No binding post a good idea?

Hard wiring an amp and speaker provides the best connection. Unfortunately, this could be deemed a modification and could void some warrantees. Most higher end speaker cables cannot be bought un-terminated, therefore, you would have to modify the cables yourself, and thereby greatly reducing the resale value should you decide to go in another direction.

If you use screwable wire crimps from Home Depot, you will have a luxury of disconnecting your speakers if necessary.
Crimped connections are superior to soldering and you can use actually any but each time you'll have to cut wire, strip isolation and re-crimp again.
Other than that I do not see why warranty should void. Just do a clean job and make sure you'll put wires back together to the binding posts when bad comes to worst.

No Binding Post accommodates banana plugs, spade connectors, and bare wires. No modification on cable connectors is needed. The bare wire will sound best without unwanted metal to degrade the signal. The appearance is similar to Merlin speaker BP with a big knurled knob. http://www.merlinmusic.com/images/SW_step5a.JPG

Czarivey - I agree that screwable wire crimps from Home Depot is best. NBP will be something close to that. And the price will be close to screwable wire crimps too. :)

No Binding Post accommodates banana plugs, spade connectors, and bare wires.

I guess you never heard of 5-way binding posts.

I guess you never heard of 5-way binding posts.

NBP looks different from usual 5-way binding posts. The huge metal bar in usual BP disrupts flow of audio signal. I think a NBP amp with a NBP speaker will make good signal transfer.
Thanks!

Think BRF's comment above is something to consider. I am actually about to do this using speaker wire that is unterminated at one end. It avoids the expense of one set of speaker wire terminations, avoids the binding posts, and allows one to upgrade the amps internal hook up wire, while by-passing entirely the connections. In my case, the amps are out of warrenty, and it is an easily reversable modification to the amp. This takes very little skill or knowledge and is the best way to go as BRF indicated. Don't know that you are going to have much of a market for what you are proposing to do.

Why are we discussing and debating a mythical product?

We all agree that hard wired will “generally” sound better than binding post.

Good luck most people will not go for this.

Echo some of the other responses...although great in theory...amp to speaker direct is rather impractical as most audiophiles change equipment frequently...even given the marginal improvement this may or may not provide...add to that major cable companies a) have already thought of This b) have resources to squash u like a bug c) don't deem it a threat d) all of the above...going online is your only shot for this niche market...and as the trend continues to more improved wireless products...even established cable companies are having a tough time...not the time to enter the cable market...imho

Mihorn,

Are you aware that the binding post you incorrectly attributed to Merlin speakers is really a CPBP? That is: Cardas PATENTED Binding Post.

The binding post shown at the Merlin link you provided appears to be this one from Cardas, which is described as being patented. Are you sure that the design of yours is sufficiently different to also be patentable, and to not infringe his patent?

Also, from a technical standpoint I see no reason to attribute whatever sonic effects a conventional binding post may have in a given application to having "larger metal in the signal chain," especially given the short length that is involved. I would expect contact integrity to be the most significant variable in typical situations.

I don't generally like to be discouraging, but (as is often the case) I think Elizabeth's comment above is right on.

Regards,
-- Al

"My initial test was very positive. I'd like know your opinion before I invest money on this project. I appreciate your help in advance!"

I don't see how any of us can give you an opinion on something we haven't heard. Why not give some of samples out to other audiophiles that you know and see what they say?

Unfortunately...forum opinion is that this is a dead end product in terms of mainstream acceptance...regardless of testing....however for the DIY crowd...might be a fun experiment...anybody game to jump in the waters?

Phase - not the time to enter the cable market

Elizabeth-You might break even, but probably will lose your shirt.

I don’t have a choice. I need NBP for myself.

Don - Are you aware?

Yes. I know. And thank you Almarg for kind warning!

whatever sonic effects a conventional binding post

The influence of large metal in signal chain with conventional speakers may be little. Not with my speakers. The difference is huge. Anyone can hear and see the unbelievable openness and life like organic images.

give some of samples out to other audiophiles

Installing and evaluating a binding post is not easy task. I will send samples to many speakers and power amp manufactures. They have respectable sound systems and controlled room for evaluation. Whether they want or not, I need them for my speakers.

Thank you everyone for tips!

Bfr

The reason we are discussing mythical products is……..most all the products we discuss are mythical at least to us. We read the reviews and believe or don't believe the reviewer, we listen at a dealers shop with products we have no experience with in a room not like ours to music we didn't bring.

It is all mythical...

WBT NextGen Binding Post

WBT is making something similar already, these look quite nice, saw them in person at this years CES

Best of luck

Peter

WBT is making something similar already

Thanks for info! I see a copper prong in the picture. NBP doesn't have any prong thou.

Have you seen these:

http://www.electracable.com/tubeconnector.htm

I am the first person that I know of that thought of, promoted and sold products using the "binding post bypass system". You simply run the wires to the outside of the amp or speaker and wrap the bare or tinned wire around the outside of the binding post and use the binding post as a clamp. You can see a pic on my website from a link on my "discontinued amps" page. We showed this at the Stereophile show in the late 90s on the Christian Limited speakers. I thought of a binding post design that would be similar to the Music Post except you would run the wire through the middle of the post (the post being hollow all the way through) and then solder it into slots on the clamping surface. Never did get around to making them. Maybe that is what you are doing. All my amps I have ever sold use this binding post bypass system.

However, even better is to use no metal what so ever. I sell these products called Ground Enhancers that are loops of litz wire. When you put them on the ground connection on a speaker it gives more detail (sometime startlingly so). I have soldered all my speaker connections for 20 years but I needed a way to evaluate quickly different types of Ground Enhancers. So, I clamped a Music Post onto my already soldered together wires coming out of my speakers so I could also clamp the Ground Enhancer there. I decided to listen to see if this clamped on Music Post did anything to the sound....and guess what....it degraded the sound noticeably....even though it was "not really in the signal path". Anotherwords, a carefully tuned litz wire on the ground enhances the sound whereas a large hunk of copper degrades the sound. So, on my new speaker kits (BG Neo planar drivers and Servo woofer systems) I will be promoting either inexpensive nylon clamps (one quarter inch round nylon bolts and nuts and washers are dirt cheap) or even more fun will be hardwood clamps that I will have custom made. Nothing sexier than turning a cool hardwood knob.

Binding posts, spades and bananas should be outlawed. They ruin the sound.

Interesting thread and very applicable for me in an upcoming situation that I'm facing since I'll be mounting up some speakers in a cabinet soon and was just looking at wbt binding posts today.

My qiluestion is, if you don't use a binding post then what would you use? Just have wire soldered to the crossover and hanging 8 feet outside the cabinet?

World of audio is full of markets...binding posts, interconnects,connectors,anti-binding posts, anti-interconnects,etc...everbody jockeying for their piece if the sonic meat pie

My Quicksilver silver mono's use strips to screw the wire/spades to. The Vandy's use the same type of connector. They do work better and are very easy to use. I love the Cardas Clamping system on my Ayre. It's just one screw for both wires and it gives a solid connection. Hard wired would be the way to go if you could pull it off. Vandy 7's with his new amp would have been a way to have the manufacturer do it. Bryston also has their own speakers as does Mac and a few more. If you have a way to cold clamp the wires, it would be better than solder. The only problem is that most folks have or can only get their favorite cables with connectors already attached. If you had speaker wire that matched your internal wire and did it that way, it would work. The problem is that it looses it's efficiency if the amp end doesn't use the same connector I would think.

Actually my method is best,even the best solder is only 4% silver 1% copper ,the rest tin and lead. I use a High purity WBT 
gold over Copper connectors , with crimp slide on terminals 
and use the a Furutech yellow High purity Copper 24 k gold plated 
this is the purest quality connection, I want to mention the vast majority of electronics,as well as loudspeakers come with cheap gold plated brass, which is 3-4 lessin conductivity as well as Thst much more in added resistance. Thst is why I replaced connections to all copper throughout my system, as well as 
high quality fuses ,which the steel fuses are a a Huge bottleneck of resistance ,just check out  the metals resistance index online.
if you truly want to do it right . 

What are the measurements that say your's is best?  That's quite a bold statement.  

I know a few designers who have actually sat down and listened to many different binding posts, terminals etc..  They have hard wired as their reference.  A couple have gone with the new teflon barrier strips with gold plated screws. Some use the WBT's and some use Cardas.  

Those are the three different binding methods of those I know who have actually gone through this process.  

Bottom line is that this is only for the DIY crowd and that's cool and a blast for those who like to tinker.  It's all part of a fun hobby.

I made my own binding posts using single crystal copper, and the sound is much better comparing to regular copper gold plated. Next thing I will do is to make spade plugs.

The closest thing to a direct connection that I’m aware of is the Electra Cable Tube Connectors, marketed by GR Research and shown on their website. But integral to the design is the connector that must be installed on the ends of the speaker cable, in place of spades or banana plugs.