Saturday, May 17, 2014

Repairing Stereo Headphones Cable; Dog Chewed?




quietman92


My daughter has a set of Bose over the ear headphones which she loves and needs for her business. Her new puppy got a hold of them and chewed through the cable in several places. Being somewhat handy, I attempted to replace the entire cable with one from another set of headphones. One wire/channel has a red and bare wire, the other has a green and bare wire. Splicing them together not only did not work, but when I attempted to restore the cable to the old headphones they no longer work either. I'm as certain as I can be that there were no crossed wires, I separated them strand by strand. What am I missing? This should have been an easy repair! My eyesight is not very good; is it possible that the red and green conductors are actually insulators with very fine wires inside them? It doesn't appear so. Can somebody explain this to me; she simply cannot afford to replace them, and not being able to figure it out is driving me crazy!
"it's possible the conductors are broken, that would mean you couldn't re-use the old cable".
That's why I said I was attempting to replace entire cable with one from another set.
"I think it sounds like there is shielded cable in the headphone wire. Is it like an insulated conductor, surrounded by a kind of mesh, perhaps a thin mesh of bare wire?"
One wire/channel has a red and bare wire, the other has a green and bare wire. Splicing them together not only did not work, but when I attempted to restore the cable to the old headphones they no longer work either.
The cable is not shielded in the traditional sense,
each channel/wire consists of the bare ground, which is already twisted into a single strand; and either a red or a green set off fine wires, also pre-twisted into a seeming solid conductor. There is also a cotton like strand running the length of the cables, serving no apparent purpose because the
colored and bare wires are contacting each other the entire length. (Which goe
Which goes against all of my prior experience)
I have been diagnosed with a degenerative brain disease, which definitely has depleted my abilities,
but I can't figure out why I can't replace what is basically a four conductor cable. I'm obviously missing something obvious, and am hoping that someone can tell me what it is; such as a peculiarity found only in headphone wires.
Can you think of anything other than what you've already kindly offered?
Thank you for your efforts, have a blessed day,
-Chip



Answer
If the puppy has chewed them, it's possible the conductors are broken, that would mean you couldn't re-use the old cable.

If length is not a problem, as in if there is a 3 foot cable, when it's intact, will there be enough to make a 2 foot cable work?

and will a 2 foot cable be adequate for her needs?

The main thing is to make sure you are connecting the correct wires together, that sounds really obvious, but it isn't always.

I think it sounds like there is shielded cable in the headphone wire. Is it like an insulated conductor, surrounded by a kind of mesh, perhaps a thin mesh of bare wire?

If the red wire coming from the headphones is intact, and you connect it to the red wire in the remaining intact cable, you should have electrical contact. The shield, if that's what it is, should also be connected. The easiest way to do this, is to peel enough insulation back, separate the mesh, and twist the mesh into a cylinder, on both sides of the break, and splice the cylinders together. This would apply to the green wire too. Make sure each conductor is making a complete circuit between the headphone and the plug.

I'm not sure how well equipped your toolbox is, but an electrical connection works better if it has been soldered. I would also use a continuity checker, or an ohmmeter if you have one, and make sure you have a solid conductor between the parts of the cable that can be salvaged.

A hand splice can make a complete circuit, if necessary, of course, and I recommend a pigtail splice, which if you have been attempting this repair, I'm sure you are familiar with.

Personally, if this was frustrating me this much, I'd pause, say a rude word and glare at the puppy periodically, just to let him know why "pet-grandpa" is so frustrated.

Audio In to Female Headphone Cable?




John


I am looking for 2 Audio In's that turn into a Female Headphone thingymabob

This is so I can turn the white and red audio cables into a socket that I can put headphones in.

If I am being an idiot and I still am not clear, here are some extra explanations:

__________________________________________________________________

2 Audio ins on one side and a female headphone socket on the other

Here is a diagram (kinda) http://pastebin.com/Z9pJ04mW

__________________________________________________________________

I don't know what it's called so I don't know where to find it.
(I don't know what anything is called)


Does anyone know where I can get one online?

I know nothing about wiring.



Answer
So, you want to go from what's called AUX out (aka line level out) to headphones, without using a headphone amplifier in-between.

To do that you would use a passive adapter cable with 2 RCA plugs (red and white) to a stereo 3.5mm "mini phone" jack. See the first link below.

That will give you some sound, but it won't be very loud, and (unless it's a variable level line out as on some TVs) it also will be at a fixed volume level. If it is a variable line out, you'll want to crank it all the way up.
How loud it is will be dependent on the efficiency of the headphones. Some ear buds may be efficient enough to give a reasonable level, though.

To do it right with a headphone amp (which will cost you more), I found the lowest-cost solution (in a name brand) that I could for you (about $30). Most headphone amps have several jacks so many headphones can plug in at once; the one below can handle up to 4 headphones.




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