Tech: Cord Storage

Subject: Tech: Chord Storage
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 05:00 PM

So after hunching over a soldering iron for about an hour, I now have more chords than I'm likely to need... And it got me to wondering... How do you folks who gig store yer chords?

A good careful wrap and a velco tie-down? Ball 'em up and wad 'em into a plastic bag?

Any neat pieces of kit that you've seen/thought up to store chords?

Subject: RE: Tech: Chord Storage
From: wysiwyg
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 05:03 PM

CORDS, I hope! Labeled at each end as to length, etc., and rolled up with a velcro strap.

I store CHORDS on my autoharp's chord buttons. Keeps clutter to a minimum.

~S~

Subject: RE: Tech: Chord Storage
From: Teresa
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 05:09 PM

Heheheh, I'm sorry, but any time I see alternate spellings, including my own, I have to play with them. :)

Ok, I'll be good. I use those electrical ties that you can get in hardware stores. They have adjustable catches, so you can pull them as snugly as you need to.

Teresa

Subject: RE: Tech: Chord Storage
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 05:16 PM

*sigh*
perhaps a mod can change the title please...

But what do you do with them after you've wrapped them Teresa?

Duffle bag? Backpack? Plastic Bag? Box?

cause there's gotta be 'a better way' to store 'em....

Subject: RE: Tech: Chord Storage
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 05:50 PM

Velcro. And the best case I've ever found is an old accountant's audit case like this one that I found at a thrift shop. It was a lucky find, but thrift shops often have small suitcases, bowling bags and such that could be used for cords.

And while we're on the subject of cords... Everyone should put some kind of identifier on their cords, mics, stands, booms etc. When two or more people's equipment shares the same stage (like when you play in a band) sorting out what belongs to whom can be a bitch. Engraving your name on metal parts with a Dremel tool works well, but my favorite is to wrap two or three different colors of electrician's tape around the cord in a recognizable pattern. All my stuff us marked with three purple bands on a yellow background. Don't ask me where I got purple electrician's tape. Another lucky find, I guess.

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 05:58 PM

"the best case I've ever found is an old accountant's audit case like this one"

Wow... that is a serious piece of case... glad I don't have to hump around that many cords!

:-)

"Everyone should put some kind of identifier on their cords, mics, stands, booms etc..."
Abso-frigg'n-lootly... Not that I've ever had to 'get into it' with anyone over gear like that...

You have your family
You have your friends
You have your band
If you're lucky
They're all the same

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Uncle_DaveO
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 06:04 PM

To store my chords, I wrap them up in my brain. Keeps them safe, most of the time, so I don't lose them.

Dave Oesterreich

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 06:05 PM

Cause no one has made THAT tired, stupid 'joke' yet...

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Bill D
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 06:13 PM

our club USED to do complex ties, till I started using plastic Zip Lock bags....they lay flat in whatever case you have.

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 06:25 PM

Don't the zip-lock bags wear out awful quickly?

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 06:40 PM

Use the freezer bags, Clint, they're thicker with a sturdier zip. And since they come in quart and gallon sizes you can decide to lump them in one or sort them into several.

I wish my Dad had labeled some of his cords to show what they went to. I'm sure he knew. I have a plastic tub with lots of adapters and cords and gadgets. One of these days I'll match this stuff up, when I start figuring out what I need to use to connect things.

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Leadfingers
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 07:36 PM

The leads for the individual instruments live in the instrument cases
coiled however they'll fit best . Mic and mic leads live in the double
fiddle case adapted for mandolin with extra large bits space , and the rest live in what they call over here a 'Pilots case' which is very like Bruce's . I use velcro ties , pack of six for £2.50p from B & Q having looped the speaker leads round my forearm . Twenty five yards at a time is usually enough , though we have doubled em with a double female 1/4 connecter for a really long room !

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Bill D
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 07:49 PM

those bags are pretty sturdy...unless you throw them around. You open it, you close it...it lies still 99% of the time.

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Cluin
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 08:15 PM

Coil `em up, put a twist-tie around `em near the ends and either stuff them in the guitar case end or the metal suitcase I got for Christmas a couple of years ago, depending on how light I'm travelling.

My chords have a couple of wraps of green plastic tape around eeach end which served pretty well to identify them as mine at a glace, until I started playing with Jim Hopper, who does the same thing. Now I just take the one in better shape    ;)

My instrument chords are braided cloth ones and are uniquely coloured and patterned anyway, so that's a snap. I like those type better because they limber up pretty quickly unless they have come in from the VERY cold.

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Cluin
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 08:17 PM

Keerist, my typing is getting worserer and worserer

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: George Papavgeris
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 11:51 PM

Separated by the common language again...It took LF's posting to clear it up for me.

I keep my cords (corduroy trousers) in the wardrobe (in mothballs these days). I keep my leads in sandwich bags - I only need a max of 2 anyway, so no major storage issue; the spares are in a drawer in my office. There are those who would say that I keep my lead in my cords of course...

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 13 Feb 05 - 12:36 AM

:)

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: George Papavgeris
Date: 13 Feb 05 - 04:14 AM

...and before someone else says it - mothballed too!

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: GUEST,foolestroupe - "I come fru da window!"
Date: 13 Feb 05 - 07:20 AM

I say, I say, I say, George, old chap,

If I have a mothball in my left hand, and a mothball in my right hand, what do I have?

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: GUEST,Leadfingers(in the backdoor)
Date: 13 Feb 05 - 07:31 AM

The undivided attention of a large moth !!

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Justa Picker
Date: 13 Feb 05 - 11:09 AM

Clinton, when I was gigging with my band, we'd use those old (stackable) milk crates that the convenience stores etc...would get their milk shipped to them in. Loop the cables between ones hand and elbow, tie em off with a velcro strip and stack 'em into the crate. Each crate had a different type of cable (depending on whether p.a. or mic related, or instrument related.) We also used an old smaller suit case for other cords and effects pedals, etc.

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Justa Picker
Date: 13 Feb 05 - 11:20 AM

Another thing you could use for easy storage would be a smallish knap sack with compartments.

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 13 Feb 05 - 12:54 PM

Just for reference, the "accountant's audit case" is what's used by many pilots - but they call it a "map case." (Or "chart case" if they fly a big 'un and went to the high priced school.) They're quite readily available new, from or through any "flyboy" center, but they don't show up in the flea markets because nobody ever throws one away.

They're sometimes available at "normal" luggage shops, and I actually got mine from Sears & Sawbucks about 15 - 20 years ago.

The real advantage they have is that they're hard-sided and rectangular, so you know exactly how much space they'll take up, and they don't tip over when you dig around in them. They're stable enough in most circumstances to provide a nice place to put your coffee mug and a sandwich while you're busy flying - or so they tell me.

Although of course it doesn't affect me, it has been noted that the usual "fifth" of your favorite lubicicant will stand upright and won't tip over in most of them. I'm not sure why pilots all seem to know that...

John

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Jeremiah McCaw
Date: 13 Feb 05 - 02:00 PM

One thing I didn't see anyone mention is to not twist cords when coiling them. The slight amount of extra time it takes to coil them with their natural curl means cords that will last way longer.

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Mooh
Date: 13 Feb 05 - 03:05 PM

I have a spool of twist-tie line which can be cut to desired length which has lasted for years 'cause I re-use them. The twist-ties are kept in a spare mic pouch when not in use around the cords. I take the time to carefully coil every cord after every use, tie 'em, and sit them together in a file bag similar to what Bee-bubya-ell suggested above. I honestly don't have trouble with them tangling. Different colours of cords help in identifying them I suppose.

Last night's gig required that I unpack only four instrument cords, AC extension, amp cord, and one mic cord, because other band mates had their own gear. All went swimmingly with my usual system. That same file bag (it's semi-rigid with lots of pockets) also houses various pedals, tuners, music, mics, etc. Much nicer than the days when it carried actual files!

I too make my own cords from supplies I get from a buddy in the loudspeaker business, though I bought some very good ones dirt cheap from the Long&McQuade sale yesterday.

Don't forget the duct tape.

Peace, Mooh.

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: jonm
Date: 14 Feb 05 - 02:53 AM

Coil 'em up round a forearm, then straight into a junk-shop suitcase. Make up a hard foam (seat cushion stuff) insert to go in the middle and cut holes for your mics. Rolls of tape, batteries etc. go in the corners.

My leads are all a different colour to anyone else's. Doesn't show much with stage lighting but easy when the house lights are up at the end.

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Grab
Date: 14 Feb 05 - 08:48 AM

I've started using short (1 foot) bits of cord to tie up my cables. (Terminology alert: for me, "cable" = electrical thing I plug into a guitar at one end and an amp at the other, "cord" = thick string.) Seems to work OK - just attach firmly (round turn and two half-hitches) to one end of the cable, coil cable, and then tie up. And you should then be able to identify your cables by the string on them (especially if you choose some brightly-coloured string).

I would use velcro ties, but I've not found cheap ones. Having said that, I'll check LF's tip on cheap ones from B&Q.

For storage, I've got a nice zip-up bag that an old karate gi came in. Heavy cotton, with a clear plastic panel on the front so you can see what you're looking for.

Graham.

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: GUEST
Date: 14 Feb 05 - 06:31 PM

We store instrument/mic leads in a 'tool roll' - pockets sewn in canvas large enough to hold seven or eight leads. Similar to a canvas tool roll from an ironmongers but bigger. Leads are coiled into their natural curl and slid into each pocket. No strain on the leads, no tangling, and an immediate visual check that you've left none behind.

The only thing I ever coil round my elbow is a clothes line.

Stu

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 14 Feb 05 - 09:11 PM

Got a pic of such a Cord Roll Stu?

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: GUEST,Paranoid Android
Date: 14 Feb 05 - 09:34 PM

Another "nuisance" is the mike stands when you have to carry them through a packed bar after the gig. I recently saw a guy using an old GOLF BAG and it was ideal for the job. (Don't play golf myself so I'm waiting for some of my pals to come up with one).

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: s&r
Date: 15 Feb 05 - 04:49 AM

I'll pm you a picture Clinton - never felt the need to take one, but not a problem.

Stu

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: wysiwyg
Date: 15 Feb 05 - 09:16 AM

Mic stands in a bow bag work as well-- the tripod part is bulkier than the top part so the bow bag shape works well and we had an extra one. I have been known to wrap them in a blanket and use twine to make a tie/carry handle as for a bedroll. Extension cord (with outlet strip & adaptors) in its own bag. Mics and their cables in a plastic gun case, soft bag, or whatever is handy-- right now I have six mics in a mic case that I bought for 30$ (picture a small, hardside attache case with foam inserts) with the cables in a shoulder bag. Cables for mixer go in the mixer kit (Samsonite). Cables for speakers go in the speaker boxes with a couple of connectors should I need to lengthen them for wider separation.

Cheap velcro ties can be had at the sewing store, where it comes by the yard. Cut the fuzzy sided part to the length you need and hotglue or stitch a piece of the hooky side at each end. We have also used large heavy-duty twist ties, medical tape (peels off easy and no sticky goo) rubber bands. I wind up and strap my cables with the two ends placed together so it's easy to see what's on each end-- some of ours have XLR-to-1/4" adaptors on them somewhat permanently, etc.

I think what matters is not so much HOW you stow your gear as WHO stows it. In our band it works best if I am always the one to do it, except for people's personal gear. I have an almost photographic memory and my bandmates-- well, they DON'T. If I am the one who stowed it, I know I can recall what is where and how it will look, every time. Bandmates unpack and repack the gear in the vehicle once I have it set to go.

And when we load up to go to the gig, I ALWAYS open each and every case to check that it's still got what it ought to have in there.

~Susan

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Vixen
Date: 15 Feb 05 - 09:52 AM

Something I've seen, and want to try, is an extension cord reel for mic cords/leads/cables. You plug the cords together and roll them up onto a handheld spool with a crank. When they're all rolled up, you flip over the little gizmo that keeps it from unrolling.

Seems like a sensible thing to do.

As for "coiling with the curl:" I would LOVE to know how to do that. I think it's because I'm left-handed, but no matter which hand I use, when I try to coil cords/leads/cables (and garden hoses!) by hand, I end up with a snarled, loopy mess!

V

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 15 Feb 05 - 06:04 PM

Vixen -

Assuming you hold the coil in one hand or the other, and add loops with the other hand; if the long end that you're adding to the coil points toward you as it comes out of the loop, it will wind/twist one direction, if it points away from you, it will twist the other way as you add loops. If it "objects" to being added with it's natural twist/curl, just turn the whole loop around in the hand that holds it, and wind a few turns until it starts "objecting" the other way. Turn the whole loop around again whenever you need to.

People who are "other handed" have the same problem. You just have to respect the cords feelings and do what it want's you to do.

John

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: GUEST,foolestroupe - "I come fru da window!"
Date: 16 Feb 05 - 06:22 AM

Isn't wood stored and sold in 'cords'?

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: GUEST,Leadfingers
Date: 16 Feb 05 - 06:31 AM

I recemtly got two pairs of speaker stands that came in canvas carry cases which have enough room to put a couple of mic stands in each along with the speaker stands - Heavy like that , but a lot easier for getting in and out of the venue !!

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: mooman
Date: 16 Feb 05 - 10:45 AM

Velcro....wonderful stuff! Or Planet Waves cord tidies on the posh ones!

Peace

moo

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: s&r
Date: 16 Feb 05 - 12:19 PM

Tool roll (or lead/cable roll) Havent got round to picture yet: this one here however is similar, if a bit fancier. Make the pocket size suit the leads. We use one for mic leads and one for instrument leads. Speaker leads we just coil and velcro.

Stu

Subject: RE: Tech: Cord Storage
From: Vixen
Date: 16 Feb 05 - 12:54 PM

JohninKansas--Thank you! I'll try that next time. I never thought to try turning the coil around!

V