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The Behringer mixers, like many, have vertical input jacks. In trying to come up with a good cable-management solution, so my desktop set-up is nice and pretty, I'm running out of ideas. I'm not finding anything but guitar patch cables, which are bulky. I can't fit more than two right-angle patch cables next to each other without playing tetris, crowding the cables so that they're putting stress on each other.

Main Question: Am I really resigned to old-fashioned, 1/4" plugs poking straight up from my box? If so I'm fine with it, but would love some perspective as to why. If I've got options to consider, I'd love to hear them!

The questions below, I provide more to give you a sense of how I've been thinking about this. I don't need them answered per se, but I do welcome an answer if it's the "right" way to think about the problem.

  • Are there alternatives to having a thicket of tangled rope snaking out of my Behringer, or is this the convention?
  • I've seen snakes, but only ones with 10+ in/output, and all XLR. Are there snakes for smaller mixers like the 802, with 1/4"?
  • Are there slim cables ideal for mixers, or highly flexible ones?
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You're stuck with 1/4" jacks. Right-angle jacks are available, but not designed to be used on a mixer with 2 or more rows of jacks.

Custom cabling will give you the neatest solution. Slim cables are available, where normal microphone cable often has a diameter of 5-6 mm, you can get cable with a diameter of 3.5-4 mm.

You can also buy the cable that's used in snakes. This can be handy, but has one drawback: this often consists of pairs of wire with just a foil sheet around them. The foil sheet is fragile. If it's exposed, you need to put heatshrink sleeve around it to protect it. This means it takes a bit more time and effort to build the cable. For short lengths, I'd stick with slim individual cables instead.

1/4" snakes are available, but then you're stuck with the cable length they come in. If it's a desktop setup, you'll probably only need short lengths.

Lots of cable management products are available. For this type of installation I'd use braided cable sleeving to bundle the wires, and maybe some tiewraps and/or heatshrink sleeve for smaller sub-bundles.

(all of the links go to examples, other products are available)

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  • Appreciate the overview of options and considerations, thanks!
    – Mark K
    Apr 26, 2020 at 16:46
  • I've added one more option: you can get the cable that's used in snakes, and build your own custom snake.
    – Hobbes
    Apr 26, 2020 at 17:19
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Your best bet is to custom build a cable solution. This is what I have done with every single mixer I have installed for my own use. This is really the only way to achieve the desired solution. Don't try and use right-angled jacks as they will get in the way of each other on this mixer. If you are not a dab hand with a soldering iron, now is a good time to learn.

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  • I'm a pathological hacker, so I really appreciate the encouragement to pick up soldering :) It begs the question though.. what does the cable solution look like? Am I basically soldering a customized snake? Or are there even simpler designs once I'm doing it myself?
    – Mark K
    Apr 26, 2020 at 16:43

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