[sdiy] chassis-mount screw terminal or alternative

[Florian Teply]

Am Sat, 16 May 2020 10:44:29 -0700
schrieb rsdio at audiobanshee.com:

> I was going to point out that Neutrik have already thought about
> these problems, and they make the power connectors different from the
> speaker connectors. In fact, I visited neutrik.com and was reminded
> that the product is actually called "powerCON". It makes sense that
> "speakON" is for speakers and "powerCON" is for power.
> 
> https://www.neutrik.com/en/products/power

That's exactly why Neutrik has chosen such obvious naming.
> 
> I wouldn't be surprised if the connectors physically won't plug in to
> the wrong kind, but I haven't personally confirmed that. I'm sure the
> spec sheets and documentation will explain this.
> 
These two do not intermate. At least not without forces which would
idrectly lead to physical destrucion of the connector itself. There are
even two different versions of the powerCON for Power outlets and
inlets, and they also do not mate the wrong way AND they're color-coded
in grey and blue, but I can't remember right now which one was which
and am too lazy to look it up at neutriks website.

> So, I recommend using powerCON connectors for this. There is the
> disadvantage that they're fairly large. The standard 4-pin XLR power
> (only two pins actually used) is what I have on several of my
> MobileIO audio interfaces, but I'm guessing that XLR is about the
> same size as powerCON.
> 
The panel-side connectors are nearly the same size between XLR and
powerCON, but the powerCON plugs are significantly bigger than XLR
(larger diameter). Actually they are the same size as speakON. 

Besides, I've found both powerCON and speakON to be pretty robust and
reliable with low contact resistance and significant current ratings.
If there was a version unambiguously for DC use, I'd directly go for it
even for ham radio gear, which often sucks a bit more than 20 amps at
12V DC. XLR is a bit on the thin side here with the 4 pin variant rated
at 8 or 10 amps. Of course that should be plenty for most Synths. It's
just that for high current applications I wish there was a slightly more
hefty variant. The metal shell makes them pretty robust as well, which
comes in pretty handy at a field day. Ever shorted a nominal 12v/160A
power supply by running a car over the connector? It's not exacty fun
to see, but very unlikely to see with a neutrik metal-shell XLR...

Best,
Florian