[Nocam]

Awesome thread, I've been looking for a replacement cable for a while. Don't know anything about wiring or sourcing parts though. So I gather nothing off the shelf works?

 

[enginepartsguy]

Go back away on these postings and there are listed three pieces that work perfectly using a special DJ cable. My original cable works fine but I was afraid to use the cans because of the cord problem. I purchased the recommended cables, it works perfectly.

 

[cdeviney]

I now have a new replacement cable for my Silverado.  Looks great and sounds great.  Totally superior in every way compared to the original.
 
Paladin79 helped me out...if you need help just PM him....a super nice guy; and very knowledgeable compared to someone 'electronically challenged' like me!
 
It is nice to have this forum to meet kind folks like him.

 

 

[Paladin79]

You are most kind Cdeviney, hopefully a few more people are now enjoying their CHC headphones. There are times when I listen to mine and feel like they are really quite good but it depends a lot on the quality of the recording. Most of my music is cd quality or above yet some amazes me more than others; Alan Parsons in particular. 

 

[sjwaudio]

  I now have a new replacement cable for my Silverado.  Looks great and sounds great.  Totally superior in every way compared to the original.
 
Paladin79 helped me out...if you need help just PM him....a super nice guy; and very knowledgeable compared to someone 'electronically challenged' like me!
 
It is nice to have this forum to meet kind folks like him.

 

 
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588)][/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588)]I echo cdeviney's comments. Paladin79 also helped me out with my Silverado cables. I've been enjoying the Silverados this evening listening to some hi-res files from Linn. [/color][color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588)][/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588)][/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588)]The best way I can describe the improvement is to say that the music now sounds more "integrated" -- at the risk of sounding a bit contradictory, the music seems to be both fuller and more detailed than through the original cables. [/color][color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588)][/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588)][/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588)]I had written off the Silverados and was thinking of handing them over to my teenage daughters. But now I'll put them back in my headphone rotation as one of my regular closed headphones, at least for a while. [/color][color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588)][/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588)][/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588)]Paladin79 also very kindly sent me a channel-reversing adapter so I can wear my Martin-Logan Mikro 90 headphones in the more comfortable reversed position but still get proper stereo imaging and soundstage. It's working great and I'm putting those phones back in my "on the go" rotation. [/color][color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588)][/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588)][/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588)]He is definitely a "super nice guy." It was a pleasure to get to know him a bit as we PM-ed about cables and other common interests and connections. It's people like him who make this community a great place to come to enjoy our shared love for music and the audio equipment that helps us enjoy it. [/color]

 

[Paladin79]

Thanks for your kind words sjw,
It has been my experience that you can make quite an impact on headphones in the sub $300 range by going to a higher quality cable. I tested some HD-650 Sennheisers over the weekend with the help of a friend from here and found the factory cable to be Litz wire and any improvement a different cable might provide would be negligible. 
 
Some time you will have to tell me more about hi-res files from Linn. I have some music that used Linn turntables as a source and it is very well done. A good friend who had a HI-Fi store sold McIntosh and other brands but his personal system was all Linn.
 
There are a few pairs of Silverados on Ebay now but the price seems to vary a lot. I was happy to pay $60 for a like new pair, just be careful, the Lorado has a built in headphone cable from what I have been told and if that cable ever develops problems the replacement procedure would be more difficult.

 

[sjwaudio]

  Thanks for your kind words sjw,
It has been my experience that you can make quite an impact on headphones in the sub $300 range by going to a higher quality cable. I tested some HD-650 Sennheisers over the weekend with the help of a friend from here and found the factory cable to be Litz wire and any improvement a different cable might provide would be negligible. 
 
Some time you will have to tell me more about hi-res files from Linn. I have some music that used Linn turntables as a source and it is very well done. A good friend who had a HI-Fi store sold McIntosh and other brands but his personal system was all Linn.
 
There are a few pairs of Silverados on Ebay now but the price seems to vary a lot. I was happy to pay $60 for a like new pair, just be careful, the Lorado has a built in headphone cable from what I have been told and if that cable ever develops problems the replacement procedure would be more difficult.

 
A few years back Linn the turntable / audio company opened a related recording company. It is at http://www.linnrecords.com/  
 
Every Christmas they give out a series of free high-res recordings.
The first year I participated, they gave away 25 tracks, one a day, from Dec. 1 to 25.
Last year, they gave out a 3-track sample every week for 3 weeks. Here is the 2015 landing page: 
 
http://news.linn.co.uk/news/2015/11/24-bits-of-christmas---discover-more-from-music.php
 
As you would expect from their audio equipment, Linn's high-res recordings are excellent. I've gotten familiar enough with these sets that I'll frequently use them to compare headphones. 
 
I was able to get my set of Silverados for about $35 when Amazon had that big clear-out of them a few years ago.
I grabbed a set of Laredos at the same time, but have probably listened to the Laredos just 2 or 3 times total.
 
I had forgotten that the Laredos' cable is built-in. In fact, last week I pulled the box off the shelf in my office planning to try the Laredos with the replacement cable you sent for the Silverados and curious to see what effect the better cables would have, only to open the box and see the disappointing reminder that the cables were built-in. Even using the original cables for both, the Silverados are noticeably better than the Laredos. 

 

[Paladin79]

I will check out the Linn site. 
 
I bet with a cable change out even the Laredos would sound better. The biggest difference I ever heard a cable make was on some $100 Skull Candy headphones. With that and some dampening they are darn near usable lol. I may grab a pair of Laredos if I can find a pair cheap enough, mod them and they tell you if it is worth the effort. I rely on my ears some but I also have some semi serious test equipment in my shop at home. I started to build a Tesla coil but my wife put a stop to it when described a bucket capacitor to her. She has no sense of humor when it comes to a five gallon bucket filled with oil and the possibility of one of our cats catching fire, or worse.
 
 
I remember a guy walking in one time when he bought the Silverados for $50, maybe 1-1.5 years ago. I looked them over then but did not measure the cables to discover the wiring scheme was janky. I know better now.

 

[Mad Max]

Here's something that could be compatible: https://www.amazon.com/Replacement-Republic-Master-Tracks-Headphone/dp/B00YI89ZQ0
 
Chinese eBay sellers apparently offer more variety of looks for this cable.

 

[Paladin79]

  Here's something that could be compatible: https://www.amazon.com/Replacement-Republic-Master-Tracks-Headphone/dp/B00YI89ZQ0
 
Chinese eBay sellers apparently offer more variety of looks for this cable.

That appears to be 3.5 mm to dual 2.5 mm cable. Unfortunately the Silverados use a unique wiring, if that is wired straight through, tip to tip, ring to ring, sleeve to sleeve....it would not work even if it were all 3.5 mm connectors. In earlier posts the wiring was explained.

 

[Mad Max]

Oops.

 

[Paladin79]

Not a problem. I have built several of those cables and know them very well. CHC used an unusual design but in all honesty it is a solid one. There are redundant contacts going to each channel and that is better than a single contact IMHO. If you get a quality cable the headphones are pretty rugged and the sound is exceptional with the right music.

 

[KBLow]

My son lost his CHC Silverado cables and its been impossible to get a replacement set.  Paladin79 finally gave me hope that there may be something out there.  Absolutely loved the styling of the headphones and the sound was way more than adequate for the price and its just killing me to see this sit, unusable.  Paladin79 if you are in the know and can put a set together, I would love to buy a set of cables for these headphones.  Or if you know where they can be commercially acquired, let me know.  Thanks!

 

[Paladin79]

  My son lost his CHC Silverado cables and its been impossible to get a replacement set.  Paladin79 finally gave me hope that there may be something out there.  Absolutely loved the styling of the headphones and the sound was way more than adequate for the price and its just killing me to see this sit, unusable.  Paladin79 if you are in the know and can put a set together, I would love to buy a set of cables for these headphones.  Or if you know where they can be commercially acquired, let me know.  Thanks!

There is always a solution; at least there is in this case.
 
CHC should have done a better job with the cable they provided. Most anything I have build sounds better IMHO. I am not sure they deserve OCC silver or copper but a good oxygen free copper cable does a world of good for them. I still see the headphones selling new so CHC certainly tried to get into the market. Those of you lucky enough to get them for $50 got quite a deal.
 
Tom

 

[cdeviney]

OMG!!!
 
Really????
 

California Headphone Company On Ear Metal and Leather Headphones - Laredo

$416.28 !?!???!?!?!?!?
 
http://www.ebay.com/itm/California-Headphone-Company-On-Ear-Metal-and-Leather-Headphones-Laredo-/152364735166?hash=item2379a55abe:g:OTAAAOSw6DtYWqOY