Help needed by Monday noonish: Cable & adapter question

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kitkat · #1 Post by **kitkat** » Sun Nov 30, 2003 11:04 pm

I need a cord to run from a discman to a big ol' mixer for a room's sound system, because the built-in CD player sucks. I will also need an adapter to change the size of the plug going into the mixer end.

I can't search for prices on these, which I need to turn in w/ a budget request tomorrow, because I don't know what they're officially called.

dana · #2 Post by **dana** » Sun Nov 30, 2003 11:38 pm

"Patch cable" or "patch cord" will work, but you'll have to know what kind of end you need on the cord on the mixer side. I assume that the discman is mini-headphone..

d.

kitkat · #3 Post by **kitkat** » Mon Dec 01, 2003 7:05 am

Yup, standard mini.
I'd say the other end looks like a pretty standard "big jack." Not like a TV, but more like the size huge headphones plug into. Is that enough?

Actually, now that I think about it, maybe this mixer uses two inputs...do they make them in Y cords?

Also, posted this in the wrong forum by accident.

ad-roc · #4 Post by **ad-roc** » Mon Dec 01, 2003 12:11 pm

Mini to RCA. (RCA's are the red and white plugs) they can range from 1.99 - 20. (20 if it says IPOD or Jukebox on it)

Target
Wal-Mart
Circuit City

3' Gold Series Stereo Cable

kitkat · #5 Post by **kitkat** » Mon Dec 01, 2003 1:22 pm

Not the red & white RCA's. The big long plugs that go into fancy things. *smile* God, I sound stupid. I'll take measuring tape and try to size up the jacks tonight if you want.

Mr Awesomer · #6 Post by **Mr Awesomer** » Mon Dec 01, 2003 1:38 pm

You need the mini to RCA's... then RCA's to 1/4 inch plugs.
It would be better to go with mini to 1/4 inch plugs, but I don't think I've seen such a cord.
Just hit RadioShack... it's the one thing they are good for.

#7 Post by **JesseMiner** » Mon Dec 01, 2003 1:54 pm

Just like has been mentioned already...

I would assume you'd need a 1/8" -> RCA Y-adapter first, like the one mentioned above, or this 6-Ft Specialty Y-Adapter which looks fairly similar. Then for the two RCA ends, you need two RCA -> 1/4" adapters, the plug size on the board you're talking about (just like you need for headphones).

Your total would be be a bit under $20.

I keep meaning to get something similar in case I ever need to plug my own portable CD player into a sound board.

Jesse

kitkat · #8 Post by **kitkat** » Mon Dec 01, 2003 2:39 pm

Thanks, boys!

wheresmygravy · #9 Post by **wheresmygravy** » Mon Dec 01, 2003 2:40 pm

Here let me add 2 cents.....

Depending on your AMP Setup you could be dealing with a Mono System or Stereo system.
And so the 1/4" plug also can be either mono or stereo.

I would use a 6' 1/8" Stereo to 1/8" Stereo Cable and then add a 1/8" Stereo to 1/4" Mono Adapter or 1/8" Stereo to 1/4" Stereo Adaptor.

Since a lot of the music we play is in Mono, I would recommend going with the mono adaptor. And you will only have to deal with one channel on the mixer.

Lawrence · #10 Post by **Lawrence** » Sun Dec 07, 2003 1:29 am

Even though it might be too late for Kit Kat, "patch cords and adaptors" would suffice as the line item for any of these thingys.

From what you described, they already have an existing CD player on the system. As such, you could probably just get a male-stereo-mini-plug to two-male-RCA-plugs cord at Circuit City or Best Buy for under $5 (the common cord for connecting a discman to a home stereo), then plug it into whatever they have the existing CD player plugged into (an "auxilliary input" plug on the board, which most (but not all) sound boards do have). They have these cords in 3 foot and 6 foot lengths.

If the venue does not want to unplug the CD player and you need to plug the feed directly into channels on a sound board (which was the only way I could DJ at the Hothouse in Chicago a few years ago), you will need a female-mini-plug to male-1/4-inch-plug stereo adaptor AND a 1/4 inch "y" adaptor (single female stereo input to two male mono plugs) to split the stereo signal into right and left mono signals. Sound board 1/4 inch plugs generally are not in stereo, so one of the sides will be lost if you do not split it. Each adaptor will cost around $4.

You need not go through the mini to RCA to 1/4 inch transfer: skip the intermediary. For any combination of mini plug, 1/4 inch plug, RCA plug, and XLR plug you can imagine, "they" do sell adaptors because you will not have been the first to run into the need. You just need to call around to electronic and music equipment stores: not just Radio Shack, either. Music equipment rental places also sell them here in Austin. For instance, "they" do sell mini to 1/4 inch adaptors in male to female, female to male, male to male, and female to female, with or without cords. I have needed several varieties of them through the years and amassed quite a few: even a female to female 1/4 inch adaptor for connecting two speaker cords together into one long cord.

Key Terms:

1) mini-plug: what comes out of a discman; usually for headphones.
2) 1/4 inch plugs: 1/4 inch wide, about two inches long; what goes into home stereo "headphone" plugs
3) RCA plug: the funky looking plugs with a center metal shaft surrounded by a "flower" of three or four arched metal plates.
4) XLR plug: a 1/2 inch wide plug with three prongs arranged in a triangle on the top half of the plug. (an XLR plug is the preferred standard input for microphones.)
5) "Female" or "male" end
6) "Stereo (or grounded) or mono signal, which is determined by whether there is one or two "rings" on the shaft of the male 1/4 inch or mini plug. The extra ring seperates the right from left signal or isolates the ground connection.