GUSTARD H10 High-current Discrete Class A output Stage Headphone Amplifier

[Lohb]

   
Does it come with a very bad one? You can get a good wire for around a dollar from China, may cost a bit more depending on where you live.But any electronics store should have them.

I'm looking for the higher quality stuff. At the price H10 is at there are quite a few mods and upgrades that look good 3M EMI shielding/opamp rolling....regarding power cords - I'd like to see for myself if stock generic cabling vs audiophile power cords are hype. The only way is try yourself and if nothing can be discerned then no big loss....

 

[blasjw]

  Can anyone suggest cable material + plug upgrade for H10 wall plug ? Preferably a good quality Chinese seller vs branded western $$$$$ stuff...
Anyone using power conditioner before the amp ?

I'm just using a 1.5m Pangea Audio AC-14 Signature power cable with an Emotiva CMX-6 Common Mode AC Line Filter.  Both pretty reasonably priced in my opinion.

 

[blasjw]

   
Does it come with a very bad one? You can get a good wire for around a dollar from China, may cost a bit more depending on where you live.But any electronics store should have them.
 
edit: just realized you may be looking for something that looks better. Copper Colour makes cool looking ones: http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=15353948567&ali_refid=a3_430008_1006:1102238374:N:%E7%94%B5%E6%BA%90%E7%BA%BF:6e143d2263ce01f4f61637654d373329&ali_trackid=1_6e143d2263ce01f4f61637654d373329&spm=a230r.1.0.0.5vZH9t

Yes, it's really bad.  Super skinny.

 

[DecentLevi]

  I'm actually very interested in everyone's input on their cable experiences. I value the opinion of people with Gustard gear in particular .
 
I'm another one that just recently got an aftermarket cable (an AWG20 copper cable from Forza Audioworks), and I also feel like they've changed how my headphones sound. I've actually been primarily listening to the LCD-2's with the cable, and I've been enjoying the experience very much with the H10 and X12.
 
The whole setup is exceptionally musical. Energetic, yet not fatiguing. Deep, textured bass. Engaging, emotional mids. Smooth across the frequency range, but detailed. All of these words apply to the H10 and/or X12 as well, though, so it's not necessarily the cable. But I feel like the cable might be bringing up the LCD-2's to a level closer to LCD-X's.
 
There's never been a blind test that showed that cables DO make a difference, but our brains and the way we perceive sensory input is extremely complex!

Hello, are you using the balanced or normal ended cable? And was is the extended bass version of the cable? And lastly, I was curious if you have done any A/B comparisons with your stock cable versus with the copper cable - could you literally hear a difference? That would be interesting to know, thanks.

 

[Lohb]

I see the sole H10 seller on TaoBao also sells power cords at 268 Yuan (+ buyer agent fees + shipping fees) . Decent enough price to AB the stock skinny cord...I won't be going down the $250 for a power cord road for a $300 amp path, that is for sure.... I just pulled up an ABX comparison thread of power cords on this site and that was the average price range.
 
huang-cs may be the designer of the amp if I remember right ? Is it easy to communicate directly with him on that site to bypass the purchase agents who charge a fee for buying on your behalf ?

 

[Arnotts]

  Hello, are you using the balanced or normal ended cable? And was is the extended bass version of the cable? And lastly, I was curious if you have done any A/B comparisons with your stock cable versus with the copper cable - could you literally hear a difference? That would be interesting to know, thanks.

Neutrik 1/4" connector. This is the extended bass AWG20 copper cable from FAW.
 
I did an A/B the other night (not blind... yet) and yes I literally felt that I heard a difference. Bass felt like it had more presence and sub-bass notes were more audible. Sound felt like it had less "edge", it was smoother, but still detailed. Soundstage initially felt like it had a little less depth, but this feels like it's improving with more listening.
 
Whether or not my perception of changed sound is real or not, I don't know. But our brains and the way we perceive sound is very complex. Confirmation bias may be a huge part of what I'm perceiving 

 
I'll tell you that the change I heard did not feel like I could be mistaken. I was never debating with myself about whether I was really hearing a difference or not, it felt quite audible to me. I'm genuinely considering buying the top-of-the-line Forza cable for my LCD-X's and keeping the AWG20 cable on the LCD-2's. 
 
I have to admit, I never even dreamed that I would ever hear a difference in cables.

 

[Lohb]

  Neutrik 1/4" connector. This is the extended bass AWG20 copper cable from FAW.
 
I did an A/B the other night (not blind... yet) and yes I literally felt that I heard a difference. Bass felt like it had more presence and sub-bass notes were more audible. Sound felt like it had less "edge", it was smoother, but still detailed. Soundstage initially felt like it had a little less depth, but this feels like it's improving with more listening.
 
Whether or not my perception of changed sound is real or not, I don't know. But our brains and the way we perceive sound is very complex. Confirmation bias may be a huge part of what I'm perceiving 

 
I'll tell you that the change I heard did not feel like I could be mistaken. I was never debating with myself about whether I was really hearing a difference or not, it felt quite audible to me. I'm genuinely considering buying the top-of-the-line Forza cable for my LCD-X's and keeping the AWG20 cable on the LCD-2's. 
 
I have to admit, I never even dreamed that I would ever hear a difference in cables.

I went for an 18AWG for my LCD-s...not so bad flexibility..4-line braid. I'm guessing 18-22awg may be more suited for current hungry 'Audeze mini-speakers'.

 

[lukeap69]

I just ordered Copper Series HPC Mk2 from Forza 20AWG (for extended bass.) This is a customised cable though, it is divided into 2 parts - the master cable is from the amp end to just a bit after the splitter. Then the slave cable (set) is for the headphone part so I can have different sets of these to be used for different headphones. At this time, I have ordered only 2 sets of 'slave cable' (1) for my HD800 and (2) for my Oppo PM-2. If in future, I will need a different connectors for like say Audeze or Hifiman headphones, I will only need to order sets of slave cables...
 
I don't put my money on cable differences as I believe the SQ change is small, however when I've tried the Toxic cable of Punit on my HD800 and Glenn OTL amp, I've noticed how the highs have been smoother and the bottom end more impactful. Could be placebo, but I don't care. I heard the difference and that's all that matters to me.
 

 

[swannie007]

  I just ordered Copper Series HPC Mk2 from Forza 20AWG (for extended bass.) This is a customised cable though, it is divided into 2 parts - the master cable is from the amp end to just a bit after the splitter. Then the slave cable (set) is for the headphone part so I can have different sets of these to be used for different headphones. At this time, I have ordered only 2 sets of 'slave cable' (1) for my HD800 and (2) for my Oppo PM-2. If in future, I will need a different connectors for like say Audeze or Hifiman headphones, I will only need to order sets of slave cables...
 
I don't put my money on cable differences as I believe the SQ change is small, however when I've tried the Toxic cable of Punit on my HD800 and Glenn OTL amp, I've noticed how the highs have been smoother and the bottom end more impactful. Could be placebo, but I don't care. I heard the difference and that's all that matters to me.
 

You got that right. You heard a difference and that is ALL that matters! Enjoy.

 

[lukeap69]

  You got that right. You heard a difference and that is ALL that matters! Enjoy.

Cheers my swabbie friend!

 

[swannie007]

This is a very personal hobby and we should let our ears be our guide as we all hear things differently. One mans' meat is another mans poison.

 

[Liu Junyuan]

This thread draws such great, open-minded people.

 

[lukeap69]

Yup LJ, most swabbies care for what one will enjoy and less of negativity (if any.) 

 

[Arnotts]

  Yup LJ, most swabbies care for what one will enjoy and less of negativity (if any.) 

Not only is this the most positive way of going about things, I also feel like it's the most logical.
 
People who lean too far towards measurements and pure objectivity lose sight of just how subjective our hearing is

 
Btw, very clever idea by splitting up your cable into a master and slaves. But what if you enjoy the AWG20 so much that you get the itch to upgrade again?! I'm already considering buying the TOTL Forza cable for the X's...

 

[lukeap69]

  Not only is this the most positive way of going about things, I also feel like it's the most logical.
 
People who lean too far towards measurements and pure objectivity lose sight of just how subjective our hearing is

 
Btw, very clever idea by splitting up your cable into a master and slaves. But what if you enjoy the AWG20 so much that you get the itch to upgrade again?! I'm already considering buying the TOTL Forza cable for the X's...

Thanks Arnotts.
 
If I felt the itch to upgrade, I will get the master cable first... I don't think the short slave (1 foot) cable will have much impact.