Looking to get a better cable for my incoming Filco!

[Keytrun]

I'm super interested in getting one of these nicer looking permium cables. I would love for it to be detachable, but only if it looked good. I found http://www.pexonpcs.bigcartel.com/product/detachable-filco-cable and I'm really interested in it. Does anyone know what the board looks like with the detachable piece sticking out? Does anyone know of other places to look for these? Does converting the cable to miniusb (aka making it detachable) mess with response time? Does adding a better cable actually improve performance? Worsen it? Thanks!

[Linkbane]

tjcaustin makes really, really nice cables of all sorts of materials, including carbon fiber, paracord, Kevlar, and more. He has them for mini* USB (which Filco and 99% of keyboards use if they're removable).
http://www.mimic-cables.com/

*thanks CPTBadAss

[CPTBadAss]

Mini not micro

[genkidama]

A friend of mine tried to do it himself and he said it seems easy to sleeve your cables yourself, so if you want to try it out and can get the sleeve material cheap why don't you give it a shot?
Using a sleeve is just for better protection and that the cables won't tangle up too much when you detach them and put them away for transport and of course it's more stylish to have them sleeved in a matched color for your keyboard 

[catnipz0098]

A friend of mine tried to do it himself and he said it seems easy to sleeve your cables yourself, so if you want to try it out and can get the sleeve material cheap why don't you give it a shot?
Using a sleeve is just for better protection and that the cables won't tangle up too much when you detach them and put them away for transport and of course it's more stylish to have them sleeved in a matched color for your keyboard 

Where do you buy them?

[genkidama]

A friend of mine tried to do it himself and he said it seems easy to sleeve your cables yourself, so if you want to try it out and can get the sleeve material cheap why don't you give it a shot?
Using a sleeve is just for better protection and that the cables won't tangle up too much when you detach them and put them away for transport and of course it's more stylish to have them sleeved in a matched color for your keyboard 

Where do you buy them?

I only know of this site: http://www.mdpc-x.com/
I don't know if the prices are okay or too expensive, so:
Just try to google for a sleeve kit or something like that and for tutorials I bet YouTube has a lot of instructional videos for how to sleeve your cables yourself.

[catnipz0098]

A friend of mine tried to do it himself and he said it seems easy to sleeve your cables yourself, so if you want to try it out and can get the sleeve material cheap why don't you give it a shot?
Using a sleeve is just for better protection and that the cables won't tangle up too much when you detach them and put them away for transport and of course it's more stylish to have them sleeved in a matched color for your keyboard 

Where do you buy them?

I only know of this site: http://www.mdpc-x.com/
I don't know if the prices are okay or too expensive, so:
Just try to google for a sleeve kit or something like that and for tutorials I bet YouTube has a lot of instructional videos for how to sleeve your cables yourself.

Thank you 

[Keytrun]

I may want to buy one of those detachable cables, but I'd really like to know what it looks like when its not linked to the other cable, and if there's any inconsistency on the keyboard from the added material. Anyone know about this?

EDIT: I saw this http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=39724.0 and I really don't want my f7 key to stick out from the detachable cord. I'm also confused as to whether or not those Pexon PC's cords will stick out a little from the end or they'll be flush like the mod in the topic. I really wanted to see how it looked before doing anything. If the detachable cable causes an issue, I'll just go with a custom cable that stays on. Thanks!

EDIT 2: Does anyone know how much this sticks out http://www.pexonpcs.bigcartel.com/product/detachable-filco-cable or is it flush like in the post?

Also, how hard is it to change the cord? The pexon site says, "Strain relief is achieved by using a cable tie behind the interior of the case." I have no clue what that means!

[tp4tissue]

this is for vanity.. yea?

[Flamingchook]

I may want to buy one of those detachable cables, but I'd really like to know what it looks like when its not linked to the other cable, and if there's any inconsistency on the keyboard from the added material. Anyone know about this?

EDIT: I saw this http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=39724.0 and I really don't want my f7 key to stick out from the detachable cord. I'm also confused as to whether or not those Pexon PC's cords will stick out a little from the end or they'll be flush like the mod in the topic. I really wanted to see how it looked before doing anything. If the detachable cable causes an issue, I'll just go with a custom cable that stays on. Thanks!

EDIT 2: Does anyone know how much this sticks out http://www.pexonpcs.bigcartel.com/product/detachable-filco-cable or is it flush like in the post?

Also, how hard is it to change the cord? The pexon site says, "Strain relief is achieved by using a cable tie behind the interior of the case." I have no clue what that means!

http://www.pexonpcs.bigcartel.com/product/detachable-filco-cable-bundle

This is what it will look like installed. you can decide for yourself how much of the cable is protruding however it will never be flush with the case. You can hide most of the cable, but the plastic conector will be on the outside still.

"Strain relief is achieved by using a cable tie behind the interior of the case." simply means that you tighten a cable tie around the cable at the point that you want the cable to not protrude any more. This makes the cable wider at that point and thus not able to go through the hole in the back of the case. So if you pick up your keyboard by the cable it will be held by that point rather than by the fragile connector on the pcb.

[Keytrun]

Gotcha, so just run a cable tie around the cable where the hole is to keep it from going through. Do you do that if you dont go the detachable route? Let me ask you - with these custom cables - whether it be the detachable or non, does the keyboard stay flush on top? Does any plastic or key(s) get displaced like it did in that post I linked? It seems like these cables are thicker than the cable that comes attached to the board from the factory, so I wonder if there's enough extra room in the case to accommodate it properly. Thanks.

[tp4tissue]

I may want to buy one of those detachable cables, but I'd really like to know what it looks like when its not linked to the other cable, and if there's any inconsistency on the keyboard from the added material. Anyone know about this?

EDIT: I saw this http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=39724.0 and I really don't want my f7 key to stick out from the detachable cord. I'm also confused as to whether or not those Pexon PC's cords will stick out a little from the end or they'll be flush like the mod in the topic. I really wanted to see how it looked before doing anything. If the detachable cable causes an issue, I'll just go with a custom cable that stays on. Thanks!

EDIT 2: Does anyone know how much this sticks out http://www.pexonpcs.bigcartel.com/product/detachable-filco-cable or is it flush like in the post?

Also, how hard is it to change the cord? The pexon site says, "Strain relief is achieved by using a cable tie behind the interior of the case." I have no clue what that means!

http://www.pexonpcs.bigcartel.com/product/detachable-filco-cable-bundle

This is what it will look like installed. you can decide for yourself how much of the cable is protruding however it will never be flush with the case. You can hide most of the cable, but the plastic conector will be on the outside still.

"Strain relief is achieved by using a cable tie behind the interior of the case." simply means that you tighten a cable tie around the cable at the point that you want the cable to not protrude any more. This makes the cable wider at that point and thus not able to go through the hole in the back of the case. So if you pick up your keyboard by the cable it will be held by that point rather than by the fragile connector on the pcb.

I honestly don't see how that strain relief, relieves strain... I'd think the only way would be hot gluing that small inner section of the wire to the plastic casing.

if you just plug it in , and tie the cable around it.. it might still slip, and tug on the 5 pin.

[Keytrun]

As long as I don't pick the keyboard up by the cord it shouldn't be an issue, right?

How is it set up with the default cable from the factory? Is it just plugged into the PCB or is it anchored some how for strain relief?

[dorkvader]

I make my own cables, so I feel like I should say a few things about the custom cable industry.

First of all, making a cable isn't always easy, as the soldering on the mini USB connector is very fine. You also have to worry about proper strain relief. I also found out that the cable rotation matters for most of the plastic sleeving (it is hard to twist the cable once the sleeve is installed.

So there is a lot to be said about having an expert of some sort build you a cable. I can only speak personally for tjcaustin's mimic cables, but the quality should be good all 'round (whereas doing it yourself will vary the quality to your own skill level, and luck in some cases.

It seems to me that many of them are similar, and that you should probably choose a maker based on their location (pexon is UK based I think. He's a member of GH, so you can talk to him here. Here's a link to his vendor forum) options and colours.

That said, I do make my own cables and find nothing wrong with them. I have enough parts to make a few more if I want.

[Keytrun]

I make my own cables, so I feel like I should say a few things about the custom cable industry.

First of all, making a cable isn't always easy, as the soldering on the mini USB connector is very fine. You also have to worry about proper strain relief. I also found out that the cable rotation matters for most of the plastic sleeving (it is hard to twist the cable once the sleeve is installed.

So there is a lot to be said about having an expert of some sort build you a cable. I can only speak personally for tjcaustin's mimic cables, but the quality should be good all 'round (whereas doing it yourself will vary the quality to your own skill level, and luck in some cases.

It seems to me that many of them are similar, and that you should probably choose a maker based on their location (pexon is UK based I think. He's a member of GH, so you can talk to him here. Here's a link to his vendor forum) options and colours.

That said, I do make my own cables and find nothing wrong with them. I have enough parts to make a few more if I want.

Thanks. Yea, I have no intention of making it myself - I'd much rather let a professional do it. I'm probably going to get it from pexon, who I already sent a message to via his website. I'm just trying to decide which will have the least amount of complications - the detachable or just the standard full length cable that goes directly into the pcb and stays that way. I actually think that may look cleaner than having that little black adapter bridging the two cables.

I'm really curious about this strain reduction and what the filco oem cable does differently than a replacement cable. The only thing I'm worried about is messing up my board. Is it really that simple to change the cable? I just don't want to have keys sticking up and / or the board's plastic case not fitting flush with itself.

[terran5992]

I make my own cables, so I feel like I should say a few things about the custom cable industry.

First of all, making a cable isn't always easy, as the soldering on the mini USB connector is very fine. You also have to worry about proper strain relief. I also found out that the cable rotation matters for most of the plastic sleeving (it is hard to twist the cable once the sleeve is installed.

So there is a lot to be said about having an expert of some sort build you a cable. I can only speak personally for tjcaustin's mimic cables, but the quality should be good all 'round (whereas doing it yourself will vary the quality to your own skill level, and luck in some cases.

It seems to me that many of them are similar, and that you should probably choose a maker based on their location (pexon is UK based I think. He's a member of GH, so you can talk to him here. Here's a link to his vendor forum) options and colours.

That said, I do make my own cables and find nothing wrong with them. I have enough parts to make a few more if I want.

Thanks. Yea, I have no intention of making it myself - I'd much rather let a professional do it. I'm probably going to get it from pexon, who I already sent a message to via his website. I'm just trying to decide which will have the least amount of complications - the detachable or just the standard full length cable that goes directly into the pcb and stays that way. I actually think that may look cleaner than having that little black adapter bridging the two cables.

I'm really curious about this strain reduction and what the filco oem cable does differently than a replacement cable. The only thing I'm worried about is messing up my board. Is it really that simple to change the cable? I just don't want to have keys sticking up and / or the board's plastic case not fitting flush with itself.

I think that it shouldnt be that difficult to change the cable. But it may void your warranty

[demik]

it's easy to open a filco board, GH member litser made a video:

then i believe it's just pulling the connector a bit.

hm looks like embedding doesnt work in this sub

[Keytrun]

I think you're right about the warranty. I may wait a month or two and make sure the keyboard works fully and doesn't have any issues before switching out the cable. Any idea how long the warranty is? I didn't buy an extended one from NCIX. I'd be interested to know if NCIX's warranty would cover changing the cable. If it did it'd be worth contacting them and seeing if I could retro fit an extended warranty since the thing just shipped the other day.

[imcarzy15]

where can buy