Cables FAQs

What do you mean by "end of plug to end of plug"?

	Ah, yes! Length really does matter! When I talk of measuring the length of a cable, what I mean is measuring the cable from the end of the plug - where the pins are - to the end of the plug on the other end (again, where the pins are), not from where the cable goes into the plug, as is commonly presumed. Just to illustrate my point, an XLR will give you a 4 inch difference, depending on how you measure it.



	It would be well worth taking the time to have a look at the following page where I explain this and much more:

What is the difference between a Lemo and a Hirose plug ? How can I tell?

	Many clients use the names Lemo and Hirose interchangeably as if they were the same plug. They are made by completely different manufacturers: Lemo in Switzerland and Hirose in Japan. None of the plugs made by either of these manufacturers are in any way compatible. It is obviously very important that we know which plug you mean when you are ordering your cables, as if we fit the wrong one the cable will be completely useless!

	The giveaway is that Lemo plugs have the word "Lemo" stamped on them! They also carry the plug family number too, since there are about 80,000 possible Lemo plug combinations possible. Surprisingly, Hirose plugs don't carry the Hirose name.

"Jim, I expect you to be a mind reader and know what I mean without me having to explain it, but you're not. Why not ? And why haven't you folks at Black Box Video got crystal balls?"

OK, bear with me a bit now - here is a typical conversation:

Client:	I need a cable with a Lemo (there are 80,000 different Lemo plugs) - or is it a Hirose? - to one of those circular type plugs. You know, the round ones. It's for a Black Box with the socket on the side.
Me:	Which Black Box is that?
Client:	It's rectangular and it's black with sockets on the side.
Me:	What does it do?
Client:	I don't really know - it's just a Black Box.
Me:	[Pause, whilst hoping for further information]
Client:	Anyway, the cable I need is a Hirose on the other end and it has to go into a gizmo I bought in Japan. The gizmo has a round little plug with a sort of thingy on it - you know the one I mean, don't you?
Me:	I'm not quite sure I know what you mean by "thingy"...
Client:	It's like you find on a Walkman, only I think this is a bit smaller and there's a bit of yellow plastic on it. You know what I mean?
Me:	Is this a power lead, then?
Client:	Yes, yes - it's to power it!
Me:	What voltage does it need?
Client:	I don't know, let me have a look... Oh, it says 4.5 volts. So I need a lead with a resistor in it to lower the voltage to 4.5 volts, right?
Me:	Um.... a resistor won't do. You need a switch mode power supply.
Client:	Can you fit that in a Hirose plug, then?
Me:	No, that's out of the question. I'm afraid the Hirose plug is far too small.
Client:	Really? But this Hirose plug is quite big, and its black and about two inches long.
Me:	Are you sure its not an XLR?
Client:	Oh yes! It is an XLR. I always confuse them with a Lemo. Or is it a Hirose?
Me:	Right then. How long do you want this lead?
Client:	Only about 4 inches.
Me:	You must be joking!
Client:	No, really. That's definitely long enough. I don't want a load of loose cable flapping around.
Me:	I don't think so - please, would you measure it with a piece of string!
Client:	Look, I'm sure 4 inches is enough, and I haven't got time...
Me:	Sorry, but please check as I can't make it longer once it's made
Client:	Oh, OK then - let's see...
	[Footsteps... rustle, rustle... footsteps]
Client:	That's one, ... two, ... three ... times six, it's... errrrrrrrm...
Client:	Crikey! It's 18 inches. Well I never! I don't believe it!
Me:	Now what about this circular plug, the round one with the yellow thingy? Perhaps you had better send me the original lead so I can see what plug it really is. Chances are it's a total oddball and we'll never find one in a million years!
Client:	But I need it...
Me:	[At this point, I just want to give up! Fortunately, the confused client thinks the same and is going away to "think about it". A narrow escape!]

So, this leads (excuse the pun) me nicely into the next FAQ, which I confess I have planted (with many hopes and much wishful thinking!)

Can I at this point stop for a minute and apologise for keep banging on about measuring, etc. I know it is my hobby-horse, but you can now see how important it is. Sorry, though ....
Let's carry on now ....

I would like to order to order some cables, please. What information do you need from me?

I will ask you the following questions:

	What type of plug do you need? Find out if it is a Lemo, Hirose, XLR or whatever.
	Is it male or female?
	How many pins does it have?
	Go through the same process for the plug on the other end.
	How long do you want it? Please measure it - don't guess. Most estimates for short cables are about 300% short! We cannot just make it longer if you are wrong.
	What are you using it for?

Thanks!

Why don't you include the cables with your Time Code and Video Sender units?

	Firstly, everybody wants different cables. Take for instance power leads, some people want a Hirose, some a PAG circular plug, some a 2 pin Power Tap, and other may want bare ends to attach their own odd ball connector. Then people want different lengths as well. When it comes to BNC's, some want straight, some want right-angled, some want thin cable, some want thick, and so on. To cater for all these whims I would have to bundle so many cables with each unit that the cost of the cables would far exceed the cost of the unit!

	You must also remember that most hire companies make their own cables in-house and certainly don't want to be lumbered with unnecessary costs and lots of unwanted leads. Many Freelancers will also have plenty of BNC's and power leads anyway.

	We know most of you want the lowest price for our units and prefer to order any custom cables they may need separately.

Will you really custom build any cable?

Custom cable lengths are no problem - we will make you just about any length of cable you wish to order.

When comparing prices don't forget very few people will make you a 10.5 inch BNC with a right-angled plug on one end at any price and certainly not with the same day delivery!

We would also ask you to remember that we do not use cheap cable or connectors:

	NO cheap crimp BNC's that only last five minutes
	NO cheap XLR's -
	ONLY genuine Neutrik XLR's with gold pins
	ALL pins individually heatshrinked, etc

We have recently had to rationalise the range of cables we do make. In the past we have custom made many cables with completely oddball connectors that proved to be very time consuming to track down and order. We have also ended up with stocks of very expensive, little used plugs that we will never sell.

Our basic philosophy now is to make any cable that connects Black Box Video equipment together, plus some industry standard cables that are not going to go out of fashion next week. So, we will make

	BNC's with three cable thicknesses, most power cables
	XLR4's
	HRS4's
	Power Tap
	PAG etc, mic leads (mono and stereo)
	HRS10 and Tajimi 12 umbilicals, etc

in any length and to order - all of the very finest quality.

Please note that we no longer fit or re-fit Lemo plugs to radio mics.

Remember - check with us first before sending off cables for repair to make sure we are prepared to accept the job.

Why are your cables so expensive? I can get them much cheaper elsewhere.

We accept that it is probably possible to buy your standard cables cheaper elsewhere. However, for the same reasons as given in the previous question, the cost of using the best quality cable and connectors does have to be covered. Likewise, the workmanship and expertise involved should be recognised.

Why don't you repair cables made by other manufacturers?

	Although in the past we have repaired other manufacturers' cables, it is no longer economic to continue to do so.

	We know that some clients have come to us with other manufacturers' cables because even the original makers won't repair their own cables!

	Other manufacturers will often use different colour codes in their cables compared to us. This means we have to trace each wire through individually and take notes. Since the cable is faulty, some wires will be broken so we can't even trace the connections! This is obviously very time consuming. With labour at £82 per hour, even ten minutes to discover how the cable might be wired is a sizeable cost of a new cable.

	Other manufacturers often use cheaper versions of plugs than we do. The Hirose HR10A series of plugs are about half the price of the better quality HR10 types, but require a crimping tool to secure the very poor quality cable clamp - this crimping tool costs £400! Faced with this situation we would have to discard the whole plug and fit our normal high quality version.

	The same sort of problem often arises with cable that is not of the quality we would use, so whatever we do the repair will not last as long.

Why don't you repair ALL of your own cables?

	This question pretty much follows on from the previous one. Even cables that we have made ourselves can prove uneconomic to repair. Don't forget that it can take longer to dismantle a cable than it takes to build a new one. So, unless the components are valuable enough to warrant recovery, you would generally be better off just buying a new one. Obviously, if you have 50 metres of QSC cable worth £200 it's worth fitting new plugs. However, 18" of BNC cable is only worth 10p and therefore not worth saving for itself. And even though a HRS10F plug costs us less than you'd imagine, it will cost more than the cost of the plug in labour charges to remove the existing damaged cable and clean the old plug ready for re-soldering.

	Most short leads have realistically to be regarded as expendable.

What's all this about elephants and cables?


	Do you mean this?