Gathering opinions from roll-yr-own patch cable peeps

[The Mad Titan]

Guitar > board & board > front of amp I use Canare GS6 and Neutrik plugs.

Board interconnects and FX loop send and return I use George L's.

[popvulture]

Pancake plugs are really the wrong way to go. The strain relief in the plugs is insufficient for solid cable assembly and you cant put two pancake plugs next to each other when jacks are tightly packed on a pedal. Also, unless you use the cheapest crappiest versions they only save a small fraction of an inch over a regular right angle plug. When I make patch cables I use Lava mini ELC and GH right angle plugs. The assembly is incredibly solid and the strain relief is sufficient for long term reliability. Its worth spending the money to do the job right and you'll notice the difference after assembling one with a GH right angle compared to any pancake plug.

I do see the benefit of more expensive soldered plugs, but why can't pancakes be put next to each other? Maybe I'm not exactly envisioning what you're saying. If they're back to back, will something bad happen if they touch? Doesn't make sense...

EDIT I was at the post office when I was typing that so I didn't realize that GHs were just standard right angles... I'll have to compare to pancakes. There HAS to be more than just a fraction of an inch difference (twss).

I didn't see this until now, but I made enough cables for two big boards with Mogami 2319 and the GLS pancakes. Never had a single failure, and it's been 4 1/2 years now. The only solderless I ever tried was George L and it made me want to microwave kittens.

Yes, that's exactly how I felt trying to put together a set of solder less Lavas. It seems like people have had trouble with pancakes here and there, but it seems to be more of a space issue vs reliability. Plus I see those on more boards than any other, hands down. I always assumed popular for a reason.

[Gone Fission]

It's not about how close the pedals are. The problem with pancakes is where they are broad doesn't work for stereo I/O on a lot of pedals where the jacks have no real space between them. Zoom MultiStomps, t.c. TonePrint stuff, the newest Digitech pedals.

[popvulture]

Ahhhhh derp, I see now. Yeah they've all got at least one caveat... I really do like the EBSs but 1. I had to buy a lot of the longest ones which are too long for what I need and are making my board horrendously messy to deal with and 2. they don't work well plugging into my switcher because they all have to be turned upward and coiled backwards. It's ugly and seems bad from a stress standpoint--whatever goes into the switcher needs to be straight, hence the Switchcraft 380s on that end.

Regular right angles would maybe be ok, but I don't have anything running stereo and if I do end up with any proximity issues with inputs, I could just use a right angle in an instance or two. I don't have some insane amount of pedals (usually 10), but with the switcher taking up space I need to keep the gaps as small as I can.

[Jwar]

The other problem is if you pull the too much, the connections can break. I've had more pancake failures, and yes ones I didn't make, than any other patch cables next to George L and Lava. Fuck those guys. LOL!

Seriously though, the new Planet Waves are the SHIT. I am planning on getting a custom board sometime and I'm going all Planet Waves to force myself not to move gear. I'm going to get like a Custom District or something like that, so it'd make it a literal pain in the ass to flip things. To me they are top of the line now with the improvement of the tips. I just can't see any negatives to them.

[The Mad Titan]

I didn't see this until now, but I made enough cables for two big boards with Mogami 2319 and the GLS pancakes. Never had a single failure, and it's been 4 1/2 years now. The only solderless I ever tried was George L and it made me want to microwave kittens.

Get some decent wire cutters and you should be golden. I've been using them for years now, construction is easy-peasy. They aren't the best if you're going to be constantly moving stuff, but if you're settled, and only swap/move stuff occasionally, then they're awesome.

[Willem]

I build my own pancake cables with sommer cable. Really easy to solder and pretty tight.

[JonnyAngle]

I know you don't want to go solderless, but I think you should

They are the only cables that can be fixed on the fly with only a side cutters. No soldering iron needed

You'll never need to 'fix' a properly assembled soldered cable assembly on the fly. Solderless plugs require such service regularly, especially if you change your board often. The fact that this is even a concern should tell you that solderless plugs are a problem, not a solution.

I caved. Too much fucking around with george l's

I bought 100' of cable and 30 plugs and went ape shit soldering them together. My anal retentiveness made a bunch of cables in 6" increments.

One thing that really pisses me off with Hosa is how they are all slightly different lengths.

[popvulture]

One thing that really pisses me off with Hosa is how they are all slightly different lengths.

I've had that problem with nearly every patch cable I've ever consistently bought, even super nice brands like Divine Noise. If you're anal, it's pretty nerve wracking, haha...

[zoooombiex]

I've been building my own cables for a few years after getting tired of non-solder stuff failing and/or needing constant maintenance. never had to fix anything since.

I buy my supplies from here: http://btpa.com/Guitar-Line-LevelBP/

good rates, usually lower than other sites, though it varies

i've used a ton of the G&H right angles http://btpa.com/RF2P-NNN.html

good strain relief and solid connections

for short straight plugs these are great - http://btpa.com/380.html

not as much strain relief as a full size straight plug, but way more convenient on a pedalboard. I save the full-size ones for instrument/insert cables

i've occasionally used the switchcraft pancakes - http://btpa.com/228.html

as others said, the strain relief on pancakes is pretty limited by its design. but if it's not a cables you move around much and you need the extra millimeter or two compared to the G&H right angles they do come in handy

tip - hot glue and heat shrink are your friends for beefing up strain relief. just make sure the electrical connections are solid first before you goop it up.


for cable on pedalboards I've tried a few but most recently this http://btpa.com/CA-0446-NN.html

very low capacitance and flexible for easy routing. there are lots of philosophies and preferences on capacitance. personally I go as low as possible on the pedalboard and then worry about the instrument-pedalboard and pedalboard-amp cables separately if you want to color the sound.

[crochambeau]

The old surplus wire I use for cabling is so high in capacitance it'll act like a fucking microphone when I drag it across the floor. I'd have it no other way.