A TRS connector (tip, ring, sleeve) is a common family of connector typically used for analog signals including audio. It is cylindrical in shape, typically with three contacts, although sometimes with two (a TS connector) or four (a TRRS connector). It is also called an audio jack, phone jack, phone plug, and jack plug. Specific models are known as stereo plug, mini-jack, mini-stereo, headphone jack, tiny telephone connector and Bantam plug.
The TRS connector was invented for use in telephone switchboards in the 20th century and is still widely used, both in its original 1⁄4 in (exactly 6.35 mm) size and in miniaturized versions: 3.5 mm (approx. 1⁄8 in) and 2.5 mm (approx. 3⁄32 in). The connector's name is an initialism derived from the names of three conducting parts of the plug: Tip, Ring, and Sleeve[1] – hence, TRS.
In the UK, the terms jack plug and jack socket are commonly used for the respectively male and female TRS connectors.[2]
In the US, a stationary (more fixed) connector is called a jack.[3][4] The terms phone plug and phone jack are sometimes used to refer to TRS connectors,[5] but are also sometimes used colloquially to refer to RJ11 and older telephone plugs and the corresponding jacks that connect wired telephones to wall outlets (the similar terms phono plug and phono jack refer to RCA connectors though both plug types are used in tandem when a computer or MP3 player connects to a stereo). In conversation, the diameter is often added to specify which size: quarter-inch phone plug or 3.5 mm phone jack for the unbalanced two-channel three-contact version, and balanced TRS jack or TRS phone plug for the balanced one-channel three-contact version.
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Modern TS and TRS connectors are available in three standard sizes. The original 1⁄4 in (6.35 mm) version dates from 1878, for use in manual telephone exchanges—making it possibly the oldest electrical connector standard still in use. The 3.5 mm or miniature and 2.5 mm or sub-miniature sizes were originally designed as two-conductor connectors for earpieces on transistor radios. The 3.5 mm and 2.5 mm sizes are also referred to as 1⁄8 in and 3⁄32 in respectively in the United States, though those dimensions are only approximations. All three sizes are now readily available in two-conductor (unbalanced mono) and three-conductor (balanced mono or unbalanced stereo) versions.
Four- and five-conductor versions of the 3.5 mm plug are used for certain applications. A four-conductor version is often used in compact camcorders and portable media players, and sometimes also in laptop computers and smartphones, providing stereo sound plus a video signal. Proprietary interfaces using both four- and five-conductor versions exist, where the extra conductors are used to supply power for accessories. The four-conductor 3.5 mm plug is also used as a speaker-microphone connector on handheld amateur radio transceivers from Yaesu[6] and on some mobile phones.
A three- or four-conductor version of the 2.5 mm plug is widely used on cell phone handsfree headsets, providing mono (three conductor) or stereo (four conductor) sound and a microphone input. Common stereo headphones with the 2.5 mm plug are often not compatible with this type of socket. A 3.5 mm version of this plug is now commonly available on mobile telephones as well. A 3.5 mm stereo-plus-mic jack is available that is compatible with standard 3.5 mm stereo headphones, e.g. Nokia has been widely using TRRS connectors with 3.5 mm diameter since 2006. The selected pin assignment, with ground on the sleeve, is as well standardized in OMTP [7] and has been accepted as a national Chinese standard YDT 1885-2009.
TRRS plugs do not work properly with a TRS stereo jack if the ground contact in the jack connects to the microphone contact on the plug. It is therefore a good practice to implement new TRS headphone jacks using a TRRS mechanical jack and connecting ground to sleeve as well as the second ring contact. This way such jacks will provide better compatibility with different TRRS cell phone headsets.
Although relatively unknown in modern consumer electronics, the professional audio world and the telecommunication industry has used tiny telephone (TT) connectors in patch bays which are mid-size phone plugs with a 4.4 mm (0.173-inch) diameter shaft. In the telecom world, this is known as a "bantam" plug. Though unable to handle as much power and not as reliable as a 6.35 mm (0.25-inch) jack,[8] TTs have been used for professional console and outboard patchbays in studios and live sound applications, in which a single patch panel requires hundreds of patch points in a limited space. The TRS versions of TT connectors are capable of handling balanced line signals and have been employed in pro audio installations. Recently, all-in-one digital audio switching matrices and digital signal processors have reduced the need for physical patching and extensive patch bays.
The most common arrangement remains to have the male plug on the cable and the female socket mounted in a piece of equipment: the original intention of the design. A considerable variety of line plugs and panel sockets is available, including plugs suiting various cable sizes, right angle plugs, and both plugs and sockets in a variety of price ranges and with current capacities up to 15 amperes for certain heavy duty 1⁄4 in versions.[9]
Less commonly used sizes, both diameters and lengths, are also available from some manufacturers, and are used when it is desired to restrict the availability of matching connectors, such as .210 inch inside diameter jacks for fire safety communication jacks in public buildings, the same size found in vintage 16 mm projector speaker jacks.[10]
A miniature optical connector used on portable and miniaturised equipment for TOSLINK in place of the larger standard square connector is the same size as a 3.5 mm TRS socket. There are sockets that combine a mechanical 3.5 mm TRS socket with a miniature TOSLINK connection (only one can be used at at time).
In the original application in manual telephone exchanges, many different configurations of 1⁄4 in jack plug were used, some accommodating five or more conductors, with several tip profiles. Of these many varieties, only the two-conductor version with a rounded tip profile was compatible between different manufacturers, and this was the design that was at first adopted for use with microphones, electric guitars, headphones, loudspeakers, and many other items of audio equipment.
When a three-conductor version of the 1⁄4 in jack was introduced for use with stereo headphones, it was given a sharper tip profile in order to make it possible to manufacture jacks (sockets) that would accept only stereo plugs, to avoid short-circuiting the right channel amplifier. This attempt has long been abandoned, and now the normal convention is that all plugs fit all sockets of the same size, regardless of whether they are balanced mono, unbalanced mono or stereo. Most 1⁄4 in plugs, mono or stereo, now have the profile of the original stereo plug, although a few rounded mono plugs are also still produced. The profiles of stereo miniature and subminiature plugs have always been identical to the mono plugs of the same size.
The results of this physical compatibility are:
Some common uses of jack plugs and their matching sockets are:
Panel-mounting jacks are often provided with switch contacts. Most commonly, a mono jack is provided with a single normally closed (NC) contact, which is connected to the tip (live) connection when no plug is in the socket, and disconnected when a plug is inserted. Stereo sockets commonly provide two such NC contacts, one for the tip (left channel live) and one for the ring or collar (right channel live). Some designs of jack also have such a connection on the sleeve. As this contact is usually ground, it is not much use for signal switching, but could be used to indicate to electronic circuitry that the socket was in use.
Less commonly, some jacks are provided with normally open (NO) or change-over contacts, and/or the switch contacts may be isolated from the connector.
The original purpose of these contacts was for switching in telephone exchanges, for which there were many patterns. Two sets of change-over contacts, isolated from the connector contacts, were common. The more recent pattern of one NC contact for each signal path, internally attached to the connector contact, stems from their use as headphone jacks. In many amplifiers and equipment containing them, such as electronic organs, a headphone jack is provided that disconnects the loudspeakers when in use. This is done by means of these switch contacts. In other equipment, a dummy load is provided when the headphones are not connected. This is also easily provided by means of these NC contacts.
Other uses for these contacts have been found. One is to interrupt a signal path to enable other circuitry to be inserted. This is done by using one NC contact of a stereo jack to connect the tip and ring together when no plug is inserted. The tip is then made the output, and the ring the input (or vice versa), thus forming a patch point.
Another use is to provide alternative mono or stereo output facilities on some guitars and electronic organs. This is achieved by using two mono jacks, one for left channel and one for right, and wiring the NC contact on the right channel jack to the tip of the other, to connect the two connector tips together when the right channel output is not in use. This then mixes the signals so that the left channel jack doubles as a mono output.
Where a 3.5 mm or 2.5 mm jack is used as a DC power inlet connector, a switch contact may be used to disconnect an internal battery whenever an external power supply is connected, to prevent incorrect recharging of the battery.
A standard stereo jack is used on most battery-powered guitar effects pedals to eliminate the need for a separate power switch. In this configuration, the internal battery has its negative terminal wired to the sleeve contact of the jack. When the user plugs in a two-conductor (mono) guitar or microphone lead, the resulting short-circuit between sleeve and ring connects an internal battery to the unit's circuitry, ensuring that it powers up or down automatically whenever a signal lead is inserted or removed. A drawback of this design is the risk of inadvertently discharging the battery if the lead is not removed after use, such as if the equipment is left plugged in overnight.
In twisted pair wiring to this day, the non-inverting and/or "live" (or "hot") wire of each pair is known as the ring, while the inverting and/or "earthy" (or "neutral") wire is known as the tip, inherited from the traditional connection via the TRS connector in telephone systems. If the pair is shielded, or if the pair is accompanied by a dedicated earth wire, this third conductor is known as the sleeve. This usage corresponds to the connection to a three-connector jack plug in a manual telephone exchange.
The term tip ring sleeve is more common in some English-speaking countries than others. Outside of the USA the term stereo jack plug is probably more common, even for connectors not used for stereo. The modern profile three-conductor jack plug was originally designed for stereo signal connections, with left channel on the tip, right on the ring and common return on the body or sleeve. The term TRS is particularly appropriate to distinguish these three-conductor (stereo) plugs used in other than stereo applications.
| Unbalanced mono in/out | Unbalanced mono insert | Balanced mono in/out | Unbalanced stereo | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tip | Signal | Send or Return signal | Positive/"Hot" | Left channel |
| Ring | Ground or No Connection | Return or Send signal | Negative/"Cold" | Right channel |
| Sleeve | Ground | Ground | Ground | Ground |
When a TRS is used to make a balanced connection, the two active conductors are both used for a monaural signal. The ring, used for the right channel in stereo systems, is used instead for the inverting input. This is a common use in small audio mixing desks, where space is a premium and they offer a more compact alternative to XLR connectors. Another advantage offered by TRS connectors used for balanced microphone inputs is that a standard unbalanced signal lead using a mono jack plug can simply be plugged into such an input. The ring (right channel) contact then makes contact with the plug body, correctly grounding the inverting input.
The disadvantage of using TRS jacks for balanced audio connections is that the ground mates last and the socket grounds the plug tip and ring when inserting or pulling out the plug. This causes bursts of hum, cracks and pops and may stress some outputs as they will be short circuited briefly, or longer if the plug is left half in. Professional audio equipment uses XLR connectors which mate the ground signal on pin 1 first.
TRS connectors are also commonly used as unbalanced audio patch points (or insert points, or simply inserts), with the output on many mixers found on the tip (left channel) and the input on the ring (right channel). This is often expressed as "tip send, ring return." Other mixers have unbalanced insert points with "ring send, tip return." One advantage of this system is that the switch contact within the panel socket, originally designed for other purposes, can be used to close the circuit when the patch point is not in use. An advantage of the "tip send" patch point is that if it is used as an output only, a 2-conductor mono jack plug correctly grounds the input. In the same fashion, use of a "tip return" insert style allows a mono jack plug to bring an unbalanced signal directly into the circuit, though in this case the output must be robust enough to withstand being grounded. Combining Send and Return functions via single 1⁄4 in TRS connectors in this way is seen in very many professional and semi-professional audio mixing desks, due to the halving of space needed for insert jack fields which would otherwise require two jacks, one for Send and one for Return. The tradeoff is that unbalanced signals are more prone to buzz, hum and outside interference.
In some TRS inserts, the concept is extended by using specially designed TRS jacks that will accept a mono jack plug partly inserted "to the first click" and will then connect the tip to the signal path without breaking it. Most standard TRS jacks can also be used in this way with varying success, but neither the switch contact nor the tip contact can be relied upon unless the internal contacts have been designed with extra strength for holding the plug tip in place. Even with stronger contacts, an accidental mechanical movement of the inserted plug can interrupt signal within the circuit. For maximum reliability, any usage involving "first click" or "half-click" positions will instead rewire the plug to short Tip and Ring together and then insert this modified plug all the way into the jack.
The TRS Tip Return, Ring Send unbalanced insert configuration is mostly found on older mixers. This allowed for the insert jack to serve as a standard-wired mono line input that would bypass the mic preamp (and likely a resistive pad, as well as other circuitry, depending on the design), and thus improve sound quality. However tip send has become the generally accepted standard for mixer inserts since the early-to-mid 1990s. The TRS Ring Send configuration is still found on some compressor sidechain input jacks such as the dbx 166XL.[16]
In some very compact equipment, 3.5 mm TRS jacks are used as patch points.
Some sound recording devices use a TRS as a mono microphone input, using the tip as the signal path and the ring to connect a standby switch on the microphone.
Personal computer sound cards from Creative Labs, Sound Blaster or compatible to these use a 3.5 mm TRS as a mono microphone input, and deliver a 5 V polarising voltage on the ring to power electret microphones from the card manufacturer. Sometimes called phantom power, this is not a suitable power source for microphones designed for true phantom power and is better called bias voltage. (Note that this is not a polarizing voltage for the condenser, as electrets by definition have an intrinsic voltage; it is power for a preamplifier FET [transistor] built into the electret microphone can.) Compatibility between different manufacturers is unreliable.
Normally, 3.5 mm 3-conductor sockets are used in computer soundcards for stereo output. Thus, for a soundcard with 5.1 output, there will be 3 sockets to accommodate 6 channels—front left & right, surround left & right, and center & subwoofer. In the 6.1 and 7.1 channel soundcards from Creative Labs, however, there are two 3.5 mm, 4-conductor sockets. This is to accommodate rear-center (6.1) or rear left & right (7.1) channels without the need for additional sockets on the sound card. The other speaker outputs on these cards have normal 3-conductor sockets. In Creative's documentation, the word "pole" is used instead of "conductor".
The Apple PlainTalk microphone jack used on some older Macintosh systems is designed to accept an extended 3.5 mm TRS; in this case, the tip carries power for a preamplifier inside the microphone. If a PlainTalk-compatible microphone is not available, the jack can accept a line-level sound input, though it cannot accept a standard microphone without a preamp.
Since they became available, Apple computers have used combined 3.5 mm TRS-TOSLINK jacks for both input and output, supporting stereo input and output with electrical connections, or 5.1 TOSLINK digital input and output.[17]
Many small video cameras, laptops, Minidisc recorders and other consumer devices use a 3.5 mm microphone connector for attaching a (mono/stereo) microphone to the system. These fall into three categories:
Plug-in power is supplied on the same line as the audio signal, using an RC filter. The DC bias voltage supplies the FET amplifier (at a low current), while the capacitor decouples the DC supply from the AC input to the recorder. Typically, V=1.5 V, R=1 kΩ, C=47 µF.
If a recorder provides plug-in power, and the microphone does not need it, everything will usually work ok, although the sound quality may be lower than expected. In the converse case (recorder provides no power; microphone requires power), no sound will be recorded. Neither misconfiguration will damage consumer hardware, but providing power when none is needed could destroy a broadcast-type microphone.
Commercial and general aviation civil airplane headset plugs are similar, but with a difference. A standard 1⁄4 in monaural plug, type PJ-055, is used for headphones, paired with special tip-ring-sleeve, 0.206 inch diameter plug, type PJ-068, for the microphone. The extra connection in the microphone plug is used by an optional push-to-talk switch.
Military aircraft and civil helicopters have another type known by the designation U-174/U. They are also known as Nexus TP120[18] telephone plugs. They are similar to a standard 1⁄4 in (6.3 mm) stereo plug, but with a 7.1 mm (0.281") diameter short shaft with an extra sleeve. This provides four connections in one plug, allowing two for the headphones, and two for the microphone, the push-to-talk switch options is not included in this plug. it is separately wired, usually on one of the hand controls of the aircraft.
These examples are meant to illustrate each possible component of such jacks, but many other configurations using these basic components are available. All examples in the above figure are oriented so the plug 'enters' from the right.
A. A simple two-conductor jack. The connection to the sleeve is the rectangle towards the right, and the connection to the tip is the line with the notch. Wiring connections are illustrated as white circles.
B. A three-conductor, or TRS, jack. The upper connector is the tip, as it is farther away from the sleeve. The sleeve is shown connected directly to the chassis, a very common configuration. This is the typical configuration for a balanced connection. Some jacks have metal mounting connections (which would make this connection) and some have plastic, to isolate the sleeve from the chassis, and provide a separate sleeve connection point, as in A.
C. This three-conductor jack has two isolated SPDT switches. They are activated by a plug going into the jack, which disconnects one throw and connects the other. The white arrowheads indicate a mechanical connection, while the black arrowheads indicate an electrical connection. This would be useful for a device that turns on when a plug is inserted, and off otherwise, with the power routed through the switches.
D. This three-conductor jack has two normally closed switches connected to the contacts themselves. This would be useful for a patch point, for instance, or for allowing another signal to feed the line until a plug is inserted. The switches open when a plug is inserted. A common use for this style of connector is a stereo headphone jack that shuts off the default output (speakers) when the connector is plugged in.
The most common circuit configurations are the simple mono and stereo jacks (A and B above), however there are a great number of variants manufactured.[19]
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