With the Andromeda I can see how impedance changes would lead to sound changes, but I wouldn't consider that a property of the cable, but rather the extreme impedance sensitivity of the Andromeda. I thought that the Solaris is much more stable though.
Oh yeah, in these situations I'm also measurement-grade sensitive. :-d
Solaris is sensitive also in fact I think the dynamic driver is rated at 3 ohm (don’t remember who posted this...) so the “global” impedance is not the only factor.
Cable apparently do have an impedance rating, I am not savvy enough to explain but higher wire count usually means lower cable impedance and it affects the sound.
This is just conjecture, so please don't take this as gospel (or informed technical debate!), but as the "mid" BA is firing full range with no bass/mids crossover in play, I suspect impedance change in the cable will be affecting the lower end of the BA contribution, irrespective of how the DD reacts. May explain why the low end can respond differently to diverg different OI / cables despite the DD sitting in there.
This is just conjecture, so please don't take this as gospel (or informed technical debate!), but as the "mid" BA is firing full range with no bass/mids crossover in play, I suspect impedance change in the cable will be affecting the lower end of the BA contribution, irrespective of how the DD reacts. May explain why the low end can respond differently to diverg different OI / cables despite the DD sitting in there.
I'm no sound science expert, but it is acknowledged that impedance affects the frequency response of some BA drivers. Take the drivers in the CA Andromeda for example: the bass drivers have an impedance curve which means that for higher output impedance, bass quantity is reduced. Therefore, high OI sources (like the Hiby R6 at 10 ohms OI) will make the Andromeda sound brighter and less bassy.
Conversely, low OI sources (typically under 1 ohm, like a lot of audiophile DAPs from manufacturers like Fiio / Ibasso etc) will make the Andro sound bassier by comparison.
The Solaris has a hybrid design with one crossover, implemented between the mids and treble. Therefore, the balanced armature that handles the midrange will aldlso contribute some "sound" to the bass, as it has been confirmed to be a ported full-range BA, so produces sound across the entire frequency spectrum (the highs will be "cut" from this driver at the crossover point).
David mentioned more texture / detailing in the low end - if the Gold16 has in fact lowered the overall impedance of the system (source + cable), then IF the impedance curve of the midrange BA is similar to the way the BAs in the Andro behave, they may produce more output at a lower overall OI. This could have the effect of rausing the volume / noticeability of the BA "aspects" of the Solaris bass, leading to the changes David described.
As stated previously, please DON'T fair this as gospel or actual science - it's just my interpretation / understanding of how the whole OI and impedance curve thing works with balanced armature setups, with a bit of experience / knowledge of the CA lineup and their design.
If someone on here can offer a better (or more correct) explanation, I'll be really interested to learn more about all this for future reference.
I have a question: did anyone already test how well / bad the Solaris pair with the Cowon Plenue 1?
Knowing about their respective characteristics (the Solaris' sensibility, the Plenue's output), I would assume that they do not pair well (there may be a lot of hiss), but I might be wrong (or have misunderstood something about their characteristics and their matching)...
Thanks in advance for any advice you guys could give!
Don’t know about the R6, it’s a bit different than the upcoming Pro version I was lucky to snatch before release...
I have posted a quick comparison on the R6 Pro topic this should help
The “right” DAP requires that you define your priorities, if price was no object Cayin N8 would get my vote
Like I said, for the amusement of others. After posting I realized that a lot of what I said was stuff I had pretty low confidence in. I can explain why I thought gold had higher conductivity than copper, but it would take time and would not even be that funny.
Since my post is so full of inexact information, I'm thinking it would be better to delete it altogether. (done)
Based on "extensive" testing, basically taking all cables I have, measuring resistance (not impedance?) of each cable with the cheap multimeter, I still clearly saw correlation between cable resistance and percieved sound quality out of Solaris hanging on WM1A. Stock cable was around 1,3 Ohm, most of my chinese cables around 1,6 and above. iBasso CB12-4,4 was between 1,2 and 1,3 and I could hear slight improvement which was not audible with cheaper balanced cable. Higher resistance cables where definetely sounding worth. And I had 16 and 8 core chinese cables but it seems cable material quality and soldering definitely have an impact.
UAPP - X5iii - NX4DSD - Solaris = great combo,
with bass boost: Bass with good layer. High Detail and better SS
additional Ifi earBuddy if the unbalanced (low volume) occured because of NX4DSD, or Noise background come out, nor Simbilance.
Using eBuddy, reduce Noise and the High spark, but somehow create Pop noise....
Without EBuddy, must listen quite high volume.... Noise noticable, Good Dynamic with detail...
best test with Billie Eilish Album dont smile at me. A lot rumble and mid high that can be potential Simbilance.....
my adapter 4.4 Female to 2.5 mm Male balanced is arrived..
Now can try the new customed cable DHC 4.4mm
first Impression...
Looks is really cable porn...
Sound wise, Warm (because DHC is warm Character), Noise noticable.
wish I have a proper 4.4mm balanced DAP.... sigh
Ok, so BAD NEWS TIME. While the Solaris are undoubtedly the best sounding IEMs I've ever put in my ears, I can't justify the price if I am only going to be using them at home. They're just too big and obtrusive for me use them in public. I'm not as rich as some of you maybe, so had to do a lot of soul searching. Ultimately, I have the Andro S and they are perfect for my daily needs, including a lot of out and about time - and while I would dearly love to keep the Solaris, my bank account will thank me for replenshing it. So back they go. Such a shame - if CA could only get the form factor down to Andro size, I'd be punching the air right now.
It does beg the question I guess: at what point does an IEM no longer have primary function as something used in the real world?
Ok, so BAD NEWS TIME. While the Solaris are undoubtedly the best sounding IEMs I've ever put in my ears, I can't justify the price if I am only going to be using them at home. They're just too big and obtrusive for me use them in public. I'm not as rich as some of you maybe, so had to do a lot of soul searching. Ultimately, I have the Andro S and they are perfect for my daily needs, including a lot of out and about time - and while I would dearly love to keep the Solaris, my bank account will thank me for replenshing it. So back they go. Such a shame - if CA could only get the form factor down to Andro size, I'd be punching the air right now.
It does beg the question I guess: at what point does an IEM no longer have primary function as something used in the real world?
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