DiY Balanced Patch Cable

[tiomalo]

Hello,

I need to make own balanced qualtiy patch cables. Such as the same qualiry as cordial cables. Have anyone any advice or tutorial how to do that and whick jack plugs i need to buy?

[HCMarkus]

I always use either Neutrik or Switchcraft hardware. But the real question is: Are you building cables for a Patchbay or for a more permanent connection? Patchbays require cables that are built to withstand lots of handling. Equipment that will stay in one place won't require such robust cabling.

Raw cable of superior quality for fixed installations is Cat6a... 4 tightly twisted pairs and shield with drain wire within a single jacket make it very useful. It wasn't available when I wired my studio, but I'd most likely use it if I was doing it today. $0.21/foot at Monoprice.

https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id= ... gKVp_D_BwE

[mikehalloran]

Do you need Ethernet cables? I know of no others rated CAT 6a. What am I missing?

I can make my custom cables or I have Sescom do it through Markertek. Same performance without the ridiculous price of so-called boutique cable. Markertek also sells the bulk cable and connectors for a lot less. Although a Broadcast Supply house, lots and lots of studios use them

You don't say what kind of patch cable you are looking for but an 18" Canare star quad TRS-M to TRS-M is $11 in any of 8 colors. You can specify Belden or Mogami, balanced or star-quad, or 6 colors (Belden) etc.
https://www.markertek.com/product/sc1-5 ... w-1-5-foot

Since they have thousands of choices, it's a bit nuts the first time you go looking. Their phone people will show you how to search what you want and, when you find the right pages, get off the phone and leave you alone.

[HCMarkus]

Studios use Ethernet cables for audio wiring now Mike. The Cat6a is incredibly excellent for audio... tight twists and a nice shield with drain.

[cuttime]

Studios use Ethernet cables for audio wiring now Mike. The Cat6a is incredibly excellent for audio... tight twists and a nice shield with drain.

Interesting. I had no idea. How are these cables terminated, and do they use typical audio connectors instead of RJ45s? A link would be greatly appreciated.

[mikehalloran]

I need to make own balanced qualtiy patch cables. Such as the same qualiry as cordial cables

Although I have no problem with the idea of Cat 6a for patch cabling—the specs are like star-quad on steroids, Cordial does not offer ready-made Cat 6a cables for anything except ethernet and data cables.
https://www.cordial-cables.com/en
For this reason. I'm assuming that the OP is referring to standard high quality 1/4" balanced TRS cable. Without more info, that's my best guess.

Cordial is now distributed by Hal Leonard in the USA but availability is spotty at best. The only TRS-M to TRS-M Cordial I can find for sale here is a 5M/16' unit for $70.
https://reverb.com/item/30341618-cordia ... e-5-meters

Compared to $17 at Markertek for 15' Canare or Mogami with a Neutrik or Concentrix plug.
https://www.markertek.com/product/sc15s ... ck-15-foot

Cordial is one of so many that toss around nonsense terms such a "peak energy" and "high copper". These are meaningless marketing words when it comes to audio performance except to increase the price. Neutrik (Luxembourg) and Neutrik-Rean (China) are indeed good quality connectors and I'm certain their German made cable is very good but there is no difference in performance that would justify 53¢, let alone $53.

Sescom uses Neutrik and Rean, too as well as Switchcraft and Connectronics. Canare and Mogami are high end wire from Japan while Belden is made domestically. Again, Markertek sells bulk cable by the roll or foot in addition to having the best prices on connectors and audio adapters if you want to DIY.
TRS-M $1.99 and up https://www.markertek.com/search-result ... e=2&view=2

Although there is no minimum order, free shipping begins at a $25 minimum.

BTW, although you can buy directly from Sescom, their direct prices are significantly higher than ordering through Markertek.

[Phil O]

+1 on Mike's comments. Most of the cables in my studio I made with Canare cable and Neutrik connectors. They've lasted many years with zero failures so far. Markertek has been my go-to source for connectors and bulk cable.

Your friendly neighborhood Phil

[tiomalo]

Really thanks guys for your replies. I get a good idea about with your comments, i will use the cables to and from Monitor - Motu AVB and to Presonous Monitor Station. I want to make also some patch cables at the front for the patch bay which i can use to patch. So need a lot of balanced cables at this manner so was my idea why not make these cables DIY with industry standard quality?... And if you than have that cables and the jack plugs at home when needed you can snip it and make a new cable..

[HCMarkus]

This thread caused me to do a little poking around the web with regard to using ethernet cable for audio. I ran across this interesting discussion over at GearSpace (formerly Gearslutz):

https://gearspace.com/board/low-end-the ... audio.html

Seems that, for audio use, CAT6 is overkill. Shielded Cat5 is plenty good. Here is it for under $0.12/ft:

https://cabling-supplies.com/products/c ... N0QAvD_BwE

[Phil O]

I'd be interested in the crosstalk specs at audio frequencies for Cat5.

[HCMarkus]

I'd be interested in the crosstalk specs at audio frequencies for Cat5.

Looking at a few graphs, we can note that crosstalk diminishes as frequency gets lower. The graphs I've been able to find are calibrated in mHz, which is obviously far beyond the frequencies we worry about in audio work. That said, I've always imagined I'd use Shielded CATx cable in a Star-Quad (Star-Octo is possible, I suppose!), One Cable > One Input manner. If used this way, crosstalk would not be an issue.

If building patch cords, stranded CAT cable would be preferred. Fixed installations could use solid conductor cable.

Examining CAT5/6 cable compared to traditional balanced Audio cable, the twists are considerably tighter, which should provide better Common Mode Rejection.

I should note that I've already got a giant spool of Beldon two-conductor shielded wire (leftover from studio build), so for me, the discussion is one of mere interest, not practical application. I ain't gonna' re-wire my studio anytime soon!

[Phil O]

Thanks, HC. I'm not doing mine any time soon either. I was just curious.

Your friendly neighborhood Phil

[mikehalloran]

Thanks for the links. More than a little 'armchair experting' going on but lots of good info.

Crosstalk is not an issue with audio patch cables; common mode rejection and shielding is. Star-quad reduces EMI and RFI 10–20% — if you can hear the difference, you need it and if you can't you don't. For those of us with old ears, sometimes you need a scope to see but the principle's the same.

I'm in one of those areas in the Silicon Valley where the difference is apparent. My first pair of star-quad cables went from my monitor controller to my powered speakers. Then I redid my studio. Much, much better.

I doubt if Cat 5a could get it any quieter. The thought of dealing with those leads while making patch cords… thanks, I'll pass. I would never use it for microphone cable, however, because of the strand size and durability.

Canare and the others make unshielded star-quad speaker cable—again, Markertek sells it by the foot. I've no idea if that works to reduce speaker noise nor do I care. You can use it to make power cables. I tried that and heard no difference. The only devices I've ever seen that spec'd twisted pair power cables are industrial smoke detectors and fire alarms. Go figure. If you do attempt power cables, remember that your strand gauges are smaller for the task because you have twice as many.

[rp88.2]

@Mike - Thank you for the Markertek link! I have been buying my ready-made cables from B&H (Canare & Neutrik). Now, I have another source!

[Phil O]

Crosstalk is not an issue with audio patch cables...

Agreed, but CAT5 is not audio cable and I don't know how CAT5 is typically terminated in normal use. That's why I was wondering. These random thoughts just pop into my head sometimes. Ya know what I mean? Must be an old age thing.

Your friendly neighborhood Phil