Pedal Cables !?!??! What The Fuck?

DriftingByTheStorm

sweet baby jesus ...

mega $$$ later,
i have almost all the gear i "really" need ...

however ... GOOD PEDAL CABLE is IMPOSSIBLE TO FIND!!!

does anyone know of anything good?

3 things on musicians friend that seem "ok" but none get stellar reviews all around ... in fact
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/home/navigation?q=pedal+cable

the dimarzio cables get overall POOR reviews
the Musicians Friend couplers seem "okay" but still aren't exactly great ...

and the core x2 DIY cable seems to get pretty lousy ratings by most ( http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Core-Cable-CoreX2-Pedalboard-Cable-Connectors-Kit?sku=332506 ) ...

so what the fuck is a boy to do?

do i really have to blow $100+ on "Pedal Snake" ???
that seems so lame...

anyone?
mig, pac ... what are you guys using?

anyone?

gimmesometruth27

i do not have a link, but look into George L's. you have to custom cut them but they are the best i have ever used. until i bought them i had all kinds of grounding issues, but those cables fixed my problems.

Fadetowhite519

make your own. get some good highly shielded cable and good neutrik or switchcraft connectors and put it together.

dirtyfrankdahmer

gimmesometruth27 wrote:

i do not have a link, but look into George L's.

+1

ianvomsaal

If your pedals/effects are on a board (i.e., pedalboard) you shouldn't have any problems just using plain 'ol small connector cables like Live-Wire, Monster, Mogami etc. (these cables have lifetime warrantee's, so if they break you should be able to take them down to your local Guitar Center and switch them out).

. . . Yet (contrary to a few other people on here), I've had trouble with the GEORGE-L's . . . specifically signal drop outs, poor signal, signal loss (due to the cable not lining up very well in the ends), and signal interference due to not much cable shielding. I kept trying to use them because I heard good things, but something always happened with them (I just seem to get a better/stronger signal with regular connectors).
Has anyone else noticed how small the "actual amount of wire" is in these cables . . . I don't know how you can get a better signal with such a small amount of wire, but some of the older (ehh, 50+) players I know seem to like them. Who knows, I tried them 3 years ago, maybe George L's have gotten better in the last 3-years.

I currently use a few different small connectors for different effects and placement on my board (different effects seem to react a little different to different types of cables, and also where the effect is placed on your board can be a contributing factor to what you use).
I use: Live-Wire, Mogami (for longer runs), and even a couple of the little solid metal 1/4" double ended Ernie-Ball connectors (for connecting two BOSS pedals together, since the inputs are the same height - which also saves space between them).
I travel with my 17" x 35" pedal-board 3 times a week (100-miles each trip), and I've never had any real problems with these types of connectors. Granted, I don't move my pedals around all that much, but when I do I'm fairly careful unplugging the cabels.

I'd suggest you just head down to your local music store (maybe bring your pedal-board with you), and try a few different kinds of connectors out - this way you can see what you like best, and what works best for your set-up (you know, this way you don't drop a ton of $$$ on something that you haven't even tried out yourself).
Cheers . . .

- Ian C.T. vom Saal

All Those Yesterdays

gimmesometruth27 wrote:

i do not have a link, but look into George L's. you have to custom cut them but they are the best i have ever used. until i bought them i had all kinds of grounding issues, but those cables fixed my problems.

Either get rid of all your pedals and let that amp speak for it self or I agree, George L's

JofZ

George L's are garbage!
I just gave away 50 cables and 25 feet, you should have posted this 2 weeks ago!
Why is it garbage?
The idea of cutting your own cable to length is not a new idea, in fact it has been around for a long time. It is nice, but that is the only cool thing about it.
The connectors are cheap, they easily come un-done, this causes frustration and a drop in signal. It is easy to fix, you can crazy glue the connectors together, but if you swap pedals around all the time, they will work them selves apart-trust me!
The cable is rather low quality as well.
There are dozens of options and most will not break the bank.

I find it amazing so many players spend thousands on gear and then never think about the most crucial parts of the chain, the set up and cables.

If you guitar is poorly set up, your tone will sound like ass anyway.

If you are using garbage cables, you shouldn't spend the money on fancy gear IMO.

Lavaman aka Mark Stoddard is dedicated to cables!
His website clearly explains the differences in cables and why some are better for specific applications.
Skip the GC, MF, etc and let Mark hook your chain up!
lavacable.com

PJ-Sin

Use Monster cables.
They are a bit more expensive than regular cables, but they sound great and the best part (and not that many people know about it) is when they go bad you can just take them back to where ever you bought them and exchange them for new ones at NO CHARGE!! This is Monster cables policy and not every store upholds it, but most do or you might have to bitch a little until they do.
I bought some probably about 10 years ago and havent had to spend any more money since. I hope this helps...

JofZ

PJ-Sin wrote:

Use Monster cables.
They are a bit more expensive than regular cables, but they sound great and the best part (and not that many people know about it) is when they go bad you can just take them back to where ever you bought them and exchange them for new ones at NO CHARGE!! This is Monster cables policy and not every store upholds it, but most do or you might have to bitch a little until they do.
I bought some probably about 10 years ago and havent had to spend any more money since. I hope this helps...

But they sound like shit! ANd they charge you for marketing not materials, no thanks!

All Those Yesterdays

JofZ wrote:

George L's are garbage!
I just gave away 50 cables and 25 feet, you should have posted this 2 weeks ago!
Why is it garbage?
The idea of cutting your own cable to length is not a new idea, in fact it has been around for a long time. It is nice, but that is the only cool thing about it.
The connectors are cheap, they easily come un-done, this causes frustration and a drop in signal. It is easy to fix, you can crazy glue the connectors together, but if you swap pedals around all the time, they will work them selves apart-trust me!
The cable is rather low quality as well.
There are dozens of options and most will not break the bank.

I find it amazing so many players spend thousands on gear and then never think about the most crucial parts of the chain, the set up and cables.

If you guitar is poorly set up, your tone will sound like ass anyway.

If you are using garbage cables, you shouldn't spend the money on fancy gear IMO.

Lavaman aka Mark Stoddard is dedicated to cables!
His website clearly explains the differences in cables and why some are better for specific applications.
Skip the GC, MF, etc and let Mark hook your chain up!
lavacable.com

Have never had a problem with George L's.

DriftingByTheStorm

JofZ wrote:

But they sound like shit! ANd they charge you for marketing not materials, no thanks!

Thanks J!

i forgot about lava ...
i've checked out the site before ...
in fact i think you mentioned them LAST time i posted a thread like this,
except then i was looking for full on instrument cable to rig up about 40 ft between my guitar, pedals and amp ...

however, last time i ended up opting for spectraflex cable instead, simply because of convenience, as i was placing a large order with MF already and just tacked them on to it ...

i guess i just forgot, or didn't recall that they offered patch\pedal cable too ...

i'm headed there now ...

as always thanks ...
your opinions always weigh heavy with me.



-nik-


ps ...
oh and thanks to EVERYONE else who chimed in ...
i sometimes forget just how great the little microcommunity here in the M&G forum really is ...
i come here, get a lot of info, chat and muck it up for a few weeks ... then i bail out and don't come back for a month or two (or more? yikes!)

but you kats are all great, and it's good to have a place where you can come and share and get answers within a few days!

J -- damn about those many feet of cable i missed out on!
:(

lol.

DriftingByTheStorm

holy fucking hell!
http://lavacable.com/VanDenHul.htm
6" for $50 ...
it's like guitar cable prostitution ...
???

wow!
::in awe::
::astounded::

::scratching head::
whoa!

gimmesometruth27

JofZ wrote:

George L's are garbage!
I just gave away 50 cables and 25 feet, you should have posted this 2 weeks ago!
Why is it garbage?
The idea of cutting your own cable to length is not a new idea, in fact it has been around for a long time. It is nice, but that is the only cool thing about it.
The connectors are cheap, they easily come un-done, this causes frustration and a drop in signal. It is easy to fix, you can crazy glue the connectors together, but if you swap pedals around all the time, they will work them selves apart-trust me!
The cable is rather low quality as well.
There are dozens of options and most will not break the bank.

I find it amazing so many players spend thousands on gear and then never think about the most crucial parts of the chain, the set up and cables.

If you guitar is poorly set up, your tone will sound like ass anyway.

If you are using garbage cables, you shouldn't spend the money on fancy gear IMO.

Lavaman aka Mark Stoddard is dedicated to cables!
His website clearly explains the differences in cables and why some are better for specific applications.
Skip the GC, MF, etc and let Mark hook your chain up!
lavacable.com

wow, i (and everyone in my band and pretty much everyone in a band i know in my area) have used them over 3 years and i personally have never had any of the issues you are describing, and i gig twice a week and practice at least that, so my board gets used a ton. and i switch pedals around all the time depending on what tone i am looking for. i use alot of boutique and older pedals though. maybe that helps. but what i do know that i had severe grounding problems when i was using other types of connector cables and once i switched to george l's i have yet to have a problem since. and that is without having my board or amp serviced to try to find the grounding problem. to each their own i guess.

JofZ

DriftingByTheStorm wrote:

holy fucking hell!
http://lavacable.com/VanDenHul.htm
6" for $50 ...
it's like guitar cable prostitution ...
???

wow!
::in awe::
::astounded::

::scratching head::
whoa!

It is the holy grail of cables!

JofZ

gimmesometruth27 wrote:

wow, i (and everyone in my band and pretty much everyone in a band i know in my area) have used them over 3 years and i personally have never had any of the issues you are describing, and i gig twice a week and practice at least that, so my board gets used a ton. and i switch pedals around all the time depending on what tone i am looking for. i use alot of boutique and older pedals though. maybe that helps. but what i do know that i had severe grounding problems when i was using other types of connector cables and once i switched to george l's i have yet to have a problem since. and that is without having my board or amp serviced to try to find the grounding problem. to each their own i guess.

So then how would you be able to say they don't sound like crap?
Swap them all out and I will bet you that your tone improves.
GL is a gimic, and the guys who gig with them solder the connectors

DOSW

I am in no way experienced with a guitar, so here's a question for you guys: what's the difference between a pedal cable and a regular guitar-amp cable?

nickydean

DOSW wrote:

I am in no way experienced with a guitar, so here's a question for you guys: what's the difference between a pedal cable and a regular guitar-amp cable?

Simply? The pedal cables are much shorter. Think of it as a bridge between the pedals.

All Those Yesterdays

JofZ wrote:

So then how would you be able to say they don't sound like crap?
Swap them all out and I will bet you that your tone improves.
GL is a gimic, and the guys who gig with them solder the connectors

You have to do what you have to do to keep things working right!

Shoot I've had to re-solder tube sockets on new fender amps where the solder joint to the board is loose. For a $550 amp one should have to do it, but I did. Don't know why they don't just point to point the sockets to the board, instead of soldering them direct.

George L's on a pedal board, I don't have to solder, and never had a problem (those chords don't move). Guitar cable from amp to board, and guitar to board I've had problems with everyones. End up cutting off the tips and resoldering them back on (they get the crap kicked out of them, let's face it).

enharmonic

Another vote for Lavaman.