Eli5: What are those big bulky things around my xbox controller cable?

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Hello, my xbox cable broke lately. I was wondering what those black blobs do, are they like the transformer on a laptop charging cable? And now that I need a new one, do I need a similar cable? Or does a regular usb micro a cable work, like the detachable one on phone chargers? Also, I would attach a picture but apparently you can’t do that in here😆 Thanks in advance!

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Anonymous 0 Comments

Hi,

The black blobs on cables like your Xbox cable are likely ferrite beads or ferrite chokes. If so, they aren’t transformers, but they serve a different important purpose. Ferrite beads help to reduce electromagnetic interference (EMI) and radio frequency interference (RFI) along the cable. This helps in keeping the signal clear and preventing electronic noise that might affect the performance of your device. With that said, a regular cable should be fine to use but note that it could cause interference issues if you’re charging it whilst in-use (but probably unlikely).