Different Binding Posts - is it audible?

[kemmler3D]

That said, there are plenty of examples where even experienced, "rationalist" listeners -even when they have measurements in hand- make claims and draw conlusions that are bizarre. I'll give you an example in this forum below. Many claimed that the speaker in orange was a fundamental, huge breakthrough, and the speaker in blue was "unlistenable". Amir flunked the blue speaker for lack of bass and didn't recommend it, and stated the orange one sounded amazing and highly recommended it. We all fall prey to this stuff. :-D And I am not pointing this out in any way to claim I am smarter or a better listener (although when I listened to the same two speakers I was like "What am I missing, what are they hearing I don't?" and thus superimposed the graphs to prove to myself I wasn't crazy... :-D... just shows that we all can easily fool ourselves and be inconsistent, even when the truth seems right there in front of us and we think we fall in the rationalist, measurements first camp...

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Well, there is a 3-4dB difference around 3khz, which should be easily audible under the right conditions... and my guess is the real meat of the differences might come in the distortion readings rather than FR.

Personally I prefer to look at graphs and think about my own preferences, vs. whether Amir (or any other reviewers) subjectively likes it or not.

 

[pablolie]

...

Personally I prefer to look at graphs and think about my own preferences, vs. whether Amir (or any other reviewers) subjectively likes it or not.

Exactly. The dispersion was also eerily similar. I basically think the character was pretty much the same (if anything the blue is more linear), and the differences may have fallen within the realm of production and testing variance (I think I read 2-3dB can be pretty typical with Klippel, but not sure - but up to 3dB falls into the barely discernible category esp at those levels so I'd harbor doubts about that making a difference between unlistenable and universally recommended :-D). In any case, I completely agree with you - I look at measurements and see if they make a potential difference to me. And often ignore the personal opinion editorials, especially when they get all flowery etc :-D

PS: And in no way ever do I claim I know better or have the best ears and the most unbiased psychoacoustic abilities on the planet. My point was just to show that both sides of the subjective-objective dichotomy can fall into a similar perception trap.

 

[Jazigo]

Why were the cable ends soldered?
With bare speaker cable ends the measured resistances are slightly worse and not as consistent. Therefore all cable ends were soldered.

Hi everyone!

Sorry to bring this topic up again, but I am wondering if you remembered the difference between soldered and not soldered? I always thought soldering was worse, but after a incident, I was forced to solder my speaker cables directly to the pcb in the amps. While I was a bit down of having to do this - to my surprise - bass sounded better when I connected it back. Probably just my head, but it sent me on a research about solder vs clamp.

 

[MRC01]

Sorry to bring this topic up again, but I am wondering if you remembered the difference between soldered and not soldered?

Generally speaking, soldering creates a better, lower impedance connection but it can crack from mechanical stress or vibration, while crimping has higher impedance but resists mechanical stress and vibration better.

 

[Jazigo]

In what order of difference would the impedance be in? I suspect minuscule numbers, but interesting none the less.

 

[maxchau]

Just my 2 cents. I have compared biding posts ranging from $8 - $80/pair. To my surprise, the best sounding BP was the $8 one. The typical BIG bulky metal ones that looked strong, robust and beautiful sounded muffle and lack of dynamics compared to the low cost BP with relatively thin metal connectors. I wanted the expensive ones to be the best sounding BP. That was where my surprise came from. BUT, I should add that IF your system is not high resolution enough, you may not be able to tell the differences.

 

[egellings]

Sound quality is often in the eye of the beholder.

Oops! Ear.

 

[Beave]

Just my 2 cents. I have compared biding posts ranging from $8 - $80/pair. To my surprise, the best sounding BP was the $8 one. The typical BIG bulky metal ones that looked strong, robust and beautiful sounded muffle and lack of dynamics compared to the low cost BP with relatively thin metal connectors.

Not sure if serious.

 

[Beave]

Not true. Of course I wanted the expensive ones to be the best sounding BP. That was where my surprise came from. BUT, I should add that IF your system is not high resolution enough, you may not be able to tell the differences.

Now even more unsure if serious!!

 

[DonH56]

In what order of difference would the impedance be in? I suspect minuscule numbers, but interesting none the less.

I have seen studies but could not lay my hands on anything definitive after a quick search. It depends so much on crimp and solder quality and the behest of the assembler that it is almost impossible to determine accurately for the general case. Google AI interestingly enough gave me two answers after minor word order changes, saying either solder or crimping is lower impedance. In practice, IME, solder usually offers lower resistance compared to crimped but the difference is negligible (in the milli-ohm or less range). A good solder connection is great, but the problem is at the solder/wire interface at the wire leaving the solder joint, as heating and chemical interaction can make the wire brittle and prone to break when flexed later. Crimped wires hold fast but allow some movement that makes them much better in high-vibration environments like cars (and in some cases speakers) at the cost of a slight increase in resistance. Soldered connections need mechanical support and strain relief, such as passing the wire through an eyelet or hook before the solder joint. Proper crimp tools and pressure, and proper soldering technique including solder choice, mechanical integrity, and heat are much critical for good connections of either type. One myth is that crimped connections are more prone to oxidation, but a properly crimped connection is hermetically sealed similar to a solder joint (the crimp creates a "cold weld" to prevent oxygen incursion).

 

[pinger]

No not audible

 

[Speedskater]

Solder tinning stranded wire for screw terminals is NOT done in military or industrial terminals.
With time and temperature changes, the solder can cold flow and allow the connection to loosen.
Also with flexing and vibration the wire can fail at the end of the solder.