Cable Storage, From a Librarian's Perspective
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 18 ม.ค. 2025
- Have you ever wondered about storage for your console cables when they aren't being used? Being a retro gamer and collector means you probably have lots of cables from 30 plus years of video game consoles pushed out of sight, and you don't really know what to do with them. Power bricks from the Xbox or Nintendo family of consoles that have been sitting around, wrapped in their own wires without a care to how they are protected. Here are some cheap and easy ways to store those cables safely and efficiently to prolong their life and also remain easily accessible for later.
The inspiration for this comes from my own experience at work - in smaller libraries with limited budgets, you just have to make do with what you have or the cheapest alternative. This isn’t necessarily the “right” way - just a way I've found that works for myself, and hopefully inspires you. This includes using colored Velcro straps to color code different types of cables, unique storage options that are cheap and accessible, and ways to coil your cables used by professionals in the audio industry so that they last as long as possible and don't get all tangled up.
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The 'over under' wrapping technique you mentioned is used almost universally in the audio industry. it wraps the cable with the coil of the wire inside and is one of the best things you can do to extend the life of your cables.
It's not just extending the life of the cable.
If you do the audio tech coil, its also gonna unravel consistently everytime you throw a cable.
Especially important with longer cables common in the audio industry.
Home use it already has alot of benefits too. I wrapped the cable of the classic controller of my wii "wrong" for atleast a decade. Now it always springs into annoying direction trying to coil up while I use it when I'd prefer it being in a straight line.
Over under also is very useful if cables are too big for the space you got. You can coil them tighter than the "amateur" way would allow, thus making them take up less space.
I asked some audio engineer friends of mine and that's what they told me to do!
@@eightcoins4401 It doesn't extend the life of the cables, I don't know where people got that idea from, but it's not true. It's a good technique for when cables are too long to where you want to deal with the cord twisting, but it doesn't extend the life of the cable. My dad has cables from the '70s that were just regular coiled and they still work just fine. If you need a cable that lasts more than 50 years, then I'm not sure what to tell you, be less cheap.
As long as you consistently coil the cables, they will adopt some sort of internal orientation and as long as you respect that when you put the cables away, there's not going to be any problems.
Thank you for demonstrating the proper over-under technique for all the gamers. Sincerely, a Music Producer and Filmmaker (we deal with a looot of super long cables for microphones and lights)
VELCRO STRIPS MY BELOVED!!! I forgot where I first learned about them, but they completely changed the way I store cables and now I can't imagine organizing without them. I still havent been able to wrap my head around the over-under method and get the intended result, but this video has me thinking I should keep trying
Really informative video, great edting and voiceover!
thank you!! 🙏 We love the Velcro, they changed everything for me. I had to practice wrapping the cables for a bit - you'll get it!
cant get over how friendly and HELPFUL this channel is. You'll pick up and get to be a big channel, all the right components are there! Happy Holidays from Texas!
Will
thank you!! happy holidays!
Just watched a few of your organization vids. They're so relaxing! Love your vibe 💕
I am absolutely loving this series!
Your videos have a super cozy vibe to them
Cables in plastic boxes also is the norm in alot of home studios for music production.
Especially stackable plastic boxes.
Its pretty much the norm for anyone that got alot of cables and doesn't have money and/or space for a cable rack.
A common alternative people use to color coding is printing what the cables in the box are for/are on a portable label printer. Which one you use depends on which one works better for you personally though.
I used to be in an apprenticeship for TV production, though cancelled it since It wasn't my thing. Pretty much every local studio had just the plastic boxes with labels or color coding for cable storage.
That over-under is typically called the roadie wrap in the stage/audio industry. It's also called flaking the line when used to coil ropes.
I don't think this is quite appropriate for a library, but for home users storing their own cables, I've sworn by ziplock sandwich bags for a while. Many people already have some on hand. You wrap the cables up loosely, like in the video, and stuff em in the ziplock. It's great for when a lot of cables need to live in the one drawer or bin that you have for them, because no matter how much of a mess it may look, all the cables stay completely separate in their bags. Get the ziplocks that are made to write on with Sharpie and you can label everything nicely. I just don't know if this is good for long term storage, it may trap problematic gasses or moisture. But for all those USB cables that come with everything, it's great.
you might be surprised! smaller libraries will just use what's around - def have used random bags or whatever is in my desk because it was cheap and still worked well
@@coughyybeans I swear by ziplocks as they're cheap. There are reusable silicone ones these days that are a bit more durable. But, they're also more expensive and you can't as easily write it off if patrons lose or don't return them.
I use both ziplocks and boxes! Ziplocks are nice for the cables I use often, like USB, and boxes help with transformers and other wires I don't use much. I second plastic bags!
A trick for those of you that still insist on wrapping the cable around the controller, put a finger or two at the base of the cable before you start winding it the first time or two around so you aren't kinking the cable right as it leaves the controller shell, also try to avoid storing it in places that can get hot so the cable won't get the rubber thermally trained to return to the shape you stored it in, but that's just good advice for cable storage in general I suppose.
I couldn't afford Velcro when I started doing my cable storage but my mom pointed me towards a cut-able roll of garden ties and I've never looked back. I absolutely love being able to cut what I need. Just kinda figured if it's good enough for the outdoors, it ought to handle indoor box storage under tension well.
I love that idea so much! Finding clever ways that work for you is the whole point of why I started these videos
I've got a lot of miscellaneous cables around, and organizing them is a task I've been putting off for years. I'm also someone who is very guilty of wrapping cables around themselves. My point is, this video is very handy, and a solution I'd never considered to a problem I've been putting off for a while. So hats off to you.
thank you! the whole point of this video series is to just inspire people. help them get started and maybe learn something new, so it makes me very happy to hear that
absolutely wonderful series
thank you 🙏
These are awesome videos with a good perspective for preservation. 😄
This is such a great series
Side tip; Disposable Bread clips work wonders for labeling! Yes, The little thin plastic chips that come on storebought bread bags. Just sharpie on the wide part of the clip and put it on the cable. I use it for both storage and for the powerstrip that lives behind the tv stand so I can easily know which plug is which.
love this idea!
I use a big zip lock bag for every console cable and use a marker to label it and then store it in a drawer
Same, although I often times prefer to stick an index card into the zip lock in order to make it easier to read. I'll also either coil the cables in the bag or use re-usable zip ties to gently contain them to a coil.
Whatever zip locks I have, I'll then toss into a box that can be easily stored.
I used to use zip ties, but one of my cables broke due to the hard plastic digging into them and severing internal wires, so I don't use them anymore. Velcro cable ties are cheap, soft, and do basically the same thing. I've sworn by these for a few years now, and unlike zip ties, velcro is even reusable! They do much less damage to my cables since they are softer and more flexible.
Great video, it felt super validating hearing that I'm using good techniques already! Still gotta work on my over-under wrapping though :,)
Thank you!! velcro is honestly the best option I've found. Only time I've ever used zip ties was for cable management when building pcs but I've since stopped because I don't like them
Clean up my room last month and all the cables are sorted and stored in Zip Lock Bags. I will eventually move them into containers/boxes, just looking for ones that fit the room and are affordable.
I like the velcro strap arrangement, will apply that to my own storing methods. Thanks for the video.
If you label your cables, it helps to label both ends of the cable. That way no matter how you route your cables through your cable management system, you know which cable plugs into which device, and also if you need to unplug a specific device.
If you've got random smallish power adapters that aren't easy to identify like ones for clone consoles or whatever or retro console AV cables you wouldn't be able to immediately identify then putting them in a Ziploc bag so you have room to actually write something on em helps. I also use em for like keeping wireless dongles with certain controllers or keeping track of memory cards
I'd add that it's often a good idea to keep some sort of a record about what sort of power a device takes in terms of polarity, voltage and amperage as I've had devices over the last few years where they couldn't be bothered to write it on the device. Which makes it hard if an adapter does get separated from the device to figure out which one goes with which one and source a replacement if need be.
The "don't wrap your cables around" rule is certainly true for long term storage.
The types of plastics/rubber used on the cable and the plastics the device is made of are different and sometimes do react with each other, often causing the plastic to 'melt'.
You most often see this with 80s and 90s electronics. I know the plastic on my Commodore 1702 Monitor reacted badly to rubber feet from a VCR that only sat on top of it for a month.
It's not though, only if you are too tight with it. I've never had a problem with it. The people who have trouble with it are doing it wrong. Don't wrap so tightly and it's a good idea to use a tie of some sort near where the cable exits the controller to help provide some support. But, I've been doing it without the extra support for years and I've never had a controller get damaged by it. Even when storing them that way for years. It's one of those things that people say, but if you actually look at what happened, they were way too tight with it.
A nice video.
For smaller cable, you can also store them in ziplock bags, it's a nice way to store them, and you can write on the bag what it is for.
As for the cable around the controler, well, the cable itself won't be too much impacted (except if you really force and tighten to the max the cable around the controler). BUT, the part that goes out of your controler will be really stressed, and it can cause a rupture of the conducer inside the controler (there is a cable restrain "S" path inside most controlers, so tighting it outside will really stress it at the junction).
This is true for any connector by the way. So alway unplug as much as you can before storing (don't leave things plugged in). It will prevent connector breakage.
Last, if you have a label machine, label your cables, that way you always know what is what = )
Bonus: By using ziplock storage inside your boxes, you can also put the consoles manual into a ziplock to have all the info by hand. A sheet (even hand drawn) on how to connect everything is a must have.
Bonus 2: If you have the budget, I would even but modern converters when applicable. There is nothing more frustrating than to have a working retro console, with working power supply, controlers and games, only to find out that the plug don't exists on the TV anymore! Some cheap $15 composite to hdmi can save you from these kind of situation.
Cheers !
I've never had a controller get damaged due to wrapping the wires around the controller. However, you do need to keep in mind that the connection at the controller end may not have appropriate strain relief and to make sure that that portion isn't too tight. It's not a bad idea to use a tie of some sort to loosely connect that to the rest of the controller cable to help provide some strain relief.
@@SmallSpoonBrigade I already saw a cable internally ruptured by tight wrapping (the person was stupid and really really tighten the cable around the controler), but yes, most of the time, it's the strain relif where tha cable enters the controler that broke.
I recommend wrapping it nicely and putting a wool that sticks so it won't get messy or tangled.
Oh, and if you have a printer, be sure to label them!
Where I'm from, brocoli are sold with big rubber bands, I've been using that to organize and tie cables and would definitely recommend it, they have been useful so many times
Rubberbands eventually go brittle over time, especially with moisture. I've had it happen with the rubber band from old Bionicles.
And if you ever get hungry you have a convinient little snack
Excellent video!
Only word of caution is what the cables rest against, as the plasticizer chemicals used in some cables tend to outgas overtime and will melt other plastics they are in contact with, i.e. Controllers and power bricks.
Awesome tips as usual, hope to put some of these to use soon (I've fallen way behind on managing spare charging cables and such)!
i had a nest of cables hanging off a bedpost that i was adding to over years. feels good to finally have that under control. you can do it!
underated channel:3
great video dude, i will definately impliment some of these man
bag them, label them, i keep mine in drawers 😅
i lowkey have accepted that the matrix cords everywhere are part of my aesthetic
new video yay! 💖
I use hair elastics to organize my cables, cheap and plentiful!
@mmpsp693 just be careful that they aren't too tight!
Good video as always, investing in Velcro now
it helped so much!
If you do it, it's a good idea to get one that allows for you to keep it permanently attached to the cable. It makes it so much easier not having to remember where the velcro wrap went to. or, have to have another hand when you go to put the cable away.
Cool vid, simple and to the point. I have a band member who just shoves his cables haphazardly into a backpack and it makes me die inside every time ;(
@@snowghoul3813 i know some audio engineers that would be very mad if I got this wrong 😅
@coughyybeans in my headcannon (for life and existence ;)) i imagine there being an all powerful god-like audio engineer that suffocates people by dropping several hundred pounds of cable spaghetti on them
I hope you’re slowly frog boiling us until you’re releasing videos like “Saul Kripke’s response to The Gettier Problem: The Librarian’s Perspective”
👀👀
awesome
Six foot drawers ..
Ngl I just leave my consoles plugged in (except the Xbox one we have been using the controller for on pc so it doesn't turn itself back on) and have those cables all strapped to the wire shelf they live on, which I suppose the keep everything connected and ready to go is a different school of thought on storage, I do need to find a better solution for controller storage so they don't stay a spraying mess in the middle of the living room though lol.
Would you recommend labeling the Velcro with a written name for the cable, like with sharpie, alongside the color coding? Or would the ink pose as a future problem?
Perhaps labeling the box with a color chart might be better?
@@Cheddarcorn whatever works for you! Might be hard to read if you write on the velcro though...maybe tags you can tie on? 🤔
NEW VIDEO LETS FUCKING GOOOOOOO
I still have the random cable box 😎
" red for the Wii cus you know" no lol no Idk. What does that mean lol what am I missing
Wii U Wii U Wii U is the sound the siren of an ambulance makes. Red for the red cross ambulances use.
wii u wii u
NEW VIDEO LETS FUCKING GOOOOO ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ keep up the hard work
Another banger! Thank you for blessing us, coughy! I was wondering, were you ever planning on making a community server? it'd definitely help me catch you streaming sometime!
@@tgirlanri thinking about it! I know nothing about how to start one so I'll have to learn 😅