Is your headphone jack giving you trouble?

You are doing your favorite activity and listening to music on your headphones. Suddenly the music just stops or is interrupted by a loud crack. How annoying! Whether it’s your old Sony Walkman, MP3 player, new Apple iPod, iPhone, iPad, or your beautiful laptop, the thought of an audio malfunction can be shocking. The audio interruption is most likely caused by a problem with the headphone jack.

Sometimes it’s the simple things that count. With all the complicated circuitry and software found inside today’s audio-enabled devices, it may be the common headphone jack that causes the most problems. A set of headphones and the headphone jack give us the ability for auditory interaction with today’s popular electronic devices. Depending on the type, a headphone jack costs between a fraction of a dollar and a few dollars. That’s why it can be so frustrating when you realize you may have paid hundreds of dollars for an electronic device that doesn’t work because it’s relatively cheap!

The term headphone jack or headphone jack refers to the male and female metal connectors that come in various sizes. The most common sizes are 6.35mm or 1/4″ jack, 3.5mm miniature jack and 2.5mm subminiature jack. Malfunctioning of a simple headphone jack can be a big headache.

There are a few different causes for its malfunction. The female part of a headphone jack is more prone to failure because it is an opening in the internal circuitry of any device that has one. Allowing sand, dust, or water to enter could cause a problem. Some of today’s latest audio devices have a “moisture” detection sensor. If liquid or excessive moisture enters the headphone jack, a small LED light will change from white to red to indicate unacceptable moisture levels. Such an indication may cause the device to shut down in an attempt to prevent further damage. Another common cause of headphone jack failure is poor connection due to extension of the internal metal contacts. This is the reason for the majority of MP3, cell phone and iPod repair requests or returns. It has been noted as one of the most daunting problems for audio technicians. Technicians have stated that it is a shame that such beautifully designed devices fail due to connector malfunction.

So what can be done to prevent and/or repair a problem with the headphone jacks? If you think dirt or dust got into the jack, you can try blowing out the jack hole. You can either blow into the hole yourself or purchase a can of compressed air, commonly sold at computer and electronics stores, made specifically for cleaning electronic devices. If you think liquid or moisture got into the hole, just let it sit for a while in a warm and dry place for a couple of days, the device might dry out and start working properly. If none of these work and your device is under warranty, send it back to the manufacturer for repair.

Although not recommended, you can try to fix it yourself. To do this, remove the cover of your device. This may require you to remove several screws around the perimeter of the cover. If you have soldering skills, you can remove the old solder from the connector by heating it with a soldering gun and removing it with a toothpick. Then apply new solder using the proper soldering technique. If you don’t know how to solder, try cleaning the jack connectors with an alcohol swab. Test your device to see if it works. If not, you may want to re-solder the connections. Soldering correctly requires some skill.

If all of the above methods do not resolve the jack problem, your best course of action is to send it back to the manufacturer for repair. Follow the instructions in your user manual for the repair process. But there are ways around problems with headphone jacks. Take care when inserting the male connector into the female receiver. Tilting when injecting can cause the female connectors to spread out, thus causing a loose connection, which may require constant shaking. Use device clips to secure your device to your belt or pocket to prevent pulling on the connector if your device is dropped or pulled.

Sometimes the best way to prevent cat damage is prevention. Some devices come with jack covers, but others don’t. If you have a device that doesn’t have a headphone jack cover, you can buy one at your local electronics store or search online and search for “headphone jack cover.” Protect your investment, keep out dust and moisture, and get a cover if you don’t have one.