Connectors

• You can always connect bare speaker wire, either solid or braided, to a stereo receiver's speaker terminals. A banana plug connector can be plugged into some speaker terminals; spade connectors work on screw-on connectors. Easy to work with pin connectors fit securely in spring clips or binding posts. The speaker connector type on the stereo receiver indicates the connectors you can put on the speaker cables.
  
  

Cable

• Perhaps unbelievably, the most vital component in overall sound can be your speaker cable. On March 10, 2011, Amanda Pollard wrote on Crutchfield.com that "The speaker wire you use can have a noticeable impact on the sound quality of your system; even the greatest speakers won't sound their best with poor-quality wire." The longer the cable connection to a speaker, the heavier gauge the insulation of the cable you need, because interference can enter the cable over long lengths. More insulation, also known as shielding, prevents extraneous interference from reaching the speakers. Speaker wire is generally 18- to 12-gauge wire, with smaller wire sizes indicated by higher numbers. The stereo receiver limits the size or thickness of the cable you can connect to the speakers.
  
  

Speakers

• Speaker types range from small, self-powered computer speakers to huge electrostatic or air suspension speakers weighing hundreds of pounds. Generally, the bigger a speaker, the more power required to power it to a sufficient volume, because larger speakers usually have much larger components that demand more power to operate effectively. The output power of the amplifier in a stereo or audio/video, or A/V, receiver states the limits of speaker wattage and power of the speakers you can connect to it.
  
  

Considerations

• A typical 2-way, ported home theater or stereo speaker.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  An audio stereo receiver has two amplifier channels to power two speakers, indicated by the number of black/red, or positive/negative, speaker terminals on the back of the unit. Modern A/V or home theater receivers have terminals to connect five to nine individual speakers to produce the surround sound and low frequency effects. You're limited in the number of speakers you can power from the stereo receiver without the addition of an additional amplifier and/or preamplifier, however. A subwoofer, for example, might have a separate 10K ohm line level output to connect a familiar RCA-type cable to the subwoofer's input.