Speakon was originally intended is for higher power output. Why not label the cables or use something that looks different from the instrument cables?
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WHY ARE WE STILL USING 1/4" JACKS!
- Thread starter georgiagoodie
- Start date
Speakon was originally intended is for higher power output. Why not label the cables or use something that looks different from the instrument cables?
The OP makes a good point. The technology is quite primitive for a connector, notwithstanding its 'standard' usage. But most electric guitars and basses are very primitive with their electronics, and people invoke the 'tone' argument to protect that primitive technology. The 1/4" connectors work with a cable diameter that seems reasonable for touring and stage work, and any thicker it would be cumbersome, any thinner it would be vulnerable to cable failure, and connector failure. Everyone has encountered a cheap ear phone connector cable failure, they are not robust enough for performance usage, and yes I know about in ear cables and connectors.... on that score it would be possible to use 3.5mm connectors that offer locking connection, like with several wireless units, and those can take cables for a 1/4" diameter.....I would not like to subject those to high strain though. I'd be happy to use XLR connectors for instruments, you can swing a mic and it would take the strain, and they would be robust too. From a manufacturing perspective, it would be more expensive to fit instruments with XLR connectors, too finicky to use IT cable connectors, and too much of a paradigm shift to expect from a market that is not ready to change.
Actually, it's very EARLY 20th Century- 1/4" plugs were used for the first telephone system switchboards.
If the connections become loose, it's because the spring tension isn't adequate and a better part should be used but that doesn't make 1/4" worse on any absolute level. I have a '58 Bassman that has all of its original jacks and they have absolutely no problem holding onto the plugs. Also, every time a plug is inserted and removed, it cleans both. If you have ever used sandpaper on a jack or plug, THAT'S why is crackles. The nickel plating keeps it from corroding.
Hi,
Speakon wasn't invented for a sonic difference. It was generated in Europe to prevent a shock hazard with banana plugs. Nobody ever died from banana plugs.... Sonically I would bet on the banana plugs as they are still used in Labs etc.. But can u ever tell the difference who knows !!
Bill
Speakon wasn't invented for a sonic difference. It was generated in Europe to prevent a shock hazard with banana plugs. Nobody ever died from banana plugs.... Sonically I would bet on the banana plugs as they are still used in Labs etc.. But can u ever tell the difference who knows !!
Bill
I never said anything was clearly superior to 1/4" plugs & jacks, for instruments anyway. What I said was, in context, that if there were to be a connector developed that is clearly superior to 1/4", then I wouldn't mind hauling a couple extra cables to gigs.
I thought the hypothetical nature of my response was obvious. Apparently it wasn't -- at least not to everybody.
Hopkins
Commercial User
Aesthetics are still important, and locking 1/4" and XLR jacks are both pretty ugly. There is no reason at all to overhaul something that is already so standardized and works so well. It seems that some people want change for the sake of change.
Wouldn't go quite that far with it, but yeah, I'm content with the status quo and will be unless something so revolutionary comes out that it's undeniable. And for me, speakons and XLR's ain't it.
I'm having a hard time swallowing the whole "loose connection" bit with 1/4 jacks. It's as simple as bending a tiny piece of metal a millimeter or two to make better contact. If that doesn't work (and if its a decent jack, there's absolutely no reason why it shouldn't) it can be replaced for less than a gallon of gas.
Just George
Fingers on 4 Flatwounds
- Dec 29, 2008
- 412
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- Artist Relationship: Wilkins-Ampeg-La Bella
I've been using them for the last 50 years and they have worked just fine for me.
There might be better connections available, but why? We have a standard, and it works. Both ends of the cable are the same, and are universal. In today's world, such a simple agreement doesn't seem possible. Every company would arrive at it's own "best possible connection" and we'd have to carry a sack of adapters around.
By extension, if major players had expressed or experienced any significant issues this would have been addressed. I'm by nature and inclination a progressive person - in other words, no problems with changes for the better. I have played a lot and any of our current options (XLR, Speakon) would only slow a 'hot-swap' situation onstage. Hence not preferable.
1/4" version 2.0 is coming in 2016. It's almost ten thousand times faster than a standard 1/4" cable and will be reverse compatible. You also use the new 1/4" 2.0 cable as a jump rope.
For the same reason cars still have carburetors on them.
Oh, wait, that's just mine.... The opposite reason then! There hasn't been a definitively better option yet to make it worth switching.
My $.02.
-Jake
Oh, wait, that's just mine.... The opposite reason then! There hasn't been a definitively better option yet to make it worth switching.
My $.02.
-Jake
+1 ^
Yup. Thankfully there are standards set up. Imagine trying to plug in a power cord that isn't standard... oh, wait, I already do that travelling between Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, Australia, N. America etc. (really, what's with the humungous plugs? the world standard electrical plug should be the svelte N. American one into 110). Carrying adapters is a pain, forgetting to carry them is even more aggravating.
I'm cool with amp-speaker Speakon cables, for safety and to differentiate them from instrument cables. As for wireless, we're still plugging from the instrument to the transmitter; receiver to the amp with... 1/4". Quarter-inch jacks is a standard I don't see going away for a long while.
Otherwise, we might run into the problems associated with bicycle bottom bracket "standards".
English Thread vs Italian Thread and a handful of BB widths has given way to dozens of "standard" bicycle bottom brackets. Makes repairing and swapping parts on bikes a PITA. While there have been several improvements over the old square taper BBs of the past, now there is too much proprietary being passed off as standard.
Vintage instruments and amps work together with modern amps and instruments thanks to the humble 1/4" cable...
[c]Amen (ie, common)
maybe a snap jack magnet connector minus the 1/4"...
Those magnets are surprisingly strong for those of you who haven't tried one.
I have one of those, (And like it) and they were branching out into another connectors you could attach-like USB, etc.
I don't what they're doing now though.
Well it's true that since the first 1/4" plugs were designed for telephone switchboards they are relatively fast! But on an instrument they aren't quite what you want. For one, they don't have enough wires. They have single-ended signals and can't power the (active) bass. An XLR would be a much better option.
Why? Because they have balanced signals for hum rejection. They can supply phantom power and are relatively standard. But that's a problem too. You don't want a bass plug to be the same as a mic plug because the bass has a line level output and the mic is low level. That is why a good connector is so important on a mic. And another downside of an XLR is they are larger and more ugly than a 1/4" connector.
As for me, my choice would be something like a 5 pin XLR connector. It's different from a mic, but has enough wires for a balanced line and also power to active basses, LEDs, whatever.
So what do I have on my basses? It's a TRS system. Power is supplied by the "ring" line. It has the advantage that I don't need to undergo a massive re-jacking of all my basses. And going with larger XLR jacks means wood work etc. Not something to look forward to. So we leave the output single ended. It's OK because it's a high level output anyway.
And another feature of this is that many active basses use the ring terminal as a battery "-" switch. So If I make a shorting clip that goes where the battery is and feed 9 volts into the "ring" line it powers the active bass. On my amps I have a switch that turns off the 9 volts and grounds the ring line for basses that still have a battery which allows me to use the same TRS cord. On passive basses you can use the power to run marker LEDs on a fretless etc.
Of course 1/4" connectors DO suck for a number of reasons, and one is that the tip and ring short to ground as you shove them in the jack. For this reason my 9 volt supply has to have short protection so that doesn't blow it if you forget to turn power off when pulling or inserting plugs.
So like everybody else here, even though I'n going with an advanced system, I'm still sticking with 1/4" plugs because I don't want to fight standards and have to rewire every bass I own. Point is that yeah, SOME 1/4" plugs suck, but some are also quite nice. Gold plated. Well shielded. And decent strain relief on the wires. And they are reasonably decent prices as well.
The "why" of why we still use them is quite simple:
They are robust.
They are simple.
They are versatile.
They are small.
They are cheap.
They are ubiquitous.
They work.
As you have recognized, they are not perfect. But, they are also not without their advantages. There is no "perfect" replacement, only replacements that offer different pluses and minuses.
They are robust.
They are simple.
They are versatile.
They are small.
They are cheap.
They are ubiquitous.
They work.
As you have recognized, they are not perfect. But, they are also not without their advantages. There is no "perfect" replacement, only replacements that offer different pluses and minuses.
