Of all the things a kid could get hurt on in a sound reinforcement system, the speaker cable plugs would not be my first concern. $90 tool to take it apart? Baloney.
@G5Hohn It's not about bureaucrats, it's far more about selling expensive proprietary tools. As Dave mentioned amp wattages have gotten to the point that safer speaker connectors make sense but like A/C connectors Neutrik could have simply made use of screws to hold things together. New Neutrik connectors using screws probably would have been more expensive and more difficult to manufacture than this version that they came up with so that and some overly expensive tools is what we get. Blame Neutrik for this not bureaucrats who are simply concerned about safety.
At Buried audio we've quickly made a 3D printable wrench that we are currently mass printing to supply with each order, that tool is while very well made, insanely over engineered and over priced to pay for that overkill.
@@Fifsson_it's honestly nothing special (just a U with a grippy surface with the flats in the right spots) we're planning to put it on our thingiverse because honestly it's a bit naff that the tool is $90 and I'm using so little material that I'm throwing mine in for free. Mad the one they made had to be milled out of metal for something that could so easily be stamped outta sheet steel like the IKEA spanners for almost nothing
We had a bunch of cables made for us recently and they came with these connectors. Went to open them up to double check the workmanship on the connections was good and came across the issue of opening them up. Crazy how much they charge for these 2 tools. Won’t be long before 3rd party options appear on the market.
Theres have been lots of changes to the way events are being handled in australia lately that require in some states that all Temporary stages (ie festivals etc) are required to treated like permenant installations that conform to current AS3000:2018 standards. Meaning any speaker level connection above 50v technically has to conform to current standards, requiring a tool to access the internals, appropriate IP ratings etc etc. All power distro required to have RCBO's for each circuit too, no longer will a single RCD protecting 4 circuits be sufficient. All in the name of safety as you say, i like the new plug design.
Great, now the new version of the old style (blue before, now all black) powercon AND Speakon look like a true1 connector from a distance 😅 Thanks for the video!
Love the new connector as an addition to the current line .. but absolutely a HUGE pain in the butt as a total replacement!!! but .. regulations r regulations ... not sure how many babies are playing with touring line arrays but good I guess
It occurs to me that the greatest possibility of getting a shock to the fingers is from the front (connecting) end of the Speakon-connector, anyways: The connecting surfaces are quite close to where your fingers reach and if there is humidity or moisture at play... These special safety tools seem like a joke considering anyone can open large three-phase connectors with ordinary hand tools.
The industry found a solution to a problem that didn't exist. I would venture to say no one ever got electrocuted by the old style connector, I`ve never heard on any.. Anywho, did they improve the connectors identifications of 1+ 1- 2+ 2-? Still made in Lichtenstein? What about the price? Not having the proper tools when needed will be pissing off many, many people in the future me thinks.
Dave, love the new vid. Staring out by saying you are a large importer and user of Neutrik. Showing off the new connector, how it works etc, etc. like any of the other product review vid. Now let's life hack the crap out of it, absolutely rat style. Now that is what I can only call excellent dealer support. Yup 90 bucks a pop for those tools is way over priced for what they are and would love to see normal priced versions out there. Keep up the good work.
Thanks for making this video on the new connector and how to DIY your own tool. It is disgusting that companies design things with the need for proprietary tools to service for no good reason.
I generally like neutrik as an innovative and quality company. And also, like us all, mistakes and oversights happen. Perhaps this vid will inspire them to rethink the overpriced tool
Thanks for explaining the differences. Just a quick tip. When you're doing close up shots with your hands, it would be better to use a plain background. All those little spots totally threw off the mpeg encoding and it just dissolved into blocky pixels when I needed detail.
At least Neutrik didn't completely balls it up like they did when the absolutely shocking NL4FX was launched. Quickly backtracked and re-released the NL4FC which is far easier to assemble by hand! Will be interesting to see how my next batch of speaker cables work out once I'm out of stock of NL4FC.
0:59 just FYI, these are Pozidrive screws, specifically PZ1 size drivers should be used. If you've ever noticed these being prone to camming out and/or don't tighten all the way down, this is why! Also, same goes for most European flat-pack furniture like Ikea
Normal philips driver and some sand paper and you're good to go there. Everyone has a few clapped out philps drivers that can see new life by being... flatter. No need to buy pozi
@jttech44 Pozi does not only have a different tip, it also has a completely different geometry that does not cam out like Philips / JIS do. So simply filing down the tip is not sufficient. When you put them next to each other, you can see that the pozi has parallel flats where the Philips has pointy flats that get smaller towards the tip.
Has someone made a knockoff NL4 connector yet? If they haven't, you can bet someone will start to work on one if it's legally possible. Good job Neutrik on providing some great motivation for someone to make an alternative product.
Awesome did you download from neutrik site? Do they have them up for download? I felt very happy that they reduced the price and said they would release 3D files after they saw my video
Never watched your videos before, and I'm glad I continued watching after a certain point, because when I heard how you were talking about it being fine that they'd done it because they sold tools, I almost turned it off because that's crap. Glad I stayed to hear you talking about other ways to do it and various bypasses to avoid the overpriced tools. Might have to check in more often to see some cool sound gear and such! :)
Neutrik connectors have great quality and last forever (unless you leave them in the rain), so I understand the high price, but what they charge for tools it ridiculous. Look at the price of the BNC crimping tool. It's 650€ including the inserts here. 650€ for a crimping tool! I ordered one from Aliexpress for 20€ and it works just fine...
Aliexpress is a great place for specialty tools like that, because, you know, it comes from China, and china's where they build all the stuff that requires the specialty tools.
First time on your channel. Great stuff! Very practical approaches to the changes. You just got a new sub! The new tools are pretty good answers to how to work with the new connector, but they look insanely over engineered. That’s part of the price issue, but I’m sure there’s a nice markup on their costs, too. 😉 The company will no doubt respond to others making alternative tools at some point and make cheaper versions, I’ll bet.
back when i used to be in that line of work most of the speakons i've encountered were, within a few months of abuse, a bit too loose at that collar. handled at least two stage monitors on two completely different occasions where that collar might as well not have been there at all, it would come loose and off if you grabbed the speakon the wrong way. still better than other connectors for sure, but it's not as durable as people make it to be. the ratcheting mechanism makes sense and as long as there's no copyright on making a key for it, this is one safety mechanism that doesn't seem like it's doing more harm than good.
Where this will be the biggest pain in the butt is in the shop. Servicing 40 or more NL4 at a time and hoping the shop tech leaves the tool in the same place he got it from for the next shop tech that comes in
1. Knipex parallel pliers (i.e. 86 03 125 or 86 03 180) exist for a reason, those plugs would be one of them 2. Calipers are no wrenches, they are measuring tools. possible use in this video? measuring the hole for the cable, or the dimensions of the flats 3. High voltage creates arcs, and 140V can be lethal under the wrong circumstances. so waterproofing is important. would have had been nice to dwell on this in the video 4. 5000W at 140V has 35A of current. the connector inside is the critical element here, since a flimsy connection will get hot, and melt the housing, or create a fire. would have had been nice to mention those in the video... 5. does a dual AWG 6 cable fit in the plug? (AWG 6 is rated to 35 amps)
Specs are on the neutrik website, in excruciating detail. I could quote them to you, but, I'm teaching a man to fish here a little bit because it's good to be in the habit of reading spec sheets.
Great video, Dave! I love how you kept it simple, describing and demonstrating the older designs, but I was a little sad you left out the oldest models. I am, of course, speaking of the original NL4 with the locking ring rather than a push button. It was revolutionary in its time, but thankfully, they realized the ring design was difficult to grab in many situations and worked out the push button. Additionally, the original design used tiny, Allen (hex) set screws for the conductors. The set screws were so bad that you absolutely would have stripped the hex opening before adequately tightening. On the random luck you could secure them properly, removing them to repair a damaged cable was pretty much impossible without drilling them out. Again, thankfully, Neutrik redesigned the set screws to larger, Phillips head screws. But if you needed a child lock on an NL connector, one need look no further than the NL2 connectors with the pull cylinder locking mechanism. I once had to repair one end figured out a way to get in without destroying it, but it was a huge PITA! 😁
Those old SpeakOn connectors are dangerous! When trying to press open the retaining clip of the locking ring, one can easily slip off and hurt oneself. Well, at least when you're trying do so with a multitool on a flightcase...
Neutrik also make a new version of the PowerCon connector these days. Perhaps for the same safety reasons? Recently during a gig the bass player had experienced issues with his amp. It was on old Glockenklang stack. Turned out, one of the wires in the Speakon plug of his cable had managed to escape… this was easy to fix for me being the sound guy in charge… luckily he had the old connector. But then again, 100V and more is nothing you'd want to touch.
I realize that you know that, but just to make that clear to your viewers: IEC rules are not "EU rules". IEC literally stands for International Electrotechnical Commission and they are part of the World Standards Cooperation. Concerning the item in question: Biggest plus here would be the fact that you don't accidently loosen the endcap during use, and I would assume that this was the driving force behind that design first and foremost. At least over here, NL-4 being in service while half unscrewed over weeks and month is by far the most common failure mode I see when I come into venues. Not sure how they do it, but heck it seems to be "a thing". So the new connector makes sense in that regard. I also like, that there is a very clear color difference between the NL2 (brown) and NL4 (green) this time around. That tool...well, it won't be long until there are a ton of after market alternatives, the original has come down to 77 bucks already. Plus your adjustable wrench will fit on it just fine if in a pinch. I don't really see a problem here. Also, that tool seems to become a somewhat universal unit within the Neutrik universe, since it will also work with the current powerCON iterations. With that extra length, we will need a 90° version though, and sooner than later!
IEC makes the standards, not the rules. Regulators decide which standards have to be adhered to. In this case, these fit EU regulation that requires the standard they're built to.
@@jttech44 If what you say is correct, why is that standard from 2008 and why do we in the EU still get to choose which variant to buy (!), while you in the US only get the new one, which adheres to the IEC standard?
Are you sure the old speakon are still going to be available in the EU? When I go to to the neutrik websites for Germany, France Lichtenstein, UK, US and Japan, the old versions show discontinued. Only China na seems to have the old ones still listed. Stores may still have the old ones but those days I believe are numbered. Take aoon and let me know
@@DaveRat Oh, you are correct, meanwhile they have vanished from the German website as well! I checked when I made my first comment and saw they were still available (or I was completely blind then...been sick as a dog, so might very well be 😂).
Yeah, it's early in the adventure and old at ck will be gone soon. We meet with Neutrik and got word fairly early on what is happening. It's all super interesting
Important: the wire retaining screws are not Phillips! They are Pozidrive. Grab a pozidrive and you will feel that it engages much better with the screws! I expect that a 3D printed version of the tool would be functional enough. I’d be willing to try! I think the safety is a great idea. I’ve definitely had brain-dead stagehands disassemble old NL4’s before. Still better than EP4!!!
You could probably print this tool on a 3D printer. I still have a pretty good stock of old connectors I can continue to use, but if it comes down to it (like you said, for safety), I can get my son to print one up that I can use. He has a couple of good printers to use for a side gig.
This is gonna backfire on Neutrik so badly. There are other NL4 manufacturers like seetronic that works just fine. We will just start to buy that instead. Is the quality worse? Maybe, but field serviceability is valued much higher with most rental companies..
Very good video! On some Powercons they have this ratcheting mechanism where you have to poke into it with a flat head screwdriver. I wonder why they didn't use this but rather came up with something entirely new. TBH the flat head ratchet thingy sucks, as well... 😅 Virtually all CEE or Schuko plugs can be serviced with a simple PH or PZ size 1 or 2 screwdriver...
this system would make sense on powercon if the tools werent 180€... this new connector is still easier to open tham the "oem" connectors that come with premade speakon cables. (made a 1cm deep hole in my hand with a knife while opening the connector)
I can remember a performance where a loudspeaker remained quiet. With the old blue plugs it was easy to open them and fix the problem. Now it costs 90 bugs! A cheap Forster drill costs maybe 10 bugs.
Thanks for making this video :) As a regular guy building my small PA and DIYing as much as possible I thought this was just a poor mans problem. I like quality products and enjoy neutrik as much as the next guy, but no way in hell would I spend that money as an individual.
Of course they'd change the design so that you need a buy a bunch of expensive single-purpose tools from them, when a plain old wrench used to work just fine.
The new connector is 1000 times better than the old one. We always had problems with corrosion on the old ones. We do lots of outdoor stuff and over the years these were always an issue.
i have small ish hands and a good grip and i can open these boys quite easily now. while harder than on old speakons its as quick when you know how to put your fingers on the bad boi for it to grip correctly. i'd advise everyone here to try with their bare hands.
agreed and also, there is a torque spec and though the tool they sell does not tell you the torque, best I can tell if the connector is torqued to spec, there is no way hands will open it
EDIT: didn't even watch the video all the way to the end, just wrote this comment... It's a good idea to have that safety because the power they push out through those cables means hundreds of volts ans tens of amps -> lethal. So safety is important :) Also the slip ring prevents the cable boot coming undone over years and years of handling and gigging. Especially since to lock the connector in place, you twist it, and then you twist it opposite to unlock and over the years of road use, they can (or mostly they WILL) come loosened or undone and then they fail or cause a short circuit or even kill someone. I like the design! The amount of powercons i've had to tighten over the years is in their hundreds. I ALWAYS check both boots of any powercon cable, make sure they're tight and that the strain relief has not given in. If it has slipped, I open the connector, check the wires and if it can be safely just put back together or does it need to be redone from scratch. Any unsafe ones are thrown into "unsafe, do NOT USE!" case and they go back to the renter to be checked and fixed, they will not be used unless fixed in situ by a technician. Same with speakons. Power levels are just very high so they need to be in good shape :)
I'll give it credit, it is a better design and at least they're backwards compatible. However at $180 for both tools, you might as well get a cheap or used 3d printer. I'm just glad were at the point where 3d printers and desktop mills are now affordable to your average joe.
Pretty interesting new connector but damn, common, they know those types of things will get lost. I'm surprised they don't have like a hole in them for a carabiner or something...
The $64,000 question: are the new connectors backward compatible? I'm not doing professional PA work at the moment, but I would sure as hell not want to have to rewire all my cabinets if I was...?
They’ve certainly got the market cornered and a pretty good ploy to force all the industry to throw out the old and buy the new marginally improved plugs. 😂
TL; DW: You now need to buy a proprietary wrench to open a green "safety" lock version of a Neutrik Speakon connector. The alternative, of course, is to simply cut off a bad Speakon connector rather than waste time attempting to reuse it. Apparently, this is Neutrik's solution to the chronic unreliability of the flimsy aluminum shims they use on the screw-terminal connectors inside the NL-4 Speakon connectors, which rely on bent-metal friction to make contact with your speaker wire. That's why a "safety" lock is so necessary in the first place, because the electrical connections in the NL-4 are so fragile they often can't even support the weight of the speaker cable. If you want to see how independent cable vendors cope with this Neutrik design flaw, unscrew a prewired Speakon connector, and don't be surprised if you find a thick wad of glue cementing the cable to the terminals.
Actually I believe the safety lock is there because government agencies determined that potentially hazardous voltages can occur with modern amplifiers and put pressure on neutrik to make the shell non-removable so people don't take the shell off and shock themselves
Many are talking about the locking down as a child safety, but I think there is another side you are missing - security. While it is not completely tamper-proof, it does make it harder for people that should not be messing with the ends to mess them up. In a rental fleet, it is common to have people try messing with everything, and this is one more tool to help keep those fleets a little more locked down. The tool is expensive, but there is NOTHING to stop any of us from building our own tools for it. Some measurement, a little fabrication (additive or subtractive), and boom, you've got your own tool. So, if you don't want the Cadillac tool, build your own, and maybe, just maybe, you will build an even better one. Take it as a challenge, rather than just a setback.
They could have designed this to not require the wrench, but still be safe. The fact that they didn't just tells me they're looking to sell $90 dollar wrenches... Also.... when are children going to be around the PA/Backline exactly? and must we childproof the world? Seems more than a little excessive.
Annoying safety rules and also I am guessing that they are somehow driven by issues and or lawsuits. Never underestimate the ability of a human to come up with a bad idea and run with it. These seem like attempts at creating some speed bumps that will doubtfully be effective
So, a pair of pliers probably would damage the plastic connector, but that U-shaped thing is basically just a reverse wrench, so why not use the proper wrench size? It's got the same flat sides and rounded end that a wrench does. Barring that, you could also use a plastic clamp that has rubber grips (woodworkers use these as they are far less likely to damage the wood they are working on).
Yes, a big wrench or other tools will work. The neutrik tool grabs around the corners of the flats so that will work better. Or any 3b print tool or the wood one I made, also grab around the corners which gives better grop
Man this sucks. At the theatre I work at, I've recently been the one making speakon cables and we are running out of connectors, so I figured I'd put some new ones on the next order list. I was not aware that these new ones need a special tool. This fact alone makes it much more complicated because we have to order stuff through the city management, so we have a set budget and I am firmly against spending 90€ of that fairly limited budget on a tool that shouldn't cost anything near that. Getting a similar tool is also a complicated matter. But on the other hand, I've been carefully using pipe wrenches and a vice to open the older connectors because I'm not THAT strong, so maybe that'll work for these too. And although I see where that regulation is coming from, it's bonkers for a plug that can technically be opened without tools, but even some able-bodied adults don't have the strength for it. I don't think that there are any children out there who are this strong but still stupid enough to try to open a connector belonging to an installation that belongs to others.
Your tool includes wiring schema. Wow. Yes I know You know that by heart, but in 40 cm space between a band of angry artists and back of the main PA this is a godsend. This happens when a designer actually uses the damn thing.
Is the plastic material of the end of the connector more durable? This part breaks most often, requiring service in the field. I’d hope they also made structural design improvements beyond complying with new safety regulations.
Yes, after I did the video, Neutrik emailed me to tell me that because of my video they have lowered the prices of the tools down to $20 to $30 and they are releasing the 3d print files for free as well!
@@DaveRat Yes, I can see that. I would just prefer a compressing gland, like other brands use on true-con, or any IP 65 connectors. I've seen alot of water ingress, when the cable is bent sideways, opening the simple rubber dome
Hopefully there will continue to be Chinese connectors that work like the original, and Neutrik will be forced by the market to get their head out of their ass and make a usable product.
I have some I have been even installed yet. Now they're absolute before use? At least they're not an electronic part or they would have some software built into them to prevent me from being able to still use them.
You don't copy the tool, but rather make something that is compatible with whatever the patented tool was designed for. well that's the argument someone used ages ago and they got away with it.
I'm on a project now with this and they are fantastic and very pro especially with the weather boot. Well done the designers and now make sure you get rid of the most annoying NL EVER. the two pole. What tight arse buys these just to save a cent and just when you get to a job you find these crap connectors in use and can't rewire around them. Err just blows my mind and blood. Tony @ Tag. Oz
Hey Dave General Question/Request here I was wondering if you could do a video about the difference between mid level and high level consoles like Sq series VS DLIVE/Avantis. I have a small company and I love my SQ6 and it just has me wondering what high level system features the higher end consoles have that justify the massive price difference. You explain everything so well in laymens terms and I'd love to see a video like that. Thanks!
Those new connector are similar to the new PowerconTru1, they are very fragile when you screw them by hand, you must you a torque wrench unfortunately :(
Are there any changes to the standard powercon line? The actual connector that carries 120 V without question? The true one connector is nice, but not yet adopted by most manufacturers.
When I look on neutriks website I see the following. The powercon blue/grey was revised not long ago with the old version being discontinued. The new version is now approved as safe to disconnect under load, and the cable connectors use the same restraint system as these new speakons. On the true 1 top side, the large cable diameter version seems to use this new system, while the small cable diameter version seems to still use the "screwdriver slot" release.
Hmmm.... madness... I think they will lose the market of not-so-professional-soundguys, I'm afraid... That toolprice is not for me... Glad there are other brands... 🙂 Thanks for this video, Dave! Nice to be informed by you! In Europe the silverish tool is € 77 and the black tool is € 65. FYI.
Of all the things a kid could get hurt on in a sound reinforcement system, the speaker cable plugs would not be my first concern. $90 tool to take it apart? Baloney.
Yeah I agree on the other hand never underestimate the ability of a human to come up with a bad idea and run with it
Before touching the connectors, the kids would more likely to be already scared and repelled by high levels of sound pressure.
Of course its baloney, but you’re assuming EU safety bureaucrats know anything about sound systems.
@@JBF-GST-Tanda Yeah, being inches away from 5000w worth of anything is deterrent enough really.
@G5Hohn It's not about bureaucrats, it's far more about selling expensive proprietary tools. As Dave mentioned amp wattages have gotten to the point that safer speaker connectors make sense but like A/C connectors Neutrik could have simply made use of screws to hold things together. New Neutrik connectors using screws probably would have been more expensive and more difficult to manufacture than this version that they came up with so that and some overly expensive tools is what we get. Blame Neutrik for this not bureaucrats who are simply concerned about safety.
At Buried audio we've quickly made a 3D printable wrench that we are currently mass printing to supply with each order, that tool is while very well made, insanely over engineered and over priced to pay for that overkill.
Excellent
I mean, that's like what - a hole with two flat spots?
@@Fifsson_it's honestly nothing special (just a U with a grippy surface with the flats in the right spots) we're planning to put it on our thingiverse because honestly it's a bit naff that the tool is $90 and I'm using so little material that I'm throwing mine in for free.
Mad the one they made had to be milled out of metal for something that could so easily be stamped outta sheet steel like the IKEA spanners for almost nothing
But your 3D-printed tool wasn't blessed by Liechtensteiner veiled virgins that put their tongue in an angle. That's what you pay for.
I just hope someone posts a story file of this on printables or thingiverse soon!
me: you can't have too many tools..
neutrik: i'm glad you agree, because...
me: nevermind, i have enough tools
Right!!
Dollars to doughnuts 99.999% of these end up being opened with a pair of channel locks.
We had a bunch of cables made for us recently and they came with these connectors. Went to open them up to double check the workmanship on the connections was good and came across the issue of opening them up. Crazy how much they charge for these 2 tools. Won’t be long before 3rd party options appear on the market.
China.....
🔧🎛️🔧
“The vintage feel” 😂 Thanks for covering this, Dave!
Thank you!!
Theres have been lots of changes to the way events are being handled in australia lately that require in some states that all Temporary stages (ie festivals etc) are required to treated like permenant installations that conform to current AS3000:2018 standards.
Meaning any speaker level connection above 50v technically has to conform to current standards, requiring a tool to access the internals, appropriate IP ratings etc etc.
All power distro required to have RCBO's for each circuit too, no longer will a single RCD protecting 4 circuits be sufficient.
All in the name of safety as you say, i like the new plug design.
🤙🎛️🤙
I had no idea about this! Good to know as someone who works in the Aus events industry
Great, now the new version of the old style (blue before, now all black) powercon AND Speakon look like a true1 connector from a distance 😅
Thanks for the video!
The vintage feel!
🔧🤙🔧
You know the old saying, if it's not broke, fix it till it is.........
🤙👍🤙
Love the new connector as an addition to the current line .. but absolutely a HUGE pain in the butt as a total replacement!!!
but .. regulations r regulations ... not sure how many babies are playing with touring line arrays but good I guess
👍🎛️👍
It occurs to me that the greatest possibility of getting a shock to the fingers is from the front (connecting) end of the Speakon-connector, anyways: The connecting surfaces are quite close to where your fingers reach and if there is humidity or moisture at play... These special safety tools seem like a joke considering anyone can open large three-phase connectors with ordinary hand tools.
The industry found a solution to a problem that didn't exist. I would venture to say no one ever got electrocuted by the old style connector, I`ve never heard on any..
Anywho, did they improve the connectors identifications of 1+ 1- 2+ 2-?
Still made in Lichtenstein? What about the price?
Not having the proper tools when needed will be pissing off many, many people in the future me thinks.
Dave, love the new vid. Staring out by saying you are a large importer and user of Neutrik. Showing off the new connector, how it works etc, etc. like any of the other product review vid. Now let's life hack the crap out of it, absolutely rat style. Now that is what I can only call excellent dealer support. Yup 90 bucks a pop for those tools is way over priced for what they are and would love to see normal priced versions out there. Keep up the good work.
I made a bunch of the wood ones. Soundtools will sell them for $7
Thanks for making this video on the new connector and how to DIY your own tool. It is disgusting that companies design things with the need for proprietary tools to service for no good reason.
I generally like neutrik as an innovative and quality company. And also, like us all, mistakes and oversights happen.
Perhaps this vid will inspire them to rethink the overpriced tool
Thanks for explaining the differences.
Just a quick tip. When you're doing close up shots with your hands, it would be better to use a plain background. All those little spots totally threw off the mpeg encoding and it just dissolved into blocky pixels when I needed detail.
Thank you and yeah, I am not so good with the vid aspect as I get distracted by the info I am trying to share and regularly mess up
At least Neutrik didn't completely balls it up like they did when the absolutely shocking NL4FX was launched. Quickly backtracked and re-released the NL4FC which is far easier to assemble by hand!
Will be interesting to see how my next batch of speaker cables work out once I'm out of stock of NL4FC.
🤙👍🤙
0:59 just FYI, these are Pozidrive screws, specifically PZ1 size drivers should be used. If you've ever noticed these being prone to camming out and/or don't tighten all the way down, this is why! Also, same goes for most European flat-pack furniture like Ikea
Normal philips driver and some sand paper and you're good to go there. Everyone has a few clapped out philps drivers that can see new life by being... flatter. No need to buy pozi
@jttech44 Pozi does not only have a different tip, it also has a completely different geometry that does not cam out like Philips / JIS do. So simply filing down the tip is not sufficient. When you put them next to each other, you can see that the pozi has parallel flats where the Philips has pointy flats that get smaller towards the tip.
Has someone made a knockoff NL4 connector yet? If they haven't, you can bet someone will start to work on one if it's legally possible. Good job Neutrik on providing some great motivation for someone to make an alternative product.
Got one of those tools comin up on the 3d printer now. Thanks, Dave!
Awesome did you download from neutrik site? Do they have them up for download? I felt very happy that they reduced the price and said they would release 3D files after they saw my video
Never watched your videos before, and I'm glad I continued watching after a certain point, because when I heard how you were talking about it being fine that they'd done it because they sold tools, I almost turned it off because that's crap. Glad I stayed to hear you talking about other ways to do it and various bypasses to avoid the overpriced tools. Might have to check in more often to see some cool sound gear and such! :)
Neutrik connectors have great quality and last forever (unless you leave them in the rain), so I understand the high price, but what they charge for tools it ridiculous. Look at the price of the BNC crimping tool. It's 650€ including the inserts here. 650€ for a crimping tool! I ordered one from Aliexpress for 20€ and it works just fine...
Aliexpress is a great place for specialty tools like that, because, you know, it comes from China, and china's where they build all the stuff that requires the specialty tools.
First time on your channel. Great stuff! Very practical approaches to the changes. You just got a new sub! The new tools are pretty good answers to how to work with the new connector, but they look insanely over engineered. That’s part of the price issue, but I’m sure there’s a nice markup on their costs, too. 😉 The company will no doubt respond to others making alternative tools at some point and make cheaper versions, I’ll bet.
Welcome! And I hope so, yeah, the high tool PR ce is counter productive.
back when i used to be in that line of work most of the speakons i've encountered were, within a few months of abuse, a bit too loose at that collar. handled at least two stage monitors on two completely different occasions where that collar might as well not have been there at all, it would come loose and off if you grabbed the speakon the wrong way.
still better than other connectors for sure, but it's not as durable as people make it to be. the ratcheting mechanism makes sense and as long as there's no copyright on making a key for it, this is one safety mechanism that doesn't seem like it's doing more harm than good.
Where this will be the biggest pain in the butt is in the shop. Servicing 40 or more NL4 at a time and hoping the shop tech leaves the tool in the same place he got it from for the next shop tech that comes in
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Very informative, Dave. Always appreciate your thoughts on things like this!
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Thank you Dave! Totally agree!! So nice you take the time to give us some very smart solutions! 🙏🏻
That was an excellent Vid! Both infomative and hilarious. Gotta love that vintage feel!
1. Knipex parallel pliers (i.e. 86 03 125 or 86 03 180) exist for a reason, those plugs would be one of them
2. Calipers are no wrenches, they are measuring tools. possible use in this video? measuring the hole for the cable, or the dimensions of the flats
3. High voltage creates arcs, and 140V can be lethal under the wrong circumstances. so waterproofing is important. would have had been nice to dwell on this in the video
4. 5000W at 140V has 35A of current. the connector inside is the critical element here, since a flimsy connection will get hot, and melt the housing, or create a fire. would have had been nice to mention those in the video...
5. does a dual AWG 6 cable fit in the plug? (AWG 6 is rated to 35 amps)
Specs are on the neutrik website, in excruciating detail. I could quote them to you, but, I'm teaching a man to fish here a little bit because it's good to be in the habit of reading spec sheets.
Thank you for your service ♥️
Great video, Dave!
I love how you kept it simple, describing and demonstrating the older designs, but I was a little sad you left out the oldest models. I am, of course, speaking of the original NL4 with the locking ring rather than a push button. It was revolutionary in its time, but thankfully, they realized the ring design was difficult to grab in many situations and worked out the push button. Additionally, the original design used tiny, Allen (hex) set screws for the conductors. The set screws were so bad that you absolutely would have stripped the hex opening before adequately tightening. On the random luck you could secure them properly, removing them to repair a damaged cable was pretty much impossible without drilling them out. Again, thankfully, Neutrik redesigned the set screws to larger, Phillips head screws.
But if you needed a child lock on an NL connector, one need look no further than the NL2 connectors with the pull cylinder locking mechanism. I once had to repair one end figured out a way to get in without destroying it, but it was a huge PITA! 😁
Those old SpeakOn connectors are dangerous! When trying to press open the retaining clip of the locking ring, one can easily slip off and hurt oneself. Well, at least when you're trying do so with a multitool on a flightcase...
Neutrik also make a new version of the PowerCon connector these days. Perhaps for the same safety reasons?
Recently during a gig the bass player had experienced issues with his amp. It was on old Glockenklang stack. Turned out, one of the wires in the Speakon plug of his cable had managed to escape… this was easy to fix for me being the sound guy in charge… luckily he had the old connector. But then again, 100V and more is nothing you'd want to touch.
I believe they made the new powerCON first and now are applying the safety design to speakons
Back in my day!!!
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I realize that you know that, but just to make that clear to your viewers: IEC rules are not "EU rules". IEC literally stands for International Electrotechnical Commission and they are part of the World Standards Cooperation.
Concerning the item in question: Biggest plus here would be the fact that you don't accidently loosen the endcap during use, and I would assume that this was the driving force behind that design first and foremost. At least over here, NL-4 being in service while half unscrewed over weeks and month is by far the most common failure mode I see when I come into venues. Not sure how they do it, but heck it seems to be "a thing". So the new connector makes sense in that regard.
I also like, that there is a very clear color difference between the NL2 (brown) and NL4 (green) this time around.
That tool...well, it won't be long until there are a ton of after market alternatives, the original has come down to 77 bucks already. Plus your adjustable wrench will fit on it just fine if in a pinch. I don't really see a problem here. Also, that tool seems to become a somewhat universal unit within the Neutrik universe, since it will also work with the current powerCON iterations.
With that extra length, we will need a 90° version though, and sooner than later!
IEC makes the standards, not the rules. Regulators decide which standards have to be adhered to. In this case, these fit EU regulation that requires the standard they're built to.
@@jttech44 If what you say is correct, why is that standard from 2008 and why do we in the EU still get to choose which variant to buy (!), while you in the US only get the new one, which adheres to the IEC standard?
Are you sure the old speakon are still going to be available in the EU? When I go to to the neutrik websites for Germany, France Lichtenstein, UK, US and Japan, the old versions show discontinued. Only China na seems to have the old ones still listed.
Stores may still have the old ones but those days I believe are numbered.
Take aoon and let me know
@@DaveRat Oh, you are correct, meanwhile they have vanished from the German website as well! I checked when I made my first comment and saw they were still available (or I was completely blind then...been sick as a dog, so might very well be 😂).
Yeah, it's early in the adventure and old at ck will be gone soon.
We meet with Neutrik and got word fairly early on what is happening. It's all super interesting
Important: the wire retaining screws are not Phillips! They are Pozidrive. Grab a pozidrive and you will feel that it engages much better with the screws!
I expect that a 3D printed version of the tool would be functional enough. I’d be willing to try!
I think the safety is a great idea. I’ve definitely had brain-dead stagehands disassemble old NL4’s before. Still better than EP4!!!
Hmmm, actually torx T8 on the new ones
@@DaveRat that’s even better! Just have to buy another tool and keep track of it though. Haha
@@DaveRat I noticed you mentioning the screw type of the older connectors. As I recall; my first ones required an unbrako driver :)
You could probably print this tool on a 3D printer. I still have a pretty good stock of old connectors I can continue to use, but if it comes down to it (like you said, for safety), I can get my son to print one up that I can use. He has a couple of good printers to use for a side gig.
Agreed, I uploads an STL file to the members telegram. Define nicely love the work around!
This is gonna backfire on Neutrik so badly. There are other NL4 manufacturers like seetronic that works just fine.
We will just start to buy that instead. Is the quality worse? Maybe, but field serviceability is valued much higher with most rental companies..
Very good video!
On some Powercons they have this ratcheting mechanism where you have to poke into it with a flat head screwdriver. I wonder why they didn't use this but rather came up with something entirely new.
TBH the flat head ratchet thingy sucks, as well... 😅
Virtually all CEE or Schuko plugs can be serviced with a simple PH or PZ size 1 or 2 screwdriver...
So they could sell 2 dollar wrenches for 90 bucks, obviously.
this system would make sense on powercon if the tools werent 180€... this new connector is still easier to open tham the "oem" connectors that come with premade speakon cables. (made a 1cm deep hole in my hand with a knife while opening the connector)
Excellent video
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Dave, I love your DIY punk rock intuition!
The new design also clears the mounting screws on rear mounted sockets.
This is good news, at least!
I can remember a performance where a loudspeaker remained quiet.
With the old blue plugs it was easy to open them and fix the problem.
Now it costs 90 bugs!
A cheap Forster drill costs maybe 10 bugs.
Thanks for making this video :)
As a regular guy building my small PA and DIYing as much as possible I thought this was just a poor mans problem. I like quality products and enjoy neutrik as much as the next guy, but no way in hell would I spend that money as an individual.
Dave for the win!!
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Noone outsmarts the Rat. Noone.
Of course they'd change the design so that you need a buy a bunch of expensive single-purpose tools from them, when a plain old wrench used to work just fine.
The new connector is 1000 times better than the old one. We always had problems with corrosion on the old ones. We do lots of outdoor stuff and over the years these were always an issue.
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i have small ish hands and a good grip and i can open these boys quite easily now. while harder than on old speakons its as quick when you know how to put your fingers on the bad boi for it to grip correctly. i'd advise everyone here to try with their bare hands.
agreed and also, there is a torque spec and though the tool they sell does not tell you the torque, best I can tell if the connector is torqued to spec, there is no way hands will open it
Dude! I thought you were making some kind of lame "unboxing style" endorsement video, but since it was you I stuck it out. Love the hacks!
Thanks for the heads up.
EDIT: didn't even watch the video all the way to the end, just wrote this comment...
It's a good idea to have that safety because the power they push out through those cables means hundreds of volts ans tens of amps -> lethal.
So safety is important :)
Also the slip ring prevents the cable boot coming undone over years and years of handling and gigging. Especially since to lock the connector in place, you twist it, and then you twist it opposite to unlock and over the years of road use, they can (or mostly they WILL) come loosened or undone and then they fail or cause a short circuit or even kill someone.
I like the design!
The amount of powercons i've had to tighten over the years is in their hundreds. I ALWAYS check both boots of any powercon cable, make sure they're tight and that the strain relief has not given in. If it has slipped, I open the connector, check the wires and if it can be safely just put back together or does it need to be redone from scratch. Any unsafe ones are thrown into "unsafe, do NOT USE!" case and they go back to the renter to be checked and fixed, they will not be used unless fixed in situ by a technician.
Same with speakons. Power levels are just very high so they need to be in good shape :)
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I'll give it credit, it is a better design and at least they're backwards compatible. However at $180 for both tools, you might as well get a cheap or used 3d printer.
I'm just glad were at the point where 3d printers and desktop mills are now affordable to your average joe.
Rule #1 in the work manual:
Whatever works.
Oh yeah, and thanks 👍🏼
Kudos, Dave.
Pretty interesting new connector but damn, common, they know those types of things will get lost. I'm surprised they don't have like a hole in them for a carabiner or something...
The $64,000 question: are the new connectors backward compatible? I'm not doing professional PA work at the moment, but I would sure as hell not want to have to rewire all my cabinets if I was...?
Yes, they are fully backward compatible.
They’ve certainly got the market cornered and a pretty good ploy to force all the industry to throw out the old and buy the new marginally improved plugs. 😂
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I’ll pay shipping for those older design connectors if you know someone disposing of them.
TL; DW: You now need to buy a proprietary wrench to open a green "safety" lock version of a Neutrik Speakon connector. The alternative, of course, is to simply cut off a bad Speakon connector rather than waste time attempting to reuse it. Apparently, this is Neutrik's solution to the chronic unreliability of the flimsy aluminum shims they use on the screw-terminal connectors inside the NL-4 Speakon connectors, which rely on bent-metal friction to make contact with your speaker wire. That's why a "safety" lock is so necessary in the first place, because the electrical connections in the NL-4 are so fragile they often can't even support the weight of the speaker cable. If you want to see how independent cable vendors cope with this Neutrik design flaw, unscrew a prewired Speakon connector, and don't be surprised if you find a thick wad of glue cementing the cable to the terminals.
Actually, that is sually solder trying to hold everything together.
Actually I believe the safety lock is there because government agencies determined that potentially hazardous voltages can occur with modern amplifiers and put pressure on neutrik to make the shell non-removable so people don't take the shell off and shock themselves
Many are talking about the locking down as a child safety, but I think there is another side you are missing - security. While it is not completely tamper-proof, it does make it harder for people that should not be messing with the ends to mess them up. In a rental fleet, it is common to have people try messing with everything, and this is one more tool to help keep those fleets a little more locked down. The tool is expensive, but there is NOTHING to stop any of us from building our own tools for it. Some measurement, a little fabrication (additive or subtractive), and boom, you've got your own tool. So, if you don't want the Cadillac tool, build your own, and maybe, just maybe, you will build an even better one. Take it as a challenge, rather than just a setback.
They could have designed this to not require the wrench, but still be safe. The fact that they didn't just tells me they're looking to sell $90 dollar wrenches...
Also.... when are children going to be around the PA/Backline exactly? and must we childproof the world? Seems more than a little excessive.
Buy our expensive connector and $180 of accessories to service them! It's for the..... uh..... children!!!
Annoying safety rules and also I am guessing that they are somehow driven by issues and or lawsuits.
Never underestimate the ability of a human to come up with a bad idea and run with it.
These seem like attempts at creating some speed bumps that will doubtfully be effective
Yep, jump on the 'ol CNC and carve a tool out in the form of a spanner... but not in wood. 😊
The wood works really well. Perhaps we forgot the days of old where a trusty wood hammer handle or baseball bat was effective and functional
I've heard some earthquake this week. I hope that was just Neutrik headquaters. Good job!❤
that their tool is conductive seems like a possibly lethal problem in waiting
perfect for skateboard recycling
So, a pair of pliers probably would damage the plastic connector, but that U-shaped thing is basically just a reverse wrench, so why not use the proper wrench size? It's got the same flat sides and rounded end that a wrench does. Barring that, you could also use a plastic clamp that has rubber grips (woodworkers use these as they are far less likely to damage the wood they are working on).
Yes, a big wrench or other tools will work. The neutrik tool grabs around the corners of the flats so that will work better.
Or any 3b print tool or the wood one I made, also grab around the corners which gives better grop
such a sound rebel sir haha.. good stuff..
Hey dave like your first intro, and let the rat explode 😂😂
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What a beautiful connector! Shalom
Good stuff Dave.
And now you need a Torx 8 screwdriver to tighten up the contacts.
I remember when pro audio used to use Hubble connectors. 😂
Great video. This is required viewing.
Man this sucks. At the theatre I work at, I've recently been the one making speakon cables and we are running out of connectors, so I figured I'd put some new ones on the next order list. I was not aware that these new ones need a special tool. This fact alone makes it much more complicated because we have to order stuff through the city management, so we have a set budget and I am firmly against spending 90€ of that fairly limited budget on a tool that shouldn't cost anything near that. Getting a similar tool is also a complicated matter.
But on the other hand, I've been carefully using pipe wrenches and a vice to open the older connectors because I'm not THAT strong, so maybe that'll work for these too. And although I see where that regulation is coming from, it's bonkers for a plug that can technically be opened without tools, but even some able-bodied adults don't have the strength for it. I don't think that there are any children out there who are this strong but still stupid enough to try to open a connector belonging to an installation that belongs to others.
They appear to have taken a page from the Apple, BMW, etc play book. They’ll soon be making more from tools than connectors.
Your tool includes wiring schema. Wow. Yes I know You know that by heart, but in 40 cm space between a band of angry artists and back of the main PA this is a godsend. This happens when a designer actually uses the damn thing.
Is the plastic material of the end of the connector more durable? This part breaks most often, requiring service in the field. I’d hope they also made structural design improvements beyond complying with new safety regulations.
Nice connectors 😊 but I see this tool soon at some 3D printers 😅 pages
Yes, after I did the video, Neutrik emailed me to tell me that because of my video they have lowered the prices of the tools down to $20 to $30 and they are releasing the 3d print files for free as well!
Nice way to make them harder to field service on the job.
Shame they still didn't even get a decent sealing cable gland.
They appear to be very water tight. Rubber around the cable and o rings placed to stop moisture
@@DaveRat Yes, I can see that. I would just prefer a compressing gland, like other brands use on true-con, or any IP 65 connectors. I've seen alot of water ingress, when the cable is bent sideways, opening the simple rubber dome
@@DaveRat Does that really change anything, though, considering the connecting surfaces are fairly exposed and prone to getting wet?
legend.
This is low-key hilarious.
All for the love of sound. Or at least the pile of wires we need to connect it with
I guessing they devised this more for the Powercon? Same form factor? Otherwise it seems silly.
Ouf.. it's going to be interesting to see how long they last.
I wasn't aware this was a issue who gets that close to our gear to mess with the connections
I was thinking potentially a good 3d printing solution
I thought about the 3D print but it takes way too long, The CNC is so much faster
Did they say why they made the changes? Is it really for child saftey?
Hopefully there will continue to be Chinese connectors that work like the original, and Neutrik will be forced by the market to get their head out of their ass and make a usable product.
I have some I have been even installed yet. Now they're absolute before use? At least they're not an electronic part or they would have some software built into them to prevent me from being able to still use them.
Let's go back to the 70s and use Hubble twist locks.
aliexpress will have the tools in a month for $6.95 each
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With that tool You just won an argentine passport!! Congrats!
Dave, be careful. Neutrik might have a patent on that special tool. I'm just saying...
They might have a patent on something made a metal that I guarantee you they didn't make a patent on the wooden version!
Very likely, they patent everything they see. Good thing parents aren’t forever and there are knockoff connectors that still work the old way.
You don't copy the tool, but rather make something that is compatible with whatever the patented tool was designed for. well that's the argument someone used ages ago and they got away with it.
@@paulstubbs7678 However, in today's litigious world, you can't be too lax on the issue. Patent trolls can be your worst enemy.
@@minty_Joe Seen a few vids involving them - Yes I agree.
It'd be nice to find a way to fight back.
Nice wooden tool you made there :)
Did you also try to use an ordinairy adjustable wrench? I think that should work as well :)
Especially since nowadays everybody and their dog seems to be EDC'ing a pair of Knipex Cobras. Those will be the #1 tool to open these plugs up. 😂
I'm on a project now with this and they are fantastic and very pro especially with the weather boot. Well done the designers and now make sure you get rid of the most annoying NL
EVER. the two pole. What tight arse buys these just to save a cent and just when you get to a job you find these crap connectors in use and can't rewire around them. Err just blows my mind and blood. Tony @ Tag. Oz
Helpful ❤❤
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Hey Dave General Question/Request here
I was wondering if you could do a video about the difference between mid level and high level consoles like Sq series VS DLIVE/Avantis.
I have a small company and I love my SQ6 and it just has me wondering what high level system features the higher end consoles have that justify the massive price difference. You explain everything so well in laymens terms and I'd love to see a video like that.
Thanks!
I have found the nl4 barrel ( female to female ) works great for the second tool, a 6” crescent wrench for the $90 wrench. Solved!
Those new connector are similar to the new PowerconTru1, they are very fragile when you screw them by hand, you must you a torque wrench unfortunately :(
Make these dude . I will buy them
We might enjoy the vintage feel... Honestly Dave you need to do a book of quotes mate, you're lol funny at times you really are
Are there any changes to the standard powercon line? The actual connector that carries 120 V without question? The true one connector is nice, but not yet adopted by most manufacturers.
All discontinued. I believe the powerCON True1 TOP is the only version they still make and it's the same as these
When I look on neutriks website I see the following.
The powercon blue/grey was revised not long ago with the old version being discontinued. The new version is now approved as safe to disconnect under load, and the cable connectors use the same restraint system as these new speakons.
On the true 1 top side, the large cable diameter version seems to use this new system, while the small cable diameter version seems to still use the "screwdriver slot" release.
Hmmm.... madness... I think they will lose the market of not-so-professional-soundguys, I'm afraid... That toolprice is not for me... Glad there are other brands... 🙂
Thanks for this video, Dave! Nice to be informed by you!
In Europe the silverish tool is € 77 and the black tool is € 65. FYI.
Yeah, because only neutrik makes connectors that are professional! Get over yourself you fucking shill!
I’m guessing you’d probably wind up in trouble with Neutrik for posting the Solidworks design for people to 3D print…