[Gopher]

Hey all,

I'm considering letting KurtW Blue mod my recently acquired Corda HA-1. There is however one problem. My primary phones are HD600s, and I am seriously considering aftermarket cables, and the Headamp only supports 1/8 plugs. Basically I'm wondering if theres any solution other then the addition of a 1/4 inch pot to the back of the HA-1, or a Grado adapter. On general princple alone I do not want to use a cable adapter with aftermarket cable.

Anyone with this same problem? Might I be better off exploring other amps if I plan on aftermarket cables?

Fred

 

[Jeff Guidry]

In my experience with my Clou Blue cable, the use of an adapter is less than ideal. The weight of the Clou Blue cable is such that using an 1/8" adapter puts lots of stress on the jack, and I am afraid that over time it will cause the contacts to bend out of place and cause an intermittent connection on my META42 amp.

I am not aware if the Stefan or Cardas cables terminate with a 1/4" or 1/8". You may not have this potential problem with them.

 

[Gopher]

That is something to think about, though I'd obviously be more concerned with the aftermarket cable and pot then the actual adapter.

It is my understanding that all the aftermarket cables come terminated as 1/4inch, though I would be a happy man if someone proved me wrong.

I wish I weren't so impulsive, my brand new rigs barely even burned in yet and I'm looking to upgraded

 

[chewmanji]

i'm pretty sure you can get the Equinox terminated in a 1/8" plug. as for the Cardas, i'm not sure. as for the Grado 1/4" - 1/8" adaptor, i don't have experience with it, but pictures of it seem to indicate that there is a very short length of cable between the female 1/4" and the male 1/8". don't quote me on this tho...

chewmanji.

 

[darkclouds]

chewmanji is right. Using the grado adaptor may be what you're looking for. I'm also pretty certain that the equinox can be had with the 1/8" plug.

 

[Gopher]

Im aware the grado cable is out there, but it just seems kinda wrong using a cable adapter with an upgrade cable that costs me almost what the HD600s did.

On the other hand though, I did not know the eqinox terminated in a mini, that is something I definatly will be looking into.

 

[Kubernetes]

The Grado adapter would work well for you. There is a short length of cable between the plugs, which alleviates any direct pressure on the 1/8" miniplug. I know that audiocubes sells an AT adapter, but they don't have any pictures of it, so I have no idea if it's a direct adapter or if there is intervening cable like the Grado.

As for the Grado adapter degrading sound quality, I doubt it. I'm not sure if anyone has ever asked this question, but I would doubt that Grado uses an inferior quality cable in its adaper.

 

[markjia]

I'm not so sure if buying the Equinox with a mini connector is that great an idea. The Corda is pretty much the only headphone amp that uses mini jacks. So if you ever do upgrade in the future, you will be forced to get an adapter, or waste this cable. Given that the Corda is only a mid end amp, I don't think that using an adapter would really do much harm. On the other hand, adapters would make a large difference on higher end amps.

 

[Gopher]

Hmm.. that is interesting. I never really thought to worry about that, but I just generally had the impression that very little if any quality was lost in going from 1/8 -> 1/4 being almost every headphone I've had (K501, HD600, Portapros), comes terminated in 1/8 and comes with it's own adapter.

 

[markjia]

Yes, it is true that little quality is lost in an adapter. It's largely for that reason that I would get an adapter to use with the Corda HA-1 for now. When/if you upgrade in the future, just don't use the adapter.

Actually, I would personally hold off on getting a cable upgrade at this time. I think the money for a replacement cable would be better saved to get a better amp (either now, or later). I don't think you will see much improvement with the Corda HA-1 with a cable upgrade versus without.