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Sep 3, 2021
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I've working on a cable design for mobile app DJs and would love feedback / pointers for taking this to market. It's the only cable like it in the world at the moment and I have no idea why. I have the prototype right now and kickstarter campaign coming soon but getting input from experts first.
Let me know what you think.

THANKS in advance! Eric - fireflyDJ.com

FFDJC-slide-show400.gif
 
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DESIGN UPDATE

From the prototype experiments, I found a problem. When I plug in a TRS microphone and normal TRS DJ headphones into the TRRS headphone jack, the microphone wouldn't work because the signal was shorted out by the headphones. I added a dedicated TRS headphone jack in the headphone/microphone wiring harness.

For basic mobile app DJ gigs, it's possible to eliminate the need for a mixer if DJ apps program for it. You have dedicated microphone input and dedicated headphone plus dedicated output options to any analog PA system or powered speaker.

The images below will be how the final product will look.
Screen Shot 2021-08-17 at 10.01.33 AM.png

Screen Shot 2021-08-17 at 10.01.17 AM.png
 
All of your animations are way too freaking fast. I have no real idea what this thing does because I guess I was too lazy to really read the text, but with photos and animations I should be able to see what it does, but you've got two slides per second.
 
I don't think it's all of a bad idea... and maybe there is a market for it... but I prefer as little cable as possible. While I like the idea of the versatility, I wouldn't like having all the ends I'm not using flopping around. I'd rather see a simple cable with just multiple attachments that you can plug into the end of it. But then you run the risk of losing something and then being screwed. Not trying to rain on your idea, I think some may find it useful. For me though, I only have a few cables in my setup and likely would not invest in this as a solution.
 
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I don't think it's all of a bad idea... and maybe there is a market for it... but I prefer as little cable as possible. While I like the idea of the versatility, I wouldn't like having all the ends I'm not using flopping around. I'd rather see a simple cable with just multiple attachments that you can plug into the end of it. But then you run the risk of losing something and then being screwed. Not trying to rain on your idea, I think some may find it useful. For me though, I only have a few cables in my setup and likely would not invest in this as a solution.
Thanks for the feedback! I appreciate everything. My first prototype was like you mentioned, it still required extra adapters that could get lost and there's the problem of potential shorts or accidental disconnects in every adapter connection. That's why I opted for the second prototype to have everything be one solid unit and connection.
 
All of your animations are way too freaking fast. I have no real idea what this thing does because I guess I was too lazy to really read the text, but with photos and animations I should be able to see what it does, but you've got two slides per second.
Thanks for the feedback on that. It's a slide show that I also put on my upcoming kickstarter campaign so I'm sure the same concern will show up. It was set at 1 second per slide. I just changed it to 2 seconds. Thanks again!
 

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This seems better aimed at mobile Podcasters and Videocasting rather than DJs or Audio Techs.

A few common denominators among DJs:
  • DJs don't (and shouldn't) rely on mics that terminate in 3.5mm connections.
  • Mono RCA is dead. It simply doesn't exist anymore. Maintaining the stereo signal and switching the mixer to mono is the preferred method for live PA.
  • Unused parallel plugs can make contact with a chassis or other ground and introduce significant noise into the system.
Presently, I don't think a lack of cables is the problem people truly experience. The two most common audio problems are:
  1. Lack of a 3.5mm output on the device
  2. Poor quality or poor connection with 3.5mm jacks and plugs
Having more cable options does nothing to resolve these two common problems.

The future is USB.
Wherever possible I presently avoid the 3.5mm jack and use a USB direct box to bring the audio into the mixer. It may involve changing a setting on the device, but the quality of the resulting audio now lies in my choice of DI rather than the availability or condition of analog outputs on the device.

A small device that accepts a USB connection and then isolates the stereo audio to a line level stereo 1/4" TRS and mic level mono XLR would be far more useful. If it had an adapter at the device end to switch from USB C to Lightning - that would be pretty cool too.