CDizz Posted May 9, 2024 Posted May 9, 2024 Hi all, I'm trying to resurrect a pair of headphones from the grave. I just need to swap the battery. The new replacement battery is perfect, however it has the wrong size clip on it's cables. It's a 6mm clip and it needs to be 4mm. I'm hoping someone on here with a bit of DIY experience can point me in the right direction or perhaps knows someone that could do this little job. So far I've tried: - Jaycar - Altronics - DJ City - a mall mobile phone repair shop - an RC Hobby shop - Battery World I've attached pictures of the old battery (with the correct clip on it) and the new one that needs changing. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks
muon* Posted May 9, 2024 Posted May 9, 2024 Easiest way is to transfer the correct one from the old battery to the new one. Strip the ends and solder the old connector to the new battery leads (covering the joins with heat shrink of course). 1
bob_m_54 Posted May 9, 2024 Posted May 9, 2024 16 minutes ago, sdotmouse said: Assuming the wiring is same for both that is. s.m Just connect red to red, black to black, and yellow to yellow.. no probs. 2
CDizz Posted May 9, 2024 Author Posted May 9, 2024 The cables are a bit thicker. I was led to believe the connector couldn't be repurposed? So I need a new connector too (and no-one on the above list has them) or is it possible to connect wire to wire safely?
CDizz Posted May 9, 2024 Author Posted May 9, 2024 I was also led to believe that the heat from soldering the wires can travel into the circuit of the battery and fry it. Apparently it's a tricky job. Was just hoping someone on here had some experience with such a job
surprisetech Posted May 9, 2024 Posted May 9, 2024 6 minutes ago, CDizz said: The cables are a bit thicker. I was led to believe the connector couldn't be repurposed? So I need a new connector too (and no-one on the above list has them) or is it possible to connect wire to wire safely? It is possible to connect wire to wire safely, as per muon's post. Just needs to be cut, stripped, soldered and sleeved appropriately and carefully. Re the connector, plug-in connectors are designed to withstand many insertions. 5 minutes ago, CDizz said: I was also led to believe that the heat from soldering the wires can travel into the circuit of the battery and fry it. Apparently it's a tricky job. Was just hoping someone on here had some experience with such a job It is possible to damage components with heat from soldering, but in this case, if done by a competent person with a proper heat-controlled soldering station, I don't expect there would be a problem. Unless there is something about this type of battery that makes it particularly sensitive that I'm not aware of. If the join is done close to the connector end, then there is more wire to dissipate the heat safely. Was the information you obtained on heat damage specific to this type of battery, or just a general observation? I have access to professional soldering equipment in the workshop in our office in Rowville and many years of experience soldering. If you don't find a better solution, send me a PM. 1
CDizz Posted May 9, 2024 Author Posted May 9, 2024 The guys at Battery World, Jaycar, Altronics, and the RC place all said I wouldn't be able to reuse the connector. And the battery world guys were the ones that were most concerned about the fragility of the battery itself. I brought the batteries in with me to all of these interactions. I'm clearly out of my depth, just going on what they all told me
CDizz Posted May 9, 2024 Author Posted May 9, 2024 And thats an awesome offer surprisetech, i just might take you up on that offer
surprisetech Posted May 9, 2024 Posted May 9, 2024 20 minutes ago, CDizz said: The guys at Battery World, Jaycar, Altronics, and the RC place all said I wouldn't be able to reuse the connector. And the battery world guys were the ones that were most concerned about the fragility of the battery itself. I brought the batteries in with me to all of these interactions. I'm clearly out of my depth, just going on what they all told me I get that sales personnel may tend to err on the side of caution. However, the connector will be fine. The point of using a connector is so that the battery pack is easy to replace. The header on the board that it plugs onto is going to be re-used and the cable connectors are manufactured to the same standard. I'm quite sure the battery can withstand the brief application of heat associated with the wires being soldered. The PCB assembly in the battery that the wires connect to, was done with a soldering process. I've also seen AA size LiPo batteries with solder tabs on both ends for making up built-in battery packs. If LiPo batteries were that fragile, these would not exist. No doubt there are people with a soldering iron in their hand that could find a way to destroy the battery, but with proper technique, the battery would be safe. 1
bob_m_54 Posted May 9, 2024 Posted May 9, 2024 (edited) Actually, you'll probably find the the connectors both have the same contacts in them. If you are gentle, you can remove the contacts from the connector by releasing the locking tab and sliding them out of the connector body. Then repopulate the old connector body with the new wires with contacts still attached. Actually, looking more closely at your pics, it looks like you've already tried to remove the contacts and damaged them. So this method my be the only solution instead of cutting and re-soldering the wires. This video shows how to remove the contacts,(about 50 secs in), but be little more gentle than this guy. Here's a better video: Edited May 9, 2024 by bob_m_54 more info
CDizz Posted May 9, 2024 Author Posted May 9, 2024 27 minutes ago, bob_m_54 said: Actually, you'll probably find the the connectors both have the same contacts in them. If you are gentle, you can remove the contacts from the connector by releasing the locking tab and sliding them out of the connector body. Then repopulate the old connector body with the new wires with contacts still attached. Actually, looking more closely at your pics, it looks like you've already tried to remove the contacts and damaged them. So this method my be the only solution instead of cutting and re-soldering the wires. This video shows how to remove the contacts,(about 50 secs in), but be little more gentle than this guy. Here's a better video: Awesome! Thanks Bob. I'll check these out and give it a go tomorrow. I haven't tried anything yet so maybe I damaged them when removing them from the headphones? I was pretty careful overall but didn't think I'd need the old battery so may have been a bit hasty with it 1
aussievintage Posted May 9, 2024 Posted May 9, 2024 13 hours ago, bob_m_54 said: Actually, you'll probably find the the connectors both have the same contacts in them. If you are gentle, you can remove the contacts from the connector by releasing the locking tab and sliding them out of the connector body. Then repopulate the old connector body with the new wires with contacts still attached. Just be really careful not to let them touch each other while they are exposed. Maybe safer to remove one and insert it into the other connector, then do the next, etc... 3
CDizz Posted May 10, 2024 Author Posted May 10, 2024 20 hours ago, bob_m_54 said: Actually, you'll probably find the the connectors both have the same contacts in them. If you are gentle, you can remove the contacts from the connector by releasing the locking tab and sliding them out of the connector body. Then repopulate the old connector body with the new wires with contacts still attached. Actually, looking more closely at your pics, it looks like you've already tried to remove the contacts and damaged them. So this method my be the only solution instead of cutting and re-soldering the wires. This video shows how to remove the contacts,(about 50 secs in), but be little more gentle than this guy. Here's a better video: Thanks for these links Bob,. I just had a play around and was able to cleanly remove the cables from the connectors. Unfortunately though, the cables on the new battery are far too large to fit in the old connector. 6mm v 4mm connector, the cables are a fair bit thinner I guess. My next move is having someone solder the cables from one to the other for me. I'll try that next week and see how we go 1
bob_m_54 Posted May 10, 2024 Posted May 10, 2024 2 hours ago, CDizz said: Thanks for these links Bob,. I just had a play around and was able to cleanly remove the cables from the connectors. Unfortunately though, the cables on the new battery are far too large to fit in the old connector. 6mm v 4mm connector, the cables are a fair bit thinner I guess. My next move is having someone solder the cables from one to the other for me. I'll try that next week and see how we go well it was worth a try. A lot of the JST connectors use the same contacts. Solder job is dead easy anyway, about 10 mins max, after the iron is heated.
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