[Perpetually]

Hi everybody,
 
I bought a pair of AKG K550 headphones one and a half years ago, and now the two channels are unbalanced (right channel volume is about 20% lower). They are still in the 2 years warranty but because my plug was rugged by my friend (so regret to lend him) 1 year ago, I can't ask the local distributor to replace a new pair for me.  I brought them to a local electronic repair store today and they said they will tell me what's the problem tomorrow. I'm 70% percent sure I may need to replace the plug or with the cable together, so I'm a little worried if I need to replace my cable as well, what kind of cable should I get so that there will be no sound quality reduction or even a sound quality upgrade? or I should just order an original cable from AKG? please help me decide, really need you guys help on this!
 
Thanks!
 
Buran

 

[PurpleAngel]

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  I bought an AKG K550 headphones one and a half years ago, and now the two channels are unbalanced (right channel volume is about 20% lower). They are still in the 2 years warranty but because my plug was rugged by my friend (so ******* regret to lend him) 1 year ago, I can't ask the local distributor to replace a new pair for me.  I brought them to a local electronic repair store today and they will tell me what's the problem tomorrow. I'm 70% percent sure I may need to replace the plug or with the cable together, so I'm a little worried if I need to replace my cable as well, what kind of cable should I get so that there will be no sound quality reduction or even a sound quality upgrade?

Mogami quad microphone cable (shielded)
Canare quad microphone cable (shielded)
Each cable provide each channel with it's own ground wire
So you can soldered them to the 4 wires in the headphone
and whatever aftermarket plug you get 3.5mm (1/8") stereo plug or 1/4" (6.35mm) stereo plug, the two grounding wire will be soldered to the same ground connector on the plug.
These are the two brands (Mogani & Canare) of cable I know of that are used for recabling headphones.
Usually these cables will sell for around $1 per foot.
You can also get braided nylon sleeving for the cable.
 
There are website (forums) out there that show examples on how others have recabled their headphones.

 

[Perpetually]

Hi PurpleAngel,
 
I found HeadRoom online and asked them to recable my K550 with a 5 feet of Cardas if they detect the drivers are functioning well. I'm so relaxed that I found professionals to do the job for me and all I need to do is ship and wait. Thank you very much for your advice so I know where to start!

 

[linglingjr]

It wouldn't hurt if you learned how to solder and fix it yourself, if you're into that type of thing.  Cheap soldering irons can be had for less than $10 and will do the job just fine.  It's pretty easy to learn and can be super handy.  
 
Also, you won't notice a difference between a $50 cable/plug and a decent quality cable and plug.