Rear Seat Intercom Jack placement

[cctsurf]

I'm doing a JPI install on my short body (M20C) and will have a number of the interior side panels off.  My hangar elf left a note taped to my garwin cluster asking me that while I do that installation that I run some wires to the back seat for an intercom.  I responded with a note saying, "I don't know where the jacks should be put.  I'll check with the other hangar elf enabled Mooney owners on Mooneyspace."

I was thinking of leaving a set of these on the bench next to the intercom:  http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/avpages/jack_hous2.php

I've heard of redoing the ashtrays, I've heard of putting them in the headliner, I don't have arm rests in the back seat, so that's out...

Where are your rear seat jacks?  Any great ideas for my hangar elf?

Thanks!

[kpaul]

You can see where mine are in this photo.  They were there when I bought the plane, they get bumped a bit, especially with my daughter and dog in the back.  If I were to do them over I would put them in the leading edge of the molded arm rests.

[cctsurf]

I'm kinda also wondering about at what angle they should be installed, I can see the idea of angling them upward as you have, but I was also thinking of angling them back or even down.  I think down would be more difficult to plug in, but they might also be more out of the way...  Just trying to make this work the best I can.  Sure wish I could afford a new interior with arm rests, etc. that would make this easier.

THANKS!

[RLCarter]

Mine are mounted in front of the armrests, seems to be ok, all though I never sit back there 

[Vance Harral]

The attached photo isn't my airplane, but was a convenient image on which to draw.  Our intercom jacks are mounted in the front edge of the arm rest "cutout". This is different from the location in RLCarter's photo, where they're in the armrest ledge itself.  The orientation of the jacks is horizontal rather than vertical, which I think makes them a little less prone to being knocked around.

In the photo below, there's another indentation in the panel forward of the armrest, where the jacks in this airplane are actually located.  Our interior panel doesn't have that indentation, hence there is room for the jacks to be mounted in the "cutout".

[carusoam]

When selecting where the holes go....

1) some people include gravity in their thoughts.  If something falls in the hole.

2) being able to see the holes easily is good for the people trying to plug the two different sized plugs in.

Some PP ideas that come to mind...

Best regards,

-a-

Edited May 26, 2017 by carusoam

[Yetti]

The little ledge in front of the arm rest.  Drill then hand taper ream to proper size.  You don't what to have that big of a drill bit around plastic

[tmo]

My hangar fairy is wondering if the jacks are the standard stuff from Switchcraft, which gets soldered, or if there are any aviation only crimp compatible versions for 10x the price?

He has a few of the 1/4" / 6.35mm ones and some 0.206" / 5.23mm ones for the mic.

Answering myself - Aircraft Spruce actually sells Switchcraft 12B and S12B and they are cheaper than digikey...

Edited July 26, 2021 by tmo
found them at Spruce, must be aviation then...

[TravelVeteran]

does anyone know how to wire the rear passenger headphone jacks?  do i just connect two wires to the same wire going to the pilot or copilot jacks?

 

[tmo]

No.

You run them to the appropriate pins on the intercom. Two shielded cables per seat, one for mic, one for headphones, I'd run a 3 wire cable for the headphones to allow for stereo.

[Andy95W]

It depends on the intercom and how you want it set up.

“Newer” intercoms (starting 25 years ago) are often equipped with a Crew mode and/or Isolate mode.  That allows the back seat passengers to hear different things from the pilot (Isolate) or the front seaters (crew).  If your intercom supports that, and you want that capability, then you’ll have to hook up the rear headphones like tmo said above.

If you have an older or less capable intercom, then yes the rear seat headphones use the same headphone line as the front seats.

Try to find the wiring diagram for your specific intercom.  Shouldn’t be difficult to find on the internet.

[Baker Avionics]

On 12/1/2021 at 1:46 PM, TravelVeteran said:

does anyone know how to wire the rear passenger headphone jacks?  do i just connect two wires to the same wire going to the pilot or copilot jacks?

 

[Baker Avionics]

On 12/1/2021 at 1:46 PM, TravelVeteran said:

does anyone know how to wire the rear passenger headphone jacks?  do i just connect two wires to the same wire going to the pilot or copilot jacks?

 

Understand that the pic I just posted is for a certain type of intercom so ignore the pin numbers on the LH side.  Use the labels on the LH side to match up with what you have and you should be golden.