Spades too small

I got my Kimber speakon sub woofer cable, but the spade is too small to fit around the post?

What do I do?

Feed one side of the spade through the hole in the binding post and tighten it down.

4 Likes

So you wouldn’t recommend this?

I could do this option.

Or, should just snip it and go to bare wire?

As long as you’ve got a tight connection and don’t have to worry about anything or anyone being back there to knock it loose.

Ok-

But you would do the through the hole method?

It’s a shame I wasn’t given the option of a bigger spade size option.

Those things look so cheap you might be better off without them. Hard to believe Ray Kimber would use something that looks like that.

2 Likes

I’ve got it like this now

3 Likes

That should work fine.

1 Like

Super annoying.

I was looking forward to hooking these up all day.

The cables are hooked up.

They do sound amazing.

1 Like

That’s the basic spade they’ve been using for a long time. Used on the TC, PR, and VS series cables. I think it is copper based, pretty soft.

I think I blew my other sub in the process…unhooked the other subs cables from amp to pull it out and a low hum from the other sub.

I thought the other sub was off, or forgot to turn it off.

Damn.

They make really nice adapters that go from spade to banana plugs. Check Amazon. Don’t cut the spades off your nice new cables until you try an adapter or two. Keep it cheap, like $30 for a pair of adapters. Also contact Kimber and see if they offer such adapters.

These are $9.08 for four.

2 Likes

I hope not!

I really know nothing about electronics; but must ask for my educational purposes, in this situation what does “blow the sub mean”? How can one blow a sub through a low impedance hook up?

1 Like

I know it’s too late now, but I learned this lesson the hard way years ago. Nowadays I measure the post diameter both at the speaker and amp end. Then I specify the post diameter in my order with explicit instructions for the manufacturer to use compatible spades. In some cases, like Cardas and Kimber which have their own lineup of connectors, I research what they have and call out the spade type in my order. No more messing around with incompatible spades for me.

1 Like

Yep-

The spade size issue has been a nightmare

There should really be a standard size spade. I was trying to buy some speaker cables from Douglas Connection a few years ago, and I’m glad he emailed me and said those spades are the smaller type for some McIntosh equipment otherwise I would be in the same boat as the OP.

I believe my wireworld cables come with connectors that screw in so I can change them out. My spades seem big but I’m not sure as I don’t have an issue w my binding posts.