Glossary term
Output Pin Material
Output pin material describes the metal or surface plating of a cartridge’s electrical output terminals.
Gold-plated brass means a brass pin with a gold surface coating, not solid gold. “Gold-plated” alone does not specify the base metal or coating thickness.
Output Pin Material — Cartridge
On a typical separate cartridge, the pins connect to the tonearm or headshell wiring. They are different from the internal coil wire and the detachable lead wires.
Contact finish affects corrosion resistance and the reliability of the electrical connection. Plating thickness and contact design matter too: a material name alone guarantees neither reliable contact nor better sound. It also does not establish fit; the pin size and connector type must match the arm or headshell connection.
Sources
- Cartridge connection formats and terminal specifications — Audio-Technica
- Cartridge terminal and coil materials — Audio-Technica
- Connector plating, base metals and contact design — Samtec
- Contact plating and corrosion resistance — Samtec