PL headset adapter?

[Jay Ashworth]

It is that time again, that time perilously too close to the beginning of a new show when I contemplate the fact that our PL headsets all suck.

The headset in this eBay auction appears to meet all the necessary criteria, having dynamic earpieces, a dynamic microphone, and presumably four wires running separately down to the modular plug. And it costs between a quarter and an eighth of what the lightweight Telex does.

So the question is, does anybody already manufacture an adapter that has a 4p4c modular jack on one side, and an A4F wired for Production Intercom on the other side?

Or will I have to build one myself?

 

[themuzicman]

Share a link to the auction in question. I haven't seen any headsets worth a damn that have a 4P4C connector - they break a ton in an actual production environment. You'll want to look for something that has an output impedance of between 400-800 ohm and a microphone impedance of 200 ohms.

 

[Jay Ashworth]

Sorry:

http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=271749032814&alt=web

 

[Jay Ashworth]

I sit in the booth running sound nearly fulltime; I wouldn't try to put one on stage.

 

[Jay Ashworth]

As cheap headsets go, that one looks relatively decent. I have one of the pl 88 knockoffs that were being sold on eBay by that guy that I bought 12 years ago and I got eight years out of it in the TV studio

 

[themuzicman]

Yea, that one will probably work. Just chop off the end and install an XLR-4. I'm not a huge fan of any cheap headsets - an intercom system is only as strong as the weakest link - as is the nature of a large partyline system. If I am wearing a headset for a very long time I prefer to pay for comfort. My first choice is the Sennheiser HMD-281 single ear headset. The new revision of the Telex PH-88 fully justifies the $194 price point because of how freaking durable it is. You can almost tie a knot in the headband and the microphone and the thing will still work.

 

[Jay Ashworth]

The Sennheiser Headset of Mass Destruction was near the top of my shortlist, yeah.

I'd prefer to make up the adapter cause then if one breaks, I don't solder, I just plug in.