Reddit mentions of Mediabridge 12AWG Ultra Series Speaker Cable w/Dual Gold Plated Banana Tips (6 Feet) - CL2 Rated - High Strand Count Copper (OFC) Construction - Black [New & Improved Version] (Part# SWT-12B-06B)

Similar alternatives:

• MediaBridge Ultra
  
• Silverback
  
• GearIT
  
• HannLinte

I'm renting and I just recently upgraded to banana plugs. They are great! Mediabridge and Amazon are great resources for this. This is what I use, great quality and price.

Mediabridge Banana Plugs - 12 pair (used in conjunction with surround speaker wire, below)

Mediabridge 12AWG 6FT Speaker Cable with Banana plugs (Front LCR)

Mediabridge 14AWG 100ft speaker wire (surrounds)

Mediabridge 6ft subwoofer RCA cable

Micca and Mediabridge both make affordable speaker cables

• https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06ZZ5HCTM/ref=twister_B07FZTB7JS?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
  
• https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CYGMD4I/ref=twister_B079NJXBNY?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
  
  They are nicer to use than bare wire but bare wire still works just as well.

I got the Micca's along the Q5. I used Mediabridge cables to connect the speakers. It's more expensive than regular speaker wire but the quality it's great.
https://www.amazon.com/Mediabridge-12AWG-Speaker-Plated-Banana/dp/B01CYGMD4I/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1503073084&sr=8-4&keywords=mediabridge+speaker+wire
As stands I use a pair of old books and that works great for me ($1 usd solution hahaha)

Hard to know where to start!

Home theater receivers contain an amplifier as well as a bunch of inputs and usually some video switching stuff. Smaller amps like the Q5 Pro are similar but don't have the video functionality or bass management. They are for use with passive speakers and active (a.k.a. "powered") subwoofers.

The Edifiers are active speakers. In other words they have their own internal amplifier(s). You can't (easily) use them with the home theater receiver, or with something like the Q5 Pro.

Active speakers are cool because they're plug-and-play, and those Edifiers apparently sound pretty nice. The downside to active speakers is that you can't easily expand them. You can't setup a surround sound system, and unless they include a subwoofer output (the Edifiers don't, unless I'm mistaken) you can't easily add a subwoofer.

> What cables (yeah... I'm still afraid of the cables for no particular reason) would I need to complete this setup?

For the Edifiers+subwoofer?

It's not going to be entirely straightforward.

First you'll need some sort of RCA or headphone splitter at your source so that the subwoofer and the Edifiers are getting the same signal.

Except now there's a problem. When you turn the volume knob on the Edifiers, the subwoofer volume won't go up and down in unison with it. So you'll have to control volume at the source... on your TV, or your laptop, or whatever your source is.

> Would the home theater receiver still be beneficial in the short term?

Not with the Edifiers.

> What cables (yeah... I'm still afraid of the cables for no particular reason) would I need to complete this setup? At this point, I wouldn't mind buying the home theater you linked if it would be a better overall choice over the SMSL Q5 Pro/AD18.

For the home theater + Polk + subwoofer setup, you'd just need some speaker wire to connect the Polks. You can buy it by the spool or just pick up one of these for each of the Polks. Buying it by the spool is a lot cheaper if you have lots of speakers, or if you have long cable runs, but that's not an issue in your case so I'd probably go with the latter choice for convenience's sake.

You'd also need a cable to get audio from your source (is it a PC?) to the receiver. Digital (optical or coaxial) is best. Or you can just route everything over HDMI..... Computer----(HDMI)-->Receiver--->(HDMI)-->Monitor.

Any brand of speaker wire with banana plugs will do. For example:

https://www.amazon.com/Mediabridge-12AWG-Ultra-Speaker-Cable/dp/B01CYGMD4I/

Choose a gauge of wire based on distance and speaker impedance. See Table 1 at:

https://www.audioholics.com/audio-video-cables/speaker-cable-gauge

If you're in particular European markets with strange safety regulations, the terminals on the back of your amplifier may be covered with a small flat plastic cap or similar that prevents inserting a banana plug.

I love these....
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01CYGMD4I/ref=aw_wl_ov_dp_1_1?colid=2J1UH21WVBLBX&coliid=I27HLBD3N5B55L&vs=1

I have the RP-160m with the NAD C316BEE . I have never tried the rp-600m but I think they could work well with that amplifier.

You need speakers cables like these: cable

I'm using the RB42s with an SMSL AD18 DAC+Amp. I'm using these speaker cables. Desktop use, with a computer. I'm also using an old sub from a Logitech speaker set to pad out the low end, but the speakers sound great on their own.

How would I remove the plugs? I don't have a wire stripper or other tools to cut it. These are the cables I have.

I have these cables and these speaker feet. I recommend both.

I listen to just about everything, from classic rock to Shostakovitch to Dwight Yoakam to Kendrick Lamar. The HSUs sound great with all of it.

I'm rewriting my reply here to better fit your budget. Here are two possible configurations I would recommend from Ascend + Rythmik. I recommend these brands because I've gone through many speaker and subwoofer brands costing twice as much as these, which sound only half as good as Ascend and Rythmik.

2.1 Music Optimized System (but also great for home theater) - $2980:

• Ascend Sierra 2-EX Speakers Pair: $1500
  
• Generic Speaker Stand Pair: $50 - $100
  
• Rythmik F12 Subwoofer: $1000
  
• Denon AVR-S650H Receiver: $350
  
• Fancy speaker wires: $30
  
  This music-optimized configuration will give you an incredible music experience, very near the pinnacle of what is even possible: This will get you 80-90% of the way to the music sound quality of a configurations costing 10x as much.
  
  It will also be excellent for home theater, and without question will put any sound bar (at any price) to shame. The only reason the alternate configuration below is better for home theater is: it will go louder (you can play at 'reference' levels, matching the SPL of a real movie theater), and it does surround sound.
  
  Note that I personally have the above configuration (minus this particular Denon model), and can attest that it is absolutely incredible. It sounds 80-90% as good as a system with Ascend's flagship tower speakers (which I also have) for half the price.
  
  7.1 Home Theater Optimized System (but also great for music) - $2986:
  
  
• Ascend CMT-340SE Speakers Pair: $500
  
• [Optional:] Ascend TP-24 Stand Pair (designed for CMT-340): $180
  
• Ascend CMT-340SE Center Speaker: $300
  
• Ascend HTM-200SE Speakers (Two Pairs): $600
  
• Rythmik FVX15 Subwoofer: $1100
  
• Denon AVR-S750H Receiver: $450
  
• 100ft spool of 14 gauge speaker wire: $36
  
  This 7.1 surround configuration is optimized for home theater, but will still sound very satisfying for music in both stereo and surround modes. It should be able to reach "reference level" SPL (very loud) for movies in a medium room, and cover the entire audible frequency spectrum.
  
  There are many people who just have a stereo pair of CMT-240SE + a subwoofer, and rave about how much better they sound than speakers twice their cost.
  
  I would recommend going with the TP-24 stands to properly elevate the front LR speakers, since they were specifically designed for the CMT-340 mini-tower speakers (they look quite nice together), but it does bring the order over-budget to $3166. If your $3k limit is absolutely firm, I would recommend either (1) improvising your own stands, or (2) going for a 5.1 setup instead to save money (you can later buy more surrounds if you like).

Should be pretty easy then, good budget and simple goal. Any size restrictions when it comes to speakers?

You'll probably be looking at something like a Integrated Amplifier to connect to your TV and power speakers. Do you know if your TV has an optical out?

I'm in the US so I'm going to be a bit useless when it comes to speaker recommendations. If you've got any stereo shops around you, see if they carry KEF or Monitor Audio and give em a listen.

That's more or less it. You'll want an optical cable running from your TV to the integrated amp, and speaker wire to connect the amp to the speakers. You can get premade speaker cables for simplicity, but you're paying a premium for it.

Mediabridge 12AWG Ultra Series Speaker Cable - Gold Plated Banana Tips (6 FT) - CL2 99.9% Oxygen Free - Black (SWT-12B-06B) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CYGMD4I/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_oS.vDb1CZ7MTV