Cables are one of those often overlooked items that usually get taken for granted.
They can be the cause of intermittant problems and difficult mid-gig failures. Cables don’t last for ever, but there are a few simple ways you can get the best service life from them.
1/ Always coil your cables carefully, using their natural “lay”. All cables have a natural “lay” in them which stems from the manufacturing process. If you coil your cables carefully and naturally, less stress will be applied to the conducting cores. This will avoid core fractures.
2/ Do not yank on cables which are trapped in some way. Doing this will put strain on the cores, and/or the connectors. This will lead to strain and early core failure.
3/ Avoid placing objects upon the cables (such as speaker cabinets, drum stools etc).
4/ Keep all post-gig “helpers” at bay. They will not care about your cables or the rest of your gear.
5/ Try to arrange things so that there is no “weight” on any of the connectors. For example, if you are plugging into a keyboard, use a cable with right angle rather than straight jacks.
Finally, if you do have a cable failure, quarantine the failed item so that you don’t unwittingly use it at your next gig.