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Most Reliable Patch Cables
- Thread starter shaolinwhat
- Start date
I agree that George Ls are definitely convenient and great for making a neat pedalboard, but are not what I would call reliable. Just the first 10' roll I bought made about 13 or 14 sections, two of which I cannot get to work at all even to this day, and two more are completely dodgy (cutting in and out when you wiggle them).
I know everyone says its easy to make your own, but I don't know how to solder, and everyone seems to think that learning to solder is this easy thing that everyone should be able to figure out, but it just ain't so.
I know everyone says its easy to make your own, but I don't know how to solder, and everyone seems to think that learning to solder is this easy thing that everyone should be able to figure out, but it just ain't so.
Not the crappy Live Wire ones they sell in the little bucket right by the cash register at Guitar Center. POS!
<snip>I use these. The Dimarzio cables are also excellent. Same nylon and very small heads.
I have one of those POS GC bucket cables on my board and haven't had any issues with it.
I also have a few of these on my board.
http://accessories.musiciansfriend....33015&src=3WFRWXX&ZYXSEM=0&CAWELAID=199458293
Got em at a local store when it was all I could find without going to GC. The jacks are a little unwieldy but they've served me well.
The dimarzio one came about when I needed one on a Sunday and the local guys weren't open because <ding> it was Sunday.
Once I acquire some soldering skills and a soldering iron this is what I want to be doing. I'd like to use those pancake input jacks; like on DT's board, for space saving reasons.
Yeah, I do know that it can be tricky to get the hang of. In theory lots of things are easy (Oh, to play the bass you just put your fingers on the strings and pluck!
). If you have time and desire, I'd imagine that most people could do it, but with time and desire most people can do most things. I practiced for a while before getting the hang of it, and in my case it's a useful skill to have. If you're too busy, there's nothing wrong with paying someone else to make cables.
i mod my George L's, & have had ZERO issues with them, have used the same cables on my board for almost 5 years, again, ZERO issues 
Here's a thought.
This also works really well to change the level of your pedals to allow for more extreme angles on your patch cables, even out footswitch heights, or to stack I/O jacks to squeeze a little more space out of the pedal. On this board I have my Small Stone and my loop/blend on risers. On the SS it allows me to have it jammed between 3 taller pedals and still stomp it, as well as stacking jacks next to the BSW. On the loop/blend it allows me to run the four outputs at the top straight down and run them around the pedal board from there.
if you are handy with a soldering iron and have the time to make 100patch cables... this is the best way...
but if your not... i say buy good quality... KLOTZ never let me down i use their patch cables or if the standards don't fit i make my own
but if your not... i say buy good quality... KLOTZ never let me down i use their patch cables or if the standards don't fit i make my own
What do you mean by "mod" your George L's? Some different way of constructing them? I notice the jackets you use, I'd imagine those help.
You ain't kidding. I bought a couple a few weeks ago, and one of them crapped out on its first use.
- Dec 27, 2008
- 151
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i mod my George L's, & have had ZERO issues with them, have used the same cables on my board for almost 5 years, again, ZERO issues
Hey Dog, please explain! Cables look A+ but i only recognize that square plug as being George L. Damn sexy cables man....
B.
I guess I have good luck with mine, I have 2 GC 6" angled patch cables that I've never had issues with, although they are on both input and output of my russian muff (jacks are on the back instead of sides, and input on the left output on the right) so they fit perfectly around the corners and into the pedals on either side of it.
One thing I love are the straight or offset connectors they sell on musiciansfriend here, solid metal pieces to connect adjacent pedals, never have to worry about those failing!
One thing I love are the straight or offset connectors they sell on musiciansfriend here, solid metal pieces to connect adjacent pedals, never have to worry about those failing!
I don't know how to solder either.
I just got a friend who knows do it for me.
I'm sure you can find a family member or friend that may be able to help you out. Aside from being more cost-effective, making the cables allowed me to build them to the exact length I needed for each pedal.
If not, then get some pre-made cables or George Ls like others have suggested.
Here's a thought.
This also works really well to change the level of your pedals to allow for more extreme angles on your patch cables, even out footswitch heights, or to stack I/O jacks to squeeze a little more space out of the pedal. On this board I have my Small Stone and my loop/blend on risers. On the SS it allows me to have it jammed between 3 taller pedals and still stomp it, as well as stacking jacks next to the BSW. On the loop/blend it allows me to run the four outputs at the top straight down and run them around the pedal board from there.
i actually like that idea, although i took the feet off my wah a long time ago thinking it would allow the velcro on it to lay flat on the board, didnt really work. but this should still be doable, now if i only i had some of those discs...
No one I know knows how to solder, at least not that I'm aware of. But anyways, as I said before, I do use George L's; I'm just not altogether happy with them, as I've found them to be just as unreliable as any pre-made pedal. They just happen to be convenient for pedal-board purposes
I've had great success with George L's when I....
A) Put them together correctly. (you have to make sure you bend the cable enough that the cap you screw in cuts the wire enough to have a strong connection)(on rt. angle).
B) Don't plug/unplug 10 times a day reorganizing my board. (point A has a lot to do with this as well)
As far as soldering goes...Making your own cables is probably the easiest soldering job there could be. Here's a good "how to solder" article. http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-solder/
A) Put them together correctly. (you have to make sure you bend the cable enough that the cap you screw in cuts the wire enough to have a strong connection)(on rt. angle).
B) Don't plug/unplug 10 times a day reorganizing my board. (point A has a lot to do with this as well)
As far as soldering goes...Making your own cables is probably the easiest soldering job there could be. Here's a good "how to solder" article. http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-solder/
bayoucables.com makes great, durable, custom cables, but they come to around $11 for a patch cord which may be more than you want to spend. They are a better value when it comes to longer cables though.
I've had approx 20% of my George L's crapping out on me while playing. I've had a few who didnt work from the start because I didn't assemble them properly, but those 20% failed after a few months. so I consider that unreliable..
I dont have either the skills or the equipment to solder, so now I ordered a batch of various patch cable from Butch at bayoucables, it's even cheaper than buying neutrik patch cables here in Europe directly!
I dont have either the skills or the equipment to solder, so now I ordered a batch of various patch cable from Butch at bayoucables, it's even cheaper than buying neutrik patch cables here in Europe directly!
