[ruch182]

Yesterday the two wires connected to the actual headphones were yanked pretty hard and now I'm getting no sound at all from either side - just spoke to audio technica and they've quoted roughly £40 for repair seeing as how I don't have warranty.
 
I'm not entirely sure what the problem is with the headphones and I'm a pretty big noob when it comes to repairs - was wondering if it sounds like a simple case of replacing the headphone cable and reconnecting it to the cans. Does anyone know any repair places in London that may be able to do this for cheap? Otherwise does it sound worth it to send it into ATH for repair?

 

[suicidal_orange]

I have a pair of these and they are not hard to open at all - remove the pads and there are 4 small screws on each side.  If you open them up and there is damage to the drivers they are probably dead, but if it looks fine you probably just snapped the cable which will probably need replacing, depending where it snapped - near enough to the drivers (maybe in the knot?) you could just cut the ends off.  I'd happily have a try at the shortening if you're scared of taking a soldering iron to the drivers 

 

[ruch182]

thanks for the help - I've never tried repairing headphones before so I'm not so sure how to even go about taking off the pads - do i just pull?
 
edit: just managed to get them off - will report back as what the damage is!

 

[ruch182]

ok how do i tell if there is damage to the drivers? as far as i can tell all the connections are hunky dory from the base of the can to the driver - so i'm guessing it's just a snapped cable? what would i need to look for in a faulty driver? All i see are two intact wires, one red and one golden, leading into the driver.
 
this whole experience is pretty irritating.....i was listening to my headphones, bent down to reach for something, and as I came back up the cable got caught around my leg and pulled down so hard that the cans both became fully extended. What annoys me is that i don't even know where the damage is

 

[ruch182]

bump

 

[gimble]

If it looks intact, hook it up and see if it results in fire or horrible screeching noises. If it looks fine and it works fine, then it probably is.

 

[ruch182]

when i plug it in i get no sound whatsoever - my main problem is determining whether the tug on the wire damaged the drivers or just the cable - and if the latter case, whereabouts it is broken.

 

[lasraik]

Can you post pics of the damage?

 

[ruch182]

 

 

 

 

 

 

[ruch182]

From taking it apart I can't tell where the problem is - the connections to the drivers look fine, as does everything else, so I'm guessing the cable has probably snapped somewhere within the insulation/casing of the wire? I'm guessing at the knot where the two cables meet? Would that be right?
 
Should I cut that part open to have a look?

 

[Skoobs]

you could do that, but the break could be anywhere in the wire. would you be uncomfortable soldering new wire on? or maybe even just building a 3.5mm to bare wire and trying just touching the wires to one of the drivers (make sure the volume is low)
 
i am thinking about recabling my own es7, but i had wanted to wait until the broke like yours have. as i see it, no need to fix what aint broke. i love these cans.
 
maybe i can try recabling them, and if they sound good, i can let you know on here that i can do it. If you want me to do it for you, mabe we could arrange something. maybe a trade so you could take the ones i have already recabled and make sure thats what you want done. just thinking out loud, but let me know.
 
on another note, does anyone know if these cans are wired in series or parallel? (this could be found out if the OP wants to break open the Y splitter) my guess is that it is in parallel.
 
also, which cable? anyone like any of the wire from qables?

 

[ruch182]

I would have no problem recabling it if I actually had any idea what to do - I think the last time I properly used a soldering iron was when I was about 11 years old! It's a right hassle that ATH now charge about £40 for repair when 2 years ago it was half the price.
 
Your idea for trading does sound good but judging by your profile you're from southern Califronia right? (and I'm in London - so it wouldn't work)
 
Could you perhaps go through what exactly I would need to do in order to recable it? Would I need to attach new wires to the driver?                     You were all noobs once too!

 

[BASGTA]

I'm having the exact same problem.  I was biking around and at one point I accidentally moved my arm quickly and pulled on the left cable.  Now it doesn't play, but when I wiggle the cable at the base (into my amp) it works.  I was thinking of trying to get it recabled, but I'm not too sure if I'd know what to do.  I don't solder either, but I know someone that does.

 

[Skoobs]

if you can get noise by wiggling the plug of the cable, you might be able to just get an aftermarket 3.5mm plug and reterminate it. as for the OP, you are right. that would not be a worthwhile arrangement, especially since you wouldnt have a problem doing it yourself. head over to qables [http://www.qables.com/] and pick up a jack, some wire, some heat shrink, and some sleeving if you want to pretty it up =) i actually am a newb at DIY, so take what i say with a grain of salt. i just sucessfully made my first ipod LOD. its not the prettiest thing, but i have seen worse, and heard worse =P
 
For solder, i personally have been using lead-free 21 AWG silver solder that i picked up at an electronics store. Shrink wrap and braided sleeving you can also get anywhere. qables was just convenient for me. a lot of this stuff im sure you can get anywhere, except 90 degree 3.5mm plugs which i had a hard time finding outside of the internet.
 
there is a lot of useful threads about this. if you want a full run-down of step by step instructions i could rip mine apart and recable them, taking pictures the whole time. but i would have to order wire so it would be a while.
 
3.5mm plug:
http://www.qables.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=76_84&zenid=9d7355feb6c6e414ed45b18eeb8da9da
 
shrink wrap:
http://www.qables.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=76_85&zenid=9d7355feb6c6e414ed45b18eeb8da9da
 
wire:
http://www.qables.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=76_94&zenid=9d7355feb6c6e414ed45b18eeb8da9da
 
wire sleeving:
http://www.qables.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=76_86&zenid=9d7355feb6c6e414ed45b18eeb8da9da
 

 

[shadowdude77]

Can you get at the wire where it goes into the driver? If you can, try probing between there and one of the three segments of the 3.5mm jack with an ohmmeter. Try all three segments, one of them should have very low resistance close to zero (indicating continuity), and if it doesn't, it's an open circuit and that means the problem lies in the wire. Try wiggling the wire around a little to test for intermittent open circuits where you lose continuity based on the position of the wire. Digital multimeters can be had for $10 from local stores (Harbor Freight has one for like 2 bucks) and they're something that everyone should own.