Members adelphi710 Posted December 2, 2005 Members Posted December 2, 2005 can anyone recommend good cables for effects? i'm looking for very short cables (since they're for my pedal board), and i'm also a tone freak so something that is very transparent and doesn't lose a lot of tone (i will be running an axess BS2 line buffer before the effects for your info.) thanks! alex
Members Fourth Floor Posted December 2, 2005 Members Posted December 2, 2005 Like many, I'm gonna have to say George L's. Cut your own cables as short as you need. They sound great. Especially in a long chain of effects, if you change from regular patch cables to george L's you get a pronounced 'taking the blanket off' your tone. and need a new sized cable? just keep some spare cable on hand and make yourslef a new patch.
Members adelphi710 Posted December 2, 2005 Author Members Posted December 2, 2005 is it hard to do? soldering required? also, how much $$$? thanks! alex
Members wednesdaysworse Posted December 2, 2005 Members Posted December 2, 2005 If you don't want to cut and solder (George L's), try Lava Cables.
Members Fourth Floor Posted December 2, 2005 Members Posted December 2, 2005 Originally posted by adelphi710 is it hard to do? soldering required? also, how much $$$? thanks! alex No soldering. not hard to do, especially after you've done a few. About $4-4.50 for a plug...then 50-80c per foot for cable or something - can't quite remember. $10 a cable. But quality, versatile (custom length, no waste on your board). Lava is meant to be good but you can't specify the length.
Members TrashFace Posted December 2, 2005 Members Posted December 2, 2005 I use those crappy cables that you get in a pack for like 10 bucks. 5 for 10 bucks.
Members ScreamCage Posted December 2, 2005 Members Posted December 2, 2005 Originally posted by TrashFace I use those crappy cables that you get in a pack for like 10 bucks. 5 for 10 bucks. amen
Members jasevenny Posted December 2, 2005 Members Posted December 2, 2005 +1 for George L's. Very transparent cables.
Members jonny guitar Posted December 2, 2005 Members Posted December 2, 2005 HCEF'er Longjohnny has some nice cables for excellent prices. Here is the link . I ordered some earlier this week and LJ treated me really well. Canare cable with soldered quality plugs too so you get an excellent sound quality without the friggin hassles of George L's. Check it out.
Members 89strat Posted December 3, 2005 Members Posted December 3, 2005 There is so little hassle with George l's and they've lasted longer than any other cable I've used. I use them on my board and going from my board to my amp. Less clutter, easy to use, can make changes without soldering, and the sound is noticibly, and I mean noticeably, different and less noisy than a pack of patch cables for $5.
Members tlbonehead Posted December 3, 2005 Members Posted December 3, 2005 My 6" and 12" cables are Fender,CBI,ACC,etc. They all work great and cost $4-5 each.
Members Jaymeister Posted December 3, 2005 Members Posted December 3, 2005 I cannot recommend George L's. Buy some cable and ends...Learn to solder...it's not hard...read up online. Or get the cheapie ones as mentioned. There are so many threads here about debugging George L's it's rediculous. Lot's of people swear by GL's. I swear by canare cable with neutrik jacks. Sound great...zero failures in 5 years of use. Once I learned to cut and solder I can make a quality cable in about as little time as a George L.
Members silent-strat Posted December 3, 2005 Members Posted December 3, 2005 George L's are rather {censored}e in my humble opinion. I'm guessing the Eric Johnson endorsement goes a long way towards engraciating them in the eyes of fellow board members.
Members powerplayj Posted December 3, 2005 Members Posted December 3, 2005 Originally posted by Jaymeister I swear by canare cable with neutrik jacks. Sound great...zero failures in 5 years of use. Once I learned to cut and solder I can make a quality cable in about as little time as a George L. +1 George L's do retains your highs well but the right-angle plugs were a pain in the ass (came unscrewed, worked intermittantly). www.redco.com has Canare or Magomi cable and Neutrik plugs. If you want compact plugs, go with Switchcraft as the Neutriks are quite bulky. The Canare cable doesn't coil up as bad as most cables and the shielding is excellent. Canare also has colors if you are bored with black.
Members Jaymeister Posted December 3, 2005 Members Posted December 3, 2005 Originally posted by powerplayj +1 George L's do retains your highs well but the right-angle plugs were a pain in the ass (came unscrewed, worked intermittantly). www.redco.com has Canare or Magomi cable and Neutrik plugs. If you want compact plugs, go with Switchcraft as the Neutriks are quite bulky. The Canare cable doesn't coil up as bad as most cables and the shielding is excellent. Canare also has colors if you are bored with black. also check out www.markertek.com
Members LongJohnny Posted December 3, 2005 Members Posted December 3, 2005 I can make patch cables any length you want. I charge $8 for each one, and just like Jonny said, I try to get them out as soon as possible. Link is in the sig. John
Members Cow4prez Posted December 3, 2005 Members Posted December 3, 2005 whenever a george l topic comes up, there are always some people bashing them. Yes they do come loose, but in my experience that's more the exception then the rule. WHat you get in convenience you give up in reliability. For the most part they are reliable. They do sound terrific and if you are most geeks around here you'll be thankful you can recut your cables to any lengths you want anytime. For some reason, people expect george l to be perfect which it is not, just like any other cables out there.
Members Jaymeister Posted December 3, 2005 Members Posted December 3, 2005 Originally posted by Cow4prez whenever a george l topic comes up, there are always some people bashing them. Yes they do come loose, but in my experience that's more the exception then the rule. WHat you get in convenience you give up in reliability. For the most part they are reliable. They do sound terrific and if you are most geeks around here you'll be thankful you can recut your cables to any lengths you want anytime. For some reason, people expect george l to be perfect which it is not, just like any other cables out there. Not bashing the product, I think it is great..the jacks are very small and th cable is extremely flexible. They are near perfect in the hands of an experienced assembler. You have to though admit that we do get a fair bit of GL troubleshooting questions here. It is promoted as being easier than soldered cable, and I think both products take a learned skill to do properly. It's a matter of which skill someone wants to invest in. From personal experience with the easiness of soldering (IMO a skill every guitarist should pick up) and from the anecdotal evidence seen here and on other boards, I'd take a soldered cable over a screw in one 99 times out of 100 that's all. It's not a religion for me, just experience. I'm a set it and forget it kinda guy. Don't want to be testing cables every couple weeks, or tigtening caps, etc... or freaking out when my rig goes silent when I'm on stage (all things we've heard about here). Sure, some of this stuff can happen with soldered cables, that's why I carry a spare or two. I just don't see GL's as a huge convenience once someone learns to solder. You can recut soldered cables too. I've reused jacks several times.
Members chump5150 Posted December 3, 2005 Members Posted December 3, 2005 Originally posted by LongJohnny I can make patch cables any length you want. I charge $8 for each one, and just like Jonny said, I try to get them out as soon as possible.Link is in the sig.John Do you charge extra for GS-6 over GS-4 cable, or extra for longer patch cables like an 18 incher? Shipping & Handling? (God, I hope Musician's "Friend" doesn't delete this thread so they can sell more Planet Waves cables...)
Members BillyK Posted December 3, 2005 Members Posted December 3, 2005 Long time GL user here. I like 'em, but I have never been real easy about the reliability of solderless connectors. That said, I also have Bill Lawrence cable with solderless connectors, which to my ear sound indistinguishable from GL's. BL's is priced better than GL's, but is only available in the thinner guage, which is a pain in the ass on cable runs from the guitar. I believe the history here is that GL worked with Bill eons ago when Bill introduced his low capacitance cable and solderless connectors. I just ordered a 10' cable from Butch at bayoucables.com, with Canare cable and G&H connectors. Butch has a great rep and great prices, as does LongJohnny here in this thread. Both use Canare cable and great quality soldered connectors. I'll report back when I get the cable. From what I've read, the Canare is not as "bright" as the GL, but maybe that'll be OK - gotta see for myself with my rig. I like the idea of soldered connectors and if I like the Canare cable, I might end up replacing everything I've got with Canare and soldered connectors. Just better piece of mind IMO.
Members BillyK Posted December 3, 2005 Members Posted December 3, 2005 Oh yeah, one other thing... If you look at bayoucables or LongJohnny's prices and compare with the prices of soldering yourself, it can make great sense to let them do it for you, especially on shorter cables. I believe when I checked last week, a 6" pedal board cable was gonna cost me about $6 to make myself (Canare and Neutrik), compared to $8 or $9 to have these guys make 'em for you. On longer runs you can save some money doing it yourself. I'll have to figure that out for myself when the time comes! Just my $.02.
Members Legendofamind7 Posted December 3, 2005 Members Posted December 3, 2005 How are the AXL gold tipped patch cables, it seems you can get a decent deal on them on ebay. 3 of them for 9.99, you can get two sets of three and they'll combine the shipping costs. So all together it'd be 6 for $25. Thats about $4 a piece. Plus they offer a lifetime warrenty with them. Of course that all means {censored} if they suck, sooo...formites any experience with them? thanks.
Members Cow4prez Posted December 3, 2005 Members Posted December 3, 2005 Originally posted by Jaymeister Not bashing the product, I think it is great..the jacks are very small and th cable is extremely flexible. They are near perfect in the hands of an experienced assembler. You have to though admit that we do get a fair bit of GL troubleshooting questions here. It is promoted as being easier than soldered cable, and I think both products take a learned skill to do properly. It's a matter of which skill someone wants to invest in.From personal experience with the easiness of soldering (IMO a skill every guitarist should pick up) and from the anecdotal evidence seen here and on other boards, I'd take a soldered cable over a screw in one 99 times out of 100 that's all. It's not a religion for me, just experience. I'm a set it and forget it kinda guy. Don't want to be testing cables every couple weeks, or tigtening caps, etc... or freaking out when my rig goes silent when I'm on stage (all things we've heard about here). Sure, some of this stuff can happen with soldered cables, that's why I carry a spare or two.I just don't see GL's as a huge convenience once someone learns to solder. You can recut soldered cables too. I've reused jacks several times. well that is all and good for you, but what percent of forumites have a soldering iron, the necessary skill and the time to put together patch cables? Take a poll. Not many.
Members tlbonehead Posted December 4, 2005 Members Posted December 4, 2005 Originally posted by Cow4prez well that is all and good for you, but what percent of forumites have a soldering iron, the necessary skill and the time to put together patch cables? Take a poll. Not many. Well I would certainly hope that most have a soldering iron and the basic skill to make them.
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.