Making Up Y-Splits

[Big_L]

Ok,

 

It might be that this it's just me having a brain lapse, but I want to make up some passive Y split cables for splitting a microphone feed or whatever, and so I've bought the new style Neutrik XLR connectors (here) and some Sommer Source cable (here, and in nice anti-theft red!)

 

So because the cable glands on the XLR's are more rigid than on the cheaper ones, and because I managed to choose a 6.5mm dia cable without really thinking about it, two cables won't fit through the gland together.

 

What I thought about doing was stripping the outer insulation off so the inner cores will fit through, and then just heat shrinking the inner cores that are exposed, however, in order to be able to slide the gland down far enough to actually solder the thing together, I'd have to strip so much of the outer insulation off that a good proportion of the whole assembly would be held together by heat shrink, which is less than ideal as I don't really think it will be durable enough.

 

What I'm wondering is whether I'm missing some ingenious technique for doing this kind of thing which I haven't thought of, or whether I just need to try either some 4.6mm cable or the cheaper connectors and some heat shrink (or quite possibly all three!)

 

I don't mind experimenting a bit and thats what I'll do if no one else has any better ideas, but I thought the combined wisdom of the BR might have a magical trick up its sleeve!

 

L

[Pete]

Just a thought,

could you not chop the gland down a bit?Rather like you do with 16a connectors for different diameter cables.

 

My 2 cents

 

Pete

[StevieR]

The two methods I've used for this are...

 

(a) use narrow diameter 'patch' cable where you can just squeeze two pieces into the one gland.

 

(b) use a piece of two-pair multicore. This is split outside the connector with the two separate pairs being protected by Pliosil sleeving and a bit of heashrink around the split point. This makes for a strong cable. e.g. VDC Splitter Assy

 

You could probably get away with a piece of pliosil around your exposed cores before they enter the gland along with the heatshrink at the joints.

 

Steve

[MarkPAman]

I think getting thinner cable is your best bet.

An ;) ish thought to add while you're at it.

If these leads are not going to sit in one place in your rig for the rest of their lives, then consider a making "zig zag" leads. These consist of two of each connector, all wired with the lead zig zagging between them, if you get what I mean.

You then have a nice lead to keep in your tool box that can be a splitter, a combiner, a male to male, or a female to female.

As I've had a good number of these pinched over the years, I figure they must be useful to people other than me!

 

I guess you could even go one step further and add a TRS jack, but that would mean making sure it didn't short out during use.

[Bobbsy]

As you say, with the way the Neutrik gland works, cutting it away isn't really an option.

 

Your scheme could work but, to be frank, I wouldn't mess around. Mic cable is generally a screened twisted pair and to preserve the screen and the twist while applying heatshrink would be a royal pain in the anatomy. I'd just get some thinner cable (I tend to use something like Canford FST, seen HERE though there are plenty of alternatives). The FST is cheap and you can always put aside the larger diameter cable for a future project.

 

Bob

[soundguymark]

Hiya,

 

A while go on the Blue Room(at least I think it was the Blue Room), there was metion of stackable XLR connectors, I know that this may not be a suitable solution to Big_L's situation as he may need the tails.

 

Slightly OT, If anyone know where to source these conectors please let me know because I would be interested in using them for Y-Splits.

 

Mark

[Simon Lewis]

Slightly OT, If anyone know where to source these conectors please let me know because I would be interested in using them for Y-Splits.

 

You'll be wanting these then? ;-)

 

http://www.bryant-broadcast.co.uk/c2/uploads/c2ag_250x135_2_nc3mfrc.jpg

[MarkPAman]

(Ynot I need to use a Hmmmm )

 

Those look like being a PITA to wire up, but a neat thing once done.

[3guk]

Just an idea really, buy a few small / very small project boxes, drill a few holes, cable gland on one side, two on the other. Voila you have a Y split, just put all the joins in the middle inside the box.

 

Saves you buying more cable, the only investment you need to make is a project box or two,

[Pete Alcock]

Simon,

 

Those Neutrik back-to-backers are really neat! This is what I made a while ago when I needed some monitor splits. The XLR barrel thingy is a CPC AV11324, drilled to accept a grommet - about £2 each.

 

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y24/petealcock/MonitorSplit.jpg

 

Worked like a charm.

 

Pete.

[Lamplighter]

Pete

Those look really tidy, though I always worry about the leverage applied to the chassis socket. Too many of the inputs on todays equipment don't have adequate stability to prevent the pins breaking the solder joint to the PCB.

Brian

[MarcT]

Yep, like the cheap chinese LED Parcans. Not really sound I know (well, they do sound to light...!)

One of mine failed in this way without the extra leverage of a barrel connector.

 

Marc

[bruce]

Well, since we're posting photos.... out of focus ones in my case ;)

 

Mine are a more traditional design - that's standard Neutrik XLRs, and Van Damme 268-009 "pro patch" cable, which has an outer diameter of just under 5mm.

 

http://www.zen21383.zen.co.uk/pics/IMAG0811-1.jpg

 

The only comment I'll make is that the standard Neutrik 3-jaw chuck isn't ideal for gripping 2 cables - if I were doing it again, I'd put a length of heatshrink over that bit.

 

If all I had was 6.5mm cable, and I couldn't source anything smaller, I'd be tempted to try a little Hellerine oil and some brute force...

 

Bruce.

[Bobbsy]

Pete

Those look really tidy, though I always worry about the leverage applied to the chassis socket. Too many of the inputs on todays equipment don't have adequate stability to prevent the pins breaking the solder joint to the PCB.

Brian

 

I had that thought be then realised that you get round this by running the "flying lead" end of adaptor to the chassis socket. In principle I agree though...I tend to try and use short lengths of adaptor cables rather than rigid adaptors, particularly where quarter inch jacks are involved.

 

A totally separate question: both the original post and bruce's photo involve using red cable. I've always standardised on using red XLRs for comms to differentiate it from programme signals. I've honestly been doing this for so long that I can't remember if it was a "standard" or my own invention. Anybody else have any thoughts on this?

 

Bob

[bruce]

well, I made that one up in red cos it was an offcut of cable that I picked up after an installation at work....