Guitar leads

darrenw5094

My fairly new Planet waves guitar lead is gone.....as in the signal completely cuts out when i angle the Gibson up during solos.

These cables are guaranteed for life.......mine didn't last 3 months.....no gigs yet, just rehersals.

Anyway i have brought it back to the store and will get a replacement when the rep comes back.

I have bought another one because i have a gig next week.

Are planet waves the best make or are there any other brands that are more durable????

Doctor J

Make sure you wrap the new one behind the strap. No lead will last for life if you don't look after it. Usually the breaks happen next to the jacks because it's a static point and all the stress of twisting and moving is terminated there. When you move the guitar it shouldn't make a difference because wrapping the lead behind the strap will ensure none of the stress makes it as far as the jack.

Voodu Child

Im pretty hard on leads and Planet Waves have lasted longer than any other brand. I got one replaced no bother in MusicInc and i must have had it about 2 years. I have another which looks like it's about to go at one end, and i've probably had that nearly two years as well.

TBH, i won't buy any other cable now, unless im in a fix, or it's for something that never gets moved.

I couldn't say why yours broke so quickly, but either way, i'd stick with the brand, they're about the best in terms of price and quality IMO.

darrenw5094

Yes, the cable was wrapped around the strap.....i do that anyway so i won't pull out the cable by accident if i stand on it.

It was a cable with one end 90 degree angle....perfect for the Les Paul type guitars.

leninbenjamin

not familiar with the brand but aren't planet wave jacks covered in sealed rubber? i always get one's encased in metal that you can screw off and solder back on. it's pretty easy and quick to do too if your not familiar with it... only once have i ever had a break i couldn't fix myself...

Voodu Child

leninbenjamin wrote:

not familiar with the brand but aren't planet wave jacks covered in sealed rubber? i always get one's encased in metal that you can screw off and solder back on. it's pretty easy and quick to do too if your not familiar with it... only once have i ever had a break i couldn't fix myself...

Doing that is fine when you've tonnes of time on your hands. I spent years cutting and resoldering new leads every time they broke, but there comes to a point when you just want a lead to work for as long as possible.

You could re-solder a cheap cable 4 or 5 times over the course of a year or two, but if you're a working adult that's probably worth a hundred quid in man-hours. Easier just to buy a good cable in the first place.

On top of the ruggedness and lifetime guarantee of the Planet Waves cables, they also happen to sound pretty good, low signal-loss etc.

So i don't see any reason to use any other cable tbh.

leninbenjamin

voodoo_child wrote:

Doing that is fine when you've tonnes of time on your hands. I spent years cutting and resoldering new leads every time they broke, but there comes to a point when you just want a lead to work for as long as possible.

You could re-solder a cheap cable 4 or 5 times over the course of a year or two, but if you're a working adult that's probably worth a hundred quid in man-hours. Easier just to buy a good cable in the first place.

On top of the ruggedness and lifetime guarantee of the Planet Waves cables, they also happen to sound pretty good, low signal-loss etc.

So i don't see any reason to use any other cable tbh.

meh, to each his own i guess. I know a few working guitarists who would still go about making their own cables ( i wouldn't even be bothered making my own). the more you do it the quicker you get, i've had to repair in a hurry before because lead broke before practice etc. and it was still quicker to repair than go to the shop and buy a new one, saving in money and man hours. also if ya do the job right and start off with a decent lead and good quality jacks and do the soldering to a decent standard they dont break so often either. havn't bought a lead in years and havn't had to repair one in '07.

Voodu Child

leninbenjamin wrote:

and it was still quicker to repair than go to the shop and buy a new one, .

You're missing the point: Planet waves cables have a lifetime guarantee. So you dont buy the new one, you get it for free.

Most cables i've used havent lasted more than 6 months, and to repair have usually taken at least half an hour, what with getting the soldering iron out, cutting the cable & stripping the insulation of the wire etc. That's one man hour per cable per year, so at least 20 or 30 euros for the average adult.

I'd much rather spend 30 euros on a planet waves cable in the first place and NEVER again have to spend another penny or waste another hour messing around soldering.

Karl Hungus

I definetly have much love for Planet Waves cables.

I'm downright shocked that the OP's one didn't last 3 months. But in my experience, I don't think there's really anything better, or that offer the lifetime guarantee.

leninbenjamin

voodoo_child wrote:

You're missing the point: Planet waves cables have a lifetime guarantee. So you dont buy the new one, you get it for free.

whoops, point taken. :oi

me living where i am though it's still quicker for me to repair than go out and get one at short notice, so i'll be keeping up the oul soldering for a bit. plus i'm in college so i've plenty of time to waste still....

Voodu Child

leninbenjamin wrote:

whoops, point taken. :oi

me living where i am though it's still quicker for me to repair than go out and get one at short notice, so i'll be keeping up the oul soldering for a bit. plus i'm in college so i've plenty of time to waste still....

Well, i've been there myself like I say, soldering and re-solding broken cables, especially during my student days. But when you get to a stage where you start to put a $ value on your free time, having a life-time guarantee just makes soooo much sense, much better than feickin around with a soldering iron.

I dropped by MusicianInc with my last broken (Planet Waves) cable, didn't even take 60 seconds to get a new one. After that, I don't see myself using any other brand.

leninbenjamin

shhh.... now your tempting me, and i don't even need one...

Johnny Storm

Very interesting - I didn't know it was so easy to get them replaced. Mine didn't stand up to much use purely at home.
On my one anyhow there's a little goldy screw near where the cable goes into the connector: I just unscrewed that, pulled out the cable, cut off a few inches, pressed it back in, tightened up the screw and its as good as new. No soldering involved. It's as easy as that provided the problem is near the connector.

punchdrunk

i#ve started using George L's cables and they are hands down,the best around wouldn't use anything else now

Mr. CooL ICE

Planet Waves all the way! As per my sig, I luuurrrve them and really don't ever want to use another brand. Too many bad experiences, e.g. week old cable breaking after getting caught under a door. Never had a planet waves break on me. The only reason I buy new ones is that I lose the old ones at gigs, which happens a lot