Maintaining equipment

[mobily]

Hey all,

I have just invested in my first seperates system and am interested to know the techniques people use to maintain their system. Is it advisable to unplug connections and then plug them back in to give them a clean. With regards to speaker cable is it advisable to cut back some of the cable ever six months or so as the copper degrades in the air?

Any advice gratefully received.

Cheers

[Knightshade]

Providing you make the connections pretty air tight you won't need to worry too much about oxidisation. QED Airloc plugs are supposed to be good if you can't get your hands on a soldering iron and some heatshrink.
It is worth checking the condition of the connectors every once in a while. They can get grimy over time. It's also worth checking the condition of the cable. especially if you have pets or children.

[alexs2]

Speaker cables first....don't bother cutting them back,simply fit(or have fitted) a decent set of banana or spade connectors,which will ensure a good,stable and reliable contact,without the risks of frayed or loose wires knocking around....also makes any disconnecting for resiting etc much easier.

By all means unplug and replug interconnects to maintain the contact surfaces,or you can also use things like Kontak,which although not cheap,lasts for ages,and will lift the rubbish from plugs and connections of all kinds very effectively.

http://www.britishaudio.co.uk/kontak.htm

Thats what mine gets every now and then,and removes a surprising amount of dirt.