Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Oren Mamane]

When you install a system that you KNOW is not going to be touched, do you sometimes "save"  (read: not neutrik...) on connectors?

[Ivan Beaver]

It depends on what you mean by the purpose of "saving".  You can agrue that you don't need as durable a connector, but you need as good a reliable connector and quality, unless you want to go chasing around problems in the future.

We use Switchcraft Asia connectors for SLR's-the 2 piece screw on.  We have yet to have a issue.  Whenever possible I like to use spades as connectors.  They save a little bit and discourage people from "playing around" with the system.

They are not as fast to swap around in the event of a failure, but in an installed system, there is sledom anybody who is knowledgable enough to swap things around during the event, and who understnds the ramifications of doing so.

[Tom Young]

I would add to Ivan's points that sound systems in which connectors do not get excercised often (or at all, once installed) there is potential for failed/intermittant signals due to oxidation. In coastal areas the presence of salt in the air is an additional concern. Therefore, I always use the best connector the project can afford (*) with gold-plated Neutriks the top of the heap. These appear to provide better long-term performance. The exception is line-level signal paths where there are Phoenix/Euro-block connectors (output of DSP) at one end and screw terminals or Phoenix/Euro connectors at the other end (amp inputs). Here, there is no alternative and the connectors are provided with the equipment.

It is also pretty widely accepted that periodic excercising of plug&jack connections is a good idea.

(*) I hardly ever have worked in situations where the money saved on XLR connectors adds up to an amount worth risking the integrity of the system for.

[Al Clayton]

What do you mean by saving on connectors?


We often bring field wiring back to punch blocks or terminal strips in the back of the rack. We have sytems that have been installed for 10+ years without any  failure.

Are you talking about wiring a rack in the shop with XLR's and then installing XLR's in the field?

[Tom Young]

Who are you replying to ?

[Don Boone]

On an install the connector is always cheaper than the installer
installing the connector.

It's true that you should go cheaper the closer you get to to the end user. Newspapers and Cable TV use this model.
But in most systems cheap components drive up labor costs.

Don

[Oren Mamane]

You guys are right. Those few dollars are not even worth the potential  headache...

[Al Clayton]

Agreed,

That's why we use punch down blocks. A cable can be stripped and terminated in 1/4 of the time it would take to solder on 2 XLR Connectors in the field.