[LFC_SL]

Please specify what you require in an aftermarket cable.

If for sound quality - whether or not you believe cables have an effect - then cables should be very last upgrade after rest of chain

Ergonomics, durability, you need a specific plug or length then that is another discussion

 

[Jazic]

  Just a question here, is it worth spending US200-400 for 846 cable?

 
As with all audiophile upgrades go (imo) in order of most change in sound quality it goes:
Headphones > Amp > DAC > Source > Cables
 
If youre happy with the rest of your setup and/or comfort is in question I'd go with a cheaper option. If the cash is burning a hole in your pocket and you're just looking for someone to back you up I'd say go for it. The stock cables with the memory wire removed are great good quality cables but there are definitely better sounding cables. As I said before I can hear a difference in the stock cables and the $30 FiiO cables and I much prefer them than the Shure's. 
 
TLDR: If I had $200 to spend I'd get it.
 
*This is my opinion. I don't have $200 cables nor a super expensive setup. 

 

[koiloco]

  Just a question here, is it worth spending US200-400 for 846 cable?

If you could truly hear the difference, then yes.  Don't buy it and psychologically believe that SQ is magically better.  Be honest to yourself.  Try a blind test.

 

[Jensenchua]

   
If spook76, M Coupe, or any others who have the Headphone Lounge Silver Litz cables reads your question, I'm sure they would unequivocally respond with: yes!
 
I will let you know on this thread once I receive my Silver Litz.  I'm pretty sure I'll be saying "yes" as well! *crosses fingers*

 
 

Please specify what you require in an aftermarket cable.

If for sound quality - whether or not you believe cables have an effect - then cables should be very last upgrade after rest of chain

Ergonomics, durability, you need a specific plug or length then that is another discussion

 
 

   
As with all audiophile upgrades go (imo) in order of most change in sound quality it goes:
Headphones > Amp > DAC > Source > Cables
 
If youre happy with the rest of your setup and/or comfort is in question I'd go with a cheaper option. If the cash is burning a hole in your pocket and you're just looking for someone to back you up I'd say go for it. The stock cables with the memory wire removed are great good quality cables but there are definitely better sounding cables. As I said before I can hear a difference in the stock cables and the $30 FiiO cables and I much prefer them than the Shure's. 
 
TLDR: If I had $200 to spend I'd get it.
 
*This is my opinion. I don't have $200 cables nor a super expensive setup. 

Thanks very much guys for all of your super wonderful & professional advices, just that is very confuse some of ppl out there giving positive & negative about expensive cable views

 

[Jazic]

 
Thanks very much guys for all of your super wonderful & professional advices, just that is very confuse some of ppl out there giving positive & negative about expensive cable views

 
If you're itching for a new cable try the FiiO. I can hear a difference on the higher end around 10-16khz range. It sounds crisper and less congested imo. 
 
At the very least if you don't like them you're only out $30 with the option of returning them. 
 
And again, this is my opinion so take it with a grain of salt.

 

[koiloco]

   
If you're itching for a new cable try the FiiO. I can hear a difference on the higher end around 10-16khz range. It sounds crisper and less congested imo. 
 
At the very least if you don't like them you're only out $30 with the option of returning them. 
 
And again, this is my opinion so take it with a grain of salt.

+1
Great affordable option to personally verify the cable debate for yourself.

 

[Jazic]

I do tend to bump the 16khz by about 3-4db to bring out the crispness. Luckily I can still hear those frequencies. Doing a few A/B tests between those and the stock Shure cables I can hear a difference. It really stands out with cymbals and the like. This was with some metal that didn't have much dynamic range so it would stand out more that I noticed it most. The rest of the range seemed to be more clear. It's not going to drop your jaw like the difference between the SE215's and SE846's but it is there. Plus the added comfort of having a more flexible cable is worth it for me. I may grab a few more cables so I have spares for the next few years. I'm not rough on my gear but if a cable snags on something, which it will do regardless of how had I try to prevent it and it breaks I wont have to bury it in the backyard with a tombstone. 

 

[moedawg140]

 
+1
Great affordable option to personally verify the cable debate for yourself.

 
I did not know if there were cable differences as well, as I have read the sometimes heated debates on cable sound signatures and such, and after A/Bing the stock cable with the Estron Linum MMCX BaX cable, I can say with 100% certainty that there is difference between cables and different sound signatures.  

 

[LFC_SL]

If you're itching for a new cable try the FiiO. I can hear a difference on the higher end around 10-16khz range. It sounds crisper and less congested imo. 

At the very least if you don't like them you're only out $30 with the option of returning them. 

And again, this is my opinion so take it with a grain of salt.

I buy cable for build / ergonomics. If there is sq diff then that did not influence buying decision. Accordingly I pay only what I perceive as reasonable price. Everyone's disposable income and perception of value is individual.

I have HD650 cable on my HD600 and have few things from forza audioworks (please see earlier post re hybrid cable)

 

[Audiowood]

  Just a question here, is it worth spending US200-400 for 846 cable?

This is very subjective depending how deep you are in this hobby. If you are new and just starting out this journey, I would advise you to stay away from cables until you have the skills and experience of what you like in a sound. Most people who starts out this hobby can't tell the differences let alone determining if they improve in what area.
 
For $400, you can have a brand new DX90 DAP with double ESS Sabre32 ES9018K2M DAC chip per channel and that difference would be way more than cable improvement. Cables improvement are the very last refinement to squeeze out the last bit of potential and are for very experience audiophile who already knows exactly what is needed. 

 

[Jensenchua]

Thanks again guys is been really helpful for all the advices, is true that with $400 you can even buy a brand new different sound signature headphone. I think I will try the cheaper cable first till I become some sort of audiophile guru

. This is the differences between headfi & China forums, when I throw the same question into the China forums straight away most people will advice me to go for expensive cables, cheap cable like fiio is a junk, get the more expensive like silver coating or pure silver cable. 

 

[Jazic]

 

 
There are just too many options to opt for the end game right off the bat when it comes to cables. You could even consider some of the Westone EPIC cables. If I'm not mistaken I think they work as well. Someone correct me if I'm wrong. I did like the Westone cables when I had them for a short while. 
 
One note with the FiiO cables is they are kind of noisy when it comes to picking up movement from being touched. I find wearing it inside your shirt and/or tightening up the splitter helps a bit. 
 
I'm tempted to wrap it in a hallowed out paracord and see how it looks. I have a bunch of different color 550 and 350 cord. That should make it tougher, quiter, and sexier.

 

[francopro]

Any chance to find the SE846 for less than 999 USD?

Try price japan website or any other japanese shop , they usually sell cheaper ! however , if you wait for the next flagship release from Shure , you might catch a SE846 at a better deal

 

[moedawg140]

Any chance to find the SE846 for less than 999 USD?

 
Quote:

 
Try price japan website or any other japanese shop , they usually sell cheaper ! however , if you wait for the next flagship release from Shure , you might catch a SE846 at a better deal

 
Price Japan is currently selling the SE846 at $946.  mrhizzo, doing a quick search on fleabay shows new for $829, and used for as low as $729.99 OBO.  Make sure you can get the warranty with whichever vendor/seller you go with.  I got mine from fleabay, and loving the 'savings' as a result.

 

[Audiowood]

 

 
be careful of those kind of advised.. on many occasion, I have seen many hardcore audiophile forums user who owns tons of high end equipment advising a newbie on cable choice (who never owns any cable before). Its a bad move IMO. they will advise you to plunge a lot of your hard earn $$ into something that you may not have the experience yet to fully appreciate. It takes time.. so take your time.
 
Let me give a real life example here, there is someone at the chord thread who seems disappointed about LCD 2 not having enough bass and is surprise that everyone mention great bass on these headphones. He then mention that LCD2 to sort of a $10 phone. This is an example of someone just started in this hobby and jumping to a $1000 phone in a very short time and was totally disappointed to have wasted $1000.