The Performance Bi-Wire Links sit within QED's Performance range, which QED positions above Connect and below Reference and Signature as the range it recommends to most music lovers. They are short, factory terminated jumpers designed to replace the metal bridging plates fitted to bi-wire compatible loudspeakers, and they are built from the same cable architecture as Performance Speaker Cable.
Why Replace the Supplied Bridging Plates
Many loudspeakers provide separate terminals for the high and low frequency sections of the crossover. If the speaker is not being bi-wired, those terminals still have to be electrically connected, and most manufacturers achieve this with simple metal bridging plates supplied in the box. QED's approach is to substitute a properly engineered low resistance link in their place, so that the last few centimetres of the signal path receive the same attention as the rest of the system.
Conductors and Construction
Each link uses large 2.5mm² (AWG14) conductors of 99.999% oxygen-free copper, arranged using QED's X-Tube Plus technology, the conductor geometry developed for the Performance range to encourage more uniform current flow across the audio spectrum. The generous cross-sectional area keeps d.c. resistance low, which helps the amplifier maintain consistent current flow across both sections of the loudspeaker crossover.
Terminations
Every link is terminated at the factory using QED's Airloc cold-weld process, which compresses the conductors and the plug together to create a homogeneous joint. With the air removed from the joint there is no oxidisation of the contact surfaces, so the low resistance connection is designed to hold up over the long term. Each link carries a gold-plated spade at one end and a gold-plated banana plug at the other, a banana to spade configuration that suits the great majority of bi-wire binding posts.
In Use
Performance Bi-Wire Links are intended for bi-wire compatible loudspeakers with dual binding posts, whether in a newly built system or an existing one being upgraded. They make a natural partner for Performance Speaker Cable, keeping the same conductor material, cross-section and termination method all the way to the loudspeaker terminals. One pack holds two sets, four links in total, which is enough to link both speakers of a stereo pair.