• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Gig-Proof Ethernet Cables?

BigRedX

BigRedX

May 1, 2006
564
41
#1
As part of my rig I use a Line6 Bass Pod and FBV Shortboard. The two connect using a standard Cat5e cable with RJ45 connectors. And to be blunt this system is simply not up to rigours of gigging.

Single stand conductor cables and standard plastic RJ45 plugs are fine for permanent network installation connections, but when you are plugging and unplugging them 2-3 times a week for gigs and rehearsals I'm lucky if they last more than a month or two. What normally happens is that the clip on the RJ45 plug breaks off and then the connector no longer seats reliably in the socket causing the Shortboard to stop working. Trying to crimp a new connector onto the end of the cable 5 minutes before I am due on stage is simply a non-starter.

So does anyone make a gig-proof cable and connector. I can't use Ethercon Connectors because they have to fit into the standard sockets on the Pod and Shortboard, but is there a more robust version of the normal RJ45 jack where the retaining clip isn't so easy to break off and fitted to a more heavy duty version of the Cat5e cable that will actually stand being coiled up and will lie flat when uncoiled?
 
#2
One thing people do is make a short pigtail ethernet cable and affix it to their pedal board. One end is just the regular RJ45, and the other has a barrel with an Ethercon and RJ45. Connect a 12" 'standard' cable between the barrel and your FBV Shortboard. With the barrel secured to your pedal board, you have a much more secure ancoring point for a cable with Ethercon connections.

You can do the same on the POD end. Or if the POD is in a rack, you can get rack plates with cutouts for inserting various connector barrels that you could put the Ethercon barrel in.

I am not aware of any heavy-duty RJ45 connectors other than Ethercon.
 
#3
I don't have a "pedal board" because the Shortboard is all I need. Which leaves nowhere to secure the barrel of the short lead with the ethercon connector.

I was hoping for a solution that didn't add more connectors into the cable but I'm guessing this isn't going to be an option. Also just had a look at various suppliers of EtherCon plugs and I can't find anyone producing an in-line socket which I'd need for this system to work.

Has anyone opened up a Shortboard to look at the feasibility of replacing the existing RJ45 socket with an ethercon?
 
#4
You could always attach the barrel to the back or side of the FBV with some double-sided tape or hotglue if you want something more permanant.

Before the AxeFx pedalboard was upgraded to native Ethercon, a lot of folks did the barrel trick with those pedalboards, too.
 
#6
What I did for my POD Pro and Floorboard was use plenum-rated shielded CAT6e cable, and shielded CAT6 RJ45 connectors. The teflon/PTFE jacket of the plenum cable combined with the overall shield yields a more robust, durable cable; the shielded RJ45 plugs are likewise a bit more overbuilt. (Note: I didn't actually tie the shields at either end, no sense opening that can of worms.)

Then I covered the whole cable with TechFlex braided sleeveing, secured with adhesive-lined heatshrink.

You could drive a tank over this cable! Only downside is that it's a bear to coil up.
 
#7
Roscoe East said:
What I did for my POD Pro and Floorboard was use plenum-rated shielded CAT6e cable, and shielded CAT6 RJ45 connectors. The teflon/PTFE jacket of the plenum cable combined with the overall shield yields a more robust, durable cable; the shielded RJ45 plugs are likewise a bit more overbuilt. (Note: I didn't actually tie the shields at either end, no sense opening that can of worms.)

Then I covered the whole cable with TechFlex braided sleeveing, secured with adhesive-lined heatshrink.

You could drive a tank over this cable! Only downside is that it's a bear to coil up.
Click to expand...

Are the latches on these plugs any more robust? This is the major weak point in the system, and once they've snapped off the plug no longer makes good enough contact in the socket to keep the Shortboard powered up.

However being able to coil the cable up and store it in the back of the amp rack is a necessary feature for me.
 
#12
BigRedX said:
Are the latches on these plugs any more robust? This is the major weak point in the system
Click to expand...

I think they're a little more durable than a typical all-plastic RJ45 plug, but it's also possible mine have been surviving more due to my (over)use of heatshrink and rubber boots than any inherent robustness of shielded connectors.

I remember once coming across a super heavy duty RJ45 plug in some electronics supply catalog, BTX perhaps?...thing was ridiculously overbuilt out of glass-fiber-reinforced kevlar or something over-the-top like that, had an odd-shaped rounded/bulbous housing that looked pretty darn indestructable...but of course I can't find it now, and any search I do for "Heavy duty RJ45 connector" just turns up all the Ethercon plugs.
 
#13
Thanks to everyone who's made suggestions so far.

The problem seems to be that I can find very little first hand experience for any of the non-standard plugs.

Has anyone come across "Industrial spec" RJ45 plugs like Invalid Link Removed and if so do you think it will be what I am after? And will it fit in a standard RJ45 socket.

I did look at taking the Shortboard apart to see how easy it would be to replace the socket with an EtherCON one, but even after removing all the screws from the base it still doesn't come apart...
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back