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Very low-profile (3.4 mm) stereo snake

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voltronic:
I had wanted to make a long stereo cable that was much thinner than the Mogami or Redco 2-channel snake cable I normally use. Something like the Schoeps KS 10 U cable but reasonably priced.

Thanks to some very helpful advice I received here on TS and also on GS Remote, I completed the build this weekend and it came out pretty well.

I used Sommer Cicada 4 mini star-quad for the cable, along with Rean 5-pin mini XLRs (TA5) and Neutrik XX 3-pin XLRs.

Unlike some other very thin cables, Sommer Cicada 4 is perfectly round, coils very easily, and lays dead flat even after extended storage in a small coil. It looks like shoestring licorice with a matte finish. All around, it handles beautifully and was just as easy to work with during construction as the Mogami or Redco 2-channel snake cable.

I used the "opposite pair" wiring setup. For this particular cable, that was:

Pin 1 Ground Drain
Pin 2 Left + Red
Pin 3 Left - Blue
Pin 4 Right + Yellow
Pin 5 Right - White

For the fanouts, I wired according to normal star-quad procedure:

Pin 1 Ground Drain (combined)
Pin 2 Left + Red/Blue
Pin 3 Left - Yellow/White
Pin 4 Right + Red/Blue
Pin 5 Right - Yellow/White

As you can see, I had to use heatshrink inside and outside the shell on the fanouts. One of these cables fits snugly through the included boot; it is far too narrow for two.

jbell:
I use a Schoeps KS I 5 cable between my Nbob actives and a Naiant PFA.  Similar idea.  I really like having one stereo cable makes setup and breakdown easy.  Nice work, the cable looks great.

voltronic:

--- Quote from: jbell on September 18, 2022, 04:25:21 PM ---I use a Schoeps KS L 5 cable between my Nbob actives and a Naiant PFA.  Similar idea.  I really like having one stereo cable makes setup and breakdown easy.  Nice work, the cable looks great.

--- End quote ---

Thanks. This project was actually meant to be a lower-cost alternative to the Schoeps KS cables, which I am sure are great, but are painfully expensive. A 10-meter KS 10 U with the two AK SU breakouts costs $420! I thought about saving money going DIY, buying the raw KS cable from Posthorn at $12/m. A 10 meter DIY set would run around $150 if I used the mini Rean connectors. Much better, but still more than I wanted to pay. If I was flying/suspending mics from the cable, I might feel differently.

My 10-meter cable cost about $70 all-in including shipping.

jbell:
The Schoeps KS 5 I is a 711 binder cable and cheaper, but they are still expensive and I believe discontinued!  For sure, you save building your own cables. 

voltronic:

--- Quote from: jbell on September 18, 2022, 05:29:59 PM ---The Schoeps KS 5L is a 711 binder cable and cheaper, but they are still expensive and I believe discontinued!  For sure, you save building your own cables.

--- End quote ---

Yes, I noticed that the L-type cables with Binder connectors is cheaper, but Schoeps doesn't make a Binder-XLR fanout so DIY is your only option there. I have never used those connectors, and I wonder if they are more robust than the Rean TA5s I'm using.

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