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The Proper Way to Coil a Cable

Audio and video cables are constructed from dozens of tiny metal fibers, all held together inside a tough plastic outer insulation. Although the cable as a whole is very strong, it deteriorates rapidly if the inner fibers are snapped, and by bending and twisting the cable. If you coil your cables correctly once you're finished using them, you'll greatly prolong their working life, and maintain their quality.

Instructions

    • 1

      Hold one cable connector in your left hand. Grasp the wire with your right hand and pull your hands apart. Straighten your right arm and hold the connector to the crook of your right elbow to measure a set distance.

    • 2

      Pinch the wire between the thumb and forefinger of your right hand and move it toward your left. Roll the cable between your fingers in a counterclockwise direction. By the time your right hand meets your left, the cable should be twisted through 180 degrees. You know you've done it correctly if it drops into a perfectly neat loop, free from kinks.

    • 3

      Hang the loop over the fingers of your left hand and extend your right arm again. Measure another length of cable using the crook of your elbow, and form another loop. Continue until you coil up almost all of the cable.

    • 4

      Thread the final remaining 6 to 8 inches of the cable and connector through the middle of the looped coils hanging in your left hand. Repeat this until you use up all of the excess cable.

Recording Music

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