# Where can I buy this cable? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 3, 2007, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599 "2007-12-03T01:06:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![cainxinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@cainxinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cainxinth)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/1 "2007-12-03T01:06:50Z")
I’m looking for a very short length (inches not feet) male/male 3.5mm audio cable. In fact I don’t even need the cable at all. Is there such a thing as two male jacks connected directly to each other? ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/2 "2007-12-03T01:10:33Z")
[sure](http://www.trianglecables.com/q-120.html). ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/3 "2007-12-03T01:24:54Z")
Those are RCA plugs, squeegee. [Here](http://www.mouser.com/search/Refine.aspx?Ne=1447464+254016+1826884+1826885+254629&N=1323038+4294770305+4294793044+254629+0&GetRecs=1&Ns=P_SField&Msb=0&RefType=Header) in stereo. They also have mono. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/4 "2007-12-03T01:37:52Z")
It’s going to tough to find one that short. I don’t recall ever seeing one under about 2 feet. If you can’t find one, I can make you one for the price of parts. I’ve seen two-packs of nickel-plated brass plugs for a couple bucks; I can just braze them together back-to-back with internal connections already wired up. ---
**Author:** ![cainxinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@cainxinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cainxinth)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/5 "2007-12-03T01:43:25Z")
Thanks guys. **carnivorousplant** , that website wasdamn near indecipherable to me, but looks like it will be very useful if I can manage to figure it out. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/6 "2007-12-03T01:46:25Z")
shoot. sorry. Radioshack may have this, though their website sucks enough that it’s hard to tell. They seem to carry more bitty parts in their stores than the site shows. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/7 "2007-12-03T01:58:21Z")
[QUOTE=cainxinth] Thanks guys. **carnivorousplant** , that website wasdamn near indecipherable to me, [/QUOTE] You set a filter, clicking on what you want. I selected 3.5mm male stereo at each end. They are all way to long, Q.E.D. is correct. Go to Radio Shack and tell the guy what you want. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/8 "2007-12-03T02:00:04Z")
[QUOTE=Q.E.D.] It’s going to tough to find one that short. I don’t recall ever seeing one under about 2 feet. If you can’t find one, I can make you one for the price of parts. I’ve seen two-packs of nickel-plated brass plugs for a couple bucks; I can just braze them together back-to-back with internal connections already wired up. [/QUOTE] I do have a male-male stereo cable that is about three inches long. However, I got it in the package when I bought my TV card for my computer. (The audio is provided by the line-out from the TV card going into the line-in on the sound card.) So they must make them, but I don’t know where the average consumer could find one. I agree that a male-male coupler will probably be easier to find. But good luck at Radio Shack; my experience recently is that all the salespeople want to sell you is a cell phone or an iPod or a TV or something and are useless if you’re looking for a cable or a part or something like that. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/9 "2007-12-03T02:06:25Z")
[QUOTE=asterion] I agree that a male-male coupler will probably be easier to find. [/QUOTE] Even that’s going to be difficult. There’s just not much call for such a thing. Not that they don’t exist, but I haven’t been able to locate one. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/10 "2007-12-03T02:24:57Z")
I believe I have found at least one source. No idea about the company doing the selling. [http://www.trianglecables.com/mini-cp-mm.html](http://www.trianglecables.com/mini-cp-mm.html) ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/11 "2007-12-03T03:19:31Z")
[QUOTE=asterion] But good luck at Radio Shack; my experience recently is that all the salespeople want to sell you is a cell phone or an iPod or a TV or something and are useless if you’re looking for a cable or a part or something like that. [/QUOTE] Recently? Hell, they’ve been doing that for well on 30 years – the dorkism at RS’s is legendary\*. However, in every store that I’ve been in, they have the Big Wall Of Adapters, segregated by type – coax stuff here, audio stuff there, etc. It’s not that hard to figure out. \*actually, to be fair, I have on occasion run into helpful folks at RS that actually seem to know the store inventory pretty well. It’s been the exception, but it’s not a uniformly negative experience. OTOH, try asking for a BNC connector sometime, and how far you get. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/12 "2007-12-03T03:35:56Z")
[QUOTE=squeegee] Recently? Hell, they’ve been doing that for well on 30 years – the dorkism at RS’s is legendary\*. However, in every store that I’ve been in, they have the Big Wall Of Adapters, segregated by type – coax stuff here, audio stuff there, etc. It’s not that hard to figure out. [/QUOTE] True, but that section is still getting smaller and smaller. And these days I find that going to the mall (which is where the closest Radio Shack is to my house) is much more pleasant if I start listening to my iPod as I get out of the car and don’t take the earbuds out (unless I’m actually talking with someone, of course) until I get back to the car. Last time I needed a part at Radio Shack, I needed some jumpers for a computer drive (don’t remember which one it was, I just remember I lost the jumper on the floor and could never find it.) So I looked on the website, saw that a local store had a 10-pack or so in inventory, and drove out there. No luck getting any help finding one; I eventually found what I was looking for after about 15 minutes of searching. Or there was the time I needed a telephone (what’s the actual name for that interface anyway) coupler and the sales drone apparently couldn’t even fathom the concept of a female-female coupler like that. Anyway, I hope that link above helps the OP. ---
**Author:** ![Mayo\_Speaks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mayo\_Speaks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mayo_Speaks)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/13 "2007-12-03T03:37:30Z")
[QUOTE=squeegee] shoot. sorry. Radioshack may have this, though their website sucks enough that it’s hard to tell. They seem to carry more bitty parts in their stores than the site shows. [/QUOTE] I bought a 12 inch one at a Radioshack, from a salesman who knew exactly what I was looking for even though I was having trouble elucidating it, for a very reasonable price. And when I lost it, I had the exact same experience at a different Radioshack in a different city. So I’d recommend giving them a call. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/14 "2007-12-03T03:57:33Z")
> [@asterion](#): > > what’s the actual name for that interface anyway [RJ11](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RJ11%2C_RJ14%2C_RJ25) (and variants). ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2007, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/15 "2007-12-03T04:33:00Z")
Asterion, you just need to hang around silicon valley more, so you can go to [Weird Stuff](http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2006/11/weird_stuff_war.html). This place is amazing – it’s ALL surplus oddball computer/technology …stuff. If you ask for a jumper, they’d ask “what color?” Then there’s [Fry’s](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fry's_Electronics), but they can be an exercise in customer service hell all on their own. But they sure got the gear. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2007, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-cable/428599/16 "2007-12-04T22:26:03Z")
[QUOTE=cainxinth] Is there such a thing as two male jacks connected directly to each other? [/QUOTE] Ummm… Hermaphrodite? Jacks are female and plugs are male. Ergo, no such thing as a male jack. [Here’s the jack-to-jack version.](http://www.trianglecables.com/1in35minster1.html)