My cable storage solution.

[RABid]

Like many of you I have an abundance of cables, many that look alike but do not spec the same. 1/4" speaker cables and 1/4" audio cables. MIDI cables and Microphone cables. Throw in 1/8" mono cables for Eurorack and 1/4" mono cables for my systhesizers.com system, plus cables to bridge the two systems. Pedal board cables. TRS cables for MIDI, V-Drums, and even special TRS speaker cables to go from my Ampeg amp to two way cabinets. What a bunch to keep organized.

 

Meanwhile, back in the normal world I picked up a shoe rack to organize my entrance closet. A big 5 pair wide 4 high unit where each cubby would hold a pair of shoes. It has a metal frame and made of some synthetic cloth/plastic. Got it home and it would no go into the closet. Too big for the small door and shallow depth of the closet. It would have to be totally taken apart and rebuilt inside the closet, never to come out again. After unsuccessfully trying to give it away it suddenly hit me..

 

The shoe rack makes a great cable organizer. I can label the slots to quickly tell instrument from speaker, MIDI from microphone, etc...  This is working great. My man cave/music room has a small closet. I may even get one of those hanging racks to put in it for overflow and drum sticks. How many sticks do I have that I would need an organizer? Well, there are sticks, mallets and brushes. Sticks have wood tips, nylon tips, various sizes and I have a pair that light up. Mallets have soft ends and hard ends. I could also store my V-Drum cables and spare parts in it.

 

It is a good system. If you try it I suggest picking on that will hold labels. 

[The Real MC]

Glad to see I'm not the only cheap b@st@rd in this group.  Good eye.

[Anderton]

Do you mean something like this?

 

[surfergirl]

1

[Greg Mein]

I bought some long hooks from amazon quite a while back and finally installed them, they were just the thing and I bought a second package for a total of eight across the top back of the closet. This turned out to be a fantastic use of the available space.

 

[RABid]

5 hours ago, Anderton said:

Do you mean something like this?

This. Excuse the mess. I'm redoing it.

[Stokely]

I likely don't have as many types as some of you (no eurorack nor speaker etc).  Like most stuff in my home office/studio, the furniture is "inherited" from stuff the wife didn't want anywhere else.    I have one of those rolling drawer chest deals, basically a shell that the lower part slides into/under with two big compartments.  Cables go into drawstring bags with labels on them (long XLR, short XLR, instrument, standard power cables, midi and so on).   I'm lazy about putting them back so there tends to be a build-up in the main compartment for a bit before I go clean it up.  At least the mess is out of sight and not underfoot though.

My wife got a huge number of these bags made for her former business (they are about the right size for a coiled cable, though they aren't huge and can't hold that many of them).  I have enough to last me and a bunch of friends for 500 years or so.

[Notes_Norton]

WOW!

 

Mine are all in road cases, and not nearly that organized. Although, the cases get loaded the same way every time.

 

I also bring spares of each type to the gig. Luckily I don't have that many. Most of them are XLR or 1/4" mono phone plugs. I do have a piece of gear with RCA jacks, so I use a converter to phone jacks, and carry a spare of that.

 

When you set up and something doesn't work, the first rule is this: It's always the cable.

 

Notes ♫

[Stokely]

If we are talking gigs, I try to keep those entirely separate.   In fact I'd prefer it if nothing used at gigs is also used at home--my microphone is the main thing I have to worry about.  

I have a main gig case (a rolling husky toolbox) that has exactly the cables I need.  That really isn't many, as most of them are in one flexible sleeve that goes to the main mixer (custom snake in other words...it includes an ethernet cable or else I might just get a drop snake but this has worked well for many years.)

Backup cables, adapters, headphone amps, power strip etc are in a tub that almost always stays in the car unless the shlep is long.  I've found having all the extras up on stage with me slows me down as the clutter triggers my OCD or something.

[elsongs]

Last month I bought a box of gallon slider ziploc bags at Target for $2.69, labeled them with a Sharpie marker, measured them and stored the cables in the bags for easy reference.

[eric]

This thread is inspiring me, as my spare cables not used in my studio or my gig rig are ALL OVER THE PLACE. I have a vintage dresser in my utility room that has five drawers and I've been cramming cables and random gadgets, pedals, gear boxes, etc. into that thing for decades. I'd love to organize them. I also have some crates and old brief cases in my gear closet packed full of cables. Plus a few duffel/tool bags scattered around.

 

One of my challenges is testing cables to see if they work - I believe there's a tool for this, which I don't own. I'll investigate and would love any recommendations! I'm going to think about a cable organization project over the holidays, perhaps a blend of several ideas in this thread. Thanks!

[KuruPrionz]

2 hours ago, eric said:

This thread is inspiring me, as my spare cables not used in my studio or my gig rig are ALL OVER THE PLACE. I have a vintage dresser in my utility room that has five drawers and I've been cramming cables and random gadgets, pedals, gear boxes, etc. into that thing for decades. I'd love to organize them. I also have some crates and old brief cases in my gear closet packed full of cables. Plus a few duffel/tool bags scattered around.

 

One of my challenges is testing cables to see if they work - I believe there's a tool for this, which I don't own. I'll investigate and would love any recommendations! I'm going to think about a cable organization project over the holidays, perhaps a blend of several ideas in this thread. Thanks!

This is what I use, it's a great tool and has been solidly reliable. Battery access requires taking the entire back cover off, a bit of a PITA but batteries last a LONG time and you can test XLR, 1/4" mono and stereo, RCA and MIDI cables. Photo attached, I recommend getting one. 

[Stokely]

As an aside, talking about testing and batteries.....I finally after more than five decades of life picked up a battery tester.

I'd like all the time back I spent trying batteries out in whatever gadget or device I could find, which was iffy anyway since they almost all require more than one.

[RABid]

2 hours ago, eric said:

I have a vintage dresser in my utility room that has five drawers and I've been cramming cables and random gadgets, pedals, gear boxes, etc. into that thing for decades.

My spare dresser is full of guitar pedals and camera equipment.

[David Emm]

On 12/2/2023 at 11:53 AM, surfergirl said:

1

 

This was my method until my sister gave me a small, tidy basket. The mess is still similar, but at least its all in a unified spot.  Actually, its my secondary stash for fringe items. I built a sort of upside-down flat pyramid with dowel rods along the edges. My vital cords all hang blissfully apart and easy to grab as needed. I love seeing the colorful re-purposing people do for all the stuff that's not an actual synth, because boy, there's a metric ton of it.

[Anderton]

On 12/7/2023 at 3:11 AM, elsongs said:

Last month I bought a box of gallon slider ziploc bags at Target for $2.69, labeled them with a Sharpie marker, measured them and stored the cables in the bags for easy reference.

 

Great idea, this seems particularly wonderful for the strange "adapter" cables, like breakout cables and proprietary cables used with specific pieces of gear. I'm off to Target...

 

Actually this whole thread is full of wonderful tips for bringing order out of chaos

[RABid]

I got me a label maker. Plan to print labels in the format, example: "MIDI type A ... ... MIDI type A

 

The dots will go around the cable and the printed sections will come together, giving me a label that sticks out from the cable and it easy to read. The trick is matching the ends up so there is no exposed sticky residue.

[George Toledo]

On 12/7/2023 at 4:11 AM, elsongs said:

Last month I bought a box of gallon slider ziploc bags at Target for $2.69, labeled them with a Sharpie marker, measured them and stored the cables in the bags for easy reference.

 

I do similar to this, but I also have plenty of the larger Hefty Jumbo bags for larger coils.

 

Also use the Hefty Jumbo bags as covers for larger mics that are left on the stand. They fit right over shockmounts and all.

[Greg Mein]

On 12/14/2023 at 11:37 AM, RABid said:

I got me a label maker. Plan to print labels in the format, example: "MIDI type A ... ... MIDI type A

 

The dots will go around the cable and the printed sections will come together, giving me a label that sticks out from the cable and it easy to read. The trick is matching the ends up so there is no exposed sticky residue.

 

You might check, my Brother label maker has the cable label feature as an option.

Key gigging items for me include the label maker, cable tester and an engraver. Pretty much any gig gear that leaves the house is either labeled or etched.

 

[Philbo King]

My cable corner.

I don't like coiling & uncoiling cords if I can avoid it. 

 

The wooden thingy with the painting on top is a tie rack holding XLR & 1/4" cables.  To the right are various 'weird' cords (RCA, 1/8" plugs, midi cables, etc.), next to the didgereedoo.  On the left are hooks shaped like guitar headstocks my wife picked up somewhere.

[Anderton]

5 hours ago, Philbo King said:

On the left are hooks shaped like guitar headstocks my wife picked up somewhere.

 

Extra credit for the choice of wife 

[murphybridget]

On 12/2/2023 at 10:55 PM, RABid said:

Like many of you I have an abundance of cables, many that look alike but do not spec the same. 1/4" speaker cables and 1/4" audio cables. MIDI cables and Microphone cables. Throw in 1/8" mono cables for Eurorack and 1/4" mono cables for my systhesizers.com system, plus cables to bridge the two systems. Pedal board cables. TRS cables for MIDI, V-Drums, and even special TRS speaker cables to go from my Ampeg amp to two way cabinets. What a bunch to keep organized.

 

Meanwhile, back in the normal world I picked up a shoe rack to organize my entrance closet. A big 5 pair wide 4 high unit where each cubby would hold a pair of shoes. It has a metal frame and made of some synthetic cloth/plastic. Got it home and it would no go into the closet. Too big for the small door and shallow depth of the closet. It would have to be totally taken apart and rebuilt inside the closet, never to come out again. After unsuccessfully trying to give it away it suddenly hit me..

 

The shoe rack makes a great cable organizer. I can label the slots to quickly tell instrument from speaker, MIDI from microphone, etc...  This is working great. My man cave/music room has a small closet. I may even get one of those hanging racks to put in it for overflow and drum sticks. How many sticks do I have that I would need an organizer? Well, there are sticks, mallets and brushes. Sticks have wood tips, nylon tips, various sizes and I have a pair that light up. Mallets have soft ends and hard ends. I could also store my V-Drum cables and spare parts in it.

 

It is a good system. If you try it I suggest picking on that will hold labels. 

Managing cables for MIDI, V-Drums, and your Ampeg amp to two-way cabinets can be a bit of a puzzle, but it's part of the fun in creating a well-tailored sound system.