Cleaning soultion for hardware?

Question

My headphone jack in my computer is somewhat malfunctioning, I've tried it with 2 different headphones, and when the jack is ALL the way in, I can only hear off of one channel, but if I put the jack about 3/4 of the way in, I can hear both channels of my head phones. I know both sets of work because I've tried them in other devices, so I want to try cleaning the hole in case its full of dirt...

Are there any cleaning solutions that you can recommend?

Answer 1

if you're going to clean anything electrical make sure there is no power to the device. Next use %99 isopropyl alcohol, found at any pharmacy, or pharmacy section in a dept store. Get the highest % you can find. Take a lint free cloth and put the alcohol on there and clean it with that. Let the alcohol dry before turning on any power, if it's a tight confined space be on the cautious side and let it sit for a day.
After this is should be cleaned. I've used this technique to clean lots of connections from usb ports, to processors, to video cards and their connections.

Answer 2

I would try modifying the base of the jack, so when I stick it in, I can hear it fully. Maybe get creative with some electrical tape.

Answer 3

try using some alcohol on a Cotton swap or a cue tip of some sort, you may have to thin the cue tip down some but always use alcohol never use water.

Answer 4

Buy a can of air and spray the jack with air

Answer 5

If your computer is not working properly while you are working on it, it could be a problem with device drivers, hardware or software.
Detailed instructions at http://tinyurl.com/yk5zpr

Answer 6

I had this problem with my laptop. Cleaning it did not help for me. I ended up buying this:

http://www.turtlebeach.com/site/products/audioadv/micro/

It is a USB sound card and works great for me.