Super Stupid Newbie Speaker Terminal Question.

[sagefool]

Hi, so I have a feeling I have to be missing something totally obivious but here is the stupid question:

I have a new reciever that has terminals on it that seem to look like these:

http://www.audioholics.com/news/thumbs/speakerterminals_th.jpg

They unscrew (but don't actually come off the reciever) and for the life of me I don't get how the speaker wire is supposed to attach. Oh how I long for the days of red and black terminals I could pinch, insert wire, and be done! That was an intuitive user experience! Ok I don't really long for those days, but I am still baffled by my recievers terminals. I have been putting in the speaker wire from the side then screwing the terminal back down trying to get it to wind the speaker wire around the post some, but the way the terminals are it is very hard to see in there and see if you are doing it such that you get a good connection. I keep losing my center channel only to discover the connection with the terminal isn't working. Which can be fixed for a few more days by unscrewing it and trying again. I feel like I have to be missing some kind of amazingly obvious solution to attaching the wires to the terminals that I should know if I bought a reciever more than once ever 12 years.

So what am I missing?

 

[markw]

Two words....

Banana plugs. Can't hook up a HT without 'em nowadays and they do NOT deterimentaly affect the sound. Simply stick 'em in the open ends of those jacks.

Hie thy buttox down to your local RatShack and procure some generic ones. Just be sure that they can accept the gauge wire you use. I know from experience that the cheap silver ones can easily handle 16 gauge wire.

There are others that can handle thicker (lower gauge #) wire.

Spade lugs are great also if you have a good crimp tool and space to insert then on the sides of the terminals.

P.S.. consider yourself VERY lucky that none of these wild wires touched another and caused a short circuit. Then you would REALLY have problems.

 

[sagefool]

Thanks! I have a good crimping tool, but I don't really have much space to slide spade connectors into the terminals, so I think I'll go down to radio shack and get some of the bananna plugs and try this all out this evening!
I knew I had to be missing something!