Spend some time trying out IEM cables from two companies from Singapore
Starting with Effect Audio, I'll be comparing it to my EA Cleopatra I Octa and CA Andromeda IEM
EA Cleopatra II 4-wire -
Relative to the Octa I, more midbass presence but has less subbass presence than the Octa I. The mids are more forward with Cleo II while Octa I had a tiny bit more microdetail/layering in the timbre. In the upper region, Cleo II has a slightly sharper/faster attack while the Octa has a smoother rendering while proving a tiny bit more air/presence. The Octa has a larger canvas than Cleo II, but I attribute that to the "8-wire" effect rather than the cable geometry itself.
EA Chiron standard 8-wire
Relative to Octa I, Chiron has more holographic presence from all directions. Chiron also has the ability to delineate the instrument timbre of an instrument and position those inflections in the timbre in a very distinct place in space and also in revealing a way. Also, Chiron makes the Andromeda's sound even faster (in transients) without blurring anything whatsoever (extremely similar to how electrostatics driver sound). This is one of the best cable pair up I've ever listened to. IMHO, if you have a pure BA IEM, this cable is one of those end-all-be-all cable for BA IEMs. There's another cable that seriously challenges this cable and even best it on some areas but Chiron also best it on other categories too
(Did not get a chance to try Centurion)
Moving on to Eletech
Eletech Fortitude - impressions with CA Andromeda
Good control of bass, warm mids, and very smooth and laid back treble. Good layering and soundstage, but definitely a level below the Cleo II 4-wire and other Eletech cables I've heard on all areas.
Eletech Plato
Pure silver excellency!: Speed, macrodetail, presence, bass texture in spades! Compared to Cleo II 4-wire, Plato is faster sounding and both have that mid presence but Plato renders voices a with tiny bit more bite. In the lower region, Plato is has faster bass decay without sacrificing impact while Cleo II 4-wire has a bit more slam and more lingering decay and texture. Also Cleo II 4-wire has more midbass presence to bring the much needed body on the presentation. Staging is pretty similar to each other while the Cleo I Octa is more expansive. If I were to choose what's best for the Andromeda to my taste, I would take the Cleo II 4-wire due to the peakier treble response of the Andromeda CK Blue.
Eletech Project 8: Plato X Socrates
Finally the canvas has now reached the likes of the other 8-wire cables such as the Cleo I Octa. PXS is in between the Cleo I Octa and Chiron in soundstage. Treble between Cleo I Octa and PXS is very similar that I would be hard pressed to tell them from a sighted A/B. Mids in the Cleo I Octa is slightly more forward / more presence while PXS has a wider presence but not as forward (not as forward as Plato). Midbass presence is about the same, but I sense that PXS might have better texture while Cleo I Octa has more subbass presence and extension. Macrodynamics and microdynamics are also excellent on PXS which makes it very engaging.
Eletech Iliad
I finally get a glimpse of Chiron's special ability of delineating instrument timbre inflections but unlike Chiron, Iliad could not position them as distinct/clear from each other in the space. PXS and Cleo I Octa has a wider soundstage compared to Iliad, but Iliad digs deeper to the instrument microdetails slightly than both. I would chalk it up to Iliad having a smaller canvas (could be a 4-wire against 8-wire configuration). Iliad has good transient dynamics but not as fast sounding as Plato which is a plus for my taste. Overall, I would take the wider sounding PXS not only because of its better soundstage canvas, but because I don't feel that details and dynamics are being forced to me without having enough space to breathe and relax completely
Ode to Laura - A true rival to EA Chiron
I would say Chiron and OtL are on the same level of soundstage width with Chiron a bit more stretched in the XY axis and less so than the Z axis while Ode to Laura is completely spherical in its soundstage canvas. Ode to Laura presents on the best bass texture I've ever heard while Chiron beats the OtL in the delineating/microdetail timbre of instrument (aka plankton). While both present TOTL levels of soundstage and imaging, Chiron presents them like how a wide stereo speaker sounds with all the holographic imaging in between completely intact while OtL is akin to Dolby Atmos speaker setup where for example an instrument is positioned to sound just from the left x axis in the Chiron or other Eletech cable, OtL can present them as if they're sounding from behind you, IMHO best 3D spherical holographic rendition I've heard out of the Andromeda, very close to how Oriolus Traillii (stock PW1960 cable) presents imaging in space. In terms of speed/transients without sacrificing microdyamics and microdetails (plankton), Chiron is definitely faster than OtL, but OtL's magical instrument separation, bass texture and extremely pleasing timbre is simply hard to resist. I could not rank one over the other TBH since those two cables are just too dang good! It's also one of those end-all-be-all cables for pure multi-BA IEMs
