[mrdon]

The Philips HP895's are on their way and I am already thinking of upgrading the stock cable. My presumption is that replacing the cord with something better can improve the sound quality of these budget cans. Replacing the cord on the 895's are a snap as it has (ala Senn) a detachable cord terminated with a 3.5mm plug. Now down to replacement cord choices...

Has anyone ever compared the Cardas starquad (used on many a Senn and highly regarded) with a comparable starquad from Canare and Mogami? I for one hear a difference in Canare and Mogami quad. Used as interconnects, the Mogami is more revealing to my ears while the Canare is warmer maybe even "neutral." Of course it comes down to price! The Cardas is $7.25/ft. at DIYCable.com! At Redco.com, the Canare is $.39/ft. and the Mogami is $.59/ft. On a budget, the Canare and Mogami is a no brainer. Any further reflections?

 

[headchange4u]

I assume when you say Cardas Star Quad you mean the Cardas 4X24 (light blue cable. See pic of my Senn's in my signature.). The Cardas 4X24 wire is the best sounding wire that I have used to date. It has a very warm sound. I would recommend this cable above all others if you don't really care about price (6.50 per ft, I think. Canare Star Quad is about .36 per ft and Mogami is about .70 per foot). Cardas wire is a little harder to work with than most. The wire has an enamel coating and you have to have a really hot soldering iron or a soldering pot to burn off the enamel.

I can't really hear any difference between Canare and the Mogami Star Quad.

 

[HiGHFLYiN9]

Headchange is correct, the Cardas sounds notably better, however you have to be willing to pay for it. Canare starquad certainly isn't bad, but I find that it's warmth sacrifices too much upper end detail.

 

[jbloudg20]

Is the Cardas cable "brigter" than the Mogami offering?

 

[vixr]

I have been wanting to upgrade my cables too... who sells it?

 

[n_maher]

Drew at Moon Aduio used to, not sure if he still does. And it doesn't come cheap at somewhere between $6 or $8 a foot. It does sound darn good though.

Nate

 

[velogreg]

Would the same apply for use (Cardas) as a speaker cable? I have used the Canare Star Quad for speakers and have found them to be fairly revealing and "mellow".

 

[jbloudg20]

I wanted to circumvent my findings on the Cardas 4x24. I picked up 6 feet of it to recable my K340's, and I found it to be EXACTLY what I was looking for. The bass is a bit more mellow compared to the Mogami, and the highs are a little bit more open. Detail is improved, and this cable is well worth the difference in price.

 

[ting.mike]

I'm just wondering, which Canare starquad are you guys using?

L46EATG?
or
L46EAS?

thanks.

 

[apatN]

^ The popular Canare is L4-e6S.

How about the Jena/Vampyre wire? They seem to be even more expensive if you want to run them in quad.

 

[bik2101]

can anyone comment on the flexibility of the cardas cable compared to the mogami 2893?

 

[FallenAngel]

Both are reasonably flexible.

 

[bik2101]

hmm good to know.

 

[jchan172]

I believe the Mogami 2893 would be more flexible than the Canare L-4E6S. The 2893 is 24 AWG, while the L-4E6S is 21 AWG.

 

[kidchunks]

I started using 2893 for future projects, easier to work. For anyone reading, choose whichever is easy to work with. 

 
Edit: Throw back thread!