Leaving cables plugged in Amp

[LLL]

Re: Leaving cables plugged in Amp

Speaking of spraying spray products into amps...

For keeping contacts clean and pots smooth, Caig Deoxit is the bee's knees:

https://www.google.com/#q=caig+deoxit

For pots, add the spray straw to the can, point at the slot at the side of the pot and quickly give it a shot (don't make a mess).

Then turn the pot back and forth several times.

Fixed many a tough, dead-spotted or crackly pot for me.

[PFDarkside]

Re: Leaving cables plugged in Amp

In days of yore, 1/4" plugs and sockets were used in telephone exchanges, where they were plugged and unplugged many many thousands of times with no detriment (hence 'phone plugs'). They are designed to be repeatedly connected/ disconnected.

I would suggest leaving things plugged together for long periods of time is worse than the alternative (the 'dissimilar metal' effect can occur, and the 'self-cleaning' aspect is negated). For those who worry about turning their amp on with the speaker unplugged, the answer is very simple .... coil your speaker cable and place it on top of your amp as close as possible to the power switch, so you will see it before you switch the amp on.

And I wish some of you guys were less enthusiastic about squirting various spray products into amps and other gear.

I'm sure the quality of the connectors is of 2017 is of equal quality as from 1910 too right?
It looks like Switchcraft are rated at 10,000 cycles. Who knows about the Chinese knockoffs.

What's the dissimilar metal? Aren't both played with some alloy of nickel?

Either way it's 6 of one, half dozen of another, right?

[PAPADON]

Re: Leaving cables plugged in Amp

Which is worse? Constant tension on the contact or repeated wear on the contact?

I discussed this once with a structural engineer back when I used to build houses. What I was asking him about was the metal straps that are set into the concrete slab and attached to the framing to keep things in place. My question was, "why do building inspectors require that the straps be replaced if they get bent over". His answer was that bending the straps causes them to lose their tensile strength so my guess is the constant bending is worse than constant tension.

[LesStrat]

Re: Leaving cables plugged in Amp

If the cable is exposed, I'd unplug.

If not, leave it plugged.