How to use banana plugs and other speaker wire connectors | Crutchfield

There are a number of ways to connect your wired speakers, both at your amp or receiver or on the speakers themselves. We'll show you the most common ways to connect, from bare wire to banana plugs.

Shop for speaker wire at Crutchfield: https://www.crutchfield.com/i-rYTVc32...

Bare wire connections are the simplest, and can make a very good connection. If your amp or receiver has spring terminals, bare wire is the best choice. Simply strip away the insulation, twist the wire strands into a point, and insert into the terminal.

By far the most popular connection, and the one recommended by our Tech Support team for most situations, is banana plugs. These connectors plug straight into a typical 5-way binding post, make a tight connection, and are convenient when you need to move things around.

Shop for banana plugs: https://www.crutchfield.com/i-rYTVc32...

Spade and pin connectors work well, also. The 5-way binding post found on most equipment can take either one, and the choice is largely up to you which connection you use.

Crutchfield, America's trusted electronics specialist since 1974, has award-winning customer service, free lifetime tech support, and free shipping on most orders. Shop for all your audio and video needs at Crutchfield.com and sign up for the catalog and email newsletter at http://www.crutchfield.com

See more home and car electronics videos on our channel:    / crutchfieldtv  

0:00 Intro: Lots of ways to make speaker wire connections
0:18 Spring clips
0:45 Binding posts
1:17 Keeping track of positive and negative
1:46 Making a bare wire connection
2:24 Pre-terminated speaker wire
2:44 Five ways to connect to a binding post
3:04 Banana plugs
3:34 Remove those binding post plugs
4:09 What if banana plug connection is too tight?
4:51 Dual banana plugs
5:14 Spade connectors
5:30 Pin connectors
6:02 Bi-amping
6:49 Bi-wiring
7:13 Jumpers
7:33 Wiring built-in height speakers
7:58 Recap