Fixing headphone cable

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Jackdurnford

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Apr 29, 2014
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Hi there, I own a pair of QPAD QH-90 headphones (remodel of the Takstar pro80 without the mic) and the left speaker has gone. I'm assuming it could be the headphone jack, so I'm looking into replacing it.

Below are a couple of images of the cable!

2nutyzo.jpg


11rygyc.jpg


What would be the best way to accomplish this?.. being that it has two cables..

Would it be a case of cutting the wire before the wires split, and then soldering them into a new
3.5mm 4 Pole jack?


Any information is appreciated!

Thank you
 
Solution
Ironsounds
Hello... 1) You could try and find the bad location by wiggling the cable in different locations and see if you can get a sound/click from the left speaker.
2) Yes I would first look/disassemble the Left speaker at the headphone, and inspect the solder joints and wires there first... before cutting any cable insulation... i've seen a many wires go bad at the headphone Cup, or the wire is broken off at the solder Joint to the Speaker.
3) You can see how small the wires are and are very fragile to breaking, you will need a least 25 watt soldering Iron to make this repair... 40 watt will work also, the wattage will determine the physical size of the Tool you will be comfortable working with... Also more wattage means faster melting of...
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Ironsounds

Ironsounds

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Jul 31, 2011
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Hello... both the existing connectors are RTS ring/tip/sleeve 3.5mm male connectors... a standard stereo headphone replacement would be the same... they are not 4 pole connectors.

Is one cable for microphone and the other for speakers? Determine the connector for the speakers and cut open that cable insulation/jacket and determine the color code/insulation of the wires used for the left Speaker, pull on that wire insulation only and you will find where the wire is broken... If the insulation doesn't pull out... the wire is not bad there.

TRY cutting the "insulation Jacket" at the Split... Dont cut the wires!!! I found that you can pull on that wire insulation only and you will find where the wire is broken for your left speaker... as the insulation will pull away easily and cleanly, showing you where and how far in the cable your wire is broken.

Do you have a soldering iron? do you have a Radio Shack? or Do EBAY? I can direct you for good replacement parts.
 
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Jackdurnford

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Apr 29, 2014
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Thanks for the responses guys!

Ok I'll give this a go! Thank you. So just to clarify, cut the speakers cable outter insulation to reveal the inner cables (left and right speaker cables), determine which one is right, and pull it a little to check if cable is broken along the line somewhere.

Should I cut directly ontop of the split? And then cut the outter headphone insulation from there?

Surely though if this is a problem with the jack, it won't do anything once I try pull the cable right?

I don't have a soldering iron, and I do use ebay, if you could direct me to replacement parts that would be great!

I just bought heat shrink tubing.

How are these for soldering irons? or perhaps .


p.s I found this link, these are the exact same as mine inside.

Thank you!
 
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Ironsounds

Ironsounds

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Jul 31, 2011
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Hello... 1) You could try and find the bad location by wiggling the cable in different locations and see if you can get a sound/click from the left speaker.
2) Yes I would first look/disassemble the Left speaker at the headphone, and inspect the solder joints and wires there first... before cutting any cable insulation... i've seen a many wires go bad at the headphone Cup, or the wire is broken off at the solder Joint to the Speaker.
3) You can see how small the wires are and are very fragile to breaking, you will need a least 25 watt soldering Iron to make this repair... 40 watt will work also, the wattage will determine the physical size of the Tool you will be comfortable working with... Also more wattage means faster melting of solder, But also faster melting of the insulation of the wire your try to solder in its place... wrap small wire insulation with water soaked cloth or paper towel to prevent the insulation melting.
4) Basically your trying to be a doctor and doing precision exploratory cuts to the jacket of the cable, to try and determine where your wire break is... and to be able to determine which section of the cable is bad by pulling on the insulation... I would not try and cut the molded Splice it self, but rather behind it, the headphone side.
5) Take your time and understand that they put this together... and there must be a easy way to take them back apart for repair.
6) The size of the Wire make this a tough project to strip the wires, because you could easily "nick" the wire causing another future break, so also get some tips on stripping wire online.
 
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Solution
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Jackdurnford

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Apr 29, 2014
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Thank you very much Ironsounds, that's really helpful! I'm going to do what you've recommended on Monday when I get my equipment. In the meantime, I've tried wiggling the cable around thoroughly all the way down whilst playing music, and I'm not hearing even a slight sound or click from the broken side. Could that perhaps mean the speaker itself has died in some way?.. That would be a shame..
 
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Ironsounds

Ironsounds

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Jul 31, 2011
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Hello... Speakers are pretty tuff in headphones... I have a couple 40 year old ones still working... but new cables and custom ear pads on them...B )
I would first look/disassemble the Left speaker at the headphone, and inspect the solder joints and wires there first... before cutting any cable insulation... i've seen a many wires go bad at the headphone Cup, or the wire is broken off at the solder Joint to the Speaker because of a nicked wire, or the strain relief on speaker cup did not hold the cable jacket tight enuff.
 
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Jackdurnford

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Apr 29, 2014
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Hi there, I managed to fix them today! I first inspected the wiring within the headphone cup and everything seemed fine. So I moved onto snipping the wire housing and pulling on the wire slightly to look for a break, but no luck.

Being as inpatient as I am, I ended up cutting the headphone jack off the headset, going out and buying a cheap £1 set of earphones, cut the jack off, and attached it to my headset, and both speakers are now working! So it seems it was a problem in the connector after all.

I shall soon receive my soldering iron, a 3.5mm connector and heat shrink tubing so I can make a cleaner and stronger connection.

Out of interest, is there any way in which I could fit one of these into my headphone cup to make the headset modular? As far as I know, this will only take ground and speakers wires right? Is there a socket I could buy to take the mic wire as well? (I think thats 4pin?).

I really appreciate the input Ironsounds, thank you. I'm off to fix my brothers headphones next week! haha
 
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Ironsounds

Ironsounds

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Jul 31, 2011
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Hello... yes, a many of my guitar cables go bad right behind the Connector/Jack due to constant flexing... and I simplly cut back the cable and attach a new none molded connector to them.
You have Two seperate circuits and 5 wires total...
1) Spkr L+ Spkr R+ Spkr -
2) Mic+ Mic-
The Low Cost type of Jack you want is called a PANEL MOUNT http://www.ebay.com/itm/2pcs-1-8-3-5mm-Stereo-Audio-Female-Jack-Panel-Mount-4-Headphone-Earphone-C216-/360470887806?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item53edbd3d7e just for a quick connect Speaker Circuit...
You could use the same connector just for a the MIC circuit ( solder the Ring and TIP together ) and is now a Standard 3.5mm MONO MIC Connector. You can use both Stereo and Mono and Connectors/Cables in these same connector... Now you have a easy to buy and replacement cable connectors on your headphones, for both mic and Spkrs.

When you start to deal with more than 3 wire connectors, You must go to a panel mount Mini DIN connector and you will have to make Custom cables for your needs... and also finding and buying multi conductor cable in bulk becomes your next problem... a certain satifaction can come from what you are thinking and handy work... But in a business/factory type situation you want something fast and cheap to get your MIC and headphones working agian.

https://www.google.com/search?q=panel+mount+mini+Din&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=RZl7U9PALsufqAa824KoAg&ved=0CEwQsAQ
http://www.ebay.com/itm/DIN-Female-Jack-Cable-Connector-adapter-5-Pin-plug-panel-mount-solder-type-/280758416755?pt=US_Audio_Cable_Plugs_Jacks&hash=item415e817573

AKG uses a replacement cable for some of their headphone models and use a mini xlr connector. http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/K240Cable/

My first solding Iron Changed my LIFE at a young age... B )
 
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