I just need to know which way is up

April 18, 2010 1:50 PM

When I pulled out one of the component cables from my TV today, this thing came with it. I can see by the jack left in the TV that probably all I need to do is gently push it back in, but given that the 2 flanges on the thing are different, and I think it's an electrical contact, I'm pretty sure there's one right way for it to go, and one wrong. I'm hoping for some guidance on which is which.

I tried calling Sharp tech support (the TV is a Sharp Aquos), but said that's not the kind of information they have, and none of the other inputs seem to be pull-out-able without more force than I want to use on my TV. So, given that one flange goes in at the top and one at the bottom - does anyone know which one goes where?

posted by still_wears_a_hat to technology (2 answers total)

Are the two flanges both part of the same metal barrel? If so, the right fit is actually mechanical and not electrical. This would be my guess. Typically there would be another contact which would touch the central pin of the male connector, you didn't show a picture of the bottom, but it doesn't look like either of these flanges would be connected to the central pin.

So inserting the piece is just a matter of finding which way it allows the longer flange to be inserted.

If this does not work, or gives ghosting in the picture, the flanges are not seated correctly. This would not be too difficult for a service shop (or a moderately handy individual - all caveats apply here) to fix...but it would require opening up the tv and soldering the flanges.
posted by NoDef at 2:14 PM on April 18, 2010

The longer of the two "flanges" (as you put it) is probably intended as a spade lug, which is to be pushed through a cut slot or hole in the circuit board to which that jack is normally connected, and then bent over 90° where it then is usually soldered to the board trace, completing the electrical contact, at the same time it is secured mechanically by the solder joint. Looks like it never got bent over, or if it did, was never soldered, or at the very least was cold soldered.

Look into the mounting hole with a flashlight, and see if you can locate the hole/slot in the circuit board intended to receive that lug; if so, that's how you orient it, when pushing it back in. Note that the jack may or may not work correctly, just by being pushed in, if it was supposed to be soldered, too. You might make accidental contact with the circuit board trace just by pushing the lug through the circuit board again, but it won't be an effective electrical connection in the long run.
posted by paulsc at 2:16 PM on April 18, 2010