Converting headset with 2 3-pole 3.5mm jacks to 4-pole 3.5mm

oshsama

Commendable
Dec 13, 2016
2
0
1,510
I have an old headset that I decided to see if I can revive. The headset is SONY DR-GA200. It came with a mute and volume control on a long flat cable. See the pictures for more details.

As it happens with long cables they can get stuck under the wheels of your chair and you know already this has happened to me as well ;] The effect was that the plugs got literally ripped off the cable.

It was quite some time ago and now I'm looking to revive it. The additional difficulty (set by myself) is that I'd like to use it freely with my Samsung mobile and MacBook as well and they both come with a single 4 pole 3.5mm audio socket. I was wondering how to make it work with both of the above and my PC with separate mic and headphones sockets.

I have 3 options that I can think of:
1. stick to the original design and get 2 x 3-pole to 4 pole adapter for my mobile and laptop;
2. apply a single 4-pole plug and get the splitter for my PC;
3. apply all 3 plug on the cable and use either a pair of the 3-pole or a single 4-pole depending on the device (correct me if that's not possible).

The option number 3 seems to be the most convenient one, however it'll look messy and a little unpractical to have 2 extra plugs hanging while I'm on the go.
I think the option number 2 is the best for me as I can keep the splitter at home and have the elegant single 4-pole to carry around.

First part of this thread is to get opinions on the matter from people that know this stuff. Later I might need a little help with soldering ;)

Thank you kindly,
Osh


Below you can find pictures for reference [ img ] tag didn't work, sorry about that.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2QCcijXhto1UEdsSEM3MnFCZjBaUUVHb3dRUE93N2JPa2lj/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2QCcijXhto1cjRERE9BNzMzVU0/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2QCcijXhto1aE9Wdk9sZHYzUlE/view?usp=sharing
 
On all headgears I hate big plug, big adapters blah-blah that add weight to the cable, specially if am gonna be mobile. In your situation I would personally explore getting a brand new cable altogether, so the 4-barrel plug is factory-made and small, and solder things at the cups. Do you need the mic, if no, then save yourself the extra complication.

Trying to solder a 4-barrel plug, good luck with that. Once I tried to find a DIY, 4-barrel plug and couldn't.
 

oshsama

Commendable
Dec 13, 2016
2
0
1,510
First of all to make things clear - I do need the microphone.
I was considering getting a new and detachable cable (both ends male) and then I would have installed a socket on the headphones. 2 things about this are: it would be more tricky to do it and I lose the remote on the cable with mute a volume control that I already have, so I don't think I wanted to go that way.
I do like a little of DIY and I'm quite precise, so as long as I can get a good quality 3.5mm jack, then I would prefer to do it.