Topic: 50 cent connector destroys sony m10

[weroflu]

 comedy of errors...

i ordered a pair of oscartech mics a few weeks ago. the communication was fairly bad in that it took  about 12 emails for them to understand that i wanted the two mics terminated in a single 3.5mm connector. their final solution was to send them to me terminated as two mono mics and then add in an additional dual mono to stereo adaptor.

the mics come unterminated, tinned, with two mono connectors and an adaptor. fine, so i go out and get a stereo 3.5mm connector this morning, thinking i'll skip their mono connectors.

put on the stereo connector, and connect it to the m10. no signal, fine, i'll have to check my soldering.

pull the connector out and and the tip of the connector actually is stuck inside the m10 jack. i've never heard of something like this happening. just the tip part of the trs, not the whole jack.

so i try to remove the back of the m10, remove two screws, get about 75% of the back plate off but the rest won't budge. i snap it back on and the manual/automatic record level slider breaks.

i guess i have to send in the recorder back to sony.

[it-goes-to-eleven]

Bummer.  That is odd.  My guess is that at some point the longer adapter exerted sufficient side force on the m10 jack to cause an internal socket failure.  And it was likely a coincidence that the new plug hung-up.

Even if you had gotten to it, replacing that socket would be very difficult and would require a very special part.  Unless it is hacked to use something else.  It's also possible you could have tweaked it.  I sort of recall seeing internal images, but I can't seem to find them.

Sony seems to charge a lot for repairs. If you know someone who is really good at stuff, they might be able to get in there and do some good.  For many users, the auto/manual slider is something that will not be badly missed.

[George2]

Hmmmm.... Jack is female socket... Plug is male TRS.

[it-goes-to-eleven]

Hmmmm.... Jack is female socket... Plug is male TRS.

Insufficient coffee, too early......

[DigiGal]

Ahh, the joys of 3.5mm connectors.  Good luck with the repair though.

[runonce]

[John Willett]

This happened to me once - it was a headphone adaptor in my case.

It happens sometimes with cheap plugs.

Personally I will only use Neutrik connectors - it's very much cheaper than the cost of fixing the recorder.

[ScoobieKW]

Had this issue last spring with my Denecke PS-2. The DC input is a Tip/Sleeve 1/8" miniplug. When I first bought it the unit, I built an adapter for 9.6 RC batteries, and left the 1/8" plugged into the PS-2 at all times.

This lasted until the night of Roots Underground, had talked to the promoter, he spoke to band members and I had clearance to record. Opener was psyched to have a live recording too. Golden.

Plugged the battery into the adapter, red light. Low voltage, the battery had died. No problem, I'll disconnect the 1/8" and use the 9V battery compartment. Good taper me had a spare.

Went to pull out the connector and it was stuck. Opened the unit, worked it from multiple angles, stuck. Ended up having to break the socket to get the plug out. Put in the 9v and ready to go. Right? Wrong. About this time, the manager from the band came up to me and started yelling at me to tear down. By this point they had watched me hang my mics, I'd been there all sound check, and permission was pulled. 

Still haven't had a space in my taping schedule to fix it. Now I have a homebrew adapter comprised of wood in the shape of a 9v battery with two screws at the terminal points, wires leading to my RC battery. If it fails, I can pull it and use a 9v battery. Eventually I'll replace the 1/8" socket with a locking dc connector.

[hi and lo]

It might be too late, but I would have recommend you take a toothpick + superglue or epoxy and very carefully bond the toothpick to the broken off piece and see if it could be pulled out w/o having to disassemble the unit.

[capnhook]

It might be too late, but I would have recommend you take a toothpick + superglue or epoxy and very carefully bond the toothpick to the broken off piece and see if it could be pulled out w/o having to disassemble the unit.

Good idea with the toothpick, but I would try to get a proper diameter number drill and try the superglue, for more control.  You get one shot at it.

[ScoobieKW]

It might be too late, but I would have recommend you take a toothpick + superglue or epoxy and very carefully bond the toothpick to the broken off piece and see if it could be pulled out w/o having to disassemble the unit.

Good idea with the toothpick, but I would try to get a proper diameter number drill and try the superglue, for more control.  You get one shot at it.

In my case the male plug was stronger than the PS-2's socket. Parts of the jack were pulled out with the plug.

My poor man's 9V battery adaptor has been working for 5 months without a hitch. I keep meaning to replace the jack with a locking power connector.

[hi and lo]

It might be too late, but I would have recommend you take a toothpick + superglue or epoxy and very carefully bond the toothpick to the broken off piece and see if it could be pulled out w/o having to disassemble the unit.

Good idea with the toothpick, but I would try to get a proper diameter number drill and try the superglue, for more control.  You get one shot at it.

Definitely as that's a much better idea than a toothpick that might break. My mind was simply thinking "toothpick + epoxy = going in trashcan afterwards."

[F.O.Bean]

Bummer. I agree with John tho, I try to only use HQ connectors