[ranfan]

It will be Jörmungandr because "Zeus" was too easy to pronounce.

I like the name Hagelslag, because I like Hagelslag. Besides, who doesn't like Hagelslag?? I bet EE is going to sell those like hotcakes if it's named Hagelslag.

 

[Wyville]

I like the name Hagelslag, because I like Hagelslag. Besides, who doesn't like Hagelslag?? I bet EE is going to sell those like hotcakes if it's named Hagelslag.

I miss Hagelslag so badly! A few more weeks and we're off to visit home and my diet will essentially consist of Hagelslag and proper bread! (What the Brits call "bread" is not worthy the name... half-baked sloppy dough, more like it. No wonder "bread week" is always the biggest challenge on the Great British Bake-Off.)

 

[ctsooner22]

Flink- What language is the manual in? Old Latin???

Thanks for the breakdown of the cables. I've spoken to a cable manufacturer out of San Diego, CA last week and he wants to make a cable for IEM's. I really like his headphone cable as it's copper with silver braid and jacketed so you don't have interference problems. He want to use the same wire, but I told him that he needs to listen to some of the silver plated stuff as that seems to be what most want. As you all know the mids on down will travel on the copper part of the wire and the highs will get to the surface where the silver is located (in a combo wire). It's all about the grain boundaries (you want single structure grain if possible for wire). With silver it's how it's drawn and that's not easy to do in large batches. I have a hand drawn USB cable that my friend made and it's crazy good.

I love reading all about the cables you guys audition and it's easy to see WHY you all like what you do when you read about how you listen and other gear you like.

He asked me to share with him everything I've heard and learned about wires so that he and his assembler'r can put together an affordable but top level cable. Feel free to PM me if you guys have input as I don't want to hijack this awesome thread about Empire Ears great IEM's. Everything from connectors to wire type to comfort to lengths to connectors (what type of balanced) and splitters. He sources from Furetech and other well known brands so he can get any connectors you can imagine. I literally designed my own 9' long, Pono balanced termination, chose the splitter and the connectors for the cans. It's a ton of fun to be able to mix and match if you want. Also, do you care about the look of the cable or is the sound most important. When you share what wire, please let me know why. I will try to thank everyone for letting me know, but I may not depending on how many PM's I get. Hope this is ok to ask. I have NO monetary gain and I paid what amounted to Black Friday/Cyber Monday prices for my own cable so I didn't even get it for free like many do. I may ask him for a free sample this time though, lmao....Thanks.

Flink.....Latin??? I like it man! Back to cable break downs as that's invaluable.

To save costs, you will also need to assemble it yourself using a complicated instruction manual

From warm to bright:
1960 2-wire > no 5 > Zen > Ares II > Horus

2-wire is a predominantly warm, smooth, natural sound, with a characterstic black background that gives it a romantic, intimate feel. Due to its emphatically warm sound it is not the most versatile, but pairs well with Zeus ADEL to give it warmth down low. PW no 5 has a warm tone with an accurate timbre. It sounds natural, but still provides a clean, articulate, and well-separated sound. Zen is perhaps the most tonally balanced of all, with a lightly warm yet clear and open sound. It has a smooth top-end, but is not overly warm. Works well for both instrument-based as electronic music. Ares II is an interesting mixture of warm, bright, and even somewhat dark sound. It has a lifted mid-bass, providing a warm tone and body to its instruments, with a slight lift in the lower treble, accentuating string instruments for instance. The following mid- to upper-treble is laidback, resulting in a darkish background. As with no 5, it provides an airy stage with good separation. Horus has a neutral tone with a lifted lower treble, and more linear mid- to upper treble. So it sounds more clean and upfront in its micro-detail compared to the other cables, although its timbre is not as natural.

 

[flinkenick]

Flink- What language is the manual in? Old Latin???

I've been making trips to Ikea a lot recently to help my gf, so Erik's Swedish name ringed some bells

Thanks for the breakdown of the cables. I've spoken to a cable manufacturer out of San Diego, CA last week and he wants to make a cable for IEM's. I really like his headphone cable as it's copper with silver braid and jacketed so you don't have interference problems. He want to use the same wire, but I told him that he needs to listen to some of the silver plated stuff as that seems to be what most want. As you all know the mids on down will travel on the copper part of the wire and the highs will get to the surface where the silver is located (in a combo wire). It's all about the grain boundaries (you want single structure grain if possible for wire). With silver it's how it's drawn and that's not easy to do in large batches. I have a hand drawn USB cable that my friend made and it's crazy good.

I love reading all about the cables you guys audition and it's easy to see WHY you all like what you do when you read about how you listen and other gear you like.

He asked me to share with him everything I've heard and learned about wires so that he and his assembler'r can put together an affordable but top level cable. Feel free to PM me if you guys have input as I don't want to hijack this awesome thread about Empire Ears great IEM's. Everything from connectors to wire type to comfort to lengths to connectors (what type of balanced) and splitters. He sources from Furetech and other well known brands so he can get any connectors you can imagine. I literally designed my own 9' long, Pono balanced termination, chose the splitter and the connectors for the cans. It's a ton of fun to be able to mix and match if you want. Also, do you care about the look of the cable or is the sound most important. When you share what wire, please let me know why. I will try to thank everyone for letting me know, but I may not depending on how many PM's I get. Hope this is ok to ask. I have NO monetary gain and I paid what amounted to Black Friday/Cyber Monday prices for my own cable so I didn't even get it for free like many do. I may ask him for a free sample this time though, lmao....Thanks.

To be honest silver-plated copper is my least favorite type of wire as it tends to have an unnatural tone. I don't know too much about sourcing materials myself, but you can maybe post it in the cable thread and see what kind of response you get(?)

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/hig...ressions-pics-comparisons-and-reviews.804952/

 

[Deezel177]

From my reading over the pages, I realized that Deezel has repeated himself a million times about Adel vs Non-Adel version, really appreciate it.

Besides from that, I found that most recommendations for cable pairing for the Zeus-XR are Areas II, PW No.5, Zen, 1960s 2wire and Effect Horus. Any experienced cable roller have more insight/comparison into these cables? Which is warmest among them?

You’re welcome, my friend. Nic’s impressions are pretty much spot-on. Between the Ares II and the Horus, though, lies the Music Sanctuary x Effect Audio Eos. Sit tight and you’ll find out more about it very soon.

 

[Deezel177]

Well, "very soon" ended up becoming three hours, but I pulled through eventually. Calling all Zeus owners! This is the entry-level cable for you!

Effect Audio x Music Sanctuary Eos – Enter the Dragon


​

 

[Ethan Groover]

Phone>(bluetooth) shanling m1> project pailaios iona >lionheart> spartans(MAM closed) is very enjoyable (Repost)

What a beautiful combo you have there! I'm jealous.

Finally decided on a design(hard decisions) and which Zeus to order. Zeus XIV
Hopefully a nice christmas present to myself...
The left with a gold double wing logo., keeping the right one clear for an unobstructed viewing of the internals... (or will it look weird?)

I think they look beautiful, and I'm glad to see you finally picked up that Zeus! I hope you enjoy it tremendously.

All I can do to supress the pain

I know this pain

Oh how I’d wish to be able to order the prototype iem + prototype cable I got listen to in London @_@

Now imagine, if someone would have told you that final version/s going to sound even better

hoping to hear some news about new releases

 

[ctsooner22]

Thanks for posting about the new cable. Guys, if silver is done correctly (very very hard to do), then it can be the warmest and most inviting along with most revealing etc... I have the top Audioquest pure silver interconnect. It costs 8k USD for a 1m run with balance connectors. I could never afford it, but got it for a price that I couldn't say no to. It is by far the best interconnect I've ever heard in my life and it's not close. That's because of how they draw the wire as I said earlier. Then it's all about the geometry and dielectrics, tubing and jacketing etc... You can do some of that on a headphone cable, but not for CIEM's. That to me is a huge restriction that is faced. In order to keep them at the right gauge and weight etc...you can only do so much and that's why the silver based cables you hear, probably aren't going to be the best fits with a great IEM that already has the tonal balance down. In addition, many manufacturers seem to already supply great cables with their stuff and they are probably matched for them also and not off the shelf variety.

I haven' heard enough cables with IEM's to talk intelligently about it, but I know a fair amount about the manufacture of cables as well as metallurgy. It's fascination to watch cable being manufactured. I used to have many as clients when I was working. I got to see Kimber Kables wire being made as well as a few other major companies. Sorry to go off topic a bit, but it's kind of cool stuff and relevant.

I find it no surprise that you guys like copper cables as I too for years and years would only use copper cables in my system. Even my speaker cables right now are Audioquest OCC copper wire and I can easily get their all silver cables if I ask nicely I'm sure. I'm just in a rush to do it right now as I love my 2 channel system more than ever, but I'm getting hooked on portable thanks to you guys ........Thanks all.

 

[flinkenick]

Interesting stuff Pete. I also like silver btw, and agree the type of wires and other compenents used influences the tone and performance. The best example for iem cables would be the SilverFi's, which have a uniquely warmer and natural sound.

I personally just don't like silver-plated copper specifically Just because it's most common use is as stock cable for iems as it increases clarity rather than actual resolution, at the cost of timbre. An effective way of boosting detail, while keeping the cost lower than using pure silver.

 

[ctsooner22]

Interesting stuff Pete. I also like silver btw, and agree the type of wires and other compenents used influences the tone and performance. The best example for iem cables would be the SilverFi's, which have a uniquely warmer and natural sound. I personally just don't like silver-plated copper specifically

Makes sense. What most folks don't realize is that so much of the wire used in 2 channel and now headphone cables (nearly all the major players are entering your segment guys and gals) are manufactured at the same plants and so many companies are using Cardas wire for their cables to their own specs. Silver was always and still is the mystery metal used in cables. You guys are buying up the Zeus and Spartan's (plus others) because they are special in their price ranges. As much as folks want to have fun with audio, you really want tonality and true to the recording sound. As Nic says folks want to use cables as tone controls basically. 2 Chanel guys do the same thing. I personally buy my gear for IT's sound. I want my cables to be as neutral as you can get and to 'get out of the way'. There is no perfect cable. If an IEM sounds right, it will be full and lush when it's supposed to and harsh on a great sax solo or raspy on some cool vocals when called for. You need the micro and macro detail along with the pre and post percussive. The one area where headphones and IEM's crush 2 channel is in this regard. This is why cables are so important here. You can't mask these details or you will lose the soul of the music regardless of genre. This is why I'm excited to get my EE CIEM's and then give them great run through with the stock cable on my AK380cu and amp. Then I'll get a nice balanced cable to use with it. I won't be able to afford the Pono balanced connection cable that I can use with my Ayre QX5, but even single ended this amp is special enough for me to use as a reference with the CIEM.

this is one reason I read everyone's posts and try to learn which I think I'm doing. I know that the cable market is about to blow up in the next 6 months or so with the big players getting into it, but the IEM market is still not big enough for them to get involved. I personally think they eventually will, but as I said you have smaller specialty companies because the wire used is so different than what's used in even many headphone cables due to the limitations I mentioned earlier. It's very interesting stuff to say the least guys. I use to own only tubed electronics (even my first DAC's were tubed) and rolled tubes like a freak. You guys roll cables in the same way, lol. Just a blast to read and watch.

 

[Gavin C4]

From warm to bright:
1960 2-wire > no 5 > Zen > Ares II > Horus

2-wire is a predominantly warm, smooth, natural sound, with a characterstic black background that gives it a romantic, intimate feel. Due to its emphatically warm sound it is not the most versatile, but pairs well with Zeus ADEL to give it warmth down low. PW no 5 has a warm tone with an accurate timbre. It sounds natural, but still provides a clean, articulate, and well-separated sound. Zen is perhaps the most tonally balanced of all, with a lightly warm yet clear and open sound. It has a smooth top-end, but is not overly warm. Works well for both instrument-based as electronic music. Ares II is an interesting mixture of warm, bright, and even somewhat dark sound. It has a lifted mid-bass, providing a warm tone and body to its instruments, with a slight lift in the lower treble, accentuating string instruments for instance. The following mid- to upper-treble is laidback, resulting in a darkish background. As with no 5, it provides an airy stage with good separation. Horus has a neutral tone with a lifted lower treble, and more linear mid- to upper treble. So it sounds more clean and upfront in its micro-detail compared to the other cables, although its timbre is not as natural.

When my pair arrive and after some time of brain burn-in (just in case if it makes a difference), I would definitely give all these cable a try. While I love to have a warmer lower end / bass, I also love the detail of instrument perceived. I am worried that the cost of my cable for the Zeus would cost up to another IEM...... Hope the No.5 / Zen / Ares II for 2.5mm / 3.5mm will do a great job from preventing me to get more exotic cables.

 

[rawrster]

Just out of curiosity, is there any company out there that does a reshell of an adel universal? I have the Spartan and really like them however the size is borderline too big and my thought process is that this would be fixed with a custom version. Although if I was to purchase a custom, I'd probably get the non adel version. From my understanding, the non adel is a bit smaller so I could also potentially see if I could trade for the non adel version.

 

[Gavin C4]

Just out of curiosity, is there any company out there that does a reshell of an adel universal? I have the Spartan and really like them however the size is borderline too big and my thought process is that this would be fixed with a custom version. Although if I was to purchase a custom, I'd probably get the non adel version. From my understanding, the non adel is a bit smaller so I could also potentially see if I could trade for the non adel version.

Yes there are companies that do reshell, for example AURE Custom. This is a company from Taiwan. They are experienced in reshell services. For the reshell, you may even want to ask them to remove the Adel. However, for most of the cases, the safest pick of cuz is to go with the original because sound may change after the shell.
Or you may go for the simple route, sell the Spartan and fund for a custom.

 

[Bina]

Just out of curiosity, is there any company out there that does a reshell of an adel universal? I have the Spartan and really like them however the size is borderline too big and my thought process is that this would be fixed with a custom version. Although if I was to purchase a custom, I'd probably get the non adel version. From my understanding, the non adel is a bit smaller so I could also potentially see if I could trade for the non adel version.

I also saw some Adel reshells from Hong Kong Lear.

 

[phase0]

Well, "very soon" ended up becoming three hours, but I pulled through eventually. Calling all Zeus owners! This is the entry-level cable for you!

Effect Audio x Music Sanctuary Eos – Enter the Dragon​

Pardon my ignorance but what is the difference between that cable and the one the Zues comes with? Cause doesn't it come with an Effect Audio cable? I think mine did.