Looking for pure copper or Cu/Au bananas

Erik, after my first time DIY IC cable build I’d agree that soldering (well) can be hard, but it IS definitely hard for KLEI RCAs

Sir, who do you think I am?? 😤 😂

@akgwhiz the issue isn’t whether I have the kit, it’s whether I like soldering for speaker connections. No, I do not. Mechanical connections are better. This is why your house panel with 200 Amps doesn’t use any soldering at all, nor do any of the breaker connections.

I agree with saving money, goodness knows my IC and speaker cables are super cheap compared to what most A'goners probably spend, but there are so many good looking fakes out there I'd rather just buy affordable through a known good dealer than try to get something boutique through a path I don't know. 

Vampire is out of business, and the PCX stock is, AFAIK, the very last of it.

Neutrik makes very affordable XLR’s with silver contacts, and I use them exclusively. Now that I’ve simplified my gear though I only have 2 analog line level connections:

• XLR cables between my DAC and integrated.
• RCA cables between the AVR and the integrated for which I use Eichmann bullets for.

@grannyring

Thanks so much! Those are exactly what I’m looking for.  Sorry I missed your original posting.

I'm all for discounts, but there's no way I'm buying boutique plugs from Alliexpress. 🤣

I'd rather get cheap stuff from Amazon I trust than potentially fake stuff I don't.

@mijostyn - I like Monosaudio spades, and these look nice, but fail on one important aspect: Need the outer shell to be an insulator. Actually need to check if the Aeco is plastic or not, but it looks thin enough I can heat shrink an insulator  around it.

I think I've settled on a good, relatively affordable set:

I have not seen any "locking" banana plugs that worked at all. 

Well for grip strength and reliability I do recommend the WBT line. 

Ive invested heavily into Furutech, Should I be concerned about my furutech plugs not lasting! 

Hey @brunomarcs - I'd say if they are working for you right now you should leave it all alone.  I don't think they'll crumble to dust in our lifetimes. 

Erik, why don’t you like Furutech bananas? I have used the Furutech FP-200B bananas on several occasions and have found them to be the best banana plug.

@auxinput

I’ve tried locking, angled bananas from both Furutech and WBT, and there was no contest. The big issue for me was the diameter of the banana and deformation. The Furutech were the rhodium plated models. When I first got them they were used on Focals. In those the Furutech were too small to grip tightly and a couple of the 4 deformed permanently after me trying too hard to expand them. They NEVER gripped very tightly.

The WBT Cu angled bananas on the other hand never deformed and gripped everything extremely well. Never had a problem with them after multiple insertion cycles. I will literally never ever ever use a Furutech connector again.

Unfortunately I’m also too cheap to use the WBT Nexgen equivalent now either. :D

@mitch2 Only 1 in stock, need 2.

@mofimadness 

I looked at them first, all "Out of stock"

@rsf507 Honestly after examining the construction and design I don’t want to replace them. The bananas closed are pretty small and if you open them too much they permanently deform. My WBT locking bananas are a much much better design, but at $180 I don’t really want to buy another set.

The Furutech bananas have also been with me for a while.  I've put up knowing they were there, but now as my listening room starts to be completed I'm cleaning up loose ends, figuratively and literally.  I've got old zip wire I'm replacing with Mogami speaker cable and getting ready for all of the DIY work that comes with that.