DIY Cable Questions and Comments Thread

[Paladin79]

  Another question, if I wanted to use this cable:
 
http://www.redco.com/Canare-L-4E5C.html
 
for a 3 pin mini xlr would I only use three of the wires out of this particular cable? I want to keep my first few cables with cheapish materials until I'm a little more comfortable with making them so I don't want any fancy silver cables etc. Any other recommendations or tips are welcome

I would do what is done when you go from a 3.5 mm stereo plug to dual inputs on headphones. They are using four wires but attaching both grounds to the common ground. In your case if you go from a TRS connector (stereo) to a three pin XLR, take two wires to ground on each end and use two for the + on the left and right channel. Get some experience soldering and then move on to more complex cabling schemes.

 

[Hakase]

 
I would do what is done when you go from a 3.5 mm stereo plug to dual inputs on headphones. They are using four wires but attaching both grounds to the common ground. In your case if you go from a TRS connector (stereo) to a three pin XLR, take two wires to ground on each end and use two for the + on the left and right channel. Get some experience soldering and then move on to more complex cabling schemes.

 
Sounds good
 
I appreciate the help!

 

[rmoody]

 
The 4 pin Hirose type connectors are indeed easier to use. I have tried four brands of the mini 4 pin xlrs and hate them all equally. It's been a little while since I have been in Knoxville, I recall Suttree's High Gravity Tavern and hope it is still there.

Sure is! Was there a few weeks ago for Dogfish Head tap takeover. They did a 4 year vertical of 120 Minute IPA, damn!
 
In Minneapolis for the week. Have already discovered Surly, and yup, they are on point. Surly 10 their 10th anniversary Old Ale is right.

 

[Paladin79]

  Sure is! Was there a few weeks ago for Dogfish Head tap takeover. They did a 4 year vertical of 120 Minute IPA, damn!
 
In Minneapolis for the week. Have already discovered Surly, and yup, they are on point. Surly 10 their 10th anniversary Old Ale is right.

I will have to look for the Surly 10. The last time I was in Minneapolis it was the day after the coldest day in recorded history in the Chicago area and I drove into the teeth of a blizzard driving up from Indiana. Not the best time to drive north on a business trip.
 
Sorry for going off topic. 
 
Hakase I am not sure what part of Kentucky you are in but if you ever make it North to Indiana I would be glad to help you out with some various types of cable, connectors and some soldering lessons if you are new to such work. 

 

[uncola]

paladin if you're building an AES cable, how important is it to get wire that says it's rated for 110ohms?  If I just use regular cable made for analog interconnects, will there be more jitter because of uh.. "reflections"?  and how do they make wire that is 110 ohm anyway, is it the amount of twists per inch that makes it?
 
edit: answered my own question, 110ohm aes cable uses plastic rod spacers to ensure 110ohms impedance even when the cable is bent.  and regular analog cable shouldn't be used for a digital aes cable, it does cause reflections.

 

[Paladin79]

  paladin if you're building an AES cable, how important is it to get wire that says it's rated for 110ohms?  If I just use regular cable made for analog interconnects, will there be more jitter because of uh.. "reflections"?  and how do they make wire that is 110 ohm anyway, is it the amount of twists per inch that makes it?

certain transmitted frequencies require specific impedance so stick with the 110 ohm aes/ebu such as Belden 1800B or 1800f for single pair cable. I am not familiar with reflection issues with this form of cable, I am well aware of reflection and refraction in optical cables. I know the cable is specifically made for digital transmission and is well shielded and low capacitance but I use the cable on a daily basis and I have not noticed more twists compared to other audio cable but that should be one element. Impedance is a factor of resistance and inductive and capacitive reactance and changes with frequency from what I recall. Impedance should stay the same with distance (even though it is negligible in the first meter or so) and AES/EBU cable maintains the signals over long distances so it is a probably a higher quality cable than you will see for a lot of analog audio. I have no problems for using it for analog and it has exceptional bandwidth but a lot of analog cable is just not built to the same standards and most likely costs less. I am trying to answer this without posting formulae. In analog wire, you are dealing with power to some extent, a signal that is changing in amplitude and direction, in wire made for digital applications, it is more about maintaining the ones and zeros I would think. Does that help? 

 

[andrewjamesdean]

I've got a pair of Denon D7000s that have been recabled using the most microphonic sleeve known to man.

What is the softest, least microphonic sleeving that people suggest? Looks to be either paracord, or techflex multifilament?
 
I'm based in Melbourne, Australia - does anyone know of a shop (or hobbyist) that could do this for me?
 
Much appreciated.

 

[Allanmarcus]

I've got a pair of Denon D7000s that have been recabled using the most microphonic sleeve known to man.


What is the softest, least microphonic sleeving that people suggest? Looks to be either paracord, or techflex multifilament?

I'm based in Melbourne, Australia - does anyone know of a shop (or hobbyist) that could do this for me?

Much appreciated.

The smoother, the better. Any nylon will be microphonic, and the tighter the nylon is stretched, the worse it gets. Cotton tubing might be better, but it's hard to find and gets dirty. I use braided bare wires or latex rubber tubing (a pain to work with).

Nylon multifilament with a little loose material might be the least worse option.

 

[Paladin79]

I've got a pair of Denon D7000s that have been recabled using the most microphonic sleeve known to man.


What is the softest, least microphonic sleeving that people suggest? Looks to be either paracord, or techflex multifilament?

I'm based in Melbourne, Australia - does anyone know of a shop (or hobbyist) that could do this for me?

Much appreciated.

I found a nylon/cotton combo sleeving and posted it a while back. It comes in several sizes and can be ordered out of China. It is not much different than nylon paracord as far as cleanliness. I can repost the link once I get to work.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/231391753695?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&var=530652124648&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

Here is a link. This type of mesh is less problematic because the cotton sits a little higher than the nylon mesh, it also has a lot of flex so it is easier to work with than tight fitting paracord. As far as softness, I have found that paracord feels better with age. You can also try to get creative and not have the paracord end quite so close to the connector itself. See my earlier pics of the red and black grommets. Those are highly flexible and lightweight and if you glue the paracord inside those instead of having it end quite so close to the connector or connectors.

I hope to experiment with some methods of dampening the paracord a bit to decrease microphonics. I have several ideas but that does not necessarily mean they are good ideas.

 

[SVTong]

Hi guys,
 
I'm not sure if this has been asked before, but I finished my headset cable and the audio side is great, but the mic side has issues.  When I test the mic, there is quite a bit of background hum and I can faintly hear what sounds like a radio station.  Do I need some kind of shielding on my cable?  And why is the audio side of it sound fine?  The wire is teflon coated 24ga OFC in a 6-strand braid.  3 strands for audio and 3 for the mic (2 for mic and 1 for ground).  On the headset side, I'm using a mini-xlr for audio and a USB for the mic.  The source side is a 1/4" for audio and 3.5mm for mic.  The 1/4" is plugged into my reciever, and the mic is plugged into a USB adapter which is then plugged into my PS4.

 

[Paladin79]

  Hi guys,
 
I'm not sure if this has been asked before, but I finished my headset cable and the audio side is great, but the mic side has issues.  When I test the mic, there is quite a bit of background hum and I can faintly hear what sounds like a radio station.  Do I need some kind of shielding on my cable?  And why is the audio side of it sound fine?  The wire is teflon coated 24ga OFC in a 6-strand braid.  3 strands for audio and 3 for the mic (2 for mic and 1 for ground).  On the headset side, I'm using a mini-xlr for audio and a USB for the mic.  The source side is a 1/4" for audio and 3.5mm for mic.  The 1/4" is plugged into my reciever, and the mic is plugged into a USB adapter which is then plugged into my PS4.

 
You may be having trouble maintaining a consistent ground between cables since you are adding an adapter. Try a USB cable if you can, it may be a cheap way to see if that is what is causing the issue. You can learn a lot by taking a length of wire and touching it from ground to ground and bypassing the adapter in the middle as well and then to each side of the adapter ground.  I keep a copper braided mesh that will open to a large diameter for such tests but it is not easy to lay your hands on.

 

[SVTong]

Thanks Paladin, I'll try that when I get home

 

[Paladin79]

Thanks Paladin, I'll try that when I get home

it probably sounds a bit janky, but you can even try to shield a bit of the cable with aluminum foil. Shielded audio cable generally uses aluminized mylar. Braiding and twisted pair is a form of shielding but in some instances you need more just as in coaxial cable you have dual and quad shielded cable for some applications. I pick up a little noise when I get my iphone close to speakers or a portable headphone amp and I am using cables I braided myself. Switch to AES/EBU wire that has a mylar or braided shield and I am fine.

 

[SVTong]

That's what I'm worried about. I was hoping the braiding would be enough, but apparently not. I'm just confused as to why the mic side is picking it up, but the audio side isn't.

Edit: so I tried grounding it in a few different places, but no luck. I've read that it helps to plug everything into a powered USB hub instead of directly into the ps4. Tried that, and the noise lessened, but it's still there. I might try the foil trick next just to see if it is the cable acting as an antenna, but it's going to take a lot of foil. The cable is 12' long.

 

[Paladin79]

That's what I'm worried about. I was hoping the braiding would be enough, but apparently not. I'm just confused as to why the mic side is picking it up, but the audio side isn't.

Edit: so I tried grounding it in a few different places, but no luck. I've read that it helps to plug everything into a powered USB hub instead of directly into the ps4. Tried that, and the noise lessened, but it's still there. I might try the foil trick next just to see if it is the cable acting as an antenna, but it's going to take a lot of foil. The cable is 12' long.

Start with the braided portion if you can. By your description I believe it is RFI. Any light dimming circuits near by?