Headphones & Litz Wire: _Why?_

Archived from groups: rec.audio.pro (More info?)

hank alrich <walkinay@thegrid.net> wrote:
>With the help of RAPsters via Google's Advanced Group Search I have
>successfully repaired a set of A-T headphones. No MEK here, so I lit
>each wire end with a match and then dipped 'em in acetone and then
>scrubbed 'em with Q-Tips. I didn't think the tinning was working, but it
>did, and the phones work fine.
>
>But why is Litz wire used for this application? It certainly isn't lots
>of fun to fix things when connecting this stuff is desired.

It's not regular Litz wire either! It's woven with nylon strands in it
too, which is why it gets more brittle when you solder the ends.

The idea is that it's supposed to be extremely flexible but also be almost
impossible to rip or tear. And it works well enough for that, but you
can't solder it reliably so the factory connections are usually crimped.
The crimps sure _can_ rip and tear.
--scott

--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

Archived from groups: rec.audio.pro (More info?)

On Tue, 19 Apr 2005 23:59:36 GMT, walkinay@thegrid.net (hank alrich)
wrote:

>With the help of RAPsters via Google's Advanced Group Search I have
>successfully repaired a set of A-T headphones. No MEK here, so I lit
>each wire end with a match and then dipped 'em in acetone and then
>scrubbed 'em with Q-Tips. I didn't think the tinning was working, but it
>did, and the phones work fine.
>
>But why is Litz wire used for this application? It certainly isn't lots
>of fun to fix things when connecting this stuff is desired.

It isn't Litz wire - it is called tinsel wire, and the reason it is
used is that it is mega flexible, and won't work harden and break in
use as ordinary copper wire would.

d

Pearce Consulting
http://www.pearce.uk.com

Archived from groups: rec.audio.pro (More info?)

"Scott Dorsey" <kludge@panix.com> wrote in message
news447gc$s3f$1@panix2.panix.com...
> hank alrich <walkinay@thegrid.net> wrote:
>>With the help of RAPsters via Google's Advanced Group Search I have
>>successfully repaired a set of A-T headphones. No MEK here, so I lit
>>each wire end with a match and then dipped 'em in acetone and then
>>scrubbed 'em with Q-Tips. I didn't think the tinning was working, but it
>>did, and the phones work fine.
>>
>>But why is Litz wire used for this application? It certainly isn't lots
>>of fun to fix things when connecting this stuff is desired.
>
> It's not regular Litz wire either! It's woven with nylon strands in it
> too, which is why it gets more brittle when you solder the ends.
>
> The idea is that it's supposed to be extremely flexible but also be almost
> impossible to rip or tear. And it works well enough for that, but you
> can't solder it reliably so the factory connections are usually crimped.
> The crimps sure _can_ rip and tear.


If you use a very hot iron for around 20 sec, I find that the nylon tends to
burn sufficiently 'completely' away.

geoff

Archived from groups: rec.audio.pro (More info?)

In article <4266104d@clear.net.nz>, Geoff Wood <geoff@nospam-paf.co.nz> wrote:
>
>"Scott Dorsey" <kludge@panix.com> wrote in message
>news447gc$s3f$1@panix2.panix.com...
>> hank alrich <walkinay@thegrid.net> wrote:
>>>With the help of RAPsters via Google's Advanced Group Search I have
>>>successfully repaired a set of A-T headphones. No MEK here, so I lit
>>>each wire end with a match and then dipped 'em in acetone and then
>>>scrubbed 'em with Q-Tips. I didn't think the tinning was working, but it
>>>did, and the phones work fine.
>>>
>>>But why is Litz wire used for this application? It certainly isn't lots
>>>of fun to fix things when connecting this stuff is desired.
>>
>> It's not regular Litz wire either! It's woven with nylon strands in it
>> too, which is why it gets more brittle when you solder the ends.
>>
>> The idea is that it's supposed to be extremely flexible but also be almost
>> impossible to rip or tear. And it works well enough for that, but you
>> can't solder it reliably so the factory connections are usually crimped.
>> The crimps sure _can_ rip and tear.
>
>If you use a very hot iron for around 20 sec, I find that the nylon tends to
>burn sufficiently 'completely' away.

Right, but with the nylon gone, you are left with very fragile and thin
wires. At the solder join there is no nylon support, so the cable is
very apt to break there.
--scott

--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

Archived from groups: rec.audio.pro (More info?)

In article <d447gc$s3f$1@panix2.panix.com>, kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey)
wrote:

> hank alrich <walkinay@thegrid.net> wrote:
> >With the help of RAPsters via Google's Advanced Group Search I have
> >successfully repaired a set of A-T headphones. No MEK here, so I lit
> >each wire end with a match and then dipped 'em in acetone and then
> >scrubbed 'em with Q-Tips. I didn't think the tinning was working, but it
> >did, and the phones work fine.
> >
> >But why is Litz wire used for this application? It certainly isn't lots
> >of fun to fix things when connecting this stuff is desired.
>
> It's not regular Litz wire either! It's woven with nylon strands in it
> too, which is why it gets more brittle when you solder the ends.
>
> The idea is that it's supposed to be extremely flexible but also be almost
> impossible to rip or tear. And it works well enough for that, but you
> can't solder it reliably so the factory connections are usually crimped.
> The crimps sure _can_ rip and tear.
> --scott


I've repaired dozens of Sony MDR-V6 and 7506 phones just by dipping the end of
the wire in molten solder until it tins. It does stiffen the wire, but since
it's inside the plastic headphone housing or after the TRS strain relief that
doesn't seem to be a problem.

-Jay
--
x------- Jay Kadis ------- x---- Jay's Attic Studio ------x
x Lecturer, Audio Engineer x Dexter Records x
x CCRMA, Stanford University x http://www.offbeats.com/ x
x---------- http://ccrma.stanford.edu/~jay/ ------------x

Archived from groups: rec.audio.pro (More info?)

In article <jay-D1874C.07392920042005@news.stanford.edu> jay@ccrma.stanford.edu writes:

> I've repaired dozens of Sony MDR-V6 and 7506 phones just by dipping the end of
> the wire in molten solder until it tins.

Dipping the wire in liquid flux before soldering is also helpful when
tinning this sort of wire.


--
I'm really Mike Rivers - (mrivers@d-and-d.com)
However, until the spam goes away or Hell freezes over,
lots of IP addresses are blocked from this system. If
you e-mail me and it bounces, use your secret decoder ring
and reach me here: double-m-eleven-double-zero at yahoo