[MozartMan1201]

I was looking to get my K812's balanced as well. I'm glad to hear you liked the changes that it make.

 
I would pay someone on the forum to mod my K812.  PM me.

 

[oneguy]

I would pay someone on the forum to mod my K812.  PM me.

You have my attention. PM sent.

 

[MozartMan1201]

So, on a lark, I bought a $300 cable from Moon Audio on a 30-day trial basis.  As a discriminating classical music audiophile I had high hopes for the new cable.  The specs for the cable are as follows: Cable Type, Silver Dragon; Cable Length 5 ft; Connection, 3.5mm Straight Rhodium Oyaide Mini Plug.  
 
After extensive A-B tests over a period of two weeks listening to lossless tracks, SACDs, Blu-ray DVD-Audio, etc., I am ready to send the cable back.  The problem?  It actually sounds worse (to me) than the stock cable in the sense that the soundstage appears darker, more veiled and distant.  The lower strings that were clear and palpable on the stock cable now become weak and muffled; no longer can I hear the delicate string pizzicatos or harp arpeggios clearly like a string of fine crystals.  It's an overall 'bassier' and warmer sound like the Sennheiner HD600 which I already have, but without the clarity and detail of the HD600.
 
I have no doubt Moon Audio is a reputable company and their satisfied customers benefit (suffer?) from the belief that 'you get what you pay for' and have the means to shell out big bucks for such incidental items.  For myself, I consider myself officially weaned off these so-called 'audiophile headphone cables'.    Next I might try the 'audiophile interconnects'.
 
Cheers,
MozartMan

 

[kodreaming]

Well, most ppl 's thing about cable is they don't make a difference.

If you find a cable actually makes audible difference, then probably try a different cable instead?

 

[oneguy]

So, on a lark, I bought a $300 cable from Moon Audio on a 30-day trial basis.  As a discriminating classical music audiophile I had high hopes for the new cable.  The specs for the cable are as follows: Cable Type, Silver Dragon; Cable Length 5 ft; Connection, 3.5mm Straight Rhodium Oyaide Mini Plug.  

 
After extensive A-B tests over a period of two weeks listening to lossless tracks, SACDs, Blu-ray DVD-Audio, etc., I am ready to send the cable back.  The problem?  It actually sounds worse (to me) than the stock cable in the sense that the soundstage appears darker, more veiled and distant.  The lower strings that were clear and palpable on the stock cable now become weak and muffled; no longer can I hear the delicate string pizzicatos or harp arpeggios clearly like a string of fine crystals.  It's an overall 'bassier' and warmer sound like the Sennheiner HD600 which I already have, but without the clarity and detail of the HD600.

I have no doubt Moon Audio is a reputable company and their satisfied customers benefit (suffer?) from the belief that 'you get what you pay for' and have the means to shell out big bucks for such incidental items.  For myself, I consider myself officially weaned off these so-called 'audiophile headphone cables'.    Next I might try the 'audiophile interconnects'.

Cheers,
MozartMan

My first foray into aftermarket cables went the same way although with a different conclusion. I bought a ZY cable for my HD800. I didn't want to pay a lot and it was through massdrop so it fit the bill. Well it killed the soundstage. I mean absolutely murdered one off the widest soundstages of any headphone.

Here's my different conclusion though: if a cable can make a headphone sound terrible then the opposite must be true. Unless the headphone manufacturer shipped the headphone with THE absolute perfect cable pairing the there exists one, and more than likely many cables out there that can improve the sound. That was my revelation that cables do make a difference.

 

[thomson]

My first foray into aftermarket cables went the same way although with a different conclusion. I bought a ZY cable for my HD800. I didn't want to pay a lot and it was through massdrop so it fit the bill. Well it killed the soundstage. I mean absolutely murdered one off the widest soundstages of any headphone.

Here's my different conclusion though: if a cable can make a headphone sound terrible then the opposite must be true. Unless the headphone manufacturer shipped the headphone with THE absolute perfect cable pairing the there exists one, and more than likely many cables out there that can improve the sound. That was my revelation that cables do make a difference.

I'm sorry but your conclusion is flawed. A cable is a passive device and it should transfer the signal undistorted so if it changes the sound, it must by definition be to the worse, it can never make it better.
Compare with a window, the perfect window is a window so clear that you don't know if it's open or not.

 

[oneguy]

I'm sorry but your conclusion is flawed. A cable is a passive device and it should transfer the signal undistorted so if it changes the sound, it must by definition be to the worse, it can never make it better.
Compare with a window, the perfect window is a window so clear that you don't know if it's open or not.

What I said was that my conclusions was true only if the stock cable is not a "perfect window." (See the line about "THE absolute perfect cable") In most instances you can make a strong case that the original equipment manufacturer had to make concessions when designing a cable that were due to marketing, profit, and price constraints (all intertwined). Every design process is like that but aftermarket often have a little more money to play with when choosing materials since they charge more.

 

[oneguy]

Duplicate post

 

[trappedintime]

Well, most ppl 's thing about cable is they don't make a difference.

If you find a cable actually makes audible difference, then probably try a different cable instead?

That's why  you should balance your K812's and then the cable upgrade makes a big difference

 

[MozartMan1201]

Yes I believe not all cables are created equal, but I also believe AKG paired the K812 with the best cable possible, even though it does appear thin and flimsy and in need of 'upgrade' according to some people.  Granted, the $300 Moon Audio cable I bought was their lower end product, but I am not about to spend 2x or 3x that on a higher-end cable that sounds as good as my stock cable..that would be crazy.
 
Cheers,
MozartMan

 

[oneguy]

That would be crazy. My personal limit is 1/3-1/2 of the value I bought the headphone for is what I'll spend on cables.

 

[trappedintime]

  Yes I believe not all cables are created equal, but I also believe AKG paired the K812 with the best cable possible, even though it does appear thin and flimsy and in need of 'upgrade' according to some people.  Granted, the $300 Moon Audio cable I bought was their lower end product, but I am not about to spend 2x or 3x that on a higher-end cable that sounds as good as my stock cable..that would be crazy.
 
Cheers,
MozartMan

I got the balanced mod and cable for $250 from BTG Audio. The improvement in SQ was worth way more than a single ended cable could do. This mod actually addresses a few of the inherent issues with the design of the K812. Mid-treble improves, there's extra bass clarity, deeper soundstage, and the high-end roll off is near perfect IMO. With both the Liquid Carbon and Ragnarok they sound as good as any dynamic headphone on the market, HD800 included.

 

[oneguy]

I got the balanced mod and cable for $250 from BTG Audio. The improvement in SQ was worth way more than a single ended cable could do. This mod actually addresses a few of the inherent issues with the design of the K812. Mid-treble improves, there's extra bass clarity, deeper soundstage, and the high-end roll off is near perfect IMO. With both the Liquid Carbon and Ragnarok they sound as good as any dynamic headphone on the market, HD800 included.

Did you go with the midnight cable or another one?

 

[trappedintime]

Did you go with the midnight cable or another one?

Yup. Brian actually made me two midnight cables, one SE and the other XLR 4-pin. You can't go wrong with any of his cables, but I really like the midnight cables. His work is high quality and the value proposition is a lot higher than a lot of what's on the market IMO.

 

[oneguy]

Yup. Brian actually made me two midnight cables, one SE and the other XLR 4-pin. You can't go wrong with any of his cables, but I really like the midnight cables. His work is high quality and the value proposition is a lot higher than a lot of what's on the market IMO.

Nice! I got a qoute from him about getting the mod done with and XLR and SE midnight cable. I think prices have gone up but it's still within budget. I would have pulled the trigger by now but I just bought a Mojo.