There's a book published by Yamaha called the "Sound Reinforcement Handbook". I'd highly suggest you buy it. It has excellent pictures of the various cable types, with clear pin to pin diagrams. There's also a section with step by step photos of the cable making process. Of course, the book is packed full of other useful information a well, but the cable making section is very useful and well done. Well worth the money spent.
Needless to say, a cable tester a requirement when making cables.
When I make cables I tin the ends together first, before soldering them to the connector. So with quad cable, I tin the two similar colored ends together, then the other two similar colored ends, and I also tin the ground, which you of course have spun together tightly at that point. Then after that, I solder them to the connector.
I also use a clamp to hold the connector in place when soldering. Not those little alligator clips, but a panavise, which is very solid and holds the connector very stable. I've found this makes a big difference.
Remember that the pin outs on the XLR male and XLR female are mirror images of each other! That can really get you sometimes if you are not being alert. That's why a cable tester is essential equipment. I test every cable I make or buy before putting it into service.
As far as the order of soldering the pins, I just go by whatever seems the most easy and natural given the cable I'm holding. After a while you get better at cutting, stripping, and tinning the wires in such a way that they are set up nicely for soldering to the connectors. That takes a bit of practice though.
It's also important to have something called "braid". This is a woven metal string I guess you'd call it. It is useful for removing solder, if you make a mistake or need to remake a cable later.
The key to a good solder joint is basically that the solder flow freely and you don't have to keep re-heating it to get the wires right. The solder should look smooth and shiny when you are done. If it is crinkly and not shiny, then it's probably not such a good joint. So then you get your braid out, remove the solder and start over.
Don't forget to work in a well ventilated area. I have a little fan set up at
my workbench, and it is aimed just right to blow the fumes away before I breath them. Well, most of the fumes anyway!
Hope some of this is helpful.
