Recommendations for a Speakon to 1/4 inch cable

[Bob Lee (QSC)]

Those are listed as NL4FC connectors which are the wrong gender for the proper plug.

Neutrik has a counterintuitive way of defining gender on SpeakOn connectors. The chassis/panel connectors are designated "male" while the connectors typically used on cable ends are "female."

 

[agedhorse]

Neutrik has a counterintuitive way of defining gender on SpeakOn connectors. The chassis/panel connectors are designated "male" while the connectors typically used on cable ends are "female."

Ugh, thanks Bob. Of course you are right! Old guy brain fart, but it illustrates how easy it is to make a mistake.

MP=male plug
FC=female connector

 

[Bob Lee (QSC)]

I think it might be because the contacts on the NL4FC are around the inside of the cavity, while the contacts on the chassis/panel connector are on the outside of the recessed post.

 

[Wasnex]

Neutrik has a counterintuitive way of defining gender on SpeakOn connectors. The chassis/panel connectors are designated "male" while the connectors typically used on cable ends are "female."

That would make the "turn-around" adapters male to male

(NL4MMX)

 

[Bob Lee (QSC)]

That would make the "turn-around" adapters male to male

(NL4MMX)
View attachment 3322704

You can't buy them in some states.

 

[agedhorse]

I think it might be because the contacts on the NL4FC are around the inside of the cavity, while the contacts on the chassis/panel connector are on the outside of the recessed post.

Maybe, or it's just European logic that's lost on us Yanks

 

[beans-on-toast]

I just look at the images and say, I’ll have some of those.

If you can’t find a good ¼” to speakon cable, buy a good ¼” to ¼”, cut it in half and install your own speakons on the ends. That gives you a spare cable.

 

[BassmanPaul]

Or this, if you can't put the jack on the jack plate. All you have to do is drill a 1" hole in the cab and secure it with 4 short wood screws.
View attachment 3321742

Actually 15/16” just to be picky.

 

[BassmanPaul]

Will youse guys stop talking about sex! Youse making me breathless!!! LOL

 

[Bob Lee (QSC)]

Actually 15/16” just to be picky.

Or 24 mm.

 

[BassmanPaul]

Or 24 mm.

Being in Canada and metric I should have said this. LOL

 

[Bob Lee (QSC)]

Being in Canada and metric I should have said this. LOL

I know, eh?

 

[beans-on-toast]

I use this when I have to punch a hole for a speakon in metal. For a cabinet, sometimes it’s easier to buy a dish prepunched for two type D speakons so it can be daisy chained.

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[BassmanPaul]

I bought a 15/16” (I know Bob but my calliper was Imperial) twist drill with a 1/2” shank that fitted my drill press and a 15/16” Greenlee punch via special order at Home Despot! They were not that expensive and worked beautifully.

On my big PA I took a 1U blank panel and mounted six 4 pole SpeakOn sockets. Two for Mains left and right. One each, with a 1/4”, phone socket, for each channel of my four channel monitor power amp. All my speaker cables are Speakon as are my monitor cabinets. The Phone sockets allow connection of other band member’s own monitors.

 

[Bob Lee (QSC)]

I use this when I have to punch a hole for a speakon in metal. For a cabinet, sometimes it’s easier to buy a dish prepunched for two type D speakons so it can be daisy chained.

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A friend of mine owns a small sound company and his wife does the bookkeeping. He bought a bunch of Greenlee punches and not knowing what "Greenlee punches" are, his wife at first thought he'd put some exorbitantly priced drinks on the company tab.

 

[beans-on-toast]

A friend of mine owns a small sound company and his wife does the bookkeeping. He bought a bunch of Greenlee punches and not knowing what "Greenlee punches" are, his wife at first thought he'd put some exorbitantly priced drinks on the company tab.

Better her than the IRS.

Now if only there was a way to easily index the two mounting holes.

 

[Bassamatic]

[edited for old guy brain fart]

Also, I strongly recommend using genuine Neutrik branded plugs as we have seen a lot of defective off-shore SpeakOn plugs. Some look identical to the real thing on the outside but are different internally, or the dimensional tolerances are poor.

This has caused a lot of troubleshooting frustration where a player is "positive" an amp is defective and then gets even more frustrated when we have them troubleshoot to discover that there's nothing at all wrong with the amp (or speaker).

If it's not guaranteed to be genuine Neutrik, it's almost certainly not. The real part is very, very good in comparison to all of the copies I have examined.

It may have been like this a couple of years agoespecially from "no name" vendors, but no longer, and certainly not from Monoprice. Their products are very high quality with a warranty! My neighbor has a very high end PA/DJ company and ALL of his cables and hardware are from Monoprice with no complaints.

 

[agedhorse]

It may have been like this a couple of years agoespecially from "no name" vendors, but no longer, and certainly not from Monoprice. Their products are very high quality with a warranty! My neighbor has a very high end PA/DJ company and ALL of his cables and hardware are from Monoprice with no complaints.

This doesn't match what I see in the field (not what I sometimes have to cut out of the back of an amp). The number of problems directly traced back to "no-name" SpeakOn plugs (plus tinning the wires before assembly, another common theme with no-name manufacturers) is probably as high, or even higher than for say defective tubes. Yes, it's that bad.

 

[LBS-bass]

I had a Monoprice speakon/speakon fail last night. Looked up the reviews just a moment ago and the problem I had with it is apparently quite common (connector refuses to lock in). I'm replacing it with another brand that's three times the price but has good reviews. I know people who swear by Monoprice, but I wouldn't recommend this particular cable.

 

[bettyseldest]

I added Speakon sockets to my older cabinets, but I carry a couple of these in my tool case. Whenever I'm incorporating anyone else's gear into mine I can't be sure what connectors they will have. Just fit the adaptor into the amp, then plug a standard jack to jack speaker cable into the adaptor. A few times they have helped avoid an embarrassing situation. They are less than 8 euro from Thomann, in each case I bought one to bring my basket above the free shipping threshold, so effectively costing me nothing.