Hey all.

I've got a pretty simple problem, that I am sure we've all experienced many times.

Basically, I've got an electric guitar, and the output when connected to the line/wire needs to be moved about/toggled/jiggled in order to generate sound. The longer it goes unfixed, the worse the problem gets. The more jarring and stuff I have to do to find the sweet spot so that the connection is actually made at all.

I've had this problem before with TV RCA connections and a few others as well. Where you have to "hold down" the wire to get the screen to show, or even hold it with your hand, and as soon as you release your grip it goes back to static. Or in the case of my guitar, silence.

Any knob-heads or audiophiles out there know what the proper term for this dilemma is? And maybe even the solution?

Thanks,
JC

It's probably just a bad cable, so try a different one first and see if that solves it. And, if you need a new one, don't ever skimp on cables. You don't need to spend $100 on a Monster cable, but don't settle for a $5 bargain-bin cable, either. I've had the same 20-ft Rapco with wrapped ends since about 1996 and it has literally survived 100s of gigs/sessions. I actually have a duplicate backup cable in my gig bag that I purchased on the same day that has never been opened and still has the zip-ties on it.

If it's not the cable, then you probably just have a bad output jack on your guitar. It should be nothing more than unscrewing the jack and checking the solder connections. Worst-case situation is likely a bad jack, which is a cheap/easy fix. If your soldering skills are as bad as mine, I'm sure your local Guitar Center can fix it for cheap.

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for me that problem is almost always a bad wire

quote:

Originally posted by cryophonik If it's not the cable, then you probably just have a bad output jack on your guitar. It should be nothing more than unscrewing the jack and checking the solder connections. Worst-case situation is likely a bad jack, which is a cheap/easy fix. If your soldering skills are as bad as mine, I'm sure your local Guitar Center can fix it for cheap.

This is most likely if the cable still won't work if you flip it around, or if the issue persists with other cables.

My guitar just recently had this issue, one of the cables broke off the solder point. Just re-solder it and you'll be good to go.

Good call, thank you all.

I was hoping not to have to open it up, but what can ya do? Good thing I kept my soldering iron.

Take care.