Problem with Cable Jack

[William B.]

Hi, I've got this problem where the sound keeps shutting off, it seems loose.
I have a solder machine, not confidant with it but I'm willing to try.

Here are some pictures, maybe someone can see the problem?

It's happened before and someone fixed it for me, I don't know what he did .

Thanks in advance!

Ps. Someone gave me the sticker, I thought it looked cool. Wasn't their band either

 

[Rad Synner]

To me, the soldering doesn't seem to be bad on this side of thing. Maybe you should take a look at the volume pot though? There maybe the soldering is more flimsy or it needs to be cleaned

 

[Ed Seith]

Agree with Radu. Also, plug in a cable while it's out like this and make sure the bendy-leg contact (the leg without a wire soldered to it) makes strong contact with the cable end, and isn't "loose."

Then check the volume pot and swipe it off/on all the way a dozen times to see if it loosens any dust that might be causing the intermittent connection problem.

 

[William B.]

The white wire looks like it's hanging on by 2-3 threads. I'll check the contact point again and the knobs for dust, just need to see where to do that. I'm going to break for a bit so I'll post back here later. Thanks

 

[William B.]

I couldn't wait. I checked if it was connecting properly and it was than I noticed the cable was still wobbly. The cable malfunctioned. I checked both sides one is looser than the other. I have another from another brand it's fine, not loose at all. Couldn't figure out how to remove the volume knobs but it works fine. I'll have to get another for my pedal, it can wait though np
Thanks again

 

[Forgetabull]

If the cable is wobbly when you push it in, take the cable out and push that big tab down a bit so it clamps harder. Eventually you will need to replace the socket as that metal does fatigue (or repeat the process every couple of weeks/months). Another thing is to make sure the two nuts on either side of the socket are tight so that the socket doesn't "spin" when you're plugging/unplugging the cable in a lot. The tab/socket doesn't look oxidized to me so I don't think you need to blast it with contact cleaner.

A couple of other things:
* Does it only happen to one particular pickup (If so, spray the pickup selector with contact cleaner and switch between pickups a bit to work it in).
* If you volume up/volume down or tone up/tone down on the guitar, does it "crackle" through your amp ? (If so, take the knob off and blast it with contact cleaner and turn the knob up/down a bit to work the contact cleaner into it).

With respect to volume knobs, if you don't have the tool for it and there's no obvious screw on the outside, you can use a credit card and gently pry it up from each side a little and eventually it'll come off (think like how you're ment to open a paint tin by edging each part of the lid, not just one spot).

You are right with respect to cables, I've found cheaper (like $5/free "thrown in with guitar") cables tend to not sit as snug in the socket, where as the super expensive $15 one I replaced it with sat a lot nicer.

 

[William B.]

@Forgetabull

The tip's are loose on both ends when it's put together, it may have been caused by ((un)plugging). I think everything else is fine, I'll try to take the knobs off and check for dust. Never done that before. My other cable is of better quality and hasn't any problem, I got it a couple weeks after this one.
Is it salvageable? I've been saving things like this and broken/used strings. There's no problems with the pickups or a crackle. When I was using my pedal with the two different cables there's a static noise, it might be the settings, but I'll look into it more when I get another cable.

Thanks a bunch! Ed & Radu too

 

[Forgetabull]

I wouldn't try to save the cable myself, you could see if it has one of those life time warranty though and get it replaced under that.

The better cables can also be shielded better, which may contribute to less noise coming though on your pedals. Also, the quality of power supply going into the pedals will impact on noise. If they can take 9v batteries, you could try switching to those to see a difference. Another simple technique to reduce noise is trying different parts of the house or different times. There's a certain light or something in my house at night that gives me more feedback..