What type of audio connectors are these?
December 24, 2012 1:39 PM

What type of audio connectors are these?

I'm attempting to help my brother-in-law hook up his home audio system. These unknown connecters connect to some speakers that are mounted in the ceiling.
There are also a few RCA outs that run from the wall with the TV to RCA outs in the same closet that have these unidentified audio connectors.

Here is a photo
posted by woolite to Technology (7 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
Banana plugs.
posted by thewumpusisdead at 1:42 PM on December 24, 2012


With the holes on the sides, and a screw cap they look like bare wire connections can be made by inserting bare wire and screwing it tight.
posted by Gungho at 1:44 PM on December 24, 2012


I think both of the above answers are right, they can be used as either one.
posted by bongo_x at 1:49 PM on December 24, 2012


Yep. Banana plugs.
posted by professor plum with a rope at 1:49 PM on December 24, 2012


In addition to banana plugs, those posts work with pin connectors, spade connectors, and bare wire either wrapped around the base or through the hole in the base; thus 5-way binding posts.
posted by TedW at 3:02 PM on December 24, 2012


Related, I recommend going with bare wire for connecting to these posts - you'll save a few bucks and there is nothing to be gained from using connectors on the speaker wire (adding connectors actually degrades the signal further, although in practice you won't notice a difference). If the amp you connect to has similar posts you can just get a spool of 10 or 12 gauge wire which you can cut and strip yourself instead of shelling out big $$ for pre-made sets of speaker wire with connectors.
posted by MillMan at 4:09 PM on December 24, 2012


Note that the signal won't really be degraded; the connectors might simply increase the resistance, which will only matter if you're close to having a poor damping factor. If you're using thick enough conductors, your damping factor will be fine. Connectors might be worth it if you plan on connecting and disconnecting your speakers once in a while.

(source (pdf) on damping)
posted by Monday, stony Monday at 6:23 PM on December 24, 2012


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