Cable Care

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Cable Care

Post by vvv » Sun Mar 25, 2012 12:21 pm

Aiight, I have bought a cuppla old mic's (MD421n and a EV634) what have ye olde Amphenol connectors and cables.

My cables are good and flexible, but 40 or 50 years old.

Is there anything I should be doing to preserve the cables themselves? For example, anything to clean and preserve them with?

Also, with new mic cables I use a cable-wrap holder-thing, like a big plastic "H" where the middle bar is thick and the legs short, to wrap the cables. Izzat a good or bad idear with old rubber?
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Post by vvv » Sun Mar 25, 2012 12:56 pm

Like this:
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Post by Nick Sevilla » Sun Mar 25, 2012 1:45 pm

Hi vvv,

I usually recommend wrapping cables loosely, and allowing the cable to coil itself as you make a 1ft. loop. This keeps them from getting tangled and allows them to recover from "cable memory".

As to cleaning, I sometimes use Formula 409 with a damp rag.

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Post by vvv » Sun Mar 25, 2012 2:45 pm

Yeah, I'm thinkin' the cable caddy things might not be good for the cords as the could get kinks at the contact points.

Will 409 preserve the rubber? I mean, i know there's crap you can by for pinch rollers, and we use to use tranny fluid on car hoses and lines ...
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Post by Nick Sevilla » Sun Mar 25, 2012 6:35 pm

vvv wrote:Yeah, I'm thinkin' the cable caddy things might not be good for the cords as the could get kinks at the contact points.

Will 409 preserve the rubber? I mean, i know there's crap you can by for pinch rollers, and we use to use tranny fluid on car hoses and lines ...
Well, you want to wipe all the 409 off, as it is not a rubber preservative.

And as tot eh other stuff, I would also not use it. Unless you want that all over your hands and floor each time you use the cables.
And, once the cables do die, just keep the connectors from the old cables, and use new Mogami or similar. If you do not have the pinouts, just cut a few inches of the old cable before rewiring, open it up and write down how it was connected.

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Post by vvv » Sun Mar 25, 2012 9:27 pm

8)
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Re: Cable Care

Post by Andy Peters » Sun Mar 25, 2012 9:34 pm

vvv wrote:Also, with new mic cables I use a cable-wrap holder-thing, like a big plastic "H" where the middle bar is thick and the legs short, to wrap the cables. Izzat a good or bad idear with old rubber?
Always hand-wrap cables.

Always.

If you're so concerned, why not just replace the wire? solder the connectors to a new cable.

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Post by Snarl 12/8 » Sun Mar 25, 2012 11:00 pm

I've always sworn by my cable coiling technique and I have the 30 year old working cables to prove it. But I kinda think the most important aspect of my technique is that I always wrap them the same way. If I was twisting them one way and then the other every time I wrapped them, I'm guessing they probably wouldn't have made it to 30.
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Post by telepathy » Sun Mar 25, 2012 11:17 pm

learn how to cable over/under and all your cables will last twice as long.
get up with it

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Post by vvv » Mon Mar 26, 2012 5:50 am

It's funny on how internet posts can seem confrontational or condescending without intent, eh?

And by the nature of the thing, the responder makes assumptions ...

I got a minnit, so I'll explain the un-necessary.

First, I know how to coil cables - I worked in the construction industry for some years (carpenters, etc., use long extension cords), been a do-it-yerselfer (ask my ex, who knows in so many ways :twisted: ) for years, played in bands for years. Even now, every jam session I break down eight 25' mic cords (I like the caddy for that - mostly because it's easier on the drummer, when he helps.)

What I have is two old mic's with Ampherol cables, what are a pain in the arse to connect/unconnect.

My thought, then, was to leave 'em on the cables (at least the MD421n - what I love!) and so I needed a way to keep the cable connected to the snake on one end, the mic on the other, and with the cable organized outta the way. I was gonna use the above-pictured thing, hung onna hook ...

And yes, I could replace the cable - surprise, I can solder, also! - but these work just fine, and they are the originals, and so I think they're, eh, sexy in place.

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Post by Snarl 12/8 » Mon Mar 26, 2012 8:39 am

I didn't mean to be condescending. I was trying to vote in favor of your status quo, whatever that is. If you've got 40 yr old cables, you're probably doing something right. I happen to think that hanger thingy is going to do in your cables pretty quickly, but I hope I'm wrong.
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Post by vvv » Mon Mar 26, 2012 11:16 am

Relax, I'm cool, and it wasn't you ...

Yeah, I'm not gonna do the hanger thing, but I do hafta let at least the one hang; I reckon I could shorten the cord ...

But didja ever notice when ya shorten something, soon enough ya want it back longer? :lol:
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Post by farview » Mon Mar 26, 2012 4:10 pm

I had a couple mics like that and I just cut the cord and put a male XLR on it so I could just use a normal mic cable to hook it to the snake.

I just made an Amphenol to xlr connector and got on with the gettin' on.

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Post by vvv » Mon Mar 26, 2012 9:15 pm

Yep, think I shall ...
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Post by Scodiddly » Tue Mar 27, 2012 5:35 am

If you want to keep a long old cable attached to the microphone, maybe just dedicate a drawer or a flat box to it. Put a little padding in the corner for the mic, then coil (over-under) the rest in with it.

Nice sales tool for tweaky customers, too. I'm going to use my *special* microphone and cable...

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