[Elecraft] Headphones and extension cable - leave plugged in?

[Bill Blomgren (kk4qdz) via Elecraft]

In the broadcast stations I worked at over the year, the audio patch panels had a lot of activity.. but there were basic ground rules to make sure something 'bad' didn't happen in the middle of a live show..

1) you plug and unplug the connection 2-3 times before leaving the cable hanging.  (Periodically they got cleaned and lubed, but the connections will oxydize over time....

2) you always test the connection with the studio so that you don't have a surprise.

With video cables, it was not as common to have issues, because there was always a plug in the connections for the 'normal' feed. (Video didn't use the contacts in the patch bay to provide the 'normal' connections.

There were some audio cables that were left in place for months in some cases.. Periodically they would get the same "reseat" action to make sure that there was no problem.  (Example: control room reconstruction.)

The sheer volume of contacts and cables in that environment makes replacement difficult to impossible (well, until the switch to HD, which meant everything had to change..)


KK4QDZ - Now with Extra Class Priv's, and a tiny KX3 to enjoy them!

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On Sat, 7/19/14, Don Wilhelm <w3fpr at embarqmail.com> wrote:

 Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Headphones and extension cable - leave plugged in? 
 IMHO, the trouble of
 removing the plug and plugging it back in is not 
 worth the cost of a replacement cable.  I
 suspect it has worked fine for 
 several
 years.  If not, look for a better quality cable.
 
 In case the problem is caused by contact oxidation, removing the plug 
 and  re-inserting it several times should wipe the contact area
 and  restore it to normal operation.