Chosen Solution
Hello, I have recently received an audio recorder and am having trouble trying to get it to pickup audio through it’s 1/4” jack input. I found that pushing the cord of the audio source into a particular position made audio be received, so I inspected further and I found the problem being a loose solder connection from the input jack to the board.
I am attempting to re-solder this joint but am also nervous about the ‘green paint’ that seems to come off with the loose solder as seen in the picture (leftmost pin), and how I should approach re-tightening and re-soldering the connection. Also wondering as to whether solder wick vs solder pump should be used for a board of this size. I am new to soldering so I appreciate any help you can offer, thank you.
That green you are seeing looks like the eyelet has peeled up. You will need to replace that eyelet to get a sturdy solder. In fact, you might burn up the peeled part because it will not be able to dissipate heat into the main PCB body. What you are not seeing is the small copper ring around the via is ripped free from the trace, you can only see the solder mask that cracked around the joint, but once you melt the solder you will find a scrap of delicate copper in it. The remaining solder mask around it will likely burn away in the process, requiring you to clean (decontaminate) the the surfaces. In the end, I doubt you will have any metal to bond to. Eyelet repair: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jg9fDm-u… If you do not want to get an eyelet repair kit, then you can solder a jumper wire from the component’s pin to another solder joint that shares the trace, then epoxy the leg in place for stability. Personally, I use a pump/sucker for the bulk of solder removal, then the wick to lightly scrub the contact points and remove more solder. When done, everything is clean and tinned.
Either one is fine I prefer the wick just put it back after you clean it put a little bit of electrical soilder on the tip of soildering gun and put it on don’t let it move for a couple seconds and that should do it
