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Why do patch cords Die?

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  • Why do patch cords Die?

    I was wondering why do 1/4in plugs go bad over time . I hate to junk good plugs I have had for 30 yrs When I put on my little DMM they only show .4 of R But one patch cord make my 63 crackle...It not that I cant get a new one I was just wondering

  • #2
    It's the same reason drill bits go bad. Nothing lasts forever. 30 years ain't bad.
    Last edited by The Dude; 04-16-2019, 11:21 PM.
    "I took a photo of my ohm meter... It didn't help." Enzo 8/20/22

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    • #3
      I've been using the same Switchcraft 280 shielded T/S plugs on my unbalance guitar cords and instrumentation adapters, as well as Pomona 1297 BNC Female to Male Switchcraft T/S plugs for decades. One of the '1297's has worn thru the plating and has exposed brass, but, still continues to work fine. Some that haven't been used in a while always seem to clean up ok. I have more issues with the aging Switchcraft A3M & A3F cable XLR connectors, where their silver pins oxidize. Caig Gold Wipes usually restore them to decent condition.
      Logic is an organized way of going wrong with confidence

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      • #4
        Intended or not, you make a good point. You get what you pay for.
        "I took a photo of my ohm meter... It didn't help." Enzo 8/20/22

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        • #5
          I'd dip those silver contacts in jewelry cleaner.

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          • #6
            The plug is made up as a rivet. The rivet gets loose and the whole thing can rotate inside. Loose.
            Education is what you're left with after you have forgotten what you have learned.

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            • #7
              I'd say all the cables I've ever gotten in my life are equally good - they all last the same amount of time before they break or malfunction in some way. But this is where I will stand by a Switchcraft every single time: they are MUCH more repairable than Neutrik and other nameless connectors. I also find Switchcraft ends able to take alot more bending before the snap. I can always use either solder or super glue to fix them.

              Now, if I get a bad spot in a cable, I'll wiggle it inch by inch til I find the bad spot & make more cables out of it.

              Justin
              "Wow it's red! That doesn't look like the standard Marshall red. It's more like hooker lipstick/clown nose/poodle pecker red." - Chuck H. -
              "Of course that means playing **LOUD** , best but useless solution to modern sissy snowflake players." - J.M. Fahey -
              "All I ever managed to do with that amp was... kill small rodents within a 50 yard radius of my practice building." - Tone Meister -

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              • #8
                I find the broken point using my multimeterīs capacitance meter.
                I made an adapter: a jack with 2 short brass pigtails, some 2 cm long which I plug into the meter socket and then plug one end of the cable in the jack, then the other.
                Suppose one end measures 100pF, the other end 200pF, now I know the break is 1/3 of cable length,starting from the lower capacitance side.
                That "100pF per foot/meter" spec found on cable datasheets sure comes handy.
                Notice I donīt care about absolute capacitance value, just the ratio.
                Juan Manuel Fahey

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by Enzo View Post
                  The plug is made up as a rivet. The rivet gets loose and the whole thing can rotate inside. Loose.
                  Good point. I've had to flare that rivet on a couple plugs over the years as a result of the whole assembly getting loose.
                  Logic is an organized way of going wrong with confidence

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