[golfinggino]

I gave up looking for a ipod touch to test the cipher cable with - I would never use it anyway. I picked a hifime sabre 9018 and hooked it up to my S8+ and it sounds very good to me - quite a bit better then straight to the phone. The eq on the s8 doesn't seem to do anything when connected to a usb dac what is the best andoid eq app to use ?

 

[Beanlipe]

Guys can anyone try listening to "Dio - The last in line" please? I have the iSine 10 through the 3.5mm and it just sounds like Dio is singing inside a box, it doesn't sound Full as If there is something missing... It's just so weird. Music like Nirvana sound fine, than pearl jam sound wrong in this IEM.

Can I please get a second opinion here?

 

[vr1]

To : Audeze

Dear Sirs,
I am interested in the iSine20 and just wondering about the standard cable and cipher cable. Since I do not use iphone then what is the advantage and disadvantage between standard and cipher cable? Which works best ?
Do you design for iphone from ground up or design for normal cable then tweak cable for using with iphone ? I read on head-fi that cipher cable sounds better than standard cable. Your kind explanation on this matter is highly appreciated. Thank you.

B.Rgds,
Veera

 

[KMann]

To : Audeze

Dear Sirs,
I am interested in the iSine20 and just wondering about the standard cable and cipher cable. Since I do not use iphone then what is the advantage and disadvantage between standard and cipher cable? Which works best ?
Do you design for iphone from ground up or design for normal cable then tweak cable for using with iphone ? I read on head-fi that cipher cable sounds better than standard cable. Your kind explanation on this matter is highly appreciated. Thank you.

B.Rgds,
Veera

@vr1 -- Thanks for your interest in iSine20. iSine20 and iSine10 were designed from the ground up for use out of the best source you can drive them with. We designed the Cipher cable for use as a very easy to use, portable solution for those who do not wish to carry yet another brick (DAC/Amp).

Since the iSines haver close to negligible distortion even at high SPL, we felt we could take it one step further by also adding an EQ to the Cipher cable. I have posted the the EQ used in the Cipher cable in this thread and some variants. Many in this thread have also suggested their own variations to the EQ for use with android devices or through PC or MAC desktop setups.

You do not need the Cipher cable to achieve the best results, but it is a convenient option if you happen to use an iDevice. Many are also happy with iSines20 without the need for any EQ when paired with a good source. It is hard to directly compare the standard cable with the Cipher cable and deciding one is better than the other without describing the source used to drive.

Please feel free to contact me if you need a suggestion based on your setup.

 

[divasson]

@vr1 -- Thanks for your interest in iSine20. iSine20 and iSine10 were designed from the ground up for use out of the best source you can drive them with. We designed the Cipher cable for use as a very easy to use, portable solution for those who do not wish to carry yet another brick (DAC/Amp).

Since the iSines haver close to negligible distortion even at high SPL, we felt we could take it one step further by also adding an EQ to the Cipher cable. I have posted the the EQ used in the Cipher cable in this thread and some variants. Many in this thread have also suggested their own variations to the EQ for use with android devices or through PC or MAC desktop setups.

You do not need the Cipher cable to achieve the best results, but it is a convenient option if you happen to use an iDevice. Many are also happy with iSines20 without the need for any EQ when paired with a good source. It is hard to directly compare the standard cable with the Cipher cable and deciding one is better than the other without describing the source used to drive.

Please feel free to contact me if you need a suggestion based on your setup.

Any chance of including MQA rendering in Cypher firmware?

 

[vr1]

@vr1 -- Thanks for your interest in iSine20. iSine20 and iSine10 were designed from the ground up for use out of the best source you can drive them with. We designed the Cipher cable for use as a very easy to use, portable solution for those who do not wish to carry yet another brick (DAC/Amp).

Since the iSines haver close to negligible distortion even at high SPL, we felt we could take it one step further by also adding an EQ to the Cipher cable. I have posted the the EQ used in the Cipher cable in this thread and some variants. Many in this thread have also suggested their own variations to the EQ for use with android devices or through PC or MAC desktop setups.

You do not need the Cipher cable to achieve the best results, but it is a convenient option if you happen to use an iDevice. Many are also happy with iSines20 without the need for any EQ when paired with a good source. It is hard to directly compare the standard cable with the Cipher cable and deciding one is better than the other without describing the source used to drive.

Please feel free to contact me if you need a suggestion based on your setup.

KMann
Thank you so much for your immediate reply. Last month I have tried iSine 20, with my Sony Z5 (smartphone) and I am quite happy about it. However because iSine 20 gave so sweet, fluid on vocal, but at the time it seems the singer sings too close to me. So, I did not purchase it.
I think I will get iSine 20 soon and just want to understand normal cable and cipher cable. I do really appreciate your reply.

 

[aleksanderp]

@KMann

Hi, got a question for you. Crinacle measured the iSine10 and iSine20 (here: https://www.head-fi.org/f/threads/c...06-iems-measured.830062/page-19#post-13585405) and saw a peak at around 1.5k. I also measured iSine10 with my IMM-6 setup and saw a 12-15db peak centered at around 1260Hz.

But the strange thing is if I eq it down (by about 15db) so that it measures flat, and then listen to sine sweep with the eq, there is a huge dip in this region. If I eq it by ear, it only needs about 5db's correction to sound flat. I am wondering if it has to do with the semi-open nature of iSine?

Some people have commented on the weird tonality of iSine, especially on vocal. I think it has to do with this 1.5k peak. I am wondering if you have any suggestions on how to correct it? I didn't see any correction in the eq you posted earlier in this region though.

Thanks very much.

 

[KMann]

Any chance of including MQA rendering in Cypher firmware?

MQA rendering happens in two steps. The first step is the player the second is the responsibility of the DAC. Right now Tidal on iOS and Android platforms does not support Masters. Even if it did the maximum you can get is 48kHz/24 bits or 44.1kHz/24 bits out of the lightning interface, that is the maximum supported by the interface. Unless both software and hardware support improves dramatically with iDevices, we do not see MQA happening any time soon.

If the Software decoding becomes available for iOS platforms, you will be able to enjoy some benefit subject to the sample rate limits mentioned above.

 

[KMann]

KMann
Thank you so much for your immediate reply. Last month I have tried iSine 20, with my Sony Z5 (smartphone) and I am quite happy about it. However because iSine 20 gave so sweet, fluid on vocal, but at the time it seems the singer sings too close to me. So, I did not purchase it.
I think I will get iSine 20 soon and just want to understand normal cable and cipher cable. I do really appreciate your reply.

Happy to hear you are going to give them a try again. I see the Sony Z5 has a system wide 5-band EQ available you can bring down 1kHz few dB and bump up 6kHz a few if you want more depth in the Vocals.

 

[KMann]

@KMann

Hi, got a question for you. Crinacle measured the iSine10 and iSine20 (here: https://www.head-fi.org/f/threads/c...06-iems-measured.830062/page-19#post-13585405) and saw a peak at around 1.5k. I also measured iSine10 with my IMM-6 setup and saw a 12-15db peak centered at around 1260Hz.

But the strange thing is if I eq it down (by about 15db) so that it measures flat, and then listen to sine sweep with the eq, there is a huge dip in this region. If I eq it by ear, it only needs about 5db's correction to sound flat. I am wondering if it has to do with the semi-open nature of iSine?

Some people have commented on the weird tonality of iSine, especially on vocal. I think it has to do with this 1.5k peak. I am wondering if you have any suggestions on how to correct it? I didn't see any correction in the eq you posted earlier in this region though.

Thanks very much.

Like any other headphone, you do not want to EQ a measurement to flat. Our HRTFs has a natural peak between 2.5 - 3.5kHz, removing it would sound very unnatural. Which you have correctly confirmed by trying to do a sine sweep and through trying to a -15dB dip.

Regarding tonality, it is up to the individuals tastes and also to a large extent the ear geometry. Sound when listened through speakers pass through the outer ear (pinna and concha) before entering the ear canal. In the case of in-ears, the outer ear is bypassed, we have modeled some aspects of the influence of outer ear through the waveguide inside the sound-port, but it can be improved to match personal preference through EQ. Because everyone's ear are different, there is no one size fits all.

If you would like to EQ, you can reduce the 1K region by a few dB as you have done, also boost the 3-4k region by 3-4dB this will add the effect of outer ear back and provide a better depth and detail. If you want more bass, you can boost < 200Hz by 3dB.

 

[Ocelitgol]

I gave up looking for a ipod touch to test the cipher cable with - I would never use it anyway. I picked a hifime sabre 9018 and hooked it up to my S8+ and it sounds very good to me - quite a bit better then straight to the phone. The eq on the s8 doesn't seem to do anything when connected to a usb dac what is the best andoid eq app to use ?

system wide? idk through USB dac but Viper4Android does support USB EQ, Don't take my words for it but there is a section in the app solely for USB/Dock. But again, you'll have to root the phone.
For apps, try neutron, hiby, or usb audio player. Also, I remember there's some settings that might help in Developer settings. I'm not sure.
I rooted my cell for viper (and other stuffs) so Tidal Hifi offline + viper (with kmann's cipher EQ with a little bass boost 4bB) + [sometimes] Fiio Q1 = perfect outdoor setup for me.

 

[canali]

resubbing.
considering the isine 20 as a step up from my flc 8s.
do these pair well with the mojo?

..only thing that holds me back on the isine is they're not fully isolating, from what I've read,
so i'd be tempted to turn up the volume, which i'd prefer not to do (I have tinnitus already).

 

[captblaze]

..only thing that holds me back on the isine is they're not fully isolating, from what I've read,
so i'd be tempted to turn up the volume, which i'd prefer not to do (I have tinnitus already).

Quiet or semi quiet environment with the iSine 20. I tried auditioning a set of 10's in a noisy Apple store and after 5 minutes handed them back when they couldn't provide a quieter place to listen. Just to spite Apple I ended up buying a set of 20's (they only sell 10's)

Update - I have been getting used to the iSine 20's for a few hours now and have a theory on why some may feel they are not getting a proper seal. Unlike traditional IEMs the iSine's are a semi open design, and because of that you don't get the feeling of isolation you get when you seal your ear canals with other IEM's. I played around with all the tips provided and found that the smallest tips worked best for me, but even after visually confirming they were seated properly I still felt a sense of emptiness in my ear canals. I reduced the sound level in my office and started listening to some of my favorite test tracks and sure enough the sound quality was there. whether with the 3.5 mm cable or the cipher (I did have a firmware update out of the box).

So to summarize, I am pretty well convinced that you need to get used to the feeling of semi-open IEMs (headphones) and when you do there won't be that feeling that they aren't seated. The only real minus I have found so far is that the cable is a bit short for me from the splitter to my ears, so it feels like I have a necklace on instead of IEMs

 

[golfinggino]

I finally picked up a used ipod touch for $20 to test with the cipher cable - opened up the second cable and they gave me 2 of the regular cables no cipher cable lol - I guess it was not meant to be

 

[vr1]

Happy to hear you are going to give them a try again. I see the Sony Z5 has a system wide 5-band EQ available you can bring down 1kHz few dB and bump up 6kHz a few if you want more depth in the Vocals.

Thank you KMann.