Hey there. I'm here with a question that is very likely to be stupid but it's easier than looking it up properly. So:

What are the things that may possibly go wrong with a 7-pin Jack 3.5 socket? Trying no fix a Bang&Olufsen H3's faulty Jack here. Resoldered it already to exclude the case of broken contact, though it still doesn't properly work, i.e. one ear isn't reliably getting the signal. Tested both ears on BT, both work OK this way, and I'm positive that it's about the Jack since wiggling the cable (tested with different ones) in it effects in a connection being made/broken.

Do I just need to bend off the contacts inside a socket to ensure that it goes through? Do I have to consider anything else there?

Sidenote: it's hard to get your hands on a 7-pin jack where I'm at, so I'd rather play around with this one before considering swapping it out.

In reply to @higherkinded:matrix.org

Hey there. I'm here with a question that is very likely to be stupid but it's easier than looking it up properly. So:

What are the things that may possibly go wrong with a 7-pin Jack 3.5 socket? Trying no fix a Bang&Olufsen H3's faulty Jack here. Resoldered it already to exclude the case of broken contact, though it still doesn't properly work, i.e. one ear isn't reliably getting the signal. Tested both ears on BT, both work OK this way, and I'm positive that it's about the Jack since wiggling the cable (tested with different ones) in it effects in a connection being made/broken.

Do I just need to bend off the contacts inside a socket to ensure that it goes through? Do I have to consider anything else there?

Sidenote: it's hard to get your hands on a 7-pin jack where I'm at, so I'd rather play around with this one before considering swapping it out.

In reply to @russell:matrix.rochestercastle.net
Bending the contacts is the second thing I would do. The first is to use a different, high quality cable to plug into the jack. Over the years of working with audio equipment of varying qualities, I've found that cheap cables/jacks are ever so slightly out of spec in regards to their physical size, which can cause problems like you're describing

Oh, an update: pins aren't the problem, and somehow, the whole Jack seems ok. Probably an issue of how signal travels further down the line. Found a kind-of smashed wire that may or may not lead to the other ear. Though it doesn't explain why it still works over bluetooth. Will try to map out the wiring a bit later, maybe Bluetooth and Jack are wired separately. I mean, would make sense since:

1. Sounds from Jack and BT just mix by summation (I think), you can play simultaneously frow two different sources.
2. Jack-sourced sound works offline, it doesn't rely on battery.

In reply to @higherkinded:matrix.org

Oh, an update: pins aren't the problem, and somehow, the whole Jack seems ok. Probably an issue of how signal travels further down the line. Found a kind-of smashed wire that may or may not lead to the other ear. Though it doesn't explain why it still works over bluetooth. Will try to map out the wiring a bit later, maybe Bluetooth and Jack are wired separately. I mean, would make sense since:

1. Sounds from Jack and BT just mix by summation (I think), you can play simultaneously frow two different sources.
2. Jack-sourced sound works offline, it doesn't rely on battery.