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Author Topic: How to clean headphone rubber cords, and get rid of the SMELL  (Read 2265 times)

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Lumos

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How to clean headphone rubber cords, and get rid of the SMELL
« on: September 05, 2013, 08:19:51 AM »
When I buy used headphones often their cable is smelly, Hell I hate smells >:D :)p3 I used to rinse them in hot water and soap, no help... google best suggestion was rinse in hot water with baking soda, no help...

I mean they are not dirty but I hate smells  :vomit:

Any idea hot to get rid of this?

 
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donunus

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Re: How to clean headphone rubber cords, and get rid of the SMELL
« Reply #1 on: September 05, 2013, 11:52:09 AM »
Thats surprising that you notice how the cables smell when the pads will most likely be more pungent :D
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wildstar

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Re: How to clean headphone rubber cords, and get rid of the SMELL
« Reply #2 on: September 05, 2013, 12:27:04 PM »
If you're talking about cigarette smell, you have to repeat the process several times, and let it air for a few days -- or even weeks.
It takes time for the crud to surface in porous materials.
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Lumos

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Re: How to clean headphone rubber cords, and get rid of the SMELL
« Reply #3 on: September 07, 2013, 06:23:01 PM »
Quote from: donunus on September 05, 2013, 11:52:09 AM
Thats surprising that you notice how the cables smell when the pads will most likely be more pungent :D

Yeah pads also, but cables smell very badly sometimes, I end up replace them and buy new pads also... and if this is Sennheiser case... very sad story you end up to pay 60$ for those HD6X0 series  :-00

Quote from: wildstar on September 05, 2013, 12:27:04 PM
If you're talking about cigarette smell, you have to repeat the process several times, and let it air for a few days -- or even weeks.
It takes time for the crud to surface in porous materials.
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donunus

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Re: How to clean headphone rubber cords, and get rid of the SMELL
« Reply #4 on: September 08, 2013, 12:23:59 AM »
some kind of alcohol with lotion or anything that can prevent from the cables to become brittle maybe? Like hand sanitizer?
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Armaegis

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Re: How to clean headphone rubber cords, and get rid of the SMELL
« Reply #5 on: September 09, 2013, 07:49:55 PM »
Have you tried wiping with vinegar? I've also put stuff into a ziploc bag with coffee grounds.
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Lumos

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Re: How to clean headphone rubber cords, and get rid of the SMELL
« Reply #6 on: September 09, 2013, 08:56:32 PM »
Quote from: Armaegis on September 09, 2013, 07:49:55 PM
Have you tried wiping with vinegar? I've also put stuff into a ziploc bag with coffee grounds.

Great idea!!!  I will try and report back results  :)p13 Thank you

P.S. I assume coffee grounds give their smell also nice  :)p1 :)p7 :)p13 :-DD
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AstralStorm

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Re: How to clean headphone rubber cords, and get rid of the SMELL
« Reply #7 on: September 10, 2013, 07:41:52 AM »
Vinegar will damage most kinds of cables and definitely pleather - it will become much more brittle. Coffee oils can also damage the cable.

There's no real solution other than letting them air out the smell (apply mild heat, like 40 deg. C) and not buying cheap chinese cables/pads made using noxious solvents. In a pinch, better to make your own.
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Armaegis

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Re: How to clean headphone rubber cords, and get rid of the SMELL
« Reply #8 on: September 13, 2013, 04:24:53 PM »
I haven't used vinegar on pleather, but I've tried it on thicker cables before. I always wipe down again afterwards with a damp cloth though. Obviously leaving vinegar on something is a bad idea.

Pads I've left in a bag with coffee with no ill effect. I didn't dunk them into the grounds. Put the grounds on the bottom of a big ziploc bag, scrunched up a paper towel on top, and placed the pads on top of that. Then I just let it sit for a few days. Granted, this was with a very smokey pair of pads and I was trying everything under the sun at that point. I'd aired them out for a few days, put them in front of a fan, tried a bag with baking soda, a bag with coffee, etc.
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Do you think there may be an acoustic leak from the jack hole? ~Tyll Hertsens

Not sure if I like stuffing one hole or both holes. Tending toward one hole since both holes seems kinda ghey ~Purrin