AUDIO EQUIPMENT

The Short story on 3.5mm Cables, Understanding Stereo Cables

Without cables and signals it is somewhat difficult to connect devices for optimal performance. These cables come in various shapes and sizes, for example 3.5mm cables. In a recording studio, for example, signals are connected with a series of geared cables. An amateur in audio technology would commonly misunderstand the technical term for audio jacks or stereo plugs, which are professionally called TRS connectors (tip, ring, and sleeve). Most recently 3.5mm cables are referred to as MP3 jacks or Stereo jacks. 3.5mm cables are only developed as audio connectors they often come in cylindrical shapes along with three contacts, sometimes with two as a TS connector or four as TRRS connector.

Now-a-days TS and TRS connectors can be found in three standard sizes. The original clunky 6.35 mm – 1/4? version which came to market as early as 1878. This was first utilized in manual telephone switchboards and exchanges. The miniature 3.5 mm cables 1/8” or the new “new” version 2.5 mm cables or 3/32” which were initially designed for earpieces on transistor radios. TRS cables are normally utilized for mono signals in general studio use, with only exceptions being the headphone jack. The 3.5mm cable jacks or “plugs” as referred to in UK are normally used for male and female TRS connectors. On the other hand, in the US a fixed connector is known as a TRS jack. 3.5mm Cables are used to connect portable Audio Equipment along with mini-stereo jacks, together with portable CD players, MP3 players, CD sound cards, and multimedia speakers.

Most male to male 3.5mm cables are shielded inside with a copper skin while a PVC jacket protect the cables from the outside. They are nickel plated on top of brass connectors and can easily connect to a speaker system or Microphone Preamp along with any other premium stereo audio cables through adapters or cable switchers. Male to male 3.5 mm cables offer an easy solution to inter-connect high fidelity stereo systems with little trouble. They are strain resistant and have 1/8” plugs. There are also male 3.5 mm cables (1/8”) to 3.5 mm male stereo link cables (2 meters) available; most of the manufacturers offer life time warranty on these cables. A typical 3.5 mm 1/8” Male connector is standard across the board for all manufacturers such as Apple, Sony, Panasonic and Microsoft to name a few, you can connect to any portable audio device like iPods, Walkmans, MP3 players, PDA, Laptop etc… A majority of these cables are flexible and have copper conductors, molded construction and are color-coded for easy identification.

Buying tips 3.5 mm cables
• You can optimize your system by choosing a right cable.
• Decide which signal will be carried by the 3.5mm cables, RCAs if connecting to a VCR or high-def-capable cables to connect to HDMI devices such as Bluray players.
• Decide the length you will need for your cable and calculate the distances involving your components to make sure your cables are long enough.
• Avoid long cables as they often degrade the signals, if you have no choice look for cables which contain a larger wire gauge.

About the Author

Sophie Milch currently manages purchasing and inventory control for Comnauts.com. Sophie keeps herself busy by making sure our inventory is filled with quality products, the latest and the greatest. Sophie holds a B.Sc. in Mathematics from the University of Waterloo and is frequent contributor to several technology blogs and magazines. When she’s not working; in typical nerd fashion you can catch Sophie twittering friends, beating down Murlocs in World of Warcraft and watching re-runs of the X-files.

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