Tone Defender Harp Mic Cable – BLACK For JT-30 and other Harmonica Microphones

The real deal!  Individually hand crafted using high end Canare L-4E6S Quad Core OFC microphone wire, silicone injected Switchcraft components, silver solder, multiple layers of expensive double wall self adhesive heat shrink tubing + several exclusive premium features.  

Often shipped same/next day as payment arrives.  Max shipping wait is 5 days if I need to fabricate one to fill your order.  The only exception is if I’m traveling for a gig or vacation, please contact me before purchasing if your order is time sensitive!

Ever wonder why your rig is sometimes quiet and sometimes has more hum?  Or why your signal sometimes cuts out or crackles?  Aside from issues with incoming power, or problems inside your mic or amp, these things are usually traceable to a damaged or poorly designed cable… a Tone Defender properly addressed these common problems.  

The quad core wire in a Tone Defender offers superior shielding against RF (radio frequency) and EM (electro-magnetic) interference, especially when compared to typical twisted pair mic cables or center conductor ‘instrument cable’.  This high level of shielding offers real world benefits when on stage surrounded by neon signs, wireless mic transmitters, lighting controllers, speaker wires, and randomly positioned power cables… as well as the magnetic fields generated by transformers in instrument amps, pedal boards and PA amps.  Unlike single conductor cables, the shield on a Tone Defender does not transmit the minus side of the signal, instead, the + and – pathways are each carried by a pair of conductors that nest safely inside of the shield.  This studio grade technology helps provide interference free transmission of your signal in all environments.

All that shielding does no good if the cable doesn’t hold together…  I’ve put many years of thought and experimentation into that topic, developing and then refining a time consuming multiple step construction process which insures that a Tone Defender is incredibly robust.  I think you could probably swing from it (not recommended) and still have it pass a clean signal.  The first ones I made a decade ago were outstanding, ZERO failures reported so far.  This is now the third generation Tone Defender, as good as the others were these are even stronger… This beast also looks great! 

Some other screw fitting cables cost less… at least in the short term.  One of which is very well known to fail the first time it’s subjected to common twisting forces, or upon receiving the inevitable hard yank when someone steps on a trailing section.  Some look like they will hold up longer, but none I’ve seen here on ebay compare to the robust construction and shielding properties of a Tone Defender. 

I likely earn far less per hour than those who sell the cheaper ones, each Tone Defender takes 2+ hours to hand craft, some of the others would quite obviously take only about 10-15 minutes.  The raw materials alone in a Tone Defender cost more than the final selling price of many others.  My normal bench rate for labor equals more than my selling price.  Not much profit here, just wanted to fill the void and offer the harmonica community a proven superior product that will perform at a very high level and stand the test of time.  If someone claims their cable has better “specifications” then look at ALL the specs, rather than just the ones that are being boasted about, which might be things that are not particularly meaningful in real world use.  Look to see if they are comparing to the L-4E6S quad core cable I use rather than a different grade.  Many cable descriptions on ebay ignore the important factors of shielding properties, insulator shrink-back, wire strand counts, low temp flexibility, and long term durability.  Ask the fabricator to cite the exact brand and part number of the wire they are using, this is typically absent from their ebay listings.  Some of the wire I see used in cheap cables is commonly available for less than 2 cents a foot!  Several manufacturers print meaningless buzzwords on their cheap cable such as ‘Low Noise’ or ‘No Noise’ (no such thing) or ‘High Definition’… regardless of these claims those products don’t measure up. 

When I see other fabricators making good stuff and conducting themselves in an open ethical manner I am quick to acknowledge it, quite often publicly.  I know at least a couple others who make quality cables at a couple different price points, I frequently speak well of them, and even though we are competitors I often send people their way.  I have shared knowledge freely with many who have asked how they could build a better product.  That said, I’ve never been shy about pointing out the all too abundant hustles and marketing hype that so often pops up on internet auction sites… ask for my free Harp Mic Buyers Guide if you want to further explore this topic.

Unlike most cables with synthetic “tweed” wrappings or with cheesy plastic jackets (you get what you pay for), a Tone Defender will remain flexible in sub-freezing temperatures.  Storing or uncoiling the Canare Quad wire in such conditions will not damage the outer jacket or the high grade XLPE insulation surrounding each of the 40 strand quad conductors.  Inferior insulation types can actually crack and cause short circuits when flexed or dropped while frozen!  Age has a similar effect on the cheap stuff, some tend to dry out & crack.

While on the topic of tweed jacketed wire… modern nylon or fiberglass “tweed” covering isn’t “cloth” in the sense that we usually think of.  It may have a vintage “look”, but claims of it being either vintage or cloth seem to be pandering and misleading. 

Worse still… the “tweed” rubs against the rubbery jacket underneath and can induce a static charge.  Think about rubbing a balloon on your head, it’s same general principal.  When capacitance and other specifications are measured they are of course done under ideal lab conditions… on stage in the real world these specs are unlikely to hold true for “tweed” covered cables due to the above mentioned rubbing issue.  Tweed outer jackets make a cable needlessly fat, stiff, and bulky, they take up a lot of extra space in your kit, and add additional stress to the shield underneath when bent at tight angles.  Draw tweed covered wire through your hand too fast & you’ll wind up with a nasty rope burn!  There’s also those little bits of synthetic material they shed, which can get inside of your harps and choke reeds, also into your microphones and then into your lungs when you play!  No thanks!

Due to hand fabrication the length of a Tone Defender can vary +/- 3 inches (1″ is typical).   

Additional details about this pro grade product are available at Harmonica Planet.