Originally Posted by
Byrne11
Good afternoon,
im trying to figure out how to remove/disconnect the ‘5th’ pin. My company requires the 5th pin be disconnected for an XLR 5 pin.Can anyone shed any light?
Many thanks
My cheat sheet for headset connections shows pin 5 of an XLR-5 being used for the headset + DC feed for noise cancelling (if the headphones are so equipped). Lacking an aircraft DC supply, the headset would need internal batteries to power this. Some are equipped with a switch (battery/aircraft power). Switching to the battery position would disconnect the pin 5 feed from the aircraft. If they trust you to keep this switch in the proper position, this may suffice. If not, you will have to open the connector backshell (assuming it's not a molded plastic plug), locate pin 5 and unsolder or cut that wire.
It might be possible to have someone with a modicum of electronics tech skills to put together a male to female XLR-5 adapter with pin 5 not connected. So, no modification to the headset. But again, they would have to trust you to plug the adapter in line. If they didn't trust you to flip the battery switch ....