Pricing for extra length with Aeris (previous silver flagship) is $400/+0.5m. With Euphoria $200/+0.5m. Is there some major difference with the quality of silver used or what gives?
Arctic Cables Discussion Thread
- Thread starter interweb-tech
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GASPARILLA
Sponsor: Arctic Cables
The Euphoria is currently offered at special introductory pricing for a limited time. You can also upgrade the connectors at no additional cost.
I was contemplating on sleeping on it but decided to post this while the wound is still fresh. Prepare for a genuine first world problem rant, you have been warned.
Long story short I ordered a Grandis cable 3 weeks ago in 10 feet length retailing $2500. Grandis is an 11 awg cable with 50/50 silver/copper distribution.
Now I see Euphoria released with -35% discount coupon and on top of that additional extra discount for increased length. Basically you can buy 9 awg pure silver cable in respective configuration for $300 less than the Grandis that is on the way over the Atlantic at this very moment. Can't wait to pay VAT/duty that makes the difference even greater.
Arctic Cables even advertise on their website that profit margins are slim and as a long time customer I honestly didn't see this coming. Perhaps they need a quick surge of cash with this promotion, but in my opinion it is not a smart move to devalue your own products like this. The effect is not contained within Euphoria model alone but also for everyone already owning an Arctic Cable product.
I have nothing but good experiences with the company in the past. They have replaced connectors for free as promised even on cables I have bought second hand. This time however eager anticipation turned to bitter ashes.
Long story short I ordered a Grandis cable 3 weeks ago in 10 feet length retailing $2500. Grandis is an 11 awg cable with 50/50 silver/copper distribution.
Now I see Euphoria released with -35% discount coupon and on top of that additional extra discount for increased length. Basically you can buy 9 awg pure silver cable in respective configuration for $300 less than the Grandis that is on the way over the Atlantic at this very moment. Can't wait to pay VAT/duty that makes the difference even greater.
Arctic Cables even advertise on their website that profit margins are slim and as a long time customer I honestly didn't see this coming. Perhaps they need a quick surge of cash with this promotion, but in my opinion it is not a smart move to devalue your own products like this. The effect is not contained within Euphoria model alone but also for everyone already owning an Arctic Cable product.
I have nothing but good experiences with the company in the past. They have replaced connectors for free as promised even on cables I have bought second hand. This time however eager anticipation turned to bitter ashes.
GASPARILLA
Sponsor: Arctic Cables
Hi, The new Euphoria starting price is far more expensive than the Grandis cable. The special promo offer is limited only to the first ten orders, and the promo deal will be gone by the end of this week.
We do work on much lower margins compared to most high-end cable companies. We hardly see any profit when we offer significant promo discounts on new products. Instead of providing new products for free to selected users like most companies do, we're offering everyone the chance to get the first ten cables at a special introductory price.
You're a valued customer, and as a long-time customer, you know how far we're willing to go for the satisfaction of our customers. I'd happily reserve the Euphoria cable promo price for you if you want to swap the Grandis cable you just purchased as long as it stays unused.
We do work on much lower margins compared to most high-end cable companies. We hardly see any profit when we offer significant promo discounts on new products. Instead of providing new products for free to selected users like most companies do, we're offering everyone the chance to get the first ten cables at a special introductory price.
You're a valued customer, and as a long-time customer, you know how far we're willing to go for the satisfaction of our customers. I'd happily reserve the Euphoria cable promo price for you if you want to swap the Grandis cable you just purchased as long as it stays unused.
Thank you that is very kind of you. Sent you PM.
bagwell359
Headphoneus Supremus
In fact did get the replacement pair right away - very nice
First foray into palladium with the Opus Palladium. First impressions: incisive, nimble, and amazingly transparent. More to follow. Also loving the new wooden splitters.
Sound Eq
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
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interested to read some more impressions as I am considering an iem cable for my vision ears erlkonigFirst foray into palladium with the Opus Palladium. First impressions: incisive, nimble, and amazingly transparent. More to follow. Also loving the new wooden splitters.
No truer words have been spoken!
Will share soon!
paradoxper
Headphoneus Supremus
I like this as an Aeris x2 successor. Great work.Hi guys!
We're excited to introduce Euphoria - Our new ultimate silver headphone cable!
https://www.arcticcables.com/ac-store/Euphoria-Ultimate-Silver-Series-New-p586494128
Contact us for more details at info@arcticcables.com
Tubewin
1000+ Head-Fier
Indeed, now the question is, how does it compare to the opera v2
raydenray
Head-Fier
- Joined
- Apr 23, 2015
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PaisleyUnderground
New Head-Fier
I've had my Gladius cable since December.
I had just bought a ZMF Caldera, and was comparing the various cables that I had on hand. My favorites were an OCC silver DHC Prion4, which I'd borrowed, and my own OCC copper Arctic Cuprum cable. Although I liked the Prion4 cable a little more, the Cuprum still sounded great to me, at a fraction of the cost.
When the DHC cable went back to it's owner, I contacted Val at Arctic and asked what I should get if I wanted a "better Cuprum", and he recommended the Gladius. I ordered one with upgraded Furutech mini-xlr connectors at the headphone end and an Aeco XLR connector on the amp end. I wasn't sure what splitter to get, and Val patiently sent me many photos to help me get the one I wanted.
For anyone who's never dealt with Arctic before, I really recommend reaching out to them before you buy, to get some recommendations within your budget - in my experience, they never try to upsell you, and in fact when I started veering over the edge of my budget to ask about cables above my budget, Val was very good about gently pulling me back, explaining that I didn't need to spend more money. It's that kind of behavior that builds trust, and is one of the reasons I've returned to them whenever I've needed a new cable.
The cable is a beautiful two-tone color, due to the mixture of darker copper and copper/silver wire woven together. It feels very supple, and is not microphonic.
It is my favorite copper cable. Despite having some silver in it, it sounds more on the copper end of the spectrum than silver, if you know what I mean. It indeed sounds like a much much better Cuprum, with more detail, texture and stage than the cheaper cable, but still keeping the slightly warm of neutral sound of the Cuprum.
My other favorite copper cable that I own is the DHC Complement-C, which has wonderfully warm and liquid mids, as if Peter from DHC somehow inserted a tube into his cable. However, the Complement-C doesn't quite have enough treble for me, and I've found that I prefer to use it when the headphone is brighter sounding, e.g. I use it with my ZMF Verite and the brighter BE2 pads and the resulting sound is stunning IMO. In comparison, the Gladius appears to be more neutral than the Complement-C, with no obvious emphasis anywhere in the frequency curve, although it does have greater treble extension than the DHC cable. This made the Gladius a no-brainer to pair with my Caldera, because they both get out of the way of the music, without tinkering with the sound.
I did get the chance to borrow a DHC Complement C15, which is an OCC copper cable with some silver woven in. I thought the Gladius and C15 were pretty equal in terms of quality, but once again, I preferred the extra bite in the Gladius' treble, and also preferred the slightly forward mids of the Gladius. (This was relatively speaking, I have no idea if the Gladius' mids were slightly forward or the C15's mids were slightly recessed).
At this level of cable, being "good" or "excellent" is an expectation, so one cable isn't necessarily better or worse than another. What I'm looking for is synergy with the rest of my chain, helping the headphone to sound exactly the way I want it. As I said before, the magical quality of the Gladius is that it gets out of the way of the music. It's become my go-to cable for both my Caldera and also a recently purchased ZMF Atrium Closed. I did try it with my Focal Utopia 2022, and the synergy wasn't there, but I don't see that as a negative for either the cable or the headphone. For my preferences, I prefer the Utopia 2022 with silver cables.
In conclusion, I'm all set with the Gladius as my go-to copper cable. When I saw the Arctic Sonoro that @Sound Eq bought, I have to admit my resolve wavered, because the Sonoro looks like a turbocharged Gladius, with a lot of silver thrown into the mix. I'm sure the Sonoro sounds awesome, but I decided that my next Arctic purchase (and yes, my experience with Arctic is so wonderful that why would I not make my next purchase from them?) would be in a slightly different direction. More to come...
I had just bought a ZMF Caldera, and was comparing the various cables that I had on hand. My favorites were an OCC silver DHC Prion4, which I'd borrowed, and my own OCC copper Arctic Cuprum cable. Although I liked the Prion4 cable a little more, the Cuprum still sounded great to me, at a fraction of the cost.
When the DHC cable went back to it's owner, I contacted Val at Arctic and asked what I should get if I wanted a "better Cuprum", and he recommended the Gladius. I ordered one with upgraded Furutech mini-xlr connectors at the headphone end and an Aeco XLR connector on the amp end. I wasn't sure what splitter to get, and Val patiently sent me many photos to help me get the one I wanted.
For anyone who's never dealt with Arctic before, I really recommend reaching out to them before you buy, to get some recommendations within your budget - in my experience, they never try to upsell you, and in fact when I started veering over the edge of my budget to ask about cables above my budget, Val was very good about gently pulling me back, explaining that I didn't need to spend more money. It's that kind of behavior that builds trust, and is one of the reasons I've returned to them whenever I've needed a new cable.
The cable is a beautiful two-tone color, due to the mixture of darker copper and copper/silver wire woven together. It feels very supple, and is not microphonic.
It is my favorite copper cable. Despite having some silver in it, it sounds more on the copper end of the spectrum than silver, if you know what I mean. It indeed sounds like a much much better Cuprum, with more detail, texture and stage than the cheaper cable, but still keeping the slightly warm of neutral sound of the Cuprum.
My other favorite copper cable that I own is the DHC Complement-C, which has wonderfully warm and liquid mids, as if Peter from DHC somehow inserted a tube into his cable. However, the Complement-C doesn't quite have enough treble for me, and I've found that I prefer to use it when the headphone is brighter sounding, e.g. I use it with my ZMF Verite and the brighter BE2 pads and the resulting sound is stunning IMO. In comparison, the Gladius appears to be more neutral than the Complement-C, with no obvious emphasis anywhere in the frequency curve, although it does have greater treble extension than the DHC cable. This made the Gladius a no-brainer to pair with my Caldera, because they both get out of the way of the music, without tinkering with the sound.
I did get the chance to borrow a DHC Complement C15, which is an OCC copper cable with some silver woven in. I thought the Gladius and C15 were pretty equal in terms of quality, but once again, I preferred the extra bite in the Gladius' treble, and also preferred the slightly forward mids of the Gladius. (This was relatively speaking, I have no idea if the Gladius' mids were slightly forward or the C15's mids were slightly recessed).
At this level of cable, being "good" or "excellent" is an expectation, so one cable isn't necessarily better or worse than another. What I'm looking for is synergy with the rest of my chain, helping the headphone to sound exactly the way I want it. As I said before, the magical quality of the Gladius is that it gets out of the way of the music. It's become my go-to cable for both my Caldera and also a recently purchased ZMF Atrium Closed. I did try it with my Focal Utopia 2022, and the synergy wasn't there, but I don't see that as a negative for either the cable or the headphone. For my preferences, I prefer the Utopia 2022 with silver cables.
In conclusion, I'm all set with the Gladius as my go-to copper cable. When I saw the Arctic Sonoro that @Sound Eq bought, I have to admit my resolve wavered, because the Sonoro looks like a turbocharged Gladius, with a lot of silver thrown into the mix. I'm sure the Sonoro sounds awesome, but I decided that my next Arctic purchase (and yes, my experience with Arctic is so wonderful that why would I not make my next purchase from them?) would be in a slightly different direction. More to come...
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