Loose connections on mesa subway cabs

[agedhorse]

Whatever the outcome, please share the solution. Right now it appears that the problems were caused by knock-off/counterfeit plugs. Trust me, you’re not the first to have had this happen with a knock-off connector and you won’t be the last.
I bought some off Amazon, but after reading the “horror” stories here at TB, I threw them away.
Also, if I’d bought any cables thst had knock-off/counterfeit connectors, they would be the first to hear from me about the damage they caused.

On the standard NL4 jacks, the contacts are wiping fingers, on the combo jacks the contacts are a wiping beam style contact. The internal construction is different.

It's generally harder to damage the wiping beam style of contact, but if the plug's mating contact rod becomes dislodged, it can bend the wiping beam contact whereas it folds over the wiping contacts on the standard NL4 jack.

I sometimes receive crossovers or amps with a knock-off plug jammed tight into the jack because the internal guts of the plug came apart. This can also happen when somebody solders a genuine Neurik plug (which distorts the plug's plastic housing) instead of using the binding screw connection... never solder SpeakOn plugs.

 

[bullgoose76]

Two examples where we don't know what was/is really going on. When I offer to help get this resolved and don't get taken up on it (or even a response to my offer), this raises additional questions (including the development of urban mythology) to me.

We have tens of thousands of these combo jacks out in the real world and rarely have an issue with the jacks themselves. Almost always, it comes down to knock-off or counterfeit plugs, damage caused by knock-off or counterfeit plugs, or the cabinet took a fall and landed on the plug (usually breaking the connector and sometimes bending the jack plate itself).

The woofer cutting out with only the tweeter working is 100% NOT the speaker jack, so don't go bending things around and creating a new problem. This is the reason why PROPER troubleshooting is

Two examples where we don't know what was/is really going on. When I offer to help get this resolved and don't get taken up on it (or even a response to my offer), this raises additional questions (including the development of urban mythology) to me.

We have tens of thousands of these combo jacks out in the real world and rarely have an issue with the jacks themselves. Almost always, it comes down to knock-off or counterfeit plugs, damage caused by knock-off or counterfeit plugs, or the cabinet took a fall and landed on the plug (usually breaking the connector and sometimes bending the jack plate itself).

The woofer cutting out with only the tweeter working is 100% NOT the speaker jack, so don't go bending things around and creating a new problem. This is the reason why PROPER troubleshooting is so this cab is going back and yes its difficult to know what’s going on all I can say is the ampethe others are getting new plugs, when I have time.

Two examples where we don't know what was/is really going on. When I offer to help get this resolved and don't get taken up on it (or even a response to my offer), this raises additional questions (including the development of urban mythology) to me.

We have tens of thousands of these combo jacks out in the real world and rarely have an issue with the jacks themselves. Almost always, it comes down to knock-off or counterfeit plugs, damage caused by knock-off or counterfeit plugs, or the cabinet took a fall and landed on the plug (usually breaking the connector and sometimes bending the jack plate itself).

The woofer cutting out with only the tweeter working is 100% NOT the speaker jack, so don't go bending things around and creating a new problem. This is the reason why PROPER troubleshooting is so important.

I wouldn’t be so dumb to start bending, this cab is going back to the shop the rest of them are getting new jacks when I have time, all that is certain is all the other cabs I have all work with any cable I put in whilst the mesas struggle. That is it. Thanks for replying everyone.

 

[agedhorse]

I wouldn’t be so dumb to start bending, this cab is going back to the shop the rest of them are getting new jacks when I have time, all that is certain is all the other cabs I have all work with any cable I put in whilst the mesas struggle. That is it. Thanks for replying everyone.

Ok, good luck then.

 

[DJ Bebop]

I have a pair of the cables with the brown Neutrik connectors and they work fine for me. I also have cables with the older blue Neutrik connectors that also work fine. I did have in my collection of cables two that looked just like the others but the connectors were knock offs. Those cables went in the trash where they belong.

I'm cheap. I would have replaced the connectors with real Neutrik ends and saved the cables

I did that to a bunch of knock-off Neutrik cables I got in a box of cables from a yard sale. 4 were real deal Neutriks, 3 were knock-offs.

 

[Twohearted]

I was actually calling Mesa support today and found out they are closed on Friday's. I have two cabinets recently purchased brand new and they both do the same thing. A couple practices I noticed my volume levels were low and started to think I had a cable short. Turns out both cabinets will go completely silent if I barely touch/twist the speak on cable once properly plugged in at the cabinet end. This only happens on the speaker side, I can reverse the cable and try the same test on the amp (wd800) and it doesn't cut the feed. I have only used official Neutrik cables which have the brown connectors NL2FXX-W-S purchased from reputable vendor at the same time as my amp and cabinets.

 

[eniac]

You know what would be really scary? If Asian knockoff panel connectors have breached the supply chain and they look exactly like genuine Neutriks, down to the last detail, except no one's discovered it yet. (Just like some of those bargain Icepower boards you find on eBay from time to time. I bought one of those out of curiosity years ago to replace a genuine one. Couldn't tell the difference visually.)

Or maybe the metallurgy isn't quite to spec on certain batches of panel connectors. I got bit a few years ago by turret boards that looked fine but couldn't hold solder connections worth a damn. Visually the connections looked normal but I could peel soldered wires off with my bare fingers with minimal effort.

(I spent about a decade working in Manufacturing Engineering at a huge computer company. This is just how my imagination works. Maybe I inhaled too many fumes from the wave soldering machines.)

 

[agedhorse]

I was actually calling Mesa support today and found out they are closed on Friday's. I have two cabinets recently purchased brand new and they both do the same thing. A couple practices I noticed my volume levels were low and started to think I had a cable short. Turns out both cabinets will go completely silent if I barely touch/twist the speak on cable once properly plugged in at the cabinet end. This only happens on the speaker side, I can reverse the cable and try the same test on the amp (wd800) and it doesn't cut the feed. I have only used official Neutrik cables which have the brown connectors NL2FXX-W-S purchased from reputable vendor at the same time as my amp and cabinets.

Does it do the same thing with the other jacks on the cabinet (you can use either one, they are wired in parallel)?

The combo jacks on the cabinets are internally constructed differently than the NL4 jacks on the amps.

The factory is closed through the holidays, I will be helping out here.

 

[Twohearted]

Does it do the same thing with the other jacks on the cabinet (you can use either one, they are wired in parallel)?

The combo jacks on the cabinets are internally constructed differently than the NL4 jacks on the amps.

The factory is closed through the holidays, I will be helping out here.

I have a 1-15 subway and a 2x10 subway and tested all 4 jacks. They all behaved in the same manor (the slightest jiggle would cause the cabinet to go quiet)

 

[agedhorse]

I have a 1-15 subway and a 2x10 subway and tested all 4 jacks. They all behaved in the same manor (the slightest jiggle would cause the cabinet to go quiet)

This tells me that there is something wrong with the plugs and not the jacks. The chance of 4 bad jacks is just about zero.

I’m seeing some potential issues with the newer brown plugs, do you have any cables with the earlier blue plugs that you can try?

 

[Twohearted]

This tells me that there is something wrong with the plugs and not the jacks. The chance of 4 bad jacks is just about zero.

I’m seeing some potential issues with the newer brown plugs, do you have any cables with the earlier blue plugs that you can try?

I don't unfortunately, I will need to head out and see I can pick a couple up tomorrow.

 

[agedhorse]

I don't unfortunately, I will need to head out and see I can pick a couple up tomorrow.

Let me know if those work fine.

 

[Chuck M]

I am wondering if Neutrik made a run of connectors with problems. I have two cables with the brown Neutrik connectors and they work perfectly.

 

[agedhorse]

I am wondering if Neutrik made a run of connectors with problems. I have two cables with the brown Neutrik connectors and they work perfectly.

Good question, one that I will be investigating after the holidays.

 

[Twohearted]

Let me know if those work fine.

I headed out today and could not find any blue Neutrik connectors at my local stores. But I still decided to buy 2 new cables to test and unfortunately they have the same results..

 

[eniac]

Someone who's having problems should take one of those connectors apart and see if the wiring looks solid. Even if it does, it might be worth cutting back an inch or so, re-stripping, re-fastening the (newly-stripped) wires to the connector, re-assembling the thing, and checking if the problem still exists. Granted, it's a "shotgun move" but it might pay off. Might be worth taking some hi-res photos during the process, too.

 

[beans-on-toast]

I headed out today and could not find any blue Neutrik connectors at my local stores. But I still decided to buy 2 new cables to test and unfortunately they have the same results..

If you can, try holding the connector so that it doesn’t move, then wiggle the wire and see what happens.

 

[rok51]

I’m seeing some potential issues with the newer brown plugs…

I just made up some Speakon cables but didn’t want to use the new brown versions. I had initially heard that the new brown and green ones needed a special Neutrik tool to disassemble, which of course wasn’t cheap. There might be a work around, but I just don’t like the concept. So I was able to source a lot of the old blue NL4-FX connectors while I could still find them at a reasonable price.

Actually it seems as though the new tools have dropped in price since I first looked. The HTLACA is between $35 and $50, while the companion HTLCB runs about $35. Still a lot, IMHO, for something that I could do by hand with the discontinued blue ones.

Kim

 

[rok51]

From twohearted’s video, it appears as though a pure rotational movement is causing the disconnect. I wonder if the size and placement of the contacts inside the new connectors is exactly identical to the discontinued blue NL4-FX connectors?

Kim

 

[agedhorse]

From twohearted’s video, it appears as though a pure rotational movement is causing the disconnect. I wonder if the size and placement of the contacts inside the new connectors is exactly identical to the discontinued blue NL4-FX connectors?

Kim

I have heard that they appear to fit looser than the original ones... if that's true than I can't think of a worse fail in recent times.

 

[agedhorse]

I headed out today and could not find any blue Neutrik connectors at my local stores. But I still decided to buy 2 new cables to test and unfortunately they have the same results..

Are you turning them all the way clockwise until they click?