I've been doing this a couple years with DMX/5 pin XLR connectors. I cut apart a defective jack and learned it's impossible to rectify this situation. The release tab engages in a way that makes it unshimable and impossible to repair. The only thing you can do is replace the receptacle. Great to share, Dave.
The MIDAS 32 channel stage box , or Behringer stage box: If someone steps on an XLR end, it will cause the release tab to be crinkled forward, and you won't be able to remove the XLR cable. I used a pair of pliers and turned it to get it out. This was some venue's unit. I now have my own, and with this experience I'm considering setting up the stage box oriented with cables at the top, and strain relief by running the cables over the top of the stage box (now oriented upward) and back down an empty rack space, and back under the back of the rack so that the cables are directed to the back wall.
I found that if you put a flat screwdriver behind the tab and give a litle wiggle it helps for this particular box . Idk im from festival land everything's a bit quick and dirty
I wish that worked for most of the Neutrik connectors that do this. You can take a piece of ultra flat spring steel wedge it down the outside or the inside of the connector and push it in or do both inside and outside simultaneously. Or open up the box and wedge a metal shim from the inside of the box outward towards the connector and none of those things will work. If I get a chance I'll do a video on that. To break the lock free without twisting it you need to actually crush the internal panel mount connector break it into pieces and then remove all of the guts to get that lock out. The process is so complex and so destructive that even the manufacturer Neutrik was unable to remove the XLR shells when we sent the boxes back to them. Actually no they were able to remove one of them but damaged the XLR shell and destroyed the connector. This is what inspired me to come up with a better solution when I realized the manufacturer who makes the connector couldn't even do it.
@@DaveRat I don't know how I knew to take a pair of pliers and turn the XLR plug. I may have found it on CZcams, or was just guessing. It may have been my own investigation to know the shape of the tab in order to understand that you only need to turn it. These issues are a nightmare, and if you can do an extensive examination the public would appreciate this greatly. Ultra flat spring steel that no one has? I have on more than several occasions had to make a tool out of a paper clip. I would take a hammer, and smash the end of the paper clip to be used as a small screw driver, or tool for some other purpose. This may be a great way to get one of these XLR nightmares corrected. However, the next XLR will also be stuck. Repairing the bent tab, with some electronics boxes/mixers is so complex that it may be a good option to simply insert a 90XLR & a 6" extension that you never extract. If its a permanent installation, using the smashed paper clip would not be an issue for the house engineer who understands the work around.
Definitely recommend some sort of strain relief. I had a Behringer stagebox 16 where the previous owner insisted that after somebody stepped on the ethernet cable (no shell) and broke the ethercon jack that there was no way to fix it. His plan was to wedge some toothpicks in there, I just trolled Ebay for the right part and resoldered it. Either way after I fixed it cable got wrapped around the handle and box got placed to avoid tripping hazards. I have to do a lot of maintenance on this x32 system a local nonprofit bought off of somebody and I took responsibility of, would've thought it was pushed off a cliff. Next priority is fixing the power distro power cord that has no ground and redoing all the speakon connectors.
You Sir are a genius...I didn't believe the twisting method for a stuck XLR in a camera audio input would work...but taking a deep breath and a pair of pliers I twisted and pulled...and OMG, it actually worked!!! Thanks for saving my ass 🙂
I've had this happen with a handful of cheap XLR connectors in various devices usually a combination of pushing in while pushing the tab and pulling out quickly releases it but this is good to know in case I ever run into a really stuck one. But not some thing I generally want to do on my zoom recorder. I'm also super patient so usually I can get around most problems.
I'm not the first and I won't be the last to say a THOUSAND THANKS for posting this video. A total lifesaver. I was total shocked when I went to pull the plug out. I now think mfrs of the plug and/or the audio device should place a small sticker warning on the device. I walked into it not realizing when I plugged it in.
Thanks for this video! Had an XLR stuck in my ZOOM F6 for some months, was not able to get it out, and today I'm free of that 5meter cable and have an F6 body without cables again!
Today I worked on 2 EV monitors with Neutrik xlr's with this exact problem. Dam dam frustrating. Made some teeny tiny lockpick style pins hoping to push the holding pins in so the xlr would slide out. Waste of time that was. Checked your chanel and 5 seconds in and pop! Its out!! You are a legend Dave thanks man👍👍 Side note.. I have a Midas 3210 analogue console that I freaking love! You cannot beat that old school warmth.
Oh wow, excellent! I recently had a DMX cable stuck into the thru connector of a dimmer switch that I bought. I had to unscrew the shell from the cable, open the dimmer switch and slide a thin guitar string height measurement tool into the installed connector for it to release the shell, but your method is waaaaay easier! Thanks for sharing that
Great trick! Should add that when this happens, you should toss the shell because the reason it got stuck in the first place is it's become misshapen, usually as a result of getting stepped on. That's why it's usually the male end that this happens to, as it's easier to deform than the female end.
Actually the misshaped can usually be pulled out fairly easily and straightened. The issue that we're running into is the spring on the release is not activating the catch. It is the female panel mount connector itself that is faulty. That stage box you see and another one got sent back to neutrik by us with the connector shells from a customer permanently attached to it. One of them neutrik destroyed the entire female connector to release it and the other they sent back as we sent it to them. We sent the units back to them to let them know that their female panel mount connectors were failing and asked them for a solution at least to get the connectors out but also to stop having the problem. Also we were trying to solve the issue where the customer wanted their male shell back so that their 100 meter cable wasn't without a shell. So not only was The nitric connector on The neutrik on the stage box faulty but we also felt responsible for repaairing the customer's cable After getting the boxes back from neutrik and they were unable to solve it I sat down and figured out the twisting method. I was then able to remove the customer's male shell, which was undamaged and imperfect condition and send them a warranty repaired stage box as well as their male connector shell back as well
@DaveRat Neutrik isn't that cooperative once they know about the problem. And once they know about the problem it's not a problem according to Neutrik. Trust me, I have dealt with Neutrik on development level (the Ultimate Plug and several product upgrades) and the only thing they care about is making money. Take for example the original Powercon. After releasing the True1 in 2011, Neutrik planned to have the original Powercon reach end of life in 2016. The only reason that didn't happen was because of its market share. And being able to disconnect the original Powercon under load? They already had that figured out in 2011 as it is just a simple modification they had to make. That's also why new designs or redesigns of older connectors are impossible to openen nowadays once they are assembled.
Well, I can say that I have a good relationship with neutrik. My SoundTools brand is actually one of the largest purchasers of raw neutrik components in North America. Yes there's companies much larger that buy a lot more but everybody else makes them in China or overseas somewhere and since we make all our products in North America our little company is a big fish in a little pond. That said like any big company they have mixed messages and varying assets and issues. I did a video on the new NL 4 and the tools required to disassemble it costing $90. Following that video I got an email from neutrik, saying that because of my video they have lowered the prices to $30 for the tools and will be releasing free downloadable 3D print files for the tools. The same info was told to me directly when I saw them at Namm. So, Yes I agree that they can be somewhat reluctant to deal with issues and also videos like this one can inspire change on their part as I've already proven
@@DaveRat Agreeing with MrBitflipper, we've seen more misshaped male XLR shells cause this than defective female jacks, but I'm sure both can happen. I tried to reshape the metal XLR male shell and didn't find it easy at all, was much simpler to just replace.
Interesting, and thank you. Yes for misshapen male locks, replacing its the way. In the misshapen ones I have run into, before figuring out to twist, I was able to give a hard pull to release. The broken/defective female I've had no luck except destroy or twist. Either way, I hope the twist help solve.
Your video on feed back just helped me help someone else. Thank you. Your real world knowledge is so good. You should have 20 million subs. I'm trying to help by telling everyone with audio issues to watch you. I hope it helps. I can't even imagine how a one on one would be for a sound technician. I don't do it but everyone that works in the industry should watch you; listen to you. And my god the sub video you made about killing the bass in the middle of a circle of subs led me to many other conclusions about my own audio like reflections and distance and I stopped worrying about volume so much as distance and polarity. You just fix everything I always wanted to fix. Thank you sir.
Thank you Dave! I've only had this issue once, with a powered speaker. Luckily it was under warranty, but this is SO GOOD to know!! Thank you, thank you!
Thank you!! I recently had a situation where a 5 pin wouldn't come out of the DMX out of a plug box on the work gallery. I was up there for so long, trying to get it out because the shell of it is ever so slightly bent. My boss eventually managed to get it out, but it took so much time. Now I know better, thank you very much!
FIrst time out with my X32 and S16s, had a connector get stuck in the S16. I'm not sure how we removed it, but we did get it out. What a PITA. Wish I had seen this 11 years ago. Also, makes me want to stick with neutrik connectors so I can take stuff out easier in case I run into this again. I also have a phantom power supply that does this. I should just replace the connector. Thanks for reminding me of a repair I should get to!
This is such great future proofing material! heard this happening to a fellow techinican and he dident know what to do, afraid of destroying the connector
Audio and plumbing fantastic .So many connector issues and pliers are a solution .Hammers work good too .I fixed a few things with that .But what do i know im just a sparky .Hammers fix everything !
Hi Dave, great video/videos. We have had a male neutrik XLR housing stuck in the back of a QSC K8.2 for months now. So we tried out your new discovery. No bueno!!! I have two of shop guys working on it as I speak, however it is still stuck. I'm glad I have an extra input channel on this model. 😁 Keep up the good work my friend.
Yeah it looks like some kind of knock off brand with a prefabbed compression insert. It looks like it's spelled (REAN), but some of the letters got scraped off trying to extract it!! The QSC chassis mount is a Neutrik though. I would send a pic if I could figure out how to attach one here. @@DaveRat
I've done this trick a few times. I had to disassemble the xlr and use the pliers on my multi tool to twist it out. The rest of the crew was amazed because they couldn't do it lol
Never commented on a video before, but I will be trying this over the weekend on one just like this !! Genius, Now how to fix/stop the next one to plug into this S-16 ???
Yeah see panel mount connector is the issue which it typically is, that will need to be replaced. But the first step in replacing it is to remove the old barrel which you now have done or are able to do. Occasionally the stuck XLR is caused by a bent XLR barrel which can be bent back or replaced once it's removed.
@@DaveRat no I just get wire cutters all little Die Grinder cut the male locking point on the cable end. I only do this for installs band setups and DJ setups it has been less damage endless maintenance
I found it more and more common, What I've been doing for installs is cutting off the latch end on the male XLR. Haven't had a problem since And it's quicker for the pack up
Yes non latching is definitely faster and we don't really need the latch to be that strong. I'd rather it come unplugged than break the cable before coming unplugged
All my XLR barrels and socket shafts are keyed (the line-up notch and slot next to pin/hole 2. You can't rotate the barrel. I haven't seen one, yet, without it. It wasn't long ago I had a fight to disassemble one jammed with a squished male XLR barrrel
Yes, of course they are all keyed. Every XLR and sthercon has jeying. And twisting will override the key as the keys are rounded. The existence of the key is what stops people from figuring out this trick. The plastic nub that forms the key will flex out of the way when twisted. That is the entire crux
Unusual that uts a neutrik plug Dave.,its usually a generic or other brand connector that gets stuck. The other cuplrits are those damn generic combo xlr/ jack inputs mounted on audio interfaces and mixers.. Had to dismantle an entire motu interface wit floating boards and most of a yamaha power amp to get to the input board to replace the input. The combo inputs have a pin lever mechanism that gives way over time, rendering it useless. Best to Stick to neutrik or amphenol plugs for vital inputs.
Yeah this seems to be a bad batch of nitric panel mount connectors. Also since we are the largest purchaser of neutrik connectors in North America, I think we have more exposure to the possible flaws. And since we only use neutrik, when we do see issues, they tend to be nuetrik
I wish I had known this earlier. Does this also work with XLR/phone jack combo connectors? I once had an XLR stuck in such a thing and the active speaker was quite a nightmare to dismantle… and to get it together again, and to find the connector online in order to buy a new one.
It should work but I haven't tested it. It's easy enough to test on a working connector that isn't in a critical usage location or just raw on the bench
Generic combo connectors often go bad. Tip only use neutrik xlr plugs, avoid using the jack input. There is a release pin lever in there that is weak and once that locks, it's toast.
Awesome and we just had it happen at Coachella festival to one of our state snakes. The female XLR was bad but getting the mail shell out put the cable back in action and allowed us to fix the stage box and replace the female
@@DaveRat It doesn’t take many times like that to imprint in your memory. When I built my splitter/subs system from scratch in the 90s, I specced all non-locking panel mounts. In thirty years I have never seen a male plug ‘fall’ out of a friction type panel mount. Not once.
@@DaveRat Yep, and good stage people ALWAYS dress cables for at least one degree of protection from disconnect. It is practically intuitive for my crew. My awesome, awesome crew! 👏🏽
Hello Dave. ive been watching your videos and youre like the final boss of audio engineering 😅 and ive been wondering: if an instrument cable has shielding around it and im about to solder the ¼" jack to it, should i solder the shield to neutral or leave it unconnected? i heard it protects the cable from EMF but how can it prevent it if its connected to neutral?
Hmmm, neutral? Are you putting a top ring 2 conductor 1/4" onto a 3 conductor cable? If so, one wire connects tip to tip or tip to pin 2 of the XLR. The 2nd center wire connects sleeve to ring or sleeve to pin 3 of an XLR The shield connects sleeve to sleeve or sleeve to pin 1. A general rule is that when you have 3 wires and 2 conductors on the connectors, you short the pin3/out-of-polarity/ring to the shield.
i didnt really understand.. its a cable with two wires and a metal "net" or shield around them, made for unbalanced ¼" TS connectors, for mono instruments, the ones with only one plastic ring on them. when i expose the wires for soldering there is a shielding net around the cable and i was wondering if i should solder that shield to the Ring or just leave it unconnected? Edit: the cable has TS connectors on both sides
When connecting a three conductor wire, too down the middle and a shield around the outside, to TS for two conductor connectors, select one of the center wires and tie it to the shield on both sides.
@@DaveRat To almost anyone else I would say "You have no idea!", but in fact, you know so well that you felt compelled to share a solution to this frustration. Thank you again, sir. If you are ever short an A1, A2, or even just shop help, please let me know.
Cool cool! As far as work, I don't deal with the crew side but here is a link. There are two jobs open but also, we often need festival crews and this is the same contact info ratsound.squarespace.com/employment
Hello mr Dave it's bluey (>^.^)> bluey saw your video on galvanic corrosion and was wondering, bluey has an eye on an audio interface from Arturia, their MiniFuse 1, it had very impressive audio performance for $99 USD so bluey wanted to try it out, its XLR input is copper that's been gold plated. would bluey be able to use any gold plated XLR into that? or would it be best to specifically find a copper gold plated XLR cable as well? tyty in advance (>^.^)>
Surprisingly it doesn't destroy the socket. That said, if it was stuck the socket was already bad. But if you use this trick on a working socket it doesn't hurt it and it still works just fine
I cant believe. 100 years of audio and this happens. I just became "baptized" in audio with this issue, I guess. I am afraid to do the "tiwst move". just jammed the xlr in an arturia mini fuse 2. any place where I could try inserting a very thin screw driver?
The thin screwdriver rarely works if ever. The twist is simple and safe Is a good chance the panel mount XLR has a bad lock on it so it's ruined anyways. Removing the XLR shell will at least get your cable working again and allow you to access the panel mount to remove and replace it
Hmmm, and the other option of chewing up the female panel mount with a pair of large cutters sounds less rough? Or I guess you could just leave the shell stuck instead. Not really another option unless you figure one out
@@DaveRat I'm a service tech and always looking for the best fix, but I know I'm going to use this trick in a pinch! I've just had so many "should have just replaced it" moments during my illustrious career, haha.
Yeah I look at it as there are several things that can go wrong. One thing is the male connector has a bent area around the latch which makes it hard to remove, in which case using the twist method and then replacing the male bent shell would be the way to go. As long as the panel mount female still works fine. Conversely the issue I'm running into is the actual female panel mount is defective and needs to be replaced and cannot be repaired. So now it's about getting that good male shell out of there not only to save the male shell which may be important if it's from an uncommon ethercon. But also you often need to remove the mail shell in order to remove The female panel mount because the latch is in the way and on our stage boxes that we make you must remove the male shell in order to replace the circuit board and fix the unit. So the twist method allows you to get that mail shell out of there so that the unit can be repaired. I decided to share it because I've seen loadouts held up with people trying to unplug a cable from a stage box. Having a simple way to get that out of there so that it can be fixed later seemed super fun to me
Oh yeah, I hate that problem. Make sure to inspect your XLR plugs, if the little bit that lock in is at all damaged, replace it! Shells that are squished out of round are also very risky.
Agreed and yet the issue that is the worst is when the panel mount connector is defective, like the one I show in the vid. It won't let enev a brand new male plug release.
Yeah that's unchanged. The panel connector will still need to be replaced usually. But often you still need to get the shell out of the panel mount in order to change the panel mount. Also during loadout you can send the cable home intact and mark the panel mount instead of having a bad panel and cable missing it's shell
Hey Dave, I just got a Soundcraft SI Expression 1 and I'm having a bit of a problem figuring out the routing procedures. I figured out how to change the main L/R to any out-put but I'm trying to set up an aux send for a subwoofer out. I found a few videos on CZcams but there not showing how to do this or they skip it in the commentary. The only digital console I've got to use was a Neve Capricorn desk back in the 90's when I was in recording school I remember it being easy to operate once I got some instruction. You have any time on these Soundcraft SI Expression board's? I have an analog board that I'm using right now but I'd like to start utilizing the SI Expression as it's more versatile. Oh, I got a hell of a deal on it used at $1K! I think there almost $3K new. I'd appreciate any help I can get! God Bless!
Good to know, that damn new Neutrik ethercons are made to lock in screwed state, so normaly you cannot unscrew them on field without proper tools 😡. And I think, thax XLR will follow. It is time for new manufacturer to take place. 😢
Well I think they were under pressure because the voltage levels of modern amplifiers can be an excessive hundreds of volts until it can pose a danger. That said the tools they offer were too expensive but they contacted me and said that because of my video they've lowered the price of the tools from $90 to $30 or less and they are or are going to offer free 3D print downloads of the tools needed. No I drink is a good company but they're very big and like any company they make mistakes but also the fact they're willing to correct them is a good sign
I have not seen locking XLR or RJ45 from neutrik that require special tools for safety. To judge them based on an assumption that they may do something that they have not done is not useful or of any logical value
This is why it should be illegal (yes, that's right, ILLEGAL) to sell cables with moulded connectors. They are a waste of resources, and in case they get stuck, you cannot just take them apart and remove like you did. Would this work on female XLR or similar connectors too? Or are locks on cables less likely to brake?
On the female cable connectors the lock is on the cable itself and tends not to be an issue. And if it does get stuck you can pull the guts and use a little screwdriver and get those out fairly easily
So, just continue the show then? What if you still need the channel, and the band is still playing, no matter what you did? I just didn't see the payoff tonight yet.
Well if you don't need to unplug it don't unplug it. Besides you wouldn't even know that it's broken unless you needed to unplug it. But if you've ever had a stuck XLR or ethercon and you're trying to load out, then you appreciate how useful this is not having a 330 foot ethercon cable stuck to your digiCo stage rack and loading into the truck that way.
This video is worth millions of dollars of repairs, pain and desperation
👍🤙👍 well at least it's worth tens of dollars but still helpful!
No way!! I just had an xlr stuck in the back of a K10 and had to get it serviced lol. Never again! They say timing is everything haha. Thanks Dave!
👍🔧👍
I've been doing this a couple years with DMX/5 pin XLR connectors.
I cut apart a defective jack and learned it's impossible to rectify this situation. The release tab engages in a way that makes it unshimable and impossible to repair. The only thing you can do is replace the receptacle.
Great to share, Dave.
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The MIDAS 32 channel stage box , or Behringer stage box: If someone steps on an XLR end, it will cause the release tab to be crinkled forward, and you won't be able to remove the XLR cable. I used a pair of pliers and turned it to get it out. This was some venue's unit. I now have my own, and with this experience I'm considering setting up the stage box oriented with cables at the top, and strain relief by running the cables over the top of the stage box (now oriented upward) and back down an empty rack space, and back under the back of the rack so that the cables are directed to the back wall.
🤙🔧🤙
I found that if you put a flat screwdriver behind the tab and give a litle wiggle it helps for this particular box . Idk im from festival land everything's a bit quick and dirty
I wish that worked for most of the Neutrik connectors that do this. You can take a piece of ultra flat spring steel wedge it down the outside or the inside of the connector and push it in or do both inside and outside simultaneously. Or open up the box and wedge a metal shim from the inside of the box outward towards the connector and none of those things will work.
If I get a chance I'll do a video on that. To break the lock free without twisting it you need to actually crush the internal panel mount connector break it into pieces and then remove all of the guts to get that lock out.
The process is so complex and so destructive that even the manufacturer Neutrik was unable to remove the XLR shells when we sent the boxes back to them.
Actually no they were able to remove one of them but damaged the XLR shell and destroyed the connector.
This is what inspired me to come up with a better solution when I realized the manufacturer who makes the connector couldn't even do it.
@@DaveRat I don't know how I knew to take a pair of pliers and turn the XLR plug. I may have found it on CZcams, or was just guessing. It may have been my own investigation to know the shape of the tab in order to understand that you only need to turn it. These issues are a nightmare, and if you can do an extensive examination the public would appreciate this greatly.
Ultra flat spring steel that no one has? I have on more than several occasions had to make a tool out of a paper clip. I would take a hammer, and smash the end of the paper clip to be used as a small screw driver, or tool for some other purpose. This may be a great way to get one of these XLR nightmares corrected. However, the next XLR will also be stuck. Repairing the bent tab, with some electronics boxes/mixers is so complex that it may be a good option to simply insert a 90XLR & a 6" extension that you never extract. If its a permanent installation, using the smashed paper clip would not be an issue for the house engineer who understands the work around.
Definitely recommend some sort of strain relief. I had a Behringer stagebox 16 where the previous owner insisted that after somebody stepped on the ethernet cable (no shell) and broke the ethercon jack that there was no way to fix it. His plan was to wedge some toothpicks in there, I just trolled Ebay for the right part and resoldered it. Either way after I fixed it cable got wrapped around the handle and box got placed to avoid tripping hazards. I have to do a lot of maintenance on this x32 system a local nonprofit bought off of somebody and I took responsibility of, would've thought it was pushed off a cliff. Next priority is fixing the power distro power cord that has no ground and redoing all the speakon connectors.
You Sir are a genius...I didn't believe the twisting method for a stuck XLR in a camera audio input would work...but taking a deep breath and a pair of pliers I twisted and pulled...and OMG, it actually worked!!! Thanks for saving my ass 🙂
Awesome!!
I've had this happen with a handful of cheap XLR connectors in various devices usually a combination of pushing in while pushing the tab and pulling out quickly releases it but this is good to know in case I ever run into a really stuck one. But not some thing I generally want to do on my zoom recorder. I'm also super patient so usually I can get around most problems.
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I'm not the first and I won't be the last to say a THOUSAND THANKS for posting this video. A total lifesaver. I was total shocked when I went to pull the plug out. I now think mfrs of the plug and/or the audio device should place a small sticker warning on the device. I walked into it not realizing when I plugged it in.
Thanks for this video!
Had an XLR stuck in my ZOOM F6 for some months, was not able to get it out, and today I'm free of that 5meter cable and have an F6 body without cables again!
Awesome!!
Today I worked on 2 EV monitors with Neutrik xlr's with this exact problem. Dam dam frustrating. Made some teeny tiny lockpick style pins hoping to push the holding pins in so the xlr would slide out. Waste of time that was. Checked your chanel and 5 seconds in and pop! Its out!! You are a legend Dave thanks man👍👍 Side note.. I have a Midas 3210 analogue console that I freaking love! You cannot beat that old school warmth.
So cool!! And yeah, the lock pick never works fore either! Love cool analog!
UN-STINKIN-BELIEVABLE! Amazing solution bro!!!! You literally helped out THE ENTIRE audio community with this tip!!!!!
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This may be the most valuable per second video you've done. In 2:25 you've solved a common issue we all deal with. Thanks Dave!
😎 me and thank you!!
Oh wow, excellent!
I recently had a DMX cable stuck into the thru connector of a dimmer switch that I bought.
I had to unscrew the shell from the cable, open the dimmer switch and slide a thin guitar string height measurement tool into the installed connector for it to release the shell, but your method is waaaaay easier!
Thanks for sharing that
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I have a bass management controller I'm about to sell, so was panicking when I couldn't remove the final XLR. Many thanks Dave - you delivered!
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Dave you are great!!! I had a 30k camera with a stuck xlr in it! you saved my bacon. I can't believe it worked! Thanks man!
Awesome I love that!
Great trick! Should add that when this happens, you should toss the shell because the reason it got stuck in the first place is it's become misshapen, usually as a result of getting stepped on. That's why it's usually the male end that this happens to, as it's easier to deform than the female end.
Actually the misshaped can usually be pulled out fairly easily and straightened. The issue that we're running into is the spring on the release is not activating the catch. It is the female panel mount connector itself that is faulty.
That stage box you see and another one got sent back to neutrik by us with the connector shells from a customer permanently attached to it. One of them neutrik destroyed the entire female connector to release it and the other they sent back as we sent it to them.
We sent the units back to them to let them know that their female panel mount connectors were failing and asked them for a solution at least to get the connectors out but also to stop having the problem.
Also we were trying to solve the issue where the customer wanted their male shell back so that their 100 meter cable wasn't without a shell. So not only was The nitric connector on The neutrik on the stage box faulty but we also felt responsible for repaairing the customer's cable
After getting the boxes back from neutrik and they were unable to solve it I sat down and figured out the twisting method.
I was then able to remove the customer's male shell, which was undamaged and imperfect condition and send them a warranty repaired stage box as well as their male connector shell back as well
@DaveRat Neutrik isn't that cooperative once they know about the problem.
And once they know about the problem it's not a problem according to Neutrik.
Trust me, I have dealt with Neutrik on development level (the Ultimate Plug and several product upgrades) and the only thing they care about is making money. Take for example the original Powercon. After releasing the True1 in 2011, Neutrik planned to have the original Powercon reach end of life in 2016. The only reason that didn't happen was because of its market share. And being able to disconnect the original Powercon under load? They already had that figured out in 2011 as it is just a simple modification they had to make.
That's also why new designs or redesigns of older connectors are impossible to openen nowadays once they are assembled.
Well, I can say that I have a good relationship with neutrik. My SoundTools brand is actually one of the largest purchasers of raw neutrik components in North America.
Yes there's companies much larger that buy a lot more but everybody else makes them in China or overseas somewhere and since we make all our products in North America our little company is a big fish in a little pond.
That said like any big company they have mixed messages and varying assets and issues.
I did a video on the new NL 4 and the tools required to disassemble it costing $90. Following that video I got an email from neutrik, saying that because of my video they have lowered the prices to $30 for the tools and will be releasing free downloadable 3D print files for the tools.
The same info was told to me directly when I saw them at Namm.
So, Yes I agree that they can be somewhat reluctant to deal with issues and also videos like this one can inspire change on their part as I've already proven
@@DaveRat Agreeing with MrBitflipper, we've seen more misshaped male XLR shells cause this than defective female jacks, but I'm sure both can happen. I tried to reshape the metal XLR male shell and didn't find it easy at all, was much simpler to just replace.
Interesting, and thank you. Yes for misshapen male locks, replacing its the way. In the misshapen ones I have run into, before figuring out to twist, I was able to give a hard pull to release.
The broken/defective female I've had no luck except destroy or twist.
Either way, I hope the twist help solve.
I had an early production x32 rack this happened on with under a year of use. Had to send it back. Thanks for sharing this tip!
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This is the perfect type of information McGyvers like us need!!! Thank you Dave!
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Excellent .... I have watched several video and no one but you has an easy fix.
Awesome and yeah I couldn't find a good solution anywhere so I messed around with it until I came up with one.
Your video on feed back just helped me help someone else. Thank you. Your real world knowledge is so good. You should have 20 million subs. I'm trying to help by telling everyone with audio issues to watch you. I hope it helps. I can't even imagine how a one on one would be for a sound technician. I don't do it but everyone that works in the industry should watch you; listen to you. And my god the sub video you made about killing the bass in the middle of a circle of subs led me to many other conclusions about my own audio like reflections and distance and I stopped worrying about volume so much as distance and polarity. You just fix everything I always wanted to fix. Thank you sir.
So cool and thank you!
WAS JUST ABOUT TO DISCONNECT MAIN BOARD AND SOLDER OFF... CHEERS DAVE.. TOP IDEA..
I got one shell stuck in a stagebox for months now, tomorrow im gonna try the twist method!
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Thank you Dave!
I've only had this issue once, with a powered speaker. Luckily it was under warranty, but this is SO GOOD to know!! Thank you, thank you!
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Thank you!! I recently had a situation where a 5 pin wouldn't come out of the DMX out of a plug box on the work gallery. I was up there for so long, trying to get it out because the shell of it is ever so slightly bent. My boss eventually managed to get it out, but it took so much time. Now I know better, thank you very much!
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I have an etherCon stuck in a X32 rack and a XLR stuck in a DMX light. Perfect timing Mr Rat. 😁
Edit (Worked perfectly!)
Awesome!!
AMAZING!!!!! Dave is the best there is
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FIrst time out with my X32 and S16s, had a connector get stuck in the S16. I'm not sure how we removed it, but we did get it out. What a PITA. Wish I had seen this 11 years ago. Also, makes me want to stick with neutrik connectors so I can take stuff out easier in case I run into this again. I also have a phantom power supply that does this. I should just replace the connector. Thanks for reminding me of a repair I should get to!
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HUGE THANKS! I was ready to toss out my DAC out of my 8th floor window! That would have been a few thousand dollars down the drain!
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Thanks, haven’t had the issue ‘yet’, but now I know how to fix the issue! 👍
Awesome
i had this problem not long ago.. Out of frustration, I did the twist.. Thinking I was distroying it.. but, It worked ! Thanks for sharing !
Perf ct!!
This is such great future proofing material! heard this happening to a fellow techinican and he dident know what to do, afraid of destroying the connector
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Where the simple things confound the wise. Great hack!
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Audio and plumbing fantastic .So many connector issues and pliers are a solution .Hammers work good too .I fixed a few things with that .But what do i know im just a sparky .Hammers fix everything !
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Lol, just ran into this issue for the first time in 40 years yesterday, thanks!
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Dave, this is just awesome! Thanks!
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Holy crap you saved my life!!! Thank you!!!
Or at least saved Philips life
You're the best !!! Thank you for this !!!
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Big thanks @Dave 🐀
Simply amazing 🤯
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THANK YOU! I just went through this with a DMX connector...
Glad and hope this was helpful
Hi Dave, great video/videos. We have had a male neutrik XLR housing stuck in the back of a QSC K8.2 for months now. So we tried out your new discovery. No bueno!!! I have two of shop guys working on it as I speak, however it is still stuck. I'm glad I have an extra input channel on this model. 😁 Keep up the good work my friend.
Oh no. What brand of connectors?
Yeah it looks like some kind of knock off brand with a prefabbed compression insert. It looks like it's spelled (REAN), but some of the letters got scraped off trying to extract it!! The QSC chassis mount is a Neutrik though. I would send a pic if I could figure out how to attach one here. @@DaveRat
Turns out that neutrik bought and actually owns Rean connectors now.
They can be purchased at slightly slower prices and are pretty good quality.
@@DaveRat A whole new meaning for “locking type”
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damn, how did I never figure this out before! good stuff.
I feel the same why, did it take me so long?
That will come in handy come festival Season. Thanks for Sharing this neat little trick with us mere mortal sound humans.
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Thanks for the insight on this.
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this legit just saved me hours
Awesome
Wow. Thanks a lot. You saved my day
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Thanks. Save me a lot of time
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I've done this trick a few times. I had to disassemble the xlr and use the pliers on my multi tool to twist it out. The rest of the crew was amazed because they couldn't do it lol
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OUTSTANDING !!!!!!!
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My man! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 thanks!
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I've actually had local crew unscrew all connectors in my stage box. Leaving the XLR shells just sitting there.
Never underestimate the ability to come up with a bad idea and run with it
Never commented on a video before, but I will be trying this over the weekend on one just like this !! Genius, Now how to fix/stop the next one to plug into this S-16 ???
Yeah see panel mount connector is the issue which it typically is, that will need to be replaced.
But the first step in replacing it is to remove the old barrel which you now have done or are able to do.
Occasionally the stuck XLR is caused by a bent XLR barrel which can be bent back or replaced once it's removed.
Great tip!🤘🏼🤘🏼🤘🏼
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Great solution…👍👍
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I found it more and more common, What I've been doing for installs is cutting off the latch end on the male XLR.
Haven't had a problem since
Interesting so you cut off the little metal tab so the hole is now open to the end of the connector? Sand down the sharp edges as well?
@@DaveRat no I just get wire cutters all little Die Grinder cut the male locking point on the cable end. I only do this for installs band setups and DJ setups it has been less damage endless maintenance
Perfect ! Thanks Dave !!
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Right on brother!
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Thanks!
So cool thank you Chris!!!
Thank you!!
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Excellent tip! Thanks Dave!
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thank you!
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Thanks so much
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I found it more and more common, What I've been doing for installs is cutting off the latch end on the male XLR.
Haven't had a problem since
And it's quicker for the pack up
Yes non latching is definitely faster and we don't really need the latch to be that strong. I'd rather it come unplugged than break the cable before coming unplugged
THANK YOUUUU !!!!!
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All my XLR barrels and socket shafts are keyed (the line-up notch and slot next to pin/hole 2. You can't rotate the barrel. I haven't seen one, yet, without it.
It wasn't long ago I had a fight to disassemble one jammed with a squished male XLR barrrel
Yes, of course they are all keyed. Every XLR and sthercon has jeying. And twisting will override the key as the keys are rounded.
The existence of the key is what stops people from figuring out this trick.
The plastic nub that forms the key will flex out of the way when twisted.
That is the entire crux
old-school all-metal XLRs on most of my gear, and the few plastic ones don't have any latching parts @@DaveRat
Thank you!👏👌
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Outstanding
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Thank you Dave Rat 🙂
Awesome and thank you!
Unusual that uts a neutrik plug Dave.,its usually a generic or other brand connector that gets stuck. The other cuplrits are those damn generic combo xlr/ jack inputs mounted on audio interfaces and mixers.. Had to dismantle an entire motu interface wit floating boards and most of a yamaha power amp to get to the input board to replace the input. The combo inputs have a pin lever mechanism that gives way over time, rendering it useless. Best to Stick to neutrik or amphenol plugs for vital inputs.
Yeah this seems to be a bad batch of nitric panel mount connectors. Also since we are the largest purchaser of neutrik connectors in North America, I think we have more exposure to the possible flaws. And since we only use neutrik, when we do see issues, they tend to be nuetrik
Haha genius stuff. Vote Rat 2024
Honored!!
@@DaveRat You would do a much better job than the clowns that are currently running the show IMHO... Vote Dave 2024
Niceee! good to know.Thanks for sharing!
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Thank you.
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I wish I had known this earlier. Does this also work with XLR/phone jack combo connectors? I once had an XLR stuck in such a thing and the active speaker was quite a nightmare to dismantle… and to get it together again, and to find the connector online in order to buy a new one.
It should work but I haven't tested it. It's easy enough to test on a working connector that isn't in a critical usage location or just raw on the bench
Generic combo connectors often go bad. Tip only use neutrik xlr plugs, avoid using the jack input. There is a release pin lever in there that is weak and once that locks, it's toast.
O M G
Thank you sooooooo much
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Holy moly. 🎉🎉🎉
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I have no words… 👏🏽🤲🏽👍🏽
Awesome and we just had it happen at Coachella festival to one of our state snakes. The female XLR was bad but getting the mail shell out put the cable back in action and allowed us to fix the stage box and replace the female
@@DaveRat It doesn’t take many times like that to imprint in your memory. When I built my splitter/subs system from scratch in the 90s, I specced all non-locking panel mounts. In thirty years I have never seen a male plug ‘fall’ out of a friction type panel mount. Not once.
@artysanmobile agreed, friction is the way to go. Tripping on a cable is rather it unplug than destroy the cable.
@@DaveRat Yep, and good stage people ALWAYS dress cables for at least one degree of protection from disconnect. It is practically intuitive for my crew. My awesome, awesome crew! 👏🏽
Agreed
Trust you dude
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I had the same problem with an xlr stuck in the back of an x32, I left the shell stuck in there for months before a friend got it out for me
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Love you
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You're the man!
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Hello Dave. ive been watching your videos and youre like the final boss of audio engineering 😅 and ive been wondering: if an instrument cable has shielding around it and im about to solder the ¼" jack to it, should i solder the shield to neutral or leave it unconnected? i heard it protects the cable from EMF but how can it prevent it if its connected to neutral?
Hmmm, neutral? Are you putting a top ring 2 conductor 1/4" onto a 3 conductor cable?
If so, one wire connects tip to tip or tip to pin 2 of the XLR.
The 2nd center wire connects sleeve to ring or sleeve to pin 3 of an XLR
The shield connects sleeve to sleeve or sleeve to pin 1.
A general rule is that when you have 3 wires and 2 conductors on the connectors, you short the pin3/out-of-polarity/ring to the shield.
i didnt really understand.. its a cable with two wires and a metal "net" or shield around them, made for unbalanced ¼" TS connectors, for mono instruments, the ones with only one plastic ring on them. when i expose the wires for soldering there is a shielding net around the cable and i was wondering if i should solder that shield to the Ring or just leave it unconnected?
Edit: the cable has TS connectors on both sides
When connecting a three conductor wire, too down the middle and a shield around the outside, to TS for two conductor connectors, select one of the center wires and tie it to the shield on both sides.
ohhh okay. thank you! its an honour to hear from the legend himself thank you!
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@daverat : Does it matter which way you twist it ? On the EtherCon you did counter-clockwise and on the XLR you did clockwise...
I have not found it matters but if one way twisted easier, do that
@@DaveRat Thanks !
Brother, you are a fucking genius!!
Awesome hope it comes a good use!
@@DaveRat To almost anyone else I would say "You have no idea!", but in fact, you know so well that you felt compelled to share a solution to this frustration. Thank you again, sir. If you are ever short an A1, A2, or even just shop help, please let me know.
Cool cool! As far as work, I don't deal with the crew side but here is a link. There are two jobs open but also, we often need festival crews and this is the same contact info
ratsound.squarespace.com/employment
I've been doing this for years at my repair shop.But it doesn't always work. Sometimes it needs to be cut out to remove.
Interesting. I've yet to find one I could not twist out. Seems twisting hard enough with a pipe wrench if need be 😁, would release any and all.
fantastic
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Hello mr Dave it's bluey (>^.^)> bluey saw your video on galvanic corrosion and was wondering, bluey has an eye on an audio interface from Arturia, their MiniFuse 1, it had very impressive audio performance for $99 USD so bluey wanted to try it out, its XLR input is copper that's been gold plated. would bluey be able to use any gold plated XLR into that? or would it be best to specifically find a copper gold plated XLR cable as well? tyty in advance (>^.^)>
Any gold is good.
wow man!!!!
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The plug is out and the socket destroyed ;)
Nice hack!
Surprisingly it doesn't destroy the socket. That said, if it was stuck the socket was already bad. But if you use this trick on a working socket it doesn't hurt it and it still works just fine
I cant believe. 100 years of audio and this happens. I just became "baptized" in audio with this issue, I guess. I am afraid to do the "tiwst move". just jammed the xlr in an arturia mini fuse 2. any place where I could try inserting a very thin screw driver?
The thin screwdriver rarely works if ever.
The twist is simple and safe
Is a good chance the panel mount XLR has a bad lock on it so it's ruined anyways.
Removing the XLR shell will at least get your cable working again and allow you to access the panel mount to remove and replace it
@@DaveRat It came out, finally.
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Sounds kind of rough, I would be concerned about damaging or stressing the jack, making more stuck connectors likely.
Hmmm, and the other option of chewing up the female panel mount with a pair of large cutters sounds less rough?
Or I guess you could just leave the shell stuck instead. Not really another option unless you figure one out
@@DaveRat I'm a service tech and always looking for the best fix, but I know I'm going to use this trick in a pinch! I've just had so many "should have just replaced it" moments during my illustrious career, haha.
Yeah I look at it as there are several things that can go wrong. One thing is the male connector has a bent area around the latch which makes it hard to remove, in which case using the twist method and then replacing the male bent shell would be the way to go. As long as the panel mount female still works fine. Conversely the issue I'm running into is the actual female panel mount is defective and needs to be replaced and cannot be repaired. So now it's about getting that good male shell out of there not only to save the male shell which may be important if it's from an uncommon ethercon.
But also you often need to remove the mail shell in order to remove The female panel mount because the latch is in the way and on our stage boxes that we make you must remove the male shell in order to replace the circuit board and fix the unit. So the twist method allows you to get that mail shell out of there so that the unit can be repaired.
I decided to share it because I've seen loadouts held up with people trying to unplug a cable from a stage box. Having a simple way to get that out of there so that it can be fixed later seemed super fun to me
Oh yeah, I hate that problem. Make sure to inspect your XLR plugs, if the little bit that lock in is at all damaged, replace it! Shells that are squished out of round are also very risky.
Agreed and yet the issue that is the worst is when the panel mount connector is defective, like the one I show in the vid. It won't let enev a brand new male plug release.
I always assume that if I've got a stuck shell, then I'm going to replace the panel connector. @@DaveRat
Yeah that's unchanged. The panel connector will still need to be replaced usually. But often you still need to get the shell out of the panel mount in order to change the panel mount.
Also during loadout you can send the cable home intact and mark the panel mount instead of having a bad panel and cable missing it's shell
Hey Dave, I just got a Soundcraft SI Expression 1 and I'm having a bit of a problem figuring out the routing procedures. I figured out how to change the main L/R to any out-put but I'm trying to set up an aux send for a subwoofer out. I found a few videos on CZcams but there not showing how to do this or they skip it in the commentary. The only digital console I've got to use was a Neve Capricorn desk back in the 90's when I was in recording school I remember it being easy to operate once I got some instruction. You have any time on these Soundcraft SI Expression board's? I have an analog board that I'm using right now but I'd like to start utilizing the SI Expression as it's more versatile. Oh, I got a hell of a deal on it used at $1K! I think there almost $3K new. I'd appreciate any help I can get! God Bless!
Never used one of those consoles so I'm not sure.
OMG!
Dave, you are a legend!
Awesome and thank you!
F$&k no way
I first read this as how to remove the suck knob.
Same thing 😁
Good to know, that damn new Neutrik ethercons are made to lock in screwed state, so normaly you cannot unscrew them on field without proper tools 😡. And I think, thax XLR will follow. It is time for new manufacturer to take place. 😢
Well I think they were under pressure because the voltage levels of modern amplifiers can be an excessive hundreds of volts until it can pose a danger.
That said the tools they offer were too expensive but they contacted me and said that because of my video they've lowered the price of the tools from $90 to $30 or less and they are or are going to offer free 3D print downloads of the tools needed.
No I drink is a good company but they're very big and like any company they make mistakes but also the fact they're willing to correct them is a good sign
@@DaveRatwell let's say speakons can handle such a power, but ethercons? Really RJ45s needs to be one time mount? 😢
I have not seen locking XLR or RJ45 from neutrik that require special tools for safety.
To judge them based on an assumption that they may do something that they have not done is not useful or of any logical value
@@DaveRat also I have found now, that ethercons have 2 traces on shell so they cannot be twisted in port, if you remove RJ insert. 🤔
Doh!
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I HAVE THE POWAH 😆
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This is why it should be illegal (yes, that's right, ILLEGAL) to sell cables with moulded connectors. They are a waste of resources, and in case they get stuck, you cannot just take them apart and remove like you did. Would this work on female XLR or similar connectors too? Or are locks on cables less likely to brake?
On the female cable connectors the lock is on the cable itself and tends not to be an issue. And if it does get stuck you can pull the guts and use a little screwdriver and get those out fairly easily
Thank you!@@DaveRat
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гениально
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never again
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So, just continue the show then? What if you still need the channel, and the band is still playing, no matter what you did? I just didn't see the payoff tonight yet.
Well if you don't need to unplug it don't unplug it.
Besides you wouldn't even know that it's broken unless you needed to unplug it.
But if you've ever had a stuck XLR or ethercon and you're trying to load out, then you appreciate how useful this is not having a 330 foot ethercon cable stuck to your digiCo stage rack and loading into the truck that way.