[TheAttorney]

I couldn't resist the pun, but I have managed to break my O2 Mk1 cable by standing on it whilst listening in the dark. The result was a sudden tug of the cable away from the headphone. No visible damage, but (horror of horrors) I now have intermittent lost sound on the LHS channel.

At the junction between cable and LHS earpiece, there is a fractional "give" when pulling the cable to and fro, accompanied by a very faint click sound. Wiggling the cable at this junction will switch on/off the left channel, but sadly it defaults to "off" most of the time.

My question is this: Is it a safe DIY job to open up the O2 earpiece enough to get to the heart of the cable junction? Or is this a send-back-to-dealer/Stax situation?

So far, I've been wary of opening up the O2 on the basis of it being a finely honed instrument that may never be quite the same again if I tamper with it.

Thanks.
Richard

 

[spritzer]

Looks like the fine silver ribbons which connect the cable to the drivers are broken. You can repair them your self as you only have to jumper the wires with something new but it isn't easy to solder and requires quite a bit of skill. If you do want to give it a shot be sure to cover the driver with something like cardboard as a stray drop of flux can destroy the driver.

To gain access to the terminals you only have to pull off the earpads and then remove the screws from the black plate underneath. Since you never open up the drivers you shouldn't alter the sound in any way but it is crucial to install the earpads properly or they will alter the sound.

If you do send the phones in for repair then you'll probably get the new Mk2 cable which might not match the phones as they are only available in black.

 

[The Monkey]

I may have a 007 mk1 cable if you're interested.

 

[TheAttorney]

Thanks spritzer. I think I will try the UK dealer/distributor to see if they can repair. I don't trust myself with a soldering iron on delicate items. I may just take off the pad first to have a look - as it will have to come off at some point.

Thanks for the offer The Monkey. I'll try the repair route first - that will hopefully be simpler. I'm not too worried about colour mismatch, as I indend to get a 2.5m extension cable one day and I guess that will only come in black now.

 

[spritzer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheAttorney /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm not too worried about colour mismatch, as I indend to get a 2.5m extension cable one day and I guess that will only come in black now.

I haven't bought an extension cable in quite some time but I think you can also get brown ones now. I've never seen one though...