Guitar cable jacks (TRS) instead of RCA (phono) jacks ????

The rechargeables got very cheap and their capacity is like 5 times you could get 10 years ago... now it's NiMH instead of the old NiCD

The capacity of good NiMH batteries is also way bigger than the plain alkaline batteries... You can get 2400 mAh NiMH for a few $ a piece... And another 10-15$ for a charger. Do some reading on NiMH on the net so you know how to treat them right (memory effect, self-discharge etc.)

4000is1monster wrote:just was reading another post and I read that the 1/4" inputs arent even really balanced anyway, and neither are RCA inputs, so whats the point of having unbalanced 1/4", other then it makes it look more pro and less consumer.

Yes, that is correct... so who cares if they are 1/4" or RCA? It is a trivial desicion that you don't like because you can't keep track of your cables...

But...I must admit that I like battery powered stuff at times cause I'm too lazy to plug stuff in... so I'm just as bad. truce.

Hey 4k, do you use a mixer or some sort of device with multiple 1/4" inputs or inserts? Maybe this will work for you. Throw a few pair in any unused line level inputs, or whatever's there that'll hold them until you're ready to use them. The only problem would be the self discipline you need to remember to put them back of course. And secondly, if you're gonna use any type of cable, make sure it's of high quality. It may have took me a while back in the day (ie:squashing ground loops, looming certain groups of cabling together, etc.) but I now appreciate having more than just your good ole basic cables to work with. One way to do a quality inspection of your cables would be: if you've got all your gear hooked up and you max the gain on your mixer or soundcard without any sound (ie: music, tracks, instruments) you should'nt hear any hums or crackles or anything. If you do hear things, start eleminating stuff until you find the problem. And if you know that the wires/cables are routed properly, then you may need to have them replaced. This is only a conclusion to both of you guys' statements.

Lithium Ions are the defacto now-a-days. Less memory intensive, longer use life, better than NiCads & NiMHs.