Eliminating spade connectors, upgrading bits, soldering all of it in

🤔

Connectors are a convenience design, with this as the goal, there will be compromises, of which one will be a End Sound that is not presenting as well as it could.

With a different thought for how the Signal can pass from Xover to Speaker Driver, there are improvements to be found, just as there are similar experiences has through using exchange components on a Xover, where a improved signal path is put in place.

This same compromise is present upstream at all umbilical’s and their terminations.

Additionally, the connections to the chassis and the wire design for the signal path within the chassis are all worthwhile getting familiar with, as changes made are able to offer much more of what has just been discovered by considering the Speakers signal path.

I don't  observe anyone trying to oversell these modifications. For sure we're at the marginal gains edge of things here, the fundamental components like amps and speakers  remain as most critical/important aspects. Thing is many of us have discovered a certain critical mass of marginal gains can result in much more than a slight improvement. 

Some manufactures understand this, others not. I recall my interactions with Bobby of Merlin loudspeakers fame, his obsession with marginal gains resulted in increasingly better sounding speakers throughout their production history. You see this with other manufacturers as well, they understand marginal gains can offer real advancements in sound quality. These marginal changes can also offer improvements  in spec's and reliability. 

And I assume most of us into the art of diy are also well acquainted with voicing, we've experienced lateral and regressive  effects from some of our mods. As for expectation bias, the negative and lateral experiences  bring about  an inherent control for this, expectation bias only works in short run at best, over time you'll hear the downsides if they exist. 

Its an "option" for those intrigued and motivated to make a change.  

Some of my former standard version reference speakers were all spade connected to crossovers and terminals.  The same speakers, if you wanted to send them in for upgrades to the "signature" version, were often times upgraded with connectors eliminated and soldered on at all internal connection points. Had a few pairs of standard and signature version Canadian made Totem Acoustic speakers set up like this, and compared both side by side on many occasions. 

My other tube preamp and monoblock tube amplifiers are 95% point to point wired soldered-in connections with minimalist number of connectors in the signal path. Primarily seen more in boutique low-volume production units with no factory imposed time limit on assembly. Sound better than my former circuit board based units too. So it kinda comes down to whatever floats your boat perhaps.  Enjoy!   

Attack - Coherence - Dynamics - Micro Dynamics - Envelope - Timbre - Tone

If anybody wants to experience these attractive elements within the structure of the sound be produced, they have to be worked for.

To form the opinion these elements that structure sound are able to be delivered with a defining presence is created by simply putting devices together, has a lot of experimenting to go through, if they really want to understand what is possible.