Why do banana plugs need these holes?
\$\begingroup\$
\$\endgroup\$
13
-
37\$\begingroup\$ You can connect another banana plug in one of those holes. \$\endgroup\$– Andrew MortonCommented Sep 7, 2020 at 10:25
-
43\$\begingroup\$ They don't need it, it is a (nice and useful) feature of these particular plugs. \$\endgroup\$– BimpelrekkieCommented Sep 7, 2020 at 10:28
-
29\$\begingroup\$ Yo, dawg. They heard people liked banana plugs, so they put holes in your bana plugs so you can plug a banana plug while you plug a banana plug. \$\endgroup\$– dimCommented Sep 7, 2020 at 11:28
-
80\$\begingroup\$ That choice of wire colours is making me twitch... \$\endgroup\$– user16324Commented Sep 7, 2020 at 12:41
-
5\$\begingroup\$ It's called a bananana plug. \$\endgroup\$– A. I. BreveleriCommented Sep 8, 2020 at 4:32
|
Show 8 more comments
2 Answers
\$\begingroup\$
\$\endgroup\$
1
Your banana plugs have holes so that the plugs can act as banana jacks.
You plug one banana plug into the plug panel of, say, a power supply. You can then plug another banana plug into the first plug.
It's a helpful feature for making multiple connections with banana plugs.
-
14\$\begingroup\$ "Jack" being "socket" in British English. \$\endgroup\$ Commented Sep 8, 2020 at 8:29
\$\begingroup\$
\$\endgroup\$
7
Does this banana plug picture help you understand why: -
You can get different variants too: -
And end-stacking types: -
-
1\$\begingroup\$ With 4 of them and a little skill you can (probably) get a mechanically almost locked 4 wire connection :-). \$\endgroup\$– Russell McMahon ♦Commented Sep 9, 2020 at 3:24
-
2\$\begingroup\$ @RussellMcMahon it is not that difficult actually, it is not actually locked as it might seem. You just make two couples and then mate those. \$\endgroup\$ Commented Sep 9, 2020 at 6:33
-
\$\begingroup\$ @VladimirCravero Yes - I visualised how to put it together. Past experience (not with banana plugs) suggetss it MAY require "wriggling it all together" . Not hard but sometimes 3 hands needed. I'll try it some time :-) \$\endgroup\$– Russell McMahon ♦Commented Sep 9, 2020 at 8:52
-
\$\begingroup\$ If you have banana banana cables long enough, you can build yourself a nice pendant. \$\endgroup\$ Commented Sep 9, 2020 at 13:01
-
\$\begingroup\$ Banana #1 is also known as an insulated banana. The barely visible plastic around the pin helps against accidental short-circuits, particularly useful when working with mains voltage. This particular one probably has a retractable sheet, there are also plugs with fixed sheets. Those are less-stackable but even more safe. \$\endgroup\$– MastCommented Sep 9, 2020 at 13:12