DeoxIT is manfuctured by "Caig" but is often sold under the name of one their distrubutors "Hosa". Whether the product you buy says "Caig DeoxIT" or "Hosa DeoxIT" - it is the same product. "DeoxIT" is a registered tradename and that is what you are looking for. Hopefully that information eliminates some initial confusion.
As an electrical engineer I've used DeoxIT for over 30 years. In fact - it is the only contact cleaner, lubricant, and contact enhancer I trust. From Boeing, Bose, General Electric, Hewlett Pack, etc, etc this product is the gold standard and widely used in manufacturing and within professional circles.
Prior to the internet and companies like Amazon this product was unknown and unavailable outside a few professional circles.
Having said that any consumer should be aware that every DeoxIT product is superior, virtually guaranteed to do NO harm and even if you don't use the optimum formulation of DeoxIT it will still improve a poor connection and protect a new one.
DeoxIT is sold in 4 broad categories.
D series - first and foremost a heavy duty contact cleaner combined with contact enhancer/protection - this is Caig/Hosa's most universal product
S series (aka Shield S series) - for outdoor envirnments particularily benefical in salt or other harsh environments. If the connections are not new - cleaning with a D series is required (per the Caig website)
G Series (aka Gold series) - designed for gold and base metals. It offers minor cleaning properties. For gold contacts it offers near perfect protection and will slightly enhance electrical connections for gold, etc. However its cleaning properties are minimal and since gold does NOT oxidize and usually offers a near perfect connection to begin with this product has limited uses. I'd recommend it for very low voltage circuit boards with gold connectors that experience problems.
F Series (aka Fader F series) - designed for "faders" aka "volume controls" aka "pots" (potentiometers) or other rotorary controls. This is a cleaner/enhancer for volume controls or other rotary controls used on a vast number of products (radios, musical amps, etc, etc, etc) that use carbon based (extremely common) or conductive plastic controls
In the end, I hope this description helps you pick the best formula for your needs but the bottom line is the entire family of Caig/Hosa contact cleaners/enhancers are all first class and even if you pick a less than perfect formulation it will do no harm and will likely still fix your problem. The most universal product, as previously noted, is the D series cleaner/restorer.
You can also call Caig at 800-CAIG-123 for advice
The Samsung Galaxy S3 cellphone is infamous for having bad contacts between the motherboard and the GPS antenna, which causes the GPS to fail. Fixing it yourself involves tightening the screws between the motherboard and antenna every few weeks to regain contact, which I've done frequently - but this seems to loose effectiveness after 6 months, and tightening the screws has no further benefit. My phone had reached the point where, in order to get GPS location, I would have to rap the back of the phone repeatedly with my knuckles while watching a GPS status app until finally the satellites would be recognized. Over the past two years I've exchanged my S3 three times when the GPS finally stopped working permanently, and I was on the verge of exchanging again (under insurance). However, this time, I decided to try DeoxITGold on the connectors first.
After I received the bottle and read the directions, I realized this "Gold" product is to be used on connectors that are already clean and free of oxidation. The instructions on the "Gold" package recommend pre-cleaning with DeoxIT "D" first, which would make the total cost pretty substantial. However, I went ahead and used the DeoxIT Gold on my cell phone antenna contacts without pre-cleaning the contacts.
Before application of DeoxIT G, I tested the acquisition time for GPS lock to be about 5 minutes. That has been fairly common for the last month, except for the many times it completely failed to acquire a GPS lock (without physical abuse).
After treatment of the GPS antenna contacts with DeoxIT Gold, I was able to acquire a lock in 4 seconds - which I've never seen before.
I also treated the other antenna connectors, but I have seen no improvement in voice or data connectivity.
The antenna connectors are not gold on both sides - they are gold springs on the mother board and a grayish metal on the antenna side. Not sure if DeoxIT Gold was the correct solution to use when the connector has dissimilar metals on each side.
In hindsight, I wish I had bought a much smaller quantity of the product. The "Squeeze Tube Samples Kit" would have been a lot cheaper, would have provided the "D" cleaner as well as the "G" enhancer, and would have been a quantity more than sufficient for my purposes.
It's been a week since I treated the GPS antenna connectors in my cellphone, and it's still working. I'll update my review in a few months to confirm the long range effects.
I've been using the spray variant of ProGold/Deoxit Gold for almost 20 years, and this product is even better. It lasts longer and allows for more efficient application of the product on the connectors, etc. The product does not seem to evaporate any where near as fast as the spray, and the brush applicator is indispensable. I do recommend that one cleans contacts every 6 months to a year with alcohol and a brush/Signet connector cleaner.
If you have a system that is of high quality (ie: where you can differences in component or cable brands), this product is proven and very worthy of the high-ish price it demands. Put simply, it just allows for a much more effective electrical connection than connectors alone.
The product does work on video applications as well, and while it is a noticeable improvement, the degree of improvement is nowhere near as obvious as its use in audio, in my opinion.
I have to admit, this stuff is expensive (That's why they call it Gold.) But it is worth every cent to clean and preserve electronic connections. I first used it on a mobility scooter that had been left out in the rain. The connections were corroded and the unit would not work. After putting DeoxIT Gold on all the connections, the scooter worked fine. I have since "repaired" electrical problems on two other scooters saving much money not having to replace controllers and potentiometers which is the normal repair method. DeoxIT Gold preserves the contacts from further corrosion. Works great on battery terminals from every thing from a car battery to a cell phone. Try it on the batteries in a flash light. You will not believe how much brighter the light will be. I also use it on AV connections and computer PCI and memory slots. Especially formulated to work on gold plated connections. Also try Deoxit Contact Cleaner Spray. I will always keep my electronics bench stocked with both.
Simply the best contact enhancer I've ever tried. I live near the ocean where static due to corroded connections for guitars, stereo sets, PA amplifiers, synthesizers, and everything else electronic is a way of life. A one-two treatment works better than anything else I've tried, and I've tried a lot. (1) If dirty, clean with DeoxIt Red D110L - if already clean skip this step and (2) put a light coat of this product, DoxIT Gold G100L on the surfaces to enhance the connection and retard future oxidation.
Feature Product
- Improves Conductivity
- Maintains Optimum Signal Quality
- Protects Base Metals from Oxidation
- Prevents Dendrite and Fretting Corrosion
- Forms Protective Anti-Tarnishing LayerReduces Arcing, RFI and Intermittent ConnectionsReduces Wear and Abrasion
Description
This product improves conductivity & provides protection on gold, base metals. It is recommended for critical applications where only slight cleaning action is necessary. It is also durable and convenient to use. It is definitely a great quality product.
An ultra-thin coat of this after using their D100L as a cleaner showed consistently a 5-9% decrease in voltage drop across a few gold-plated and brass terminals of various ages that I tested. If you have a contact that needs every last bit of current carrying capacity and/or minimal loss, this can help.
DeoxIT products should be in every electronics tech's kit. They solve noise and connection problems everywhere. Put a drop on a charging or syncing connector for a phone or tablet, a light coating on a memory card, on coin batteries. They will have better connection, eliminating data loss or early failure. 90% of electrical/electronic problems are at connections, and DeoxIT keeps them clean. I've been using their products for over 30 years.
I've used about 6 audio contact enhancers over the past 25 years and I think this is the best of all. You just brush a light coating on the connectors and the sound opens up, providing greater detail and openness. It may seem high-priced but will last for years if you don't spill it (spoken from experience :-).
If you upgrade your RCA cables and they are extremely hard to slide, use DeoxITGold on both the RCA plugs and receptacles. Once DeoxITGold is applied the RCA plugs slide on to the RCA receptacles with minimal effort.
I used this on speaker connections and on a whim put on one end of HDMI cable. Picture actually got better. I was shocked and impressed.
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