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I'm planning on buying a new AV receiver (an Onkyo TX-SR705) and downloaded and looked at the manual. I came across this in the connections section on page 22:
(In Europe, using banana plugs to connect speakers to an audio amplifier is prohibited.)
Is that really true? Why? If you don't use banana plugs what do you use? Surely they are safer/better than bare wires?
Follow Ups:
The banana plug/jack was, I believe, invented by the General Radio Corporation in Cambridge, Mass, USA, way back in the '30s, maybe earlier. IMO, it's a wonderful versatile system, and that's what I put on all my DIY components. I just bought a pair of the smallest KEF "Q" speakers for the TV, and was very surprised to find the little plastic plugs in the back, as described above. They were quickly popped out, but I was still amazed that KEF didn't put the connectors on the standard 3/4" spacing, so a standard dual plug would fit. IMO, the EC should have banned their power plugs instead! (Foghorn Leghorn- "that's a joke, son")
I recently bought a Cambridge integrated amp. The speaker terminals are regular 5 way binding posts which HAD a small red piece of plastic inserted into each one. It is easily removed with small pliers, thus allowing banana plugs to be used.
See how close they look
My first reaction was that you'd have to be mad to believe you could plug speaker wires into your AC outlets. But you're right - the sizes do look close enough that somebody would do it, although probably only once. After all, if people believe you can improve your hifi by.... No, I won't go there!
Thanks for the replies.
"...you'd have to be mad to believe you could plug speaker wires into your AC outlets."
What if your mini-system amp had a detached power cord, and one channel of the amp had a 4 foot black speaker wire attached, with a black banana plug on the other end...And it was 7:30 in the morning and you were a housewife trying to turn on the radio...? You'd be mad all right!
We need to ban black speaker wire too.
Big shout-out to all attorneys/barristers/lawyers/solicitors: keepin' the gene pool cloudy...
:)
-L
It's because Europeon plugs are similar to banana plugs and, potentially,
banana plugs can be plugged into their ac outlets and their ac plugs into
banana jacks. That's why they have banned them. Not an issue here. If you by a Europeon piece the plastic plugs can be removed so you can use banana plugs.
The British AC outlets use a two hole duplex, similar to a banana plug in appearance. You will notice that the German made WBT banana plugs have an additional plastic protrusion to prevent accidental plugging in of the ends into the the British type duplexes.
In the EU, any member's safety laws must apply throughout the European community, even though other countries do not use the same outlet.
Think of it as being similar to those tags you see on mattresses warning that it is illegal to remove the tags.
Stu
... Our standard AC outlets are not duplexes but are 13 amp 3 pin devices. They use large square sockets for + and - and a very large square socket for earth. Nothing fits them except the matching UK 13 amp plug as shown in the picture in the URL below. The UK audio community were very puzzled by the EU law on banana plugs as the reasoning behind it would not affect us.
- http://www.misco.co.uk/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=119784&CatId=1695 (Open in New Window)
I don't know why I wrote British: should have been german with their Schuko plugs: two round pins.
Sorry about that brain fart on my part.
Stu
I think the Limeys discovered electrical safety and proudly invented those enormous fist-sized plugs, with fuses inside, in the 50s or something. Our old house in West London had the two prong sockets in some of the bathrooms. Or maybe it was so Fritz or Jean-Michel from the continent could use their shaver in there.
IMHO,
Bare wire will always sound better than a bananna or spade connector- copper is a much better conductor than brass, which is the base material in all but the most exotic of connectors. Try without the and you may be quite pleased.
...there are indeed two prong sockets in Brit bathrooms for shavers, maybe because electric shavers did hail from the continent e.g. Philishave. Of course one would have to be perverse indeed to consider plugging one's speakers into the shaver socket upstairs in the bathroom :-).
BTW, I do like your reference to "some of the bathrooms"; very grand.
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