[JML]

Does anyone know of good quality after-market stereo phone plug adapters, to change one "male" to the other size "male," other than the ubiquitous gold-plated and standard-plated Radio Shack variants? Are the Headroom "Sunrise" adapters of good quality (they say they're $7 adapters for $5), and are they nickel or gold? PartsExpress sells "Dayton" (their own) in gold for a few cents under $2; anyone try those?

I ask because: (a) I've never seen or heard of any others except real cheapies, and (b) I just realized that one of my adapters from Radio Shack must be machined too large and be just outside of normal tolerances, as it almost refused to release from a D-25S, causing me a panic attack.

 

[ChenaynayC]

I have the releasing problem with my D-25s and the Kimber mini-mini. It crossed my mind that something could get 'stripped' in there if the release is so difficult. I have the RS cable too and never noticed it as much. The Markerteks are very smooth.

 

[Blighty]

Yes, I have the same problem with the D-25S headphone jack with the radioshack 1/4 - 1/8 adapter. It was nearly impossible to extract unless I used a degree of force that I would not normally need for removing a mini-plug. The adapter works fine for everything else so I initially though that it must be a slight incompatibility with the D-25S jack. However, other mini-plugs seem to work with it fine so I am not entirely sure if it is bad machining with the RS adapter or not.

 

[kelly]

I would be more tempted to blame the quality control on the D-25S jack than on the Radio Shack adapter... especially since no one has the trouble with other jacks.

 

[roll-man]

If you are looking to go from 1/4" male stereo to 1/8" male stereo (mini), those in the know use this

btw, those Sunrise adapters suck ass.

 

[JML]

I think it's an unfortunate mismatch with both to blame, and I posted a related note on the portable forum warning about this.

The Sony jack seems to have a sharp edge on the contact spring, and the second section of the Radio Shack plug seems to be somewhat oversized or too-thickly plated, and has a sharp edge (or the plastic insulator ring isn't as wide as the metal on both sides). Neither causes the same problem when used with other plugs or jacks, but the Radio Shack adapter is definitely a tight fit in two other units I have.

When I did a minicable review I noticed that the standard gold Radio Shack patch cord plugs were also hard to remove from the lineout on the D-25S, and also grabby on other jacks, so maybe their QC at the plating stage isn't as good as it should be.

I just ordered some other cheap gold adapters from PartsExpress, along with some other things, and hope they fit better. I'll give the Grado a try. But I'd still love to hear if there are any quality adapters out there without any cable as part of them.

 

[roll-man]

I have the Grado. It is a very high quality item. Granted, it costs more than 10x the nearest competitor, but it is very well made. Also when you're going in that direction, the cable actually acts as strain relief, otherwise you have this huge metal jacket with the increased mechanical advantage of having a 1/4 " cable apply potential damaging amounts of force on your 1/8" mini jack. I think that's why Grado engineered it that way.

 

[JML]

Thanks, roll-man. It's on the way from Headroom.

I hoped to find a right-angle adapter, for many of the same reasons, and the Grado will fit the bill. I use the RS right-angle full-size adapter at the amp so the phone cord has no sideways tension on the strain relief and hangs straight down from my amp to the floor.

 

[JML]

The Grado arrived today. Nice piece of work -- thanks for the recommendation! It is much more substantial and better made than I would had guessed from the pictures.

The RS adapters are crap. I went to try two more, gold and not-gold. The insulator sleeves are too damned thin, and that's why they get locked up in the jacks. No other plug I could try (over a dozen on various cables) was anywhere near as uneven and as step-like as the RS, even other RS plugs.

 

[roll-man]

Glad it's working for you! The sealed plastic pouch is a bit much, but it does seem to be a quality component. Enjoy...

 

[JML]

That sealed vinyl bag was a bit much. I wonder if they sterilize the cable before sealing it up... A ziplock-type storage bag would have been useful and the sealed bag is just more trash.

 

[roll-man]

I actually slid my Sony d-25s pcdp, which lives in my desk drawer, into the vinyl pouch. It fits quite nicely and will hopefully prevent my d25-s from getting scuffed up.

 

[JML]

Just a follow-up on the Dayton Speakers house-brand adapters from PartsExpress. These are all metal, gold-plated and knurled, and under $2 each.

The Dayton standard-to-mini is a little jewel. It is easy to hold and use, and the inside looks just about identical to the guts of the Grado's female standard-size jack. (It looks like a Radio Shack gold plug on steroids, and may be made in the same plant; it has the same knurling and three polished bands as several of the Radio Shack connectors.)

But the Dayton mini-to-standard is not so good. They wobble when hooked up, and the plugs aren't true on either sample. Don't waste your money.

On both, the plugs are smooth, with the insulator matching the diameter of the metal conductor.

Fortunately, these complement the Radio Shack adapter plugs.

The Radio Shack mini-to-standard is a great little item, about as short as can be, and with multiple spring contacts to keep the pin from the cable centered after it is inserted into the female jack end -- this one is just about perfect. Sennheiser packages what looks to be exactly the same same adapter with several of their models -- I just saw them tonight in boxes with HD-590 cans.

But the Radio Shack standard-to-mini is a piece of junk, as I wrote above. It seems to be from a different source; not only are there diameter differences in the pin's contact sections and insulator sections, as noted, but this one has plastic on the outside, while the other adapters are all solid metal.

 

[mr_slacker]

Didn't Tomcat mention something about an Audio Technica stereo to mini adapter in his W100 review? Sounds like a perfect match for the W100. Does anyone have any info on this thing?

 

[kelly]

"The usual mini-to-big-size adaptor solution would have compromised sound quality. But a big-to-mini-adaptor is available from A/T, as are replacement ear-pads."

I wish I'd paid attention to that prior to ordering my W2002. As it was I just ASSUMED, it would include an adapter and had to rush out to Radio Shack at lunch when they arrived. If anyone orders any of these from AT, maybe order some extras and sell them to people like me.