So my initial impressions are as follows.
1) I actually like the brown coffee colour more than I liked the black, yay!
2) Headphones+cables needed a bit of a break in (40h or so of pink noise) as it sounded very off to me compared to broken-in loaner. Muffled/distant, not sure how to explain this, but after a couple of hours, now it is razor sharp again.
3) The quality control on this isn't 100%, the headband is bent with two different angles so for my head I need to use 1 notch on the left and 2 notches on the right. A bit disappointed. Unsure if I can bend it back, or if this happened during transit.
4) Also, the brown leather on the headband has some scuffs and dents in it, unsure as to how this happened or if all leather is like this and it just wasn't visible on the black one.
5) The stock cable was OK, had two parts, one with a rubber sleeving and then clear cable. I did not find the stock cable micro-phonics at all, but I did not like the metal thingy where the cable separates, it was always hitting my table and making sound, or catching against it altogether.
6) The Superconductor cable box is a joke, does not feel premium at all, kinda disappointed here too, for it being a handmade product, I expected more care to be put into it.
7) The Superconductor cable does NOT feel lighter than the stock cable (people on AB-1266 were praising Superconductor cable for how light it is, so maybe AB-1266 stock is even worse/heavier/stiffer).
8) The Superconductor cable feels rougher than I expected. I kinda thought it would be super soft material to touch, and it isn't It is kinda scratchy, but thankfully does not transfer micro-phonics like some other cables do (stock cable on Dan Clark's Ether headphones comes to my mind). Or maybe my hands are too soft?
So overall the Superconductor cable gives me mixed feelings. It costs significant amount of money and it DOES sound absolutely clean, so if you care about audio quality, go for it. However, if you bought Dianas because they are lighter/easier to use than AB-1266 (which was my motivation) then some of my points above are a negative. If you only care about audio quality and the rest is fine for you, all of my negatives become invalid, as I have nothing negative to say about the audio quality. I love these headphones, would buy them again without a question! Now for a cable, sleeved Forza Audio Works Noir is much softer to the touch, but possibly the 2.5mm termination wouldn't fit Diana's shells as well as Abyss stock/superconductor cables do. Another option would be Lavricables Grand cable, as they shave off the end to fit with Dianas snug.
I don't want to speak too much to what I hear, as it is very subjective, and enough positive has been said already. But, as an user of a product, I can speak to its quality (even if only perceived by me and checked against my own standard/expectations), but with headphones ergonomics are very important for me, so that's why I am calling certain things out here. I hope these impressions do not read too negative, but I wanted to be completely honest for those who are thinking of buying Dianas and especially its Superconductor cable. I believe as long as you find an aftermarket cable that you like its properties of (silver, copper, hybrid, coated) and they make it for Dianas explicitly (for its special connector) I honestly think you can save some money, while still having a nice cable that is not micro-phonics, is light and soft to touch/bend. As far as the aesthetics go, having Superconductor cable being two separate wires is kinda cool, but I also wonder if it is necessary for its performance.
Anyway, thanks for reading.
Edit: I went to the dealer and he was able to straighten the headband to have the same angle on both sides!
At first I wasn't that impressed but as I go through my library of music I am falling in love with my Diana v2 with superconductor cable and dms modded pads.
