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Originally Posted by Hobohodou /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Hi, This is my first post, so I hope it's in the right section, I'm looking for some advice and help.
I have a pair of K518's that have a broken cable where the jack used to be, thanks to a friend of mine. However I'd love to fix the cable (as it's intact) or recable the headphones...But...I'm a complete beginner. I'm not a stranger to the headphone world though, and I guess I'm a fan of AKG, it'd be really nice to get my K518's back up and running ! in the meantime, I've only got a set of K171's to use in the meantime (but they have a cable held together by electrical tape!) I should be getting a pair of K450's tomorrow...to tide me over since my K171's are really unstable...so learning to recable would be awesome!
I've read through the interconnect tutorial and read a few threads in the last few hours on the forums...and I think I could probably do this...I'd love to be able to make my own cables too, since the only problems i've ever had with headphones has been with cabling (left/right channel cutting out etc)
So I have a few questions, hopefully some of you may be able to help me, and again, I apologize if any of this is really noobish, but never recabled/soldered etc before!
So here goes !
- I have a CAT5 cable at hand, and have seen it mentioned that you can make a cable out of these, I'm guessing for what i'm looking to do i'd need two strands (each with two cables) to do this...then solder?
- since my cable is not broken anywhere apart from at the jack, I'm assuming it should be possible to replace the jack by soldering? Would this be easier for someone's first time, or is it worth completely recabling the headphones?
- On the subject of making your own cables, for the K171's, I'm guessing it'd be possible to make an aftermarket cable for these that isn't the EK300? Would this be tricky? or would it just be more hard to find the Mini-XLR connector?
- Are the K81's/K518's relatively easy to open? it's probably really obvious...but i just can't see where to open...
- Finally, I'm really confused with the measurements of the sleevings, mainly the techflex, for recabling a pair of headphones, woulld you need two different sizes of this?
Many thanks in advance to anyone who replies back and helps!!!
EDIT: Adding picture so you can see how it broke...
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Welcome to Headfi!
I have been doing my own cables and recables for about 2 months now. Prior to that, I had never touched a soldering iron so I understand your questions and possible trepidation. I will share with you my opinions as they are based on research, trial and error, and finally my successes.
CAT5 cable is useable for interconnects, but it isn't ideal for headphone cables. Most CAT5 uses solid core wire which isn't very flexible. Also it doesn't have the repeated bending tolerances that a stranded cable will have. In other words, for portable use, far from ideal. If you can find stranded CAT5 cable, it would be better, but will probably still end up being fairly stiff.
Standard recommendations for a recable, particularly for a portable would be either Canare or Mogami mini star quad microphone cables, with Mogami supposedly being a little better quality. These are durable, flexible cables that use very high quality materials are very reasonably priced. You can check pro audio stores, and there are many places online you can get it (I am not familiar with UK or European sources, so hopefully others will chime in).
You could also go boutique route and use some "audiophile" wire and braid it together. Doublehelixcables.com sells a very nice, high end wire that is easy to work with for a great price. Cryo-parts.com also has a very nice wire, but I have not used it since it is out of my price range. An interesting alternative is to ask Koyaan Sqatsi on the forums for pricing on sending you some Cooner cable. It is a very pretty, SUPER flexible silver plated copper wire that works great for a recable (see my signature for my AKG K81DJ recable). Again, I don't know if shipping to you could kill most of the value of these wires.
To be honest, if you have a soldering iron, and you need immediate use of your headphones, connecting a new mini plug would be the simplest and remove most of the decision making for you. There should be 4 wires in the cable: right channel, left channel, and two for the ground. Any 3.5mm connector would do, with Neutrik being a high quality, low cost standard. Switchcraft is another popular brand, although for the price, you can get prettier, fancier connectors if one were so inclined. It is not difficult as long as you know which wire goes where.
With the microphone cable, pick two for channel and two for ground and go from there. The Mogami mini star quad (W2893) is great because each strand is differently colored so it is easy to keep track of which wire is which. If you use the audiophile wire, you can find instructions for a 4 wire round litz braid (very pretty, and has interference rejecting properties), or a double twist (twist a ground and signal together, then twist those two twists together), which might be even more electrically smart.
Mini-xlr's are easy to find, and ebay is a good source. I have ordered them and used them with no ill effect. Just remember to get the proper pin numbers. I think AKG is just a 3 pin mini xlr. You could get away with using just three wires for this since it is a single ended cable, although most would still probably recommend you use 2 wires for ground. mini-xlr's, at least the ones i have used, were easier to work with than mini plugs so that shouldn't be a concern.
The K81DJ's are quite easy to work with. Simply take off the earpads and you should see 3 screw holes. Once you take out the 3 screws, the silver plastic piece with the driver should easily detach from the cup. The wire is held in place with a not and maybe a touch of glue.
Personally, if you are going to do any DIY fixing, you might as well have some fun and go all the way with a recable. I have made many interconnect and headphone cables that I have no use for simply because I find it a very fun thing to do. Also, with a complete recable, you can improve the sound of your headphones (don't ask too many questions about this, as it is likely to set off a holy war. search the forums), and more importantly, you can decide the ergonomics of your cable. For instance, I found the stock cable of the K81DJ's to be ridiculously long, particularly for a portable. So now (well before an accident with a drill), I have a 4 foot cable with a right angled mini plug, which is the perfect length for me. I also think it looks awesome, and well I haven't noticed a difference in sound quality yet, however I have noticed a difference between my SRH840 cable and its stock one.
Oh and for techflex, if you use the standard PET techflex, 1/8" will fit over the mini star quad cables. 1/8th SHOULD also fit over a 4 wire braid or twist of the audiophile wire, but I have not tried this personally. Standard techflex isn't ideal as it adds quite a bit of noise (microphonics) to the cable. When it rubs on things, particularly and edge of something, it makes an awful sawing noise. I would recommend some nylon multifilament, which is a much tighter, softer, and frankly, classier looking weave. For that, you will need two sizes since it doesn't expand as much. 1/8" will be good from where the main cable splits up to the cups, and 3/16" is a beautiful fit over the mini star quad cable. 3/16" also fits a 4 wire round litz braid of the Doublehelix or Cryo-parts wire.
As for heatshrink, the easiest IMO is to get some 3 to 1 shrink ratio heatshrink in 1/2" as it gives you the most flexibility of use. It may not shrink down enough for two wires twisted, so some 1/4" might be good to get as well.
I think I covered everything you asked, and probably spend more time on these forums than I should so feel free to ask more questions. I have made all of the rookie mistakes multiple times so I am well versed in how to fix them
I have also recabled my K81DJ's twice so I am familiar with your headphones (and making a mini-xlr to mini plug for your other AKG's should be a snap at this point).
Good luck!
PS. Looks like the ground wires in that cable got shredded. You will need to twist those back together to solder them into a new connector.
