Cable!!!!

[bedroom rocker]

i read in a guitar mag a few months ago, a section on how to make your own audio cable for your guitars, saving you a fortune on money if done correctly, recently i set out and made a 'guitar kit' ( a tackle box filled with 1/4 inch jacks, spare machine heads, strings, screwdrivers, shifters, pots, wire strings and a soldering iron) and thought id give it a go making my own audio cable. it may be a stupid question, but a i bought a pair each of mono and stereo jacks... will it make a difference to which type i use? and i got 5 metres of "low noise, high quality, stereo microphone cable" should be set to go, right? cheers

[aeolian]

I have minimal knowledge about cables. Guitar is typically a mono source, so use mono jacks (although I don't think stereo will harm it). I think the cable you have will be fine to build guitar cables with, but be aware that speaker cables need cables that can carry more current so don't use your guitar cables as speaker connectors.

That is about all I know, and I may even be wrong about things.

[marnold***]

There was a thread on here someplace where Tung (among others) gave advice on rolling your own guitar cables.

[Kodiak3D]

...rolling your own guitar cables.

This sounds like a euphamism for something else people roll their own of.

[deeaa*]

1st off, I've never believed you can actually save money *making* your own cables. As a rule, guitar cables aren't that expensive and they last a decade if at least a little care in use is taken. If you build your own with good parts like Belden cable and Neutrik plugs, the cost is almost equal...and chances are you won't get the shrink tube and the connections made as well as they do in the factory. Do you have a powerful enough soldering iron etc. for good solid connections without melting the cable?

I've always gone by the idea that it's a good idea to repair cables and be able to make some when need arises to suddenly make like a XLR to stereo plug cable or whatever, but I wouldn't make my own guitar cables probably.

The last time I did, I bought me this LONG cable, 8 meters or so, because it was dirt cheap, and cut it in half and soldered neutrik heads at the new endings, making two good cables. I've used those two since 2006 I think now.

There are these I forget what brand cables that have a thin cord and heads you simply push into the cut cord and screw one screw down...they are VERY good, I bought five in 1991 and I still use two of them and the other two I have lost, not broken. They are annoyinly springy and not good for every occasion - not very good from guitar to pedalboard for instance - but they seem to never die. And the few times they have given any trouble, you just unscrew, re-cut the end neat and screw back in and it's good as new. If I needed a lot of patch etc. cables I'd go with those - they also require next to no space in racks and the plug is tiny.

Microphone cable as a rule contains 3 leads, which is why the nomination seems strange...a standard guitar cable is just a coaxial good quality soft rubber cable.

I suppose I can remember every guitar cable I bought since 1990...there's been only four 'main' cables in soon 20 years and hundreds and hundreds of gigs and exercises. I always keep my 'main' cable in the case with the guitar where it's safe.

[deeaa*]

This sounds like a euphamism for something else people roll their own of.

Tobacco? :-)

I remember in the states when I smoked my own rolled cigarettes, people looked at me real strangely. I suppose they thought it was dope. Seemed to me pretty much nobody in the U.S., or at least N.Y.C. area rolled their own...which is quite popular in Europe. There seemed to be like only one store in Manhattan that even carried proper tobacco and papers.

[marnold***]

1st off, I've never believed you can actually save money *making* your own cables. As a rule, guitar cables aren't that expensive and they last a decade if at least a little care in use is taken. If you build your own with good parts like Belden cable and Neutrik plugs, the cost is almost equal...and chances are you won't get the shrink tube and the connections made as well as they do in the factory. Do you have a powerful enough soldering iron etc. for good solid connections without melting the cable?

In the thread that I referred to, Tung posted a link to low-capacitance cable that was very cheap. With that and a couple of Switchcraft jacks you could make a cable that was certainly no more expensive than a dirt-cheap cable that would be low-cap to boot and every bit as good as an ultra-expensive cable.

[deeaa*]

Ah, that sounds interesting. Then it might be a good idea. I've just figured, if a very good factory made cable costs like 20 bucks and lasts five years or so at least, I don't know if it is worth it.

Always good to do stuff yourself, though, there's always that :-)

[vroomery]

dea...it sounds like you're referring to the george l's cable system. I use them in my pedal board and they've been great.

[deeaa*]

George L! Yeah that's it. They are ideal for short cords, patch cords etc. and maybe like backup. I haven't seen them sold here in ages. I should buy a bunch of heads and some cable just in case if I see some.

[vroomery]

If you googled george l then i'm sure you found them, but they sell kits with like 10 ft of cable and 10 ends. I think they run about 80 bucks.

[pes_laul]

This sounds like a euphamism for something else people roll their own of.

[deeaa*]

If you googled george l then i'm sure you found them, but they sell kits with like 10 ft of cable and 10 ends. I think they run about 80 bucks.

Yeah I found them but I won't order them overseas. It's too difficult these days.

First off, the shipping is 20-30 bucks on top of it, and if the price with shipping exceeds 50 euros, there is the VAT on top of that, 22% I think, plus customs fee. Plus the nearest customs is now 100 miles away from me, so even when it's under 50 euros, they might open the box and check, and that requires me to be there - or we do it over the phone and they send it from the customs to me by UPS or something - another twenty...so an 80 buck set would probably end up costing me something like 150-200 in dollars. Plus it may take a month for the stuff to arrive.

Sometimes, on small deliveries, it's real quick, like I got a HipShot tremsetter in maybe four days no customs.

Been waiting on my Danelectro OD pedal now for almost 2 weeks, fear it's in the customs and will be checked and that means extra costs.

[MichaelE]

You'll definitely save money making your own if you buy 'Monster' cables. If you pick up 3-for-$5 out of the bargin bin at the local music store you'll be spending a lot more.

The chief advantage of building your own cables is that you get to pick the components, the length, and the configuration.

Another benefit is that you know they are built correctly and will last...if you are experienced at rolling your own.

Belden, Canare, Mogami, all make good quality cable. Neutrik, Switchcraft, Amphenol, all make quality hardware. You get to choose which is best for your wallet and application.

[bedroom rocker]

i made a couple of patch setups for my pedals, unfortunately, the cable is so thick that the 'springs' (coming from the back of the jacks) wont fit over it, so i ditched them... all good so far, but is it wrong to assume that the thickness of the cable will compensate for a 50 cm length of wound up wire?

[MichaelE]

Probably. That spring is there just to keep it from bending sharply.

I'd still use heat shrink over the plug and first couple of inches of cable.

[Tig***]

George L! Yeah that's it. They are ideal for short cords, patch cords etc. and maybe like backup. I haven't seen them sold here in ages. I should buy a bunch of heads and some cable just in case if I see some.

I built a 15' instrument cable from GeorgeL's, as well as a speaker cable to patch from the Vypyr amp to the 1x12 cabinet. The results are a high quality cable that you can re-terminate if damaged, which is a plus. There is only a slight cost savings compared to an equivalent level pre-made cable, so that wasn't the main motivator for me.

A guitar shop a few miles away stocks GeorgeL cables and plugs, so I can go there instead of the website.

[deeaa*]

I built a 15' instrument cable from GeorgeL's, as well as a speaker cable to patch from the Vypyr amp to the 1x12 cabinet. The results are a high quality cable that you can re-terminate if damaged, which is a plus. There is only a slight cost savings compared to an equivalent level pre-made cable, so that wasn't the main motivator for me.

A guitar shop a few miles away stocks GeorgeL cables and plugs, so I can go there instead of the website.

Yeah there are cons too, I'd say...it's kinda stiff and hard to coil due to that...but it seems nigh indestructible. I definitely like it for patch cords, backup cable and such, but not really for a guitar cable.