irrelevant.
Relevant sound solutions are more important, even if they contradict common knowledge and indoctrination from engineering schools.
I think you mean 'the people who have done this stuff for real in far more exacting scenarios than audio'?
If you are worried about socket contacts then solder the parts directly in and remove the problem. If REALLY worried go to surface mount devices.
Why, what about all the various metals and alloys which are used within resistors, inductors, capacitors, semiconductors, wires, connectors and pcb tracks which exists between the musical instrument and your loudspeaker.
This is not right, silver oxide is a semi conductor
https://www.researchgate.net/public...repared_by_Reactive_Electron_Beam_Evaporation
I was addressing my question to people knowledgeable about music, not the objectivist engineers.
90% of people here get a kick out of building amplifiers rather than from actually listening to music.
I did not post this question to get answers about conductivity. If it was all about conductivity you'd see silver conductors everywhere, but that's not the case.
A brass instrument will have different resonance depending on the alloy whether it's yellow brass, gold brass or red brass, and musicians will have their own preference. There are steel, nickel, brass, nylon, bronze, phosphor bronze guitar strings. Similarly, to a certain extent a different tonality also gets imprinted to an analog signal depending on the conductor alloy.
You appear to think that the world is binary and objectivists cannot be knowledgable about music. That is a pretty narrow minded view point to take unless you setup an account here just to cause trouble!
You also appear to think mechanical properties link to electric properties, which is a strange theory.
You also appear to think mechanical properties link to electric properties, which is a strange theory.
I think you need to read a bit more. Even in your cite, they show three varieties of silver oxides.
I hope that you understand that different tonality or timbre means different harmonics distribution. There is no way that music instrument reproduction, between two devices, has different timbre with exactly the same spectrum.
These days, 100 $ audio interface and free software (i.e. Focusrite + REW), empowers anyone to measure and compare signal spectrum with 0.1 to 0.2 dB accuracy, up to -150 dBV levels or nanovolts range.
So, if you can hear profound difference from using various IC sockets, you are presented with unique opportunity to measure involved differences and present all ignorant EEs with undeniable proof.
Of course, if those profound differences are caused by picovolt differences, we have no other opportunity than to believe in your exquisite perception.
EDIT: hah, forgot to add LNA to the required devices list. Still, not expensive addition.
Last edited:
No, sheer nonsense.
Yes, so what?
Those instruments vibrate at audio frequencies and transmit that vibration to air, producing sound.
You get close to them and you can hear them vibrating.
No need for electricity, wires, electronics, power supplies, nothing, you hear THEM producing sound.
An IC connector does NOT vibrate, does NOT produce sound.
"Seems"? To whom? To YOU?
You now claim to hear electrical signals passing through a cable?
Nonsense stacked on more nonsense.
Of course you hear NOTHING of the kind, just came here to post outrageous opinions to stir the pot ... whatever a Troll does, of course.
You are scorning knowledgeable people.
And you are claiming a phenomenon which can not be heard ... so what´s your point?
Ever heard of the concept "self contradicting?"
Said the guy who can´t prove he hears what he claims to.
You are not posting about Music, which would be fine in itself, but about changes caused by different metallic connectors.
And that, my friend, is Physics and Engineering. Horror of horrors 😱
quote]90% of people here get a kick out of building amplifiers rather than from actually listening to music. [/quote]
I beg your pardon?
Where did you get that ridiculous idea from?
Certainly not, you came here for confirmation of your flawed ideas about metals in a connector.
You are not talking Musical Instruments here but connectors.
Nonsense.
Should the plug just have the same plating as the socket?
The hardness ( what makes a bell ring ) of a conductor effecting electrical signals is a new one on me, perhaps we should all go to CTX bronze, or 22/78 ( VERY brittle ) and forget science. I'll stick to gold or chrome.
The hardness ( what makes a bell ring ) of a conductor effecting electrical signals is a new one on me, perhaps we should all go to CTX bronze, or 22/78 ( VERY brittle ) and forget science. I'll stick to gold or chrome.
The rule is gold plated and tinned connectors should not be mixed - either gold to gold, or tinned to tinned, so IC sockets should be tinned (unless you have some old-school gold-plated ceramic DIP chips from way back). https://experience.molex.com/gold-or-tin-versus-gold-and-tin/