Speaker connection question

Can you use the Naim speaker plugs into the back of a 300dr if the rear of the amp sits inside the rack?

The cable inputs sit quite high on the amp so it looks like there’s enough room for the cable to come out without squashing too much.

The other option of course is to use bananas instead.

I don’t want to push the amp back so it hangs over the edge.

I’ll be using Naim speaker cable.

It’s pretty tight with A5 and doesn’t let the cable float free of the rack. But Naim have 2 types. The 90 degree ones that I assume you are referring to may not be good here but they also do straight 0 degree connectors. I got both when I bought my amps.

Thanks for the reply Zen, if the 90 degree plugs weren’t going to work I was looking at the Deltron bananas (nickel), but if Naim includes the 0 degree plugs I’m assuming they would be as good if not better.

Don’t get too hung up on it. If you can find nickel deltrons and you have to hunt or order the Naim straight connectors, just use the deltons.

I actually have the Naim straights and didn’t bother reterminating my cables with them, just using 3rd party banana plugs instead.

I find that you can bend NACA5 into a tight 90 degree angle to avoid the shelf if necessary, and once made, the bend will stay in the cable. Maybe worth a try if that’s what you have. After all, those plugs were designed to be used with a Naim amp.
Also, you can use them without the black plastic box if it helps.

Never heard of them!?

Yeah they were new to me too. The never used to exist but when my new amps arrived in 2013 (Qute) and 2014 (250), I got the 90 degree and 0 degree straights both together.

BTW, a hairdryer can be used to soften the A5 to make it more flexible and get a tighter bend. When it cools it will set.

Be careful with the smaller Naim “straight” connectors - the housing spacing is narrower so won’t fit in the bigger amps. without removing the plastic casing.

As Chris, explains above, NACA5 will bend to your needs quite nicely and then stay put. I’d rather do that and use the correct SA8 plugs…

For the doubters.

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They were originally designed for the n-Vi - mainly because of the lack of space for the regular connections. They were then found ideal for the Uniti Qute etc…

Interesting Richard. Never knew that and never compared the spacing since I don’t use the Naim plugs anyway. Given that they gave both in a pink bag packed with the amps I assumed they were just a straight version of the other.

That makes it dead simple for the OP. Use the 90 degree with a hard bend or use another deltron.

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Ah, yes, those look like my Atom plugs, I thought you meant there was a straight plug with the standard spacing.

Another option I’ve seen, if your soldering skills are up to it, is to discard the plastic housing and solder the cables on straight anyway.

I came so close to deciding to reterminate my current cables with these. Can you imagine the amount of swearing that would have gone on had I done so while I blindly tried to fiddle round the back of the 250 trying to get them in? :rofl:

I bet it would have taken me 2 days before I realised they were the wrong size.

Yeah, I think I’ll make the 90 degree plugs work. As the 0 degree ones come with the Uniti they’re probably not ideal for the 300 (as Richard suggested).

This beggars the question why Naim don’t offer standard sized 0 degree plugs that easily fit into their amps ?
Heating up the cable with a hair drier so it can fit ? Good grief. From a hi tech company like Naim ?

No need to heat up anything. It’s a nice design as the cables then drop nicely behind a rack such as Fraim.

The SA8 plug design is clever too with proper mechanical engineering - the casing means each plug end is not unduly stressed by the weight of cable, and provided they are well soldered, it also allows the plug to find the most natural path down the socket for best contact. Just the kind of clever design you would expect from a company like Naim.

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I think the problem is that many racks or shelves are too deep to allow the cable to hang straight down, so the plugs won’t work for everyone. Sure, if you go for an all Naim solution, it all hangs together nicely. If you choose not to, especially with the lower end boxes where Fraim is harder to justify, there are always solutions.

As Chris says, many tables are deeper than the Fraim. The cables cannot drop nicely down the back.

Indeed. Even with Fraim getting A5 around tight corners like hugging a fireplace is hard. Having laid A5 before, I know a hairdryer with the thin jet attachment is your friend here.

I use the naim plugs upside down so the cables go up the way. The cable is then bent gently back to the correct orientation and cable tied loosely to the back of my rack. I feel that it puts less strain on the plugs.
I also switch the left and right cables in order to do this as it keeps the polarity the same.

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