I don't know jack

jhaneyzz

Well-known member
I've been checking out the Build reports and noticing that everyone but me is using plastic Phone Jacks and I'm using 1/4" Chassis Jacks.

Did I not get a memo or something?
 
Sometimes a build (from other vendors, everything here is pretty standardized) specifies the lumberg jacks if the layout is tight. The same goes with low profile electrolytics, so I got in the habit of only buying those, with the peace of mind they'll fit in any build I might do. Nothing wrong with the switchcraft style jacks, unless they don't fit or are inferior quality
 
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Recently I borked my top drilling on a build and had to try all styles of jacks I had to try and get one that fit. The open metal frame ones just barely made it and saved the day. So it paid to have the extras around that time.
 
I also use the Switchcraft style open frame metal ones. When I first started out with pedals I got some of the enclosed plastic ones with kits, and I melted a lot of them and the lugs don't inspire a ton of confidence. My skill level is probably higher now and I wouldn't melt as may, but the open metal kind seems pretty indestructible and requires less cognitive load for me to look at it and see which lug is which. I'd like to try Lumbergs at some point for the form factor, but I bought a ton of the the open metal ones because they were cheaper in bulk and haven't needed any new ones in a while (or built anything too cramped).
 
Out of these three, I like the Lumberg the best and would use them in anything I would sell or use extensively, but the Enclosed Jacks are the cheapest and are decent enough I think. The metal is a much lighter gauge than the other two open ones.
I do side-mounted jacks on all my builds, and with the PedalPCB boards, the PCB lands up being quite far back (towards the stomp switch.) The small footprint of the Lumberg jacks helps a lot in allowing everything to fit. Not a problem if using top-mounted jacks.

For my vero builds, I typically use the cheap Tayda open jacks, but if you overtighten them, the barrel can separate from the jack "frame". The Neutrik jacks (that Tayda sells) are much higher quality (or, genuine Switchcraft jacks.)

Lumberg - space for everything:
IMG_5206a.png

Open frame - tight squeeze:
20200210_175218.png
 
I started with open jacks. No issues with except that some of them resist taking solder.

I moved to lumbergs for a while, but then concluded that they weren't worth the premium (a couple of times they've had an issue where the jack ended up bending the connector out of the way instead of fitting into it--they also look like they're about to break when under tension of holding the jack, and even though I haven't had one break it looks sketchy).

Now I've been using those enclosed jacks, which are the cheapest, and haven't had any issues whatsoever.
 
Recently I borked my top drilling on a build and had to try all styles of jacks I had to try and get one that fit. The open metal frame ones just barely made it and saved the day. So it paid to have the extras around that time.
I've definitely perfected borking...
 
I started with open jacks. No issues with except that some of them resist taking solder.

I moved to lumbergs for a while, but then concluded that they weren't worth the premium (a couple of times they've had an issue where the jack ended up bending the connector out of the way instead of fitting into it--they also look like they're about to break when under tension of holding the jack, and even though I haven't had one break it looks sketchy).

Now I've been using those enclosed jacks, which are the cheapest, and haven't had any issues whatsoever.

FYI, I finally determined that the "resist taking solder" thing is because they are basically huge heat sinks. I just leave the iron on for a count of 5 or six before apply the solder, Flows on great.

I'll definitely grab some enclosed jacks, they are more compact and will help save my butt when i botch my top drill alignment.
 
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Their cheaper. I’m just building for myself. I was using neutriks until they got more expensive.
 
FYI, I finally determined that the "resist taking solder" thing is because they are basically huge heat sinks. I just leave the iron on for a count of 5 or six before apply the solder, Flows on great.
Same. I used to scuff sand them a bit, and that also helps, but I don't even bother any more since I got to the "acceptance" phase of allowing the iron to linger.
 
Literally it was last week and I was like "this is a pain in the ass chasing solder balls across the connection point. Hm... There's nothing to melt here. Let's just heat it until it submits..." frustration is the mother of invention...
 
After using enclosed jacks for 125B and open frame for 1590B I've consolidated to using pretty much all open frame jacks from Tayda.
They're cheap and very well made. Not SwitchCraft quality but I have not had one fail or cause any issues.
They do tend to resist solder a bit but as @jhaneyzz mentioned, taking a little extra iron time on the lugs helps.

What I do is heat the lug for a bit longer, then fill the hole with a nice blob of solder and when I see the flux cooking I know I've got a good molecular bond. Then afterwards, I'll quickly reheat the blob and insert my wire. This way I'm not melting the insulation on the wire and I get a nice neat connection.
 
I have a confession to make…. I have stopped passing my leads through the holes in the solder tabs… I know that god is a very very angry at me and I will likely rot in hell, but I just can’t see any reason for doing it in the context of a guitar pedal. It’s not like they’re gonna “shake loose” or get yanked on. And given the number of times I wire something wrong, or wish to adjust the cable length to tidy things up it makes it about a thousand times easier to unsolder to fix things. I feel so dirty and alone…
 
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