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In Reply to: Mr Risch et al- What characterizes a pro interconnect termination? posted by Coffeecupman on May 18, 2007 at 03:33:29:
There are many who swear by crimped terminations over soldered terminations and probably as many who prefer soldered terminations. A crimped termination, sometimes called "cold welding" requires a special crimping tool. "Professional termination" ? That could be a termination performed by someone who charges ($) for crimping a termination as opposed to someone who does not charge for terminations, by definition, an amateur. I prefer terminating with hi silver content (8%) leadfree solder. The crimped termination must be performed so that the termination is "gas tight" (So tight that gas i.e. air, etc.) cannot penetrate the crimped termination in order to prevent corrosion from forming in the crimped joint. I highly recommend that you also investigate the Eichmann terminations. The Eichmanns have a high reputation for delivering superior sonics, especially their silver terminations (top of the line) which are far more econonimical than Nordost's $500/pop.Happy Terminating !
Follow Ups:
nt
hey pkell44,Thanks for your post. This is getting warmer to the kind of answers I'm looking for, like "the crimp must be gas free" and "one needs a specialized crimp tool to get it right."
What I'd really like to know is the kind of stuff like: where does one get such a tool, etc? And exactly what must happen in order for it to be gas-free? is a sealant painted on to it after? If so, what sealant? Is it the kind of job that requires a bit of a knack? Or can any first timer nail it straight away? Also, there must be some specific chemicals used to clean the joint prior to the big squeeze? All these things are what I'm interested in.
I am reasonably confident that the world's best terminations are not made by just duffing it on. That the leading cable manufacturers have spent some time researching the optimal way to do it. For example, you say you solder, but with what brand of solder? What temp? How much do you use? Any flux? What kinds of cable do you usually work with? How much do you strip from the wire? Do you stagger the joints? Do you use heat shrink to cover the individual wires inside once soldered? What kind of heat shrink has the best dielectric? There are lots of questions involved. That's why I am asking the experts. Like I say, I didn't come this far only to stop being meticulous in the end game :)
For the record and to be fair, Nordost charges the $500 for the labor mostly, not for the parts. That's why I'm wondering about just exactly how skilled this labor must be. Of course I could solder it myself with silver solder. But is that the optimal way? And how you solder could be a world different from the way I solder. One of us will have a lesser connection.
Thanks for the post and all the best,
ccm
Not "Gas Free", but "Gas Tight" meaning that the crimp is so tightly made that that gasses and vapors, especially sulfur bearing, cannot penetrate the crimped joint. I usually solder @ about 450 deg. F. (I have a temp controlled iron). In successful soldering your iron MUST heat the work, the iron must NEVER melt the solder or you are most likely to end up with a 'cold joint', which is very bad news. It goes without saying that when soldering, the surfaces to be soldered MUST be clean. I use a kitchen-type nylon scouring pad to clean the pcb surface and the component leads to be soldered. When soldering a component to a pcb my process is as follows : Heat the iron to the proper temp, clean the tip of the iron on a damp sponge; tin the iron generously and holding the iron at about a 45 deg. angle to the pcb apply it to the surface of the pcb next to the component's lead but not touching it and after several seconds touch the end of the solder to the pcb close to the component lead; if the solder tip melts add a bit more solder to the iron's tip and move the iron into contact with the component's lead and the pcb; after several seconds move the tip of the solder against the lead ONLY; if the solder melts complete the joint by applying a bit more solder and the joint is completed; remove the iron. It sounds much more complicated than it is.For general Component soldering I prefer 0.062 (1/16") dia. solder with it's own flux in the solder. Which brings up another point : after finishing your solder and the work has cooled the flux from the solder has solidified on the pcb, etc and should be removed. To remove small amounts of flux I use a dental pick and small brass brush. For large amounts of flux I have found that the gel type waterless hand cleaner does an excellent job providing there are no water sensitive parts on the pcb. Spread a generous dollop of cleaner to the bottom of the pcb and let the pcb sit for 10 or so minutes and remove the cleaner/flux with running water and a stiff bristled tooth brush.Heat shrink tubing comes in very handy but I don't think you have any choice as to its' Dielectric Absorbtion factor. I use an instant on/instant off propane torch to shrink the tubing, but you can use any good heat source. For flammable areas I have a heat gun. However, you can find various diameters of teflon tubing, with various DA and you could apply the appropriate size teflon tubing and then shrink tubing to seal the ends. Teflon has a high resistance to heat so you can't shrink teflon tubing, when it gets hot enough it simply melts.
Happy Happying !
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