Despite all the recently closed threads related to discussions on cables, I thought this comments I posted in another thread deserved their own cable comparison related thread.
Built a DIY aftermarket cable for my HD650's (see this and this) which actually has one third of the electrical resistance of the Zu Mobius (0.2 vs. 0.6 Ohms).
Made a quick audition comparing it with the Zu, and my sister also participated in this comparison. So here are the comments.
My sister claims to be no audiophile at all, and claims to have a very poor ear. I gave her the HD650s with the new cable first, played ticks & leeches by Tool, a song she likes. Then played the same song but the headphones connected with the Zu. In her words, the Zu has the sound more "hidden" or dark, but sounds "cleaner". Whatever that means to her. So I asked her in any case you do perceive a difference with one cable vs. the other and she says definitely yes. She prefers the Zu.
Now from my own ears, apparently the Zu has clearer top-end and better lowest bass definition, so better extension overall. Now, when I say extension, not sure if it's actually signal amplitude at the extremes, maybe it's just more accuracy at the extremes.
From Perfect Circle's Thirteen Step CD, track #11, "Lullaby" ("Go back to sleep" lyrics), which has a very deep recurrent low bass, sounds better defined with the Zu. However, playing Dire Straits' "So far away from me", the guitar and bass lines sound more prominent and clearer, more resonant even, with the new cable; yet the high frequencies of the tambourine shimmer sounds cleaner and clearer on the Zu.
If frequency responses could be measured on cables, what I'm hearing could be correlated to the Zu showing a mildly concave or flatter response, both extremes probably even mildly higher than the midrange, while the new cable might have the response mildly convex, slightly more prominent midrange, and not as prominent at the extremes. If it's not actually amplitude response, so let's say both are actually equally flat, then there would seem to be a difference in accuracy on the frecuencies at the extremes. Slightly missing or not as great "resolution" (in other words, more distortion levels maybe) on the new cable at the extremes. Yet at the mids, the sound to me has something apparently better on the new cable compared to the Zu.
Definitely there should be freq. response measurements on cables, as well as resistance, capacitance, and inductance standard measurements to compare their physical specs. And I think that should be measured including everything in the cable, not just wires but also plugs and connectors as well. Actually, some measurement of distortions/attenuations at different frequencies introduced by a particular length of a particular cable (again with plugs and connectors) could also be useful.
Please feel free to share any comments on comparisons between the Zu and/or other cables that you might have experienced. Or any thoughts on cable comparisons as well, but let's keep it civilized please.
Built a DIY aftermarket cable for my HD650's (see this and this) which actually has one third of the electrical resistance of the Zu Mobius (0.2 vs. 0.6 Ohms).
Made a quick audition comparing it with the Zu, and my sister also participated in this comparison. So here are the comments.
My sister claims to be no audiophile at all, and claims to have a very poor ear. I gave her the HD650s with the new cable first, played ticks & leeches by Tool, a song she likes. Then played the same song but the headphones connected with the Zu. In her words, the Zu has the sound more "hidden" or dark, but sounds "cleaner". Whatever that means to her. So I asked her in any case you do perceive a difference with one cable vs. the other and she says definitely yes. She prefers the Zu.
Now from my own ears, apparently the Zu has clearer top-end and better lowest bass definition, so better extension overall. Now, when I say extension, not sure if it's actually signal amplitude at the extremes, maybe it's just more accuracy at the extremes.
From Perfect Circle's Thirteen Step CD, track #11, "Lullaby" ("Go back to sleep" lyrics), which has a very deep recurrent low bass, sounds better defined with the Zu. However, playing Dire Straits' "So far away from me", the guitar and bass lines sound more prominent and clearer, more resonant even, with the new cable; yet the high frequencies of the tambourine shimmer sounds cleaner and clearer on the Zu.
If frequency responses could be measured on cables, what I'm hearing could be correlated to the Zu showing a mildly concave or flatter response, both extremes probably even mildly higher than the midrange, while the new cable might have the response mildly convex, slightly more prominent midrange, and not as prominent at the extremes. If it's not actually amplitude response, so let's say both are actually equally flat, then there would seem to be a difference in accuracy on the frecuencies at the extremes. Slightly missing or not as great "resolution" (in other words, more distortion levels maybe) on the new cable at the extremes. Yet at the mids, the sound to me has something apparently better on the new cable compared to the Zu.
Definitely there should be freq. response measurements on cables, as well as resistance, capacitance, and inductance standard measurements to compare their physical specs. And I think that should be measured including everything in the cable, not just wires but also plugs and connectors as well. Actually, some measurement of distortions/attenuations at different frequencies introduced by a particular length of a particular cable (again with plugs and connectors) could also be useful.
Please feel free to share any comments on comparisons between the Zu and/or other cables that you might have experienced. Or any thoughts on cable comparisons as well, but let's keep it civilized please.
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