On Sun, 12 Oct 2003 00:16:24 +0100, Kurt Hamster
wrote:

On Sat, 11 Oct 2003 22:00:45 +0100, Chris Isbell used
to say...

On Sat, 11 Oct 2003 17:27:26 GMT, (Stewart
Pinkerton) wrote:


Also, note that gold is *less* conductive than copper..............

It also has a higher work function energy.

And it's prettier

I was always under the impression that nickel placket plugs worked best
with nickel plated sockets, and gold with gold etc. Is that incorrect?

That's correct, but only if you're *really* fussy. It won't matter at
all for audio applications, it's only really a problem for precision
measuring instruments, where the thermocouple effect is a pain.
--

Stewart Pinkerton | Music is Art - Audio is Engineering

In article , Stewart Pinkerton
wrote:
On Sat, 11 Oct 2003 16:19:58 +0100, Jim Lesurf
wrote:

In article , Ian Molton
wrote:


Be aware that gold can form insulating compounds when in contact with
other metals (IIRC, tin?)

Do you have a reference for that? I've not heard it before, so would be
interested to see the details of what kind of insulating layer it may
form with tin, and why.

My chemistry is rubbish, but there's an electrochemical reaction which
takes place at a gold/tin interface which causes corrosion. It's a
well-known problem in computers, when tinned memory sticks are used in
gold-plated sockets, or vice versa.

Ah! 'Click' of connection being made! I *now* recall hearing about this
in the past!

Slainte,

Jim

--
Electronics http://www.st-and.ac.uk/~www_pa/Scot...o/electron.htm
Audio Misc http://www.st-and.demon.co.uk/AudioMisc/index.html
Armstrong Audio http://www.st-and.demon.co.uk/Audio/armstrong.html
Barbirolli Soc. http://www.st-and.demon.co.uk/JBSoc/JBSoc.html

In article , Stewart Pinkerton
wrote:
On Sat, 11 Oct 2003 16:19:58 +0100, Jim Lesurf
wrote:

In article , Ian Molton
wrote:


Be aware that gold can form insulating compounds when in contact with
other metals (IIRC, tin?)

Do you have a reference for that? I've not heard it before, so would be
interested to see the details of what kind of insulating layer it may
form with tin, and why.

My chemistry is rubbish, but there's an electrochemical reaction which
takes place at a gold/tin interface which causes corrosion. It's a
well-known problem in computers, when tinned memory sticks are used in
gold-plated sockets, or vice versa.

Ah! 'Click' of connection being made! I *now* recall hearing about this
in the past!

Slainte,

Jim

--
Electronics http://www.st-and.ac.uk/~www_pa/Scot...o/electron.htm
Audio Misc http://www.st-and.demon.co.uk/AudioMisc/index.html
Armstrong Audio http://www.st-and.demon.co.uk/Audio/armstrong.html
Barbirolli Soc. http://www.st-and.demon.co.uk/JBSoc/JBSoc.html

On Sun, 12 Oct 2003 08:52:53 +0100, Jim Lesurf
wrote:

In article , Kurt Hamster
wrote:


I was always under the impression that nickel placket plugs worked best
with nickel plated sockets, and gold with gold etc. Is that incorrect?

I think you are correct. Using dissimilar metals may in some cases mean
some sort of electrochemical action may occur. How much this matters in
practice, I have no idea, though. I tend to use gold on gold as it seems to
resist tarnish and being a soft metal can be expected to provide a good
contact area. However for all I know, some other choice might be just as
good or better. I've also used a variety of non-gold plugs and sockets over
the years, and most of the time they don't seem to have given me problems.
Main exception being some old loudspeaker DIN plugs/sockets which used to
tarnish or even 'burn' with time.

FWIW I prefer the 'high quality gold plated' Maplin plugs as much for the
way they can be fitted to cables as for the gold coating. My experience
with the cheaper phono plugs is that they fail more often due to a broken
solder joint or wire at the plug than due to tarnish as they don't give
much support to the wire. I also find them fiddly to assemble and
unsuitable for large diameter coax.

Slainte,

Jim

In the case of the DIN loudspeaker connector, it is simply an
ill-conceived idea - totally unfit for its purpose. Contact area is
minute, and with very low spring force.

For coax connectors, they generally work in an impedance environment
(high load R) where they would have to be virtually open circuit
before they manifested any symptoms of poor connection.

Having worked on the design of a 40GHz edgeline switched attenuator
that relied on virtually force-free contacts that barely wiped, I can
say with some authority that the ultimate in reliability comes from
soft gold contacting hard gold.

d

_____________________________

http://www.pearce.uk.com

On Sun, 12 Oct 2003 08:52:53 +0100, Jim Lesurf
wrote:

In article , Kurt Hamster
wrote:


I was always under the impression that nickel placket plugs worked best
with nickel plated sockets, and gold with gold etc. Is that incorrect?

I think you are correct. Using dissimilar metals may in some cases mean
some sort of electrochemical action may occur. How much this matters in
practice, I have no idea, though. I tend to use gold on gold as it seems to
resist tarnish and being a soft metal can be expected to provide a good
contact area. However for all I know, some other choice might be just as
good or better. I've also used a variety of non-gold plugs and sockets over
the years, and most of the time they don't seem to have given me problems.
Main exception being some old loudspeaker DIN plugs/sockets which used to
tarnish or even 'burn' with time.

FWIW I prefer the 'high quality gold plated' Maplin plugs as much for the
way they can be fitted to cables as for the gold coating. My experience
with the cheaper phono plugs is that they fail more often due to a broken
solder joint or wire at the plug than due to tarnish as they don't give
much support to the wire. I also find them fiddly to assemble and
unsuitable for large diameter coax.

Slainte,

Jim

In the case of the DIN loudspeaker connector, it is simply an
ill-conceived idea - totally unfit for its purpose. Contact area is
minute, and with very low spring force.

For coax connectors, they generally work in an impedance environment
(high load R) where they would have to be virtually open circuit
before they manifested any symptoms of poor connection.

Having worked on the design of a 40GHz edgeline switched attenuator
that relied on virtually force-free contacts that barely wiped, I can
say with some authority that the ultimate in reliability comes from
soft gold contacting hard gold.

d

_____________________________

http://www.pearce.uk.com

more from the 'Jim Lesurf school' of uk.rec.audio-ism:

My experience is that gold plating isn't essential for good contacts,
but that non-gold does sometime begin to tarnish after a while. When I
used phono plugs/sockets that were not gold plated I used to clean
them about once a year, and this always removed a greyish deposit
which was then left on the cleaning cloth. With gold they are 'fire
and forget' in this respect so I don't have to remember to clean (or
replace) them after a few years.

If the 'High Quality' Maplin phonos seem to expensive, then the "Gold
Plated Plug" FK18U and JH94C are also OK. I use these when I have a
small diameter floppy coax to fit as they work better that the "High
Quality" phonos with such cables in my experience. Unlike the HQ58N,
they are gold plated, have a metal outer, and also a supporting spring
for the first part of the cable to prevent excessive bending.


I decided to go for the nicer JZ13P and JZ14Q for my frequently swapped
important cables and use the cheaper ones for my VCR (scart to *6* phono)
and playstation, where quality isn't really an issue anyway.

They arrived the next day, but having ordered more than 20 plugs I didn't
expect them to be individually wrapped! My waste paper basket is
overflowing with little plastic bags - Surely an inefficient and non-
environmental way to deliver?

--
Jim H jh
@333
.org

more from the 'Jim Lesurf school' of uk.rec.audio-ism:

My experience is that gold plating isn't essential for good contacts,
but that non-gold does sometime begin to tarnish after a while. When I
used phono plugs/sockets that were not gold plated I used to clean
them about once a year, and this always removed a greyish deposit
which was then left on the cleaning cloth. With gold they are 'fire
and forget' in this respect so I don't have to remember to clean (or
replace) them after a few years.

If the 'High Quality' Maplin phonos seem to expensive, then the "Gold
Plated Plug" FK18U and JH94C are also OK. I use these when I have a
small diameter floppy coax to fit as they work better that the "High
Quality" phonos with such cables in my experience. Unlike the HQ58N,
they are gold plated, have a metal outer, and also a supporting spring
for the first part of the cable to prevent excessive bending.


I decided to go for the nicer JZ13P and JZ14Q for my frequently swapped
important cables and use the cheaper ones for my VCR (scart to *6* phono)
and playstation, where quality isn't really an issue anyway.

They arrived the next day, but having ordered more than 20 plugs I didn't
expect them to be individually wrapped! My waste paper basket is
overflowing with little plastic bags - Surely an inefficient and non-
environmental way to deliver?

--
Jim H jh
@333
.org

In article ,
Jim H wrote:
They arrived the next day, but having ordered more than 20 plugs I
didn't expect them to be individually wrapped! My waste paper basket is
overflowing with little plastic bags - Surely an inefficient and non-
environmental way to deliver?

Things like these plugs are wrapped like this so they can be displayed on
cards, or hung from pegs etc, to save space in their shops. I'd guess they
arrive from the factory in bags of 100 + , and Maplin don't sell in bulk
anymore.

Sometimes the bags are the re-sealable types which can be some use after -
pity about the staple holes though. ;-)

--
*If all the world is a stage, where is the audience sitting?

Dave Plowman London SW 12
RIP Acorn

In article ,
Jim H wrote:
They arrived the next day, but having ordered more than 20 plugs I
didn't expect them to be individually wrapped! My waste paper basket is
overflowing with little plastic bags - Surely an inefficient and non-
environmental way to deliver?

Things like these plugs are wrapped like this so they can be displayed on
cards, or hung from pegs etc, to save space in their shops. I'd guess they
arrive from the factory in bags of 100 + , and Maplin don't sell in bulk
anymore.

Sometimes the bags are the re-sealable types which can be some use after -
pity about the staple holes though. ;-)

--
*If all the world is a stage, where is the audience sitting?

Dave Plowman London SW 12
RIP Acorn

more from the 'Dave Plowman school' of uk.rec.audio-ism:

Things like these plugs are wrapped like this so they can be displayed
on cards, or hung from pegs etc, to save space in their shops. I'd
guess they arrive from the factory in bags of 100 + , and Maplin don't
sell in bulk anymore.

I'd imagine Maplin sell most things though phone/internet/post, so it seems
pretty strange that they pack everything for POS retail. Even in the shop
bagging phono sockets indiviually seems damn inefficient to me. Maybe
someone in the company thinks getting their logo on the product is value
added.

For sending through the post the cheap pastic plugs probably weigh less
than their packaging!


Sometimes the bags are the re-sealable types which can be some use
after - pity about the staple holes though. ;-)

Yeah, but I don't use anything like enough narcotics to need all those
little plastic bags.


--
Jim H jh
@333
.org