Q: “What is the best way to wrap cables up at the end of the night?”
A: Whether you gig out live or hang cables in your studio, proper cable management is one of the best ways to keep your cables in good working order. In addition to using cable wraps, velcro or other cable tie methods, the way you WRAP the cable is really important.
If you want to get away from the coiled cable look (even after you’ve unwrapped your cable!), and you want to be able to unwrap your cables fast, and want your cables to store without added tension (just say NO to the carpenter’s elbow wrap!), then try the following method. It’s a little difficult to explain, and may take some practice, but once you have it down you can wrap cables faster AND better than ever before – by the way, this is the method most professional roadies use.
1. Take one end of a cable in your left hand (at about waist level) with the short end of the cable facing away from you.
2. Continuing to hold the cable in your left hand, take hold of the cable with your right hand (palm down) about 12 to 18 inches down from your left hand.
3. Continuing to hold the cable with both hands, and without moving your left hand, make a forward circle moving away from your body (up toward your left hand) with your right hand. When the cable in your right hand reaches your left hand, place it in your left hand. You’ve just created the first loop!
4. The following two (2) steps are the only tricky steps. Continuing to hold the cable in your left hand (in loop 1 mode), take hold of the cable with your right hand about 12 to 18 inches down from your left hand as you did in step 2, except this time, turn your right hand over so that your palm is facing up when you place the cable in your right hand (the cable should cross the palm of your right hand from left to right, not right to left).
5. Continuing to hold the cable with both hands, and without moving your left hand, move your right hand toward your left hand while rotating your right hand so that when it reaches your left hand the back of your right hand is now facing up instead of your palm. The cable has now “looped” inward creating your second loop.
6. Continue through steps 2 through 5 until you’re all done!
7. Finally, don’t forget to use a cable wrap to finish off your wrapping job securely.
If you follow these instructions when you wrap your cables, you’ll have fresh, straight cables each and every time you go to use them!