This morning I was browsing Engadget and came across a story about DIY iPhone earbud replacement and a YouTube video detailing the process that was created by James Papadopoulos. This excited me, because my one huge problem with the phone is that I can’t use my prefered earbuds with it. Yes, I could use an extension adapter, but then I don’t have the ability to use the microphone built into the earbuds, and I really like that feature of the Apple supplied earbuds.
The basic proceed involves dismantling both the Apple earbuds and your “superior” earbuds, then soldering on the transplant earbuds onto the Apple earbud cord. It’s such a simplistic idea, I’m kind of ashamed that I didn’t think about it myself.
I’ve been a big fan of the Sony MDR-EX71SLA earbuds for the past couple of years as they tend to be a little more bass heavy than other earbuds. I had a couple extra pairs that suffered from the gummy-wire problem of earlier product revisions, so I used those as the donor buds.
I wasn’t able to get the Apple earbuds open without damaging them, but to be honest I didn’t really try that hard because they were going in the trash if the operation was successful. The first set of Sony’s that I tried (more recent revision) had the earbud enclosure glued shut, so those got damaged in the dismantle process, but I had an older revision of the earbuds also, and they snapped apart without a problem.
I realized that I suck at soldering when I had to go to YouTube for a refresher course video: -10 geek points for me. I got all the connections soldered and put the earbud casing back together. Now I have earbuds that I love with the mini-plug connector that fits in the iPhone and a working mic so I can walk around the streets looking like I am talking to myself. Hoo-ray!