B&W terminals

Are RCA stereo cables necessary to hook B&W floorstanding speakers to an amp? I'm just running single-stranded 18 ga. copper to them from my Sansui AU-517 (which only has spring-loaded speaker jacks). There shouldn't be any difference, right?

No, you can't use cables with RCA plugs on the end.

You need speaker cables with either banana plugs, spade lugs, or bare wires on the speaker end and bare wires or pin connectors on the amp end.

Don't I know you from somewhere?

Yes, I get around. Just asked because I went to a dealership and they had massive 2-channel stereo cables about 3/8" thick on their B&W. I thought 16 ga. copper wire @ less than 10 ft. was sufficient enough for 4 ohm 2-way speakers.

Anything 16 gauge or thicker will be fine. IMNSHO, anything more than 12 gauge is overkill.

Unless you're driving 0.5 ohm Apogees with Krell Master Reference amps;)