[BobM]

Looking at some good RCA's to reterminate some nice cables I just aquired. The Eichman copper bullets are at the top of my list, but damn, $62.10 everywhere for a set of 4 of these little plastic nothings.

Anyone have a secret discounted source?

I've been using the Parts Connexion clones for many years at about $8-9 per pair, and have generally been happy. But these new cables deserve something better, I think. I'm open to other suggestions.

Thanks,
Bob

[JoshK]

I'd probably opt for the Vampire Wire RCAs (can't remember the model, but they were not the most expensive ones).  I've generally not been fond of Eichmanns unless the wire is really flexible.  Their strain relief leaves something to be desired.

[dhrab]

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[BobM]

Those Aural Thrills teflon RCA's look interesting. I'll have to look at them a little closer and see if anyone else has heard or reviewed them at the other audio sites.

Update: really not much written about them anywhere. Have you used them, can you tell me about your findings if you have?

Thanks for the suggestion.

Bob

[JerryM]

Here's a link to the Aural Thrills audio web site http://www.auralthrillsaudio.com/

On the left side  is a products list ... scroll down to DIY and click on ... you will see their low mass RCA which may work for you

This is from their site

Aural Thrills ... "A product of the solid Teflon plug. These plugs sound as good or better than the WBT NextGen's which sell for $50 EACH. These plugs blow away and are more reliable than the Eichman Bullet at $25 EACH. These plugs sound better than any Brass plug made! No one else has them. Kit includes all parts and instructions to install plugs. Some degree of skill is necessary.

Solid Teflon Plug Kit Copper $45/four"

Those Aural Thrills teflon RCA's look interesting. I'll have to look at them a little closer and see if anyone else has heard or reviewed them at the other audio sites.

Update: really not much written about them anywhere. Have you used them, can you tell me about your findings if you have?

Thanks for the suggestion.

Bob

Has anybody tried these?

It's certainly thought-provoking.

Have fun,
Jerry

[srb]

Although not the minimalist design of the Eichmann Bullets, I have a spare set of 4 of the tried and true German manufactured WBT-0144 locking RCAs that I would sell for $40 shipped.  (These usually sell for $65-$70 + shipping per set of 4).  Just one more alternative to consider.

Steve

[Mariusz]

BobM

I am using Eichman bullets plugs with a twist.
(But away, I love their stuff.)
My interconnects and speaker cables are outfitted with Eichman plugs but striped off blue plastic shied.
It's replaced with Bamboo & Oak plugs. (cables are solid core copper with minimal isolation and some are combination of copper and silver infused copper)

Those Aural Thrills look interesting indeed but not enough info and pics to grasp the idea behind it.
A little pricey for no name product.

Have fun with your DIY adventure Bob.

Mariusz

[andyr]

My interconnects and speaker cables are outfitted with Eichman plugs but stripped of their blue plastic shield.

It's replaced with Bamboo & Oak plugs.
Mariusz

Hey Mariusz,

Can you explain more about how you replaced the "blue cylinders" with oak/bamboo cylinders? 

Sounds like a great idea! 

Regards,

Andy

[BobM]

Well, since PartsConnexion is having their 20% off sale (and so is Soniccraft by the way) I decided to pick up a 4 pack of Eichmann coppers and 2 pair of DH Labs Ultimates. I've also got a 4 pack set of WBT 0144's on the way from another source.

I guess I'll be doing some RCA comparisons and postinig the results sometime in the next month or so. I'll be cutting down and reterminating a 15 ft length of Analysis Plus Crystal Oval's into 4 x meter long pairs. So these will all be on the same wire (and decent wire at that). I think the Analysis Plus uses the WBT 0144's, at least they look just like them from what I can tell.

Thanks everyone,
Bob

[Mariusz]

My interconnects and speaker cables are outfitted with Eichman plugs but stripped of their blue plastic shield.

It's replaced with Bamboo & Oak plugs.
Mariusz

Hey Mariusz,

Can you explain more about how you replaced the "blue cylinders" with oak/bamboo cylinders? 

Sounds like a great idea! 

Regards,

Andy

Since these will be part of my line of speaker and interconnect cables, PM for pics.

BobM

Yeah, that is the way to go. minimalist approach works most the time.

Best
Mariusz

[BobM]

So I made 3 sets of interconnects, using Eichmann Coppers on one, WBT 0144's on another, and Dayton Silver Sonic coppers on the third. There's only about a days worth of burn-in on them so far, so take my comments with that in mind. Things could change over the next few days.

The Eichmanns are somewhat noticeably lighter sounding than the other two. Not tat there is bass lacking or anything, just that there is a certain lack of warmth overall. These were also a real PITA to solder and hook up the wire in a manner that ensured a good connection and adequate electrical separation bewteen the leads. They are also far less durable and, well, plastic. Looks like something GM would produce, and at this price I would expect a Lexus.

The WBT's and Dayton's are very much of a similar nature (and are more in the Lexus category). There is a warmth and weightiness to them theat I don't hear on the Eichmann's. I can't swear to it, but the Dayton's may have a trifle more air and space int he midrange than the WBT's, but that could be me just trying to hear a difference rather than a real difference.

Not a real comparison because it's different cable, but I put in my own homemade 89259/89248 twisted pair IC's that use the Parts Connexion WBT clones. These sound more like the WBT and Daytons than the Eichmann's, as you would expect. Perhaps a trifle less refined than the others, but again, I could be forcing the difference - it's so small.

Enjoy,
Bob

[BobM]

Update: Yeah, the Eighmanns just sound softer overall than the others. They seem to lack a dynamic that the others bring out. Perhaps it's a softer leading edge transient thing, but I feel like I'm getting less detail with them, although I can't point to anything that's missing.

So, are the others eddy current monsters and thereby causing an "unnatural" amount of detail, or are the Eichmanns losing something in the translation?

I guess it's a personal preference thing and system synergy. Who knows. It will take more time for me to truly decide what is right and what is not for my rig.

Enjoy,
Bob

[carusoracer]

I think you have a good test bed and idea if you maintain the consistancy of the test experiment. I have heard all of the above terminations but with different strands and variations of wires.
Have fun and try and keep everything as even as possible up to 200hr mark and then decide.

My take, I heard a little lighter sound, less detail, slam and warmth from the exact same set of cables terminated with Eichmann's vs the others. 200 hrs later, I preferred overal the sound of the Bullets. YMMV

Cheers

[bluemike]

Hey Bob
Thanks for the input  will continue to read with interest
I've been told the neutrik with spring internals sound very good as well
I think the wbt are the best of the lot

[BobM]

Well I've given it time and the Eichmanns do not seem to be changing or opening up. The "softness" and slicht veiling is still there vs the WBT's and Daytons.

I'm tempted to remove the Eichmanns and try some Cardas GRMO's (Rhodium over Silver) that I also have on hand. I guess I'm enjoying the sound of the massive RCA's over the low mass plastic ones overall, so far. Not sure if I'm going to take this testing much farther since I've now run out of available plugs.

Anyone want/need a set of slightly used Eichmann's?

Bob

[BobM]

So I replaced the Eichmann's with the Cardas GRMO's and there was a big change, for the better. The Cardas plugs were definitely a bit bright sounding at first but warmed up quite a bit with burn in. Nice deep bass, but not quite as balanced overall as the WBT's and the Dayton's.

The big drawback on the Cardas plugs is that there is no strain relief built into them. The metal is quite thick and you need a lot of heat to solder the ground wire and shield to the body. Even then I had problems keeping the connection attached properly. A little twist of the wire itself and the soldered connection would break free. Shrink wrap didn't help much either.

It is this very problem that makes me say that these jacks, even though they are decent, should be used with a certain amount of caution. I think I would go with the WBT clones from Partsconnexion first, or pony up the bucks and get the Dayton's.

Enjoy,
Bob

[markC]

Sounds like you need more heat to make a good solder joint. I use the Cardas slvr as well as the copper binding posts, (can't remember the abbreviation), and they take a Lot of heat on the body connection to make a good joint. Like my soldering station cranked and the tip getting reddish.

[BobM]

The solder was flowing over the Cardas body nicely with my smaller iron, but I hear what you're saying. It has broken loose again, so I will go in with my massive 350 watt iton and fuse the damn thing this time when I make my repair. 

Bob