Paris Audio Video Show 2022

[sarumbear]

4mm bananas are for test instruments and science labs, I agree.

Many of the old style spring terminals offer considerably lower contact resistance, especially in the long term as they compress the bare copper and retain high contact pressure. Trouble is, audiophiles have been brainwashed into fire-hose diameter cables as being 'normal'.

Locking banana plugs only cause trip hazards and pull speakers and gear off racks when the inevitable accident happens.

Very true.

Almost every speaker that accepts bananas also accepts these and there are tons of ready made cables available.

 

[Kal Rubinson]

Joke aside I do believe that they are not suitable connectors for permanent connections.

None of my (electronic) connections are permanent and all are subject to frequent reconnection. Locking bananas are an effective compromise. Spades are not.

 

[sarumbear]

None of my (electronic) connections are permanent and all are subject to frequent reconnection. Locking bananas are an effective compromise.

Then keeping the connection flap open is not a problem for you.

 

[restorer-john]

where's the Genelec !?

Too ugly to be let in the door.

Very true.

Almost every speaker that accepts bananas also accepts these and there are tons of ready made cables available.

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I'd like to see more spade terminals with controlled spring pressure on the screw. That way, audiophiles don't get out their box of spanners and shear off the posts trying to 'tighten-down' to stupid levels of torque.

There were several Japanese amplifier/speaker terminals in the late 80s early 90s where the cable was compressed between screw down ribbed plates that also allowed large diameter/thick cable. Much better and much cheaper.

Over the years I've removed many spring terminals on vintage amps/receivers and replaced them with pretty-looking fat gold binding posts for audiophiles who requested them. Never liked doing it, as I know it's just for looks- not for contact resistance.

As @Kal Rubinson is a reviewer, he would need a quick release style connector and I can understand why he uses so-called 'locking bananas'. Mostly, they really only 'lock' by pulling a bar/pin back through a deliberately under-sized splayed main pin. The contact point instead of being the entire length of the pin then moves near the end. They certainly don't maintain a good permanent low resistance contact. I hate the things and it's funny to see the number snapped off in amplifiers and speakers! Not as bad as those wretched Monster Cable 'turbine' RCAs- OMG they were criminal with the destruction they caused. LOL.

 

[Kal Rubinson]

Then keeping the connection flap open is not a problem for you.

As noted elsewhere, it is no longer a problem.

 

[Mr. Widget]

4mm bananas are for test instruments and science labs, I agree.

I still use those good old Pamona dual bananas from the lab when I was a lowly tech. All of my DIY speakers have five way posts appropriately spaced (sorry EU).
They are so darned convenient and I have not found any audible sonic degradation. I do have to adapt them to accept my standard 12ga twisted pair speaker wire though.

 

[restorer-john]

I still use those good old Pamona dual bananas from the lab when I was a lowly tech.

Pomonas are almost audiophile priced these days. Wanted some mini-grabber test leads the other day and nearly fell over when I looked at what they would cost to get from the US.

 

[Mr. Widget]

Pomonas are almost audiophile priced these days.

I bought a box full of red and black Pamonas back in the 80s. They are still as good as new.

 

[fredoamigo]

There is a slot that is almost 2" wide to pass your cables. How thick are your cables? My Salon2 flap is closed with no problem at all.

It was mainly to say that it has no use and that it is not at all aesthetic, especially as the top of the speakers is very beautiful ... although I guess some may find the plastic flap that folds or not ... beautiful

 

[Docmoggy]

Very comprehensive review and very interesting to see the myriad of hi fidelity equipment being engineered and manufactured. It would be great if the good, bad and ugly would all send their products to be independently tested by ASR! Have tests ever been made with Dan D'Agostino products? I'd really like to know what additional value you get between a £40K and £700 bit of kit from SMSL or Topping. I could imagine the comparison could yield quite a few red faces. Perhaps we now have to categorise HI FI equipment as fundamentally engineered for audio quality and one for cosmetic/perceived lifestyle statement. It would seem from the data being driven out of ASR a resolutely "cheap" products costing less than $1000 each can achieve perfection in audio reproducibility. For example SMSL SU-10, Topping Pre 90 and lets add (although with limitations) Topping LA90. Given products like these examples are not really attempting to directly compete with "luxury" brands, it might not take much for someone to come up with the perfect system that looks really cool at a fraction of the costs. Speakers could then become the focus of serious concern and the snake oil that are cables and interconnects.

 

[Sokel]

Very true.

Almost every speaker that accepts bananas also accepts these and there are tons of ready made cables available.

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One of the cons of spades is that they can easily make contact to each other if they become loose.
Locking bananas are far more difficult to come out.

 

[sarumbear]

It was mainly to say that it has no use and that it is not at all aesthetic, especially as the top of the speakers is very beautiful ... although I guess some may find the plastic flap that folds or not ... beautiful

I was commenting on the post that said the door cannot be closed due to the cables. I have pretty thick cables and they go through the slot and the door closes. As the door is at the rear of the speaker hardly anyone sees the plasticity of the door. Naturally, when it comes to aesthetics everyone is different.

 

[DSJR]

Then keeping the connection flap open is not a problem for you.

I hate spade connectors with a passion! I have tripped over cables in th epast, pulled the spades round (despite being firmly tightened) and ended up shorting the speaker cables together at the speaker end (not all domestic 'audiophool grade' amps have any protection at all 'cos the designers can't design sonically transparent protection, so leave it out).

Glad you guys aren't as clumsy as me (an aspergic tendency I gather).

 

[restorer-john]

Glad you guys aren't as clumsy as me (an aspergic tendency I gather).

Nah, it's just older age.

 

[DSJR]

Nah, it's just older age.

I've always been clumsy though, like a bull in a china shop. I can use increasing age as an excuse now though.

We old aspie Capricorns were born ancient, but apparently we become younger in outlook the older we get even as our bodies seize up

 

[Sokel]

I've always been clumsy though, like a bull in a china shop. I can use increasing age as an excuse now though.

We old aspie Capricorns were born ancient, but apparently we become younger in outlook the older we get even as our bodies seize up

I'm both clumsy and Capricorn and on top of that I like to test worst case scenarios.
I think I'll use it too .

 

[Gremlins]

Nope. Stock cables with locking bananas.
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Use 45 degree bananas plugs

 

[Kal Rubinson]

Use 45 degree bananas plugs

Great idea but I none was compact enough to let the door close.

 

[Vacceo]

KEF Blade 2 Meta.

Multichannel?

 

[Kal Rubinson]

Multichannel?

Soon but not yet.