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Wiring Up NL4FC Speakons for SWR

Bongolation

Bongolation

Nov 9, 2001
8,047
148
California
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#1
Anyone know of a link to an authoritative diagram for this? SWR helpfully uses a FOUR POLE Speakon for two-conductor speaker connections, so the possibilities for expensive and exciting mistakes are good. I pulled apart an amp and a GIII looking to back-engineer a solution, but the jacks were PCB mounted so I couldn't get anywhere with that without more work than I wanted to do.

Funny, but I've been asking around for a YEAR (including SWR support) and nobody's been able to give me the slightest help yet. This seems like such a common question...don't people make speaker cables all the time?

Many thanks for any assistance!
 
#2
Are we talking amp or cabinet here?

For a cabinet, I'd assume 1+ and 1- (take an ohmmeter and a spare plug and try it out).

For an amp...I'd assume 1+ and 1- for a non-bridged amp and 1+ and 2+ for the bridged mode of a stereo amp.

To test the amp, a volt meter across the terminals of choice will give you a reading which you can compare to the other pair that I suggested.
 
#5
The jack is 4-Pole NL4MP , and SWR says to use a 4-Pole NL4FC plug, but doesn't supply a pinout.

Speakon says a 2-pole plug will work with the 4-Pole jack, and if the +2 and -2 terminals aren't used, I don't understand why SWR insists on the 4-Pole jack. Something weird here, and I'm wondering if there's something non-standard in the SWR pinout.
 
#6
Bongolation said:
... I don't understand why SWR insists on the 4-Pole jack. Something weird here, and I'm wondering if there's something non-standard in the SWR pinout.
Click to expand...

Perhaps it gives them two extra physical mounting points on the printed circuit board. It would kind of make sense to use a 4-pole jack since it works with both 4-pole and 2-pole plugs (but the 2-pole jack doesn't). 2-pole plugs might be a more recent addition because I'd only heard of 4-pole plugs/jacks until a couple years ago.

If you have a voltmeter, plug in a spare plug (or an opened up cable) without a speaker connected and while playing through the amp, see which two terminals produce a voltage reading.
 
#7
You are reading way too much in to this.

Just plug the thing in and it will work. SWR stuff has a dedicated jack for running the amps bridged.

1+ goes to 1+, 1- goes to 1-. 2+/2- don't even need to be there.

Tell me you haven't owned an amp for over a year and have not even plugged the thing in because you are struggling with this issue.
 
#9
projectMalamute said:
Just plug the thing in and it will work.
Click to expand...
Not if the plug isn't connected to the cable, it won't. ;)

Remember, I'm wiring cable here, which is why I asked, and was considering retrofitting the Speakon jack to the older cabs. +1 and -1 are right for the plugs, but the jacks are wired somewhat differently.

On another forum I've determined why SWR uses the 4-Pole, even though it's not needed, simply because it's the industry standard for amps.
 

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