Fixing The One Thing That Always Breaks - The Simple Repair To Fix Broken Headphones

-------------------------------------Socials------------------------------------
Website: www.hughjeffreys.com
Store: www.hughjeffreys.com/store
Instagram: / hughjeffreys
--------------------------------------Links--------------------------------------
Get parts, tools and repair guides at iFixit:
Shop US: iFixit.com/hughjeffreys
Shop AU: ifix.gd/hughjeffreysau
Tools I Use: www.hughjeffreys.com/tools
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(DISCLAIMER: This description contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, l will receive a small commission.)

[@peterthepanda]

One of the greatest mysteries of the universe: one side in the pair of headphones/earphones breaks easily and stops working, while the other side can survive the apocalypse and last forever.

[@HughJeffreys]

Usually caused by the jack or inline volume controls. Always the weakest link.

[@dresdi]

@@HughJeffreys 🤓

[@Lucasbird47]

@@dresdi 🫠

[@josuke6131]

@@dresdi 🤓

[@AbdAbdAbdAbd]

@@josuke6131 🤓

[@aleksandersats9577]

This doesn't only apply to headphones, it really applies to any cable as most under a lot of use do end up breaking eventually. I've fixed so many speakers and headphones that were thrown away and the fix was so simple.

[@SlartiMarvinbartfast]

Also the plastic on headphone cables can start to harden, deteriorate and break after a number of years, I recently had to replace the whole cable on some old Sennheiser headphones because of this.

[@beatyoubeachyt8303]

i have a set of 1970s headphones with a cable and it works

[@beatyoubeachyt8303]

Plus They sound better than beats I've tried

[@VulcanFire]

Great video however, you should have replaced the cable with a headphone jack input inside the headphones if there is room. So in the future when the cable inevitably wears out again, it can be easily replaced by just plugging in a different cable into the headphones.

[@foobars3816]

Like how beats would have done it if they weren't an evil company that sacrifices the environment for their own financial gain.

[@David-nd4to]

@@foobars3816 wouldn’t you? I know I would lol

[@julieboruta]

Adding a microphone integrated input Jack on the beats headphones themselves then by buying a new beats replacement headphone cable with both ends having a headphone jock and the cord having a microphone then you don’t have to worry about the cables breaking. Just buy a new beats headphone cable and plug it into the beats headphones. That’s the better solution then just repairing the tip on the existing wire.

[@uncrustable9923]

@@foobars3816 ever heard of the solo pro 3 with the headphone jack? also anything else they have is all bluetooth so you don’t need to worry about cables breaking

[@alexstone691]

I did this after replacing the cable 10 times in 3 years

[@rabbibacongrease88]

This is why I like my Beyerdynamic headphones because when the cord breaks you unplug it and throw it away and plug a new one in and your back in business. No soldering required.

[@dlewis9760]

Commented to someone else about putting a 3.5 jack on the headphone. AKS K240 Studios, same thing. Toss the old, plug in the new.

[@bniisantos]

My back in business?

[@zNoah]

Same with my m40x, just with the added step of converting proprietary 2.5mm socket to normal 3.5mm

[@uncrustable9923]

my old original beats solo had that, after loosing the original cable I bought the dollar store aux cables and one lasts about a year so i just kept swapping them out

[@Knaeckebrotsaege]

Some Sennheisers have that too, though they're using a moulded plug with the rubber strain relief built into it. My HD461 are like that. The headphone end looks like it's permanently attached, but if you pull the strain relief part of it straight out (NOT in the direction the cable is coming out of it), it comes out to reveal a 2.5mm plug. I've replaced the awful stock cable which had become sticky to the touch somehow and ontop of that started having one channel cut out with a new one from CN which is of WAY better quality and has outlasted the original by 2.5 years now. Now the main problem left is getting replacement ear cushions that don't suck balls (like those from CN) or cost an arm and a leg (originals from Sennheiser) ...

[@MagnaLynx21]

Having recently got into soldering for working on retro handheld tech, it's crazy how much of a useful skill it is. You can get a basic station, depending on your needs and it can be all you need. A fix like this seems like a great way to learn more about soldering wires, since I've mostly been soldering stuff like battery holders directly onto pads.

[@deleqtronica8733]

I learned to solder 20 years ago by teaching myself how to mod joysticks, I never realized what a useful life skill it turned out to be.

[@sabersz]

It's exactly what I'm looking at doing if I ever need to repair the cable on my beyerdynamic DT770 Pros. It's a 10 ft cable, from standard. It's not only a pain to use daily, but I feel it'll break incredibly quick. I'm happy they're under 3 year warranty but once that runs out I'll just modify them to be mini-XLR and removable.

[@theodoros_1234]

0:59 Poorly made ones could also break inside your device, and I'm speaking from experience. Around 7 years ago, I took some cheap headphones I bought back to the store because the jack broke. They replaced it with the exact same jack you've shown on the video, and the same day I took the headphones back home, a piece broke inside my phone's headphone jack port and was stuck there for a long time until someone I know managed to pull it out. I basically got the no-headphone-jack upgrade (that would soon become a trend among phone manufacturers) early. However, after that I fixed a couple things myself with some better quality jacks, which work pretty well and haven't broken inside my devices.

[@NSHG]

One thing Jeffery might've not covered but I have experienced is also one of the speakers literally dying completely. I've had this issue with a pair of Focusrite Scarlett HP-60 MKII headphones - the cable itself checked out fine, but the the main issue was a dead speaker inside the left headphone. I had a discarded pair of Genius headphones with roughly the same size of speakers, so I harvested one of them and superglued it on the inside of the Scarlett. No difference in sound levels whatsoever, and they sound marvelous.

[@CaieJay]

I would just buy actually good headphones instead. Fun repair vid regardless

[@yaboiavery5986]

i bought AudioTechnicia ath-20's which were a third of the price of my old beats headphones that had this issue within a couple months.

[@aleksandersats9577]

@@yaboiavery5986 Huh that's odd, I am using ATH-D40fs, and I've used it for years and before that it was used in a theater as professional headphones for even longer and they still work perfectly

[@pandemichd]

@@aleksandersats9577 I used to use the ATH-m40x's and had them for at least like 5 years. The plastic finally broke on them and seems kind of impossible to fix 🥲

[@yaboiavery5986]

@@aleksandersats9577 oh i mean the beats were the one that had the issue. The AudtioTechnicias are great :)

[@aleksandersats9577]

@@yaboiavery5986 they sure are great! I love my Audio Technica headphones, best ones I've used by far :)

[@somebodyirrelevant141]

I've always enjoyed watching your videos. They're all very professional, the camera cuts and angles are great, and your grammar is extremely articulate, while also successfully repairing most of the devices you feature. Keep up the great work, Hugh!

[@HughJeffreys]

Thanks!

[@adriancoombs7857]

As always I love your videos, in regards to the headphone repair what I normally do is I put a female 3.5mm adapter in the headphones, that way if the cable goes bad, as it will, you can just buy a replacement and plug it in

[@SlartiMarvinbartfast]

Great tip!

[@richards1708]

Ok thats genius.

[@MultiTelan]

Now that you worked on them, hopefully they’re much more reliable than they were from the factory. You do great work.

[@kbhasi]

Thanks for producing this video! I have kept a few of my broken earphones because I know that the only problem with them are broken jacks. I don't have the time to repair them at the moment, but this video gives me some inspiration.

[@BaconFaceMcGee]

Stunning as usual.

[@Hello-nh3my]

Really interesting Hugh I thought that you only repair phones but you do a lot of stuff amazing keep up your Excellent work

[@DergEnterprises]

Awesome work!

[@razorsz195]

I actually got gifted this exact pair and on one windy day a shop door latch snapped and the door swung into me, yanking the cable with the door hand when it swung back, so the headphones have sat mint and un-used as i couldn't find a good video showing how to work on them, hopefully i'll be able to get them working with a new cable now, thanks Hugh!

[@uncrustable9923]

same thing happened with my macbook pro, I was In a rush and ran in a room with it in my hand folded up and (it had magsafe) but the charger cable caught the door knob and It tripped me and smashed the laptop

[@fancy_martineu]

Finally audio related repairs, my absolute favorite

[@dlewis9760]

At one time my sister had about 20 of these in her closet. Long, long time ago. Fun fact. When you go into a store, you sometimes see these promo displays. Most times, the stores DO NOT SET THEM UP. If you, an outside company want to push a product you have to get boots on the ground and have someone set up the display. Stupid. The idea is to make money and the stores go "Nah, it'll be fine". She was one who did. She would have shirts in her car. The stuff was shipped to the stores. So, if she was doing Beats she'd put on a Beats shirt. If the next store was for a Microsoft product, she'd put on a MS Store. She also had to go into the stores to see if the stuff was still set up properly. Reason being, stores cheated. If a competitor also had some promo product, maybe your display would somehow be broken or not powered on, or pieces missing. Obviously because money was being slipped to someone. When a promo was over, the stuff had to come down and had to disappear. That was also her job. Many times, they didn't want the stuff back. It ended up in her closet. Beats, MS Keyboards, MS Mice. Dewalt power tool doodads. The businesses she worked for that did this weird line of work were supposed to gather it back and destroy the stuff. Unless they didn't.

[@uncrustable9923]

yeah I see a lot of people selling items they got from stuff like that on ebay or even the store phone demo units

[@spiritualdrip1869]

Hugh Jeffrey’s got that asmr tear down silent voice that gives you tingles. 😴😲 5:23

[@tanmaymondal69]

Love your work 🔥

[@pascalamissah482]

I've never tapped on a video this fast 😂

[@markbrelandcomeback8604]

Hugh! Mine has been broken for years, just 3 months ago I was searching everywhere but now you have released this tutorial I shall now proceed to imitate you

[@100uschallenge3]

Being a little experience with soldering earphone jacks after breaking..... Trust me in this soldering the wires on the jack is a difficult task and that too doesn't last very long...that 3.5mm jack with 3 rings

[@thatdude5104]

The trick is to scratch the points you are soldering to on the jack, that way the solder holds better, and you can easily apply more solder. (works for me atleast, repaired a set of headphones this way and got 1,5 more years of daily use out of them before the mic broke)

[@100uschallenge3]

@@thatdude5104 nah it's difficult to get the soldier on wire it takes most time as even after burning the wire end it still doesn't stick to it how ever once done soldering them to the jack is pretty easy...if you have a trick for the wire then do let me know

[@thatdude5104]

@@100uschallenge3 oh yeah thats right. I use a lighter to burn of the enamel from the wires after that it should be pretty easy to apply solder to them.

[@ModelsExInferis]

Awesome video mate! I have an old pair of wired Skullcandy headphones I've been keeping on the off chance they're reparable and the fault may just be the cable, so I very much appreciate this guide. Cheers!

[@subliminalvibes]

Nice one!! You've just reminded me that my MDR-7506 headphones from the year 2000 need the jack soldered. Cheers Hugh! 👍😎🇦🇺

[@IID]

rather than replacing the cable... use that hole as a female plug. if you do that then you can use a lighter cable

[@KoopaKid660]

Damn your channel is older than me by a few months

[@subliminalvibes]

@@IID Great tip! Thanks so much for the suggestion. 👍😎

[@subliminalvibes]

@@KoopaKid660 Haha! You've got your life at your feet. Enjoy every moment! 👍😎

[@locomotive43]

U r a legend man.. u hav saved humanity

[@markus98sb]

If you like repaiable headphones take a look at the beyerdynamic DT770/880/990, you can replace basicallyy everything and they even offer all parts as pares on their website.

[@kopazwashere]

Their jacks are not detachable and it's 2022. Pain in the ass to replace cable. Also 880 and 990s are open back

[@ventilate4267]

I soldered a removable jack onto my superlux 681's. Man, I love cheap technology

[@flop.ifon1]

Finally. Hugh just posted another video

[@joshuabuilds3051]

Interesting to see how my one wireless earbud tried to demonstrate stereo by playing the absent ear at like 20% volume.

[@HughJeffreys]

No thats just in the recording. My microphone is stereo. I didn't isolate the channels.

[@Dennn90]

I have one pair of wired inear headphones since 2008, I can't say I'm using them always, but for at least five years they were my daily drivers, and I've replaced cable twice now, replaced mesh that covers the speakers, replaced rubber plugs many times, they still my favorite pair and a backup. It's a shame that my next phone might be without 3.5 mm jack.

[@TheFlyingBusman]

I’ve done this fix on a few pairs of Beats. The tips on the 3.5mm jacks seem particularly fragile and prone to breaking off. Nice easy repair.

[@arphmd]

Hugh: *fixing a broken headphone* Third-world subscribers when its expensive to buy headphones: Yes! Now I can fix my Earpods'

[@lindaparker3610]

That's a handy little video 😁

[@skeelo69]

One of the greatest mysteries of the universe: We can put a man on the Moon, but can't make headphones that don't break.

[@TheSpotify95]

Glad to hear that your Beats headphones can now live on another day (or however long they last). Unfortunately, headphones are made to be disposable, so virtually no one else will do this. It's usually more convenient to just buy new headphones, especially if they were on the cheaper side of things originally.

[@jake78441]

No kidding... Talk about cheap lol but it was interesting to see how to fix them ig

[@chair5728]

Decently high end headphones will last forever, I see people using vintage headphones that still work well. It’s just cheaper or lower quality headphones like Beats or unbranded ones that tend to break, usually because of the cable.

[@FR4M3Sharma]

You could've also used that Liquid Adhesive that is used to on Smart Phones to adhere the Display assemblies and Back Panel. That is actually far much more better and easier to use than hot glue.

[@Madaraa69]

Good job 👍❤️

[@ahoj113]

Wow, that’s useful!

[@ClaraFlater_than_surface_board]

Nicely done Jeff. Perhaps the next repair you can do true wireless earbuds repair? 😉 Just giving you some suggestions 😸

[@injbl3807]

Hugh should try a NAND repair video. I’ve got two iPhones with NAND failure, a complex repair but seems they’ll be going to a landfill

[@mikemiles3068]

Great Video and i dont know how many times i have replaced the pads on my BEATS Solo 3 Headphones

[@eddiew.4650]

Oh yes Beats. The iphone of the headphones world.

[@InToXz]

I Would love to see you convert one of the headphones so that the cable is removable ( soldering a female soket inside)

[@SmurfVoid_9876]

Finally a new vid

[@harpomarx7777]

Audiotechnica ANC-9 accepts a standard stereo cable with male plugs at either end. You just purchase or make a new cable and plug one end into the headphone jack and the other into your device's jack. More headphone manufacturers should get on board with this more simple design.

[@chair5728]

Quite a lot of higher end headphones do this, and it should just be the standard. I wouldn’t want to pay for £300+ headphones just for the cable to snap.

[@Zenefor]

Would adding a trrx female port be more viable? or isnt there enough space for one?

[@travisash8180]

I don't know.

[@HughJeffreys]

I did think about that but there isn't any space inside. But with some headphones its possible.

[@SlimTony]

My current Headphones are on their 4th plug, their 2nd cable. When your cable dies, it most commonly breaks close to the jack so you can snip 5-10 cm off, resolder (or check for continuity) and are good to go. When you are replacing the cable anyways, think about adding another 3.5 mil jack to the headphone side.

[@binstar8269]

I've read some other tutorials online, they said that you need this "audio grade solder" when recabling headphones/earphones. Is this a myth or fact?

[@L30NBL4NK]

To keep the cable from being stretched, I just make a knot on the cable inside of the ears. Hot glue might hold it in place, but when dried, it might slip, so the cable won't be held anymore. It also avoids the solders from being broken too. :)

[@VOLTRONDEFENDER4440]

Always when I drop my iPad with the headset plug connected that it always damages the connector

[@andrasszabo7386]

I have 2 Beats headphones that I have bought used on a flea market. They both have replaceable cables. On one end, there is the standard 3.5 mm jack that I plug into the phone, the other end has a 2.5 mm jack to plug into my headphones.

[@yourlocalapplestore]

I broke my beats 🎧 now I can fix them thx Hugh

[@MilesProwerTailsFox]

the black adhesive you use for smartphones do the trick just fine for the pads

[@libertarian1637]

I love hot glue and find it quite useful. I keep a few different glues on hand from low temp to high temp and I have over a half dozen glue guns from 20 Watts through 200 watts and high, variable, and low temp options. I use hot glue a lot in wood working as well as in repairing electronics and they have glue targeted at both. The most important thing is getting glue and a glue gun that matches your needs; higher wattage doesn’t always mean higher temperatures but does tend to correlate to volume of glue per minute/hour. For most electronics I find low temp high flow glues work best as it gets into the nooks and crannies, has decent adhesion, and is non-conductive, it can also be reworked and removed easier than epoxy allowing repairs of protected components; 60-100 watts seems to work well depending on how much glue you want, as I prefer to be able to pour it on when I want I tend to go to a higher watt gun.

[@theodoros_1234]

Thanks for making this video! I've already fixed a couple headphones, so I'm already familiar with the process, but this will surely be useful to other people (it would definitely have helped me back when I didn't have any experience).

[@pritamsahakeerthi]

Could have used the E-8000 glues on the leather holding the earpads. Worked fabulously on my earpads

[@llochlanhedge3700]

Hi have you tried adding a female jack on the beat headphone that way you can remove the cable.

[@Niyaz916]

My wired earphone's left side broken like 6 months ago and right one is still working. I think companies purposefully doing this to make consumers buy their newest models. Like you said in the previous video, planned obsolescence

[@fixme.96]

those who can repair things are the best kinds

[@kianag6692]

You should reconsider your choice on headphones. The only headphones that died on me were Apple Headsets of the pre Earpods era.

[@gandolfsallison7182]

How'd you get bear copper?

[@danielmiecz909]

Audio gets a lot better than beats, especially build quality

[@ronlevin2339]

What vis the soldering iron and microscope that you are using ?

[@carnifexx]

should be a "Eakins Micscope"

[@_Skim_Beeble]

I got so annoyed at wires and plugs breaking I instead bought a set of wireless Sony WH1000 headphones, expensive at AU$500+ but they are the best headphones I've ever owned.

[@alisterrebello5337]

The Beats executive team are tearing off their hair in despair after watching this video

[@aljosamlinaric8705]

I used super glue for sticking down pad cushions. It's not as thick as "b7000" or superglue.

[@pauldreadlike1]

Fixing charging cables bitten by pets for the next video?

[@Tarodenaro]

I'm still having trouble with rewiring 4-pin TRRS 3.5mm with microphone, some of them uses pull-down resistor and it's usually different for each manufacturer, so it's a bit hard knowing which one uses which and i hate it with absolute passion.

[@ectogaming20]

5:22 bro Hugh Jefferys ASMR when

[@issaccartwright736]

Beats headphones are for people that truly believe mac n cheese in a burger is a good idea.

[@Forrest_O.]

I should try something like this. Most wired earbuds are a hassle and I’ll take cheaper on ears.

[@billnotpay]

This video costs him $0 but he got nearly the price of the headphones only from the ad revenue 🗿🗿🗿🗿🗿🗿🗿🗿

[@canlelola]

Dude, really RS or Element 14, I have found some sweet looking, non-china 3.5mm plugs on those sites. I do recall even finding replace cables for headphone, but really basic ones.

[@caelari1722]

Can I recommend you to repair wireless headphone like replacing battery which much easier than repairing Apple's AirPods?

[@candycrush8655]

Can you help me to fix my Kyocera durafore ultra 5g the phone is working but the lcd and screen are DESTROYED ? I need some important data from it ASAP

[@davideaezakmi9530]

I had to click this video after seeing the thumbnail: I have the exact pair of headphones, and the cable has been shredded for months but they still work flawlessly somehow

[@mimijester]

hmmm I wonder if you tucked in the seam for the headphone pads before you hot glued it, it would probably look a bit cleaner

[@pearelectronics3083]

I do have a soldering iron, using this video as a guide maybe I could flip headphones on eBay people sell them with broken cables dirt cheap and I could sell them used for like 3x more

[@Claro1993]

Isn’t attaching a 2.5 or 3.5mm connector better instead of a new cable?

[@HogwartsGoth]

What Hot Glue Gun do you have?

[@been01010]

Now to listen to Scarlett Fire!

[@riteshjoshi0413]

Already in the early squad.

[@naheeduddin1672]

Hey Hugh, slightly unrelated but I bought a job lot of broken iPhones and unfortunately there are far more iCloud locked devices that expected. After seeing your old videos on the topic I was wondering how you manage to contact previous owners to get them iCloud free.

[@photondebuger45]

I actually fixed that on my headphones too on my audio technica atx m50s if that’s right the jack was metal and I replaced it with a metal one too

[@vancedmge3188]

Why don't companies provide detachable cables, like some expensive and In-ear monitoring headphones.

[@trk1b28varianrhesa4]

well,because they expected the consumer buy their product every 1 year

[@JeffCD77]

How did those headphones get so beat up? I've used the same pair, with very regular use for years, and they barely have a scratch on them. Granted, I take very good care of my electronics, but still.... And as for me, I'd definitely be buying a new pair at this point. I understand function over form, but I do like my gear to look good.

[@fae4750]

I have a problem with my 11 pro max it restarting, do u have a Solution for it?

[@johnchristopherrobert1839]

What microscope are you using?

[@carnifexx]

should be a "Eakins Micscope"

[@user-bp8yg3ko1r]

Would be nice if you could mod them to have a detachable cable!

[@cooliofoolio]

At this point why not install mmcx or balanced jacks ?

[@hirokurobane9145]

Been repairing my headsets for years, if the wires near the plug got damaged, just cut it off, expose the solder points, resolder them, grab that glue gun, then get a custom tip to that soldering iron to uhh, "sculpt" the mess of a glue to my desired shape/design and it's done, though if the driver themselves got some corrosion damage there's no choice but to decommission the whole thing, unless you've got the exact(or better) spare drivers lying around. If the mic's busted then just short the connecting wires, it'll act just like a headset with no mic.

[@gregorypalmer5467]

do an unboxing of ur mac studio!

[@jojosurge]

Recently my cat decided my gaming headset wire looked like a great toy… definitely worth a shot what’s the worst that can happen right?!

[@shihab1205]

get one of the kz in ear headphones.

[@backyardaviator2920]

Anyways suggestion here,if you want a quality plug/Jack, you can always go for the Ranko Acoustic plugs,not only theyre durable but also quality made since those are specifically built for modders & audiophiles alike. Still glad to see you posted a vid in which you can fix your old cans/Headphones. This would be a big help to anyone wanting to bring their old headphones back to life

[@Nicky.v12k]

Can you please do a Samsung Galaxy note 4 repair soon

[@kael070]

Not having detachable cables for everything is sad. Save yourself the trouble and get something with detachable cables, IEM's come to mind

[@Da40kOrks]

I've been repairing headphones for years. I use dollar store earbuds for donor cables. Yes they are only 4' long but it's just not worth spending more as the cable will break.

[@xyzxyz4575]

I get a free earphone everytime I step out of plane!