audio cables, adapters, bluetooth speakers, karaoke for camping

see also:

• photography and camping main index page
• radio for campers

• this page is designed to help with the quagmire of audio connections for having a portable speaker for music or karaoke at camp grounds when there are no other campers around to annoy
• all these portable speakers are active speakers (have an inbuilt amplifier) and have a rechargeable (via a USB port) lithium battery so you don't need an external power source - until they run out!

• usually come in either 6.35mm (1/4“) or 3.5mm (1/8”) and less commonly, 2.5mm (1/10“) sizes
• if you look on the male part of the plug you will see one to four black bands:
  • one band = TS (tip sleeve) MONO
  • two bands = TRS (tip ring sleeve) = STEREO or balanced MONO
  • three bands = TRRS (tip ring ring sleeve) = STEREO plus MIC designed for mic headsets (or STEREO plus video)
  • four bands = TRRRS (tip ring ring ring sleeve) - STEREO plus 2 mics or 1 mic and DC power for the mic
• the sleeve is usually a common ground reference voltage or return current for signals in the tip and any rings.
• you generally need to match the type of male plug to the same type of female socket
  • if a 2-conductor TS plug is inserted into a 3-conductor TRS socket, then the socket's ring is shorted to ground, thus any signal sent from that socket's ring is lost. Equipment not designed for this short might, for instance, damage an audio amplifier channel.
  • if a 3-conductor TRS plug is connected to a 2-conductor TS socket, normally the result is to leave the ring of the plug unconnected.
    • mono equipment receiving stereo output will simply use the left (tip) channel as the mono input signal and lose the right (ring) channel of the stereo audio.
  • 3.5 mm TRRS sockets that accept TRRS headsets (stereo headphones with a mic) are often compatible with standard TRS stereo headphones, whereby the contact that expects a mic signal will instead simply become shorted to ground and thus will provide a zero signal
  • TRRS headsets can plug into TRS sockets, in which case its speakers may still work even though its mic won't work (the mic's signal contact will be disconnected)
  • due to a lack of standardization in the past regarding the length given to the ring conductor and the insulating portions on either side of it in 6.35mm phone connectors and the width of the conductors in different brands and generations of sockets, there are occasional issues with compatibility between differing brands of plug and socket. This can result in a contact in the socket bridging (shorting) the ring and sleeve contacts on a phone connector
  • two incompatible video variants exist, of 15 millimetres (0.59 in) and 17 mm (0.67 in) length, and using the wrong variant may either simply not work, or could cause physical damage.
    • attempting to fully insert the longer (17 mm) plug into a receptacle designed for the shorter (15 mm) plug may damage the receptacle, and may damage any electronics located immediately behind the receptacle. However, partially inserting the plug will work as the tip/ring/ring distances are the same for both variants.
    • a shorter plug in a socket designed for the longer connector may not be retained firmly and may result in wrong signal routing or a short circuit inside the equipment (e.g. the plug tip may cause the contacts inside the receptacle – tip/ring 1, etc. – to short together).
    • the shorter 15 mm TRRS variant is more common and physically compatible with standard 3.5 mm TRS and TS connectors.
• most keyboard synthesizers utilize 6.35mm female MONO sockets
• there are various conversion adapters around to help solve differences such as:
  • one STEREO 6.35mm male plug can be fitted into a 6.35mm female to 3.5mm stereo male adapter
  • two MONO 6.35mm male plugs can be fitted into a dual 6.35mm female to 3.5mm stereo male adapter

• these are professional level analog audio plugs and ports designed for higher quality audio
• usually found on powered professional speakers, mixers, audio recording devices such as Zoom

• these may look the same BUT they are VERY different
• plugging a normal mono microphone into an Aux port generally will not give enough sound - this can be addressed by using a dynamic amplified microphone into a stereo male plug
• likewise you should not plug a audio source or musical instrument into a MIC port
• MIC ports are generally 6.35mm female mono ports but may be 3.5mm female mono ports
• most AUX ports are 3.5mm female stereo ports but may be 6.35mm stereo ports

• these are the most common and most portable option
• they are generally simple to use just pair to a smartphone and away you go
• some allow purchasing of two or more speakers which can then pair to give true stereo separation (“TWS”)
• some will have an aux audio input port
• some will have a smartphone app to further tailor the sound by use of an equalizer
• some will be waterproof
• JBL Flip 6
  • 45x80mm 20W RMS woofer + 16mm 10W RMS tweeter
  • 63Hz – 20kHz frequency response
  • SN >80dB; SPL @ Max Volume: 86.8 dB SPL - ok for an average room ¹⁾;
  • 17.28Wh (4800mAh 3.6V) Li-poly battery with 2.5hr charge time at 5V/3A and up to 12hrs play time but on average use this is around 6hrs ²⁾
  • USB-C charging; Bluetooth 5.1; 178 x 68 x 72mm/7.0 x 2.6 x 2.8”; 550g; IP67 waterproof; no longer has the Aux 3.5mm in as with the Flip 4;
  • can customize its sound to your liking via the graphic EQ in the JBL Portable app
  • supports PartyBoost, meaning you can connect it to PartyBoost-compatible JBL speakers like the JBL Charge 5 which is a much better speaker.
  • no mic; Stereo mode only works when paired with a second JBL Bluetooth speaker of the same generation

• these are designed for a microphone input which can either be:
  • direct wired via a cable and plug into a mic port (usually 6.35mm), and/or,
  • wireless connected to a wireless microphone
• they should have a mic input volume dial as well as the main volume output dial
• they usually also have an aux port for musical instruments or other audio inputs
• most will have Bluetooth input so you can play music from your smartphone, if not you can add Bluetooth capability by connecting a Bluetooth receiver to the AUX port
• some will allow mic effects such as echo
• some will allow adjustment of Bass and Treble
• some will have a built-in FM radio
• some will have a USB port to attach a USB stick or hard drive for music
• some will have a TF (SD card) slot to allow playing music from an SD card
• playback of music from a USB device or SD card may be limited to next, previous unless it has a random mode and /or a LCD screen to help find your songs
• they generally have larger speakers and tend to have larger capacity batteries

• NB. decibels is a logarithmic unit of measurement
• speakers are usually rated at how many watts it can handle before it dies and are often given in various ways:
  • RMS Power Rating
    • the maximum continuous power a speaker can handle safely
  • Max Power
    • most common rating to be found on PA speakers and amplifiers
    • a measurement that is taken with the speaker literally at its maximum output, taken over a period until the speaker fails
    • Max Power is usually 2x RMS Power
  • Peak Power
    • maximum power level a speaker can handle in short bursts without getting damaged
    • generally 4x the RMS hence it is a marketing measure to make the product look better
• doubling the watts equates to a 3dB difference in loudness (10dB difference is twice as loud - so 3dB is louder but a long way from being twice as loud despite doubling the watts)
  • it takes 10 times more watt power usage to give a perceived doubling of sound volume level (10dB louder)
• speaker acoustic efficiency is how loud the output can be with a given watt power usage
  • 90 dB @ 1W/1m means 90dB loudness at 1m from speaker in a standardized room when using 1W of power
  • ideally for camping when portable power is at a premium, you would prefer a more efficient speaker, which generally costs more
• the amplifier is the component that generates the watt output depending upon its volume setting and the impedance of the speakers
• a speaker with an RMS power rating between 15 to 40 watts with an appropriately matched amplifier can provide satisfactory sound quality in a typical home environment
• PA speakers that are being used for different audience sizes, the 5W per head rule gives you a rough guide - so if your gathering is 30 people, you really should be looking at speakers around the 150W mark (minimum!) to ensure they can cope

• do not need power but output a lower output level and require a MIC port with its pre-amplifier

• usually a condenser microphone with an internal battery-powered amplifier

• electret microphone containing an internal FET amplifier
• needs a DC power supply, which is provided as a bias voltage for an internal preamp transistor
• plug-in power is supplied on the same line as the audio signal, using an RC filter and usually uses V=1.5V, R=1 kΩ, C=47 μF

• uses higher voltage “Phantom power” (12V or 48V) usually via XLR cables
• DC electric power is equally applied to both signal wires in balanced microphone cables
• it is a convenient power source for condenser microphones, though many active direct boxes also use it
• the supply voltage is effectively invisible to balanced microphones that do not use it, which includes most dynamic microphones.

• these require direct cabling to the speaker or to a transmitter
• generally have a male 6.35mm MONO plug but may have a 3.5mm plug

• these are mics with a rechargeable lithium battery Bluetooth transmitter
• these are designed to connect to your smartphone for recording remote mic for videos
• they generally do not connect to Bluetooth speakers even via the smartphone

• these are commonly used by gym or fitness instructors amplifying their voice into a personal address speaker or karaoke speaker
• generally have a rechargeable lithium battery transmitter which connects by cable to the microphone and clips to clothing, and a rechargeable lithium battery receiver which plugs into the speaker via the AUX or MIC ports
• can often select the UHF channel to reduce interference

• similar to UHF ones but use different radio bands