[bogginhead]

I decided to do the grill mod on my HE500, and used the directions listed here on Head-Fi to the t as I was very worried I might make a mistake if I didn't. The mods went just fine and the new grills press-fit in extremely well; I also added a very, very thin layer of acrylic (pantyhose, really) to the back of each grill for dust protection. But now it seems that I can't get any audio out of the right driver. I'm almost 110% certain that I didn't mess anything up (I took my time over a few days with everything), so I'm wondering what the issue might be. Any thoughts? I wish there was a way to swap out these SMC connectors for 2.5mm or 3.5mm connectors; I'm assuming that's where the issue lies.

 

[GREQ]

It's not unheard of that the wires between the SMC connector and driver randomly snap off.
Check the wires coming out the top of the SMC connector first, give them a soft tug and if they're well fixed it's time to unscrew the plate holding the driver in place so you can inspect the wires leading to the driver terminals.

It's actually not as scary as it sounds, as long as you're careful in keeping the screws away from the driver magnets and do everything on a very clear workspace so no dust or debris can get inside the driver.
When taking off the plate, take note of the orientation as it has to go back in the same way.
After taking off plate that holds the driver in place, it should be very easy to push it out the ear-side of the housing and then you can inspect the terminals.
If that's where the cable has come off, it might be a bit tricky to solder without a very long, thin solder tip.. but not impossible.

Hopefully best case scenario it's just one wire come off the SMC connector and it's not made itself noticeable yet. Although, that's not the easiest re-solder job either... they're stupidly tiny and fiddly.

 

[bogginhead]

Well, the thing is that I tried my old stock HE500 single ended cable and it worked totally fine. I did check the wires going into the connector as well and they were snug and still connected. Any more ideas? Thanks, by the way.

 

[GREQ]

Well, the thing is that I tried my old stock HE500 single ended cable and it worked totally fine. I did check the wires going into the connector as well and they were snug and still connected. Any more ideas? Thanks, by the way.

"Worked totally fine" as in, right driver started working again?

 

[bogginhead]

Yup; but only with the old stock cable. The custom "Best In Verse" cable I have is the one with the issue, it seems...

 

[GREQ]

I wouldn't question it.
Them expensive custom cables are the only truth in this hobby, the last word, the holy scripture, the infallible constant... just roll with it.

 

[bogginhead]

Well, only issue is that my Best In Verse cable is terminated in XLR for balanced usage; it actually came with the set when I bought the HE500 and I pretty much only use balanced these days

 

[GREQ]

That's rough, but custom cables should be fairly easy to repair, it's just tricky finding exactly where the break occurred if it goes straight from 'alive' to 'dead' without intermittent sound from bending or flexing the cable at a certain point.
95% of the time it's broken near a plug, or a cold solder joint has come off inside the plug, so it's usually just a matter of cutting an inch off all the cables and re-soldering at the culprit end.
I think I've only ever had one cable that went straight to 'dead', and I ended up having to guess which end was broken... of course I did the wrong end first and ended up having to do double the amount of work to get it fixed.