[RenEh]

What is the best cable upgrade for Ananda?

Oh boy I’m about to get some hate for this. I wasn’t a believer for different cables sounding different until I upgraded to balanced cables. With that said, the stock cable gets a lot of flack for build, but I’ve always been happy with the way it sounded.

At my local dealer I tried a $1,000 nordost solid core silver/copper cable, but it was apallingly bad, too dark.

Next up, I ordered a custom cable I ended up having to re-wire myself using van damme cable and rean connectors. Very detailed, but overly analytical and sharp, it took all the fun out of listening to these headphones.

Finally, I ordered a periapt balanced cable. It sounded the most similar to the stock cable with better dynamics, tighter and more pronounced bass, and a much softer and smoother sound that was still more detailed than stock that made the Anandas just a joy to listen to. This is the cable I’d recommend and they’re so cheap.

 

[oqvist]

Stock cable is as good as the elear cable and the oidio cable I got. No real difference.

 

[Jackhomo]

Which Oidio cable did you take? Silver?

 

[Dramlin]

Finally, I ordered a periapt balanced cable. It sounded the most similar to the stock cable with better dynamics, tighter and more pronounced bass, and a much softer and smoother sound that was still more detailed than stock that made the Anandas just a joy to listen to. This is the cable I’d recommend and they’re so cheap.

GREAT recommendation! Thank you! I've now ordered a Periapt and I'll share my impressions once I've spent some time with it.

Up to this point I've tried 10+ cables for the Ananda's, but I always end up back with the stock cable for sound quality reasons alone. My 2nd best is a PCOCC-A balanced cable from a 3rd party seller on Amazon. That one is sounds a bit fuller and more refined from the stock cable, but also lacking a bit of finer detail. Looking firward to trying the Periapt.

 

[bagwell359]

Oh boy I’m about to get some hate for this. I wasn’t a believer for different cables sounding different until I upgraded to balanced cables.

Hold up a second. Just want to clarify. Reasons balanced cable can sound different from SE.

1. The amp in question puts out more watts, perhaps at a lower impedance, and has a different damping factor balanced compared to SE. In my case (Ragnarock 1) the difference is massive and obvious).

2. Balanced has better noise rejection. At times I have heard SE sound hashier than balanced using the same wire and insulation.

3. All Cable has 3 electronic characteristics, if your former SE cable and current balanced cable are made differently from each other, chances are extremely high than there are also the edge cases were the combination of amp, cable, cans will actually sound different from each other with your two cables. This is most easily heard with tough to drive estat and ribbon speakers - which is not the case here.

 

[oqvist]

Which Oidio cable did you take? Silver?

Copper. Bigger chance hearing a difference if you go by silver I believe. I tested one and yes it did change the sound a bit.

My oidio cable is balanced on my thx 789 AAA it didn´t make a difference on that amp. Didn´t expect it needing more power though but you never know.

 

[Dramlin]

Just my opinion, but I'd stay away from silver wire (plated or pure) for the Ananda's. The Ananda's are already pushing the limit on perceived clarity. Adding silver to the mix will thin out the sound further, especially in the mids. High quality copper is the best bet to improve some aspects of the sound quality without any detriment.

 

[misteral201103]

What is the best cable upgrade for Ananda?

I don't know about 'best' but I used the silver plated copper cables that I bought for my 400i and they work wonderfully, not altering the signature which made me fall in love with the Ananda's in the first place. Mine were not particularly expensive but do the job very nicely.

 

[SilverEars]

1. The amp in question puts out more watts, perhaps at a lower impedance, and has a different damping factor balanced compared to SE. In my case (Ragnarock 1) the difference is massive and obvious).

Actually the impedance is increased or doubled compared to single ended. That may cause the more significant difference that one hears from single-ended. If not volume matched(since balanced is 4 times the output as SE), balanced will sound louder, and cause perceived difference in response based on the Fletcher-Munson equal loudness countour response we inherently have with our ear sensitivity.

I'm not saying balanced doesn't make a difference, but it's generally a good idea to keep mindful of the above

 

[bagwell359]

Actually the impedance is increased or doubled compared to single ended. That may cause the more significant difference that one hears from single-ended. If not volume matched(since balanced is 4 times the output as SE), balanced will sound louder, and cause perceived difference in response based on the Fletcher-Munson equal loudness countour response we inherently have with our ear sensitivity.

I'm not saying balanced doesn't make a difference, but it's generally a good idea to keep mindful of the above

With the Ragnarok, SE the input impedance is 3.3 ohms and with the balanced it's < .1 ohms.

There are no hard and fast rules for the ratio of power output or input impedance between SE and balanced. Some are equal, and some are well off - like the Rag 1 (15 wpc@32 ohms vs 3 wpc@32m ohms).

The Rag 2 is 24 wpc@32 ohm vs 6 wpc@32 ohms BTW.

 

[SilverEars]

With the Ragnarok, SE the input impedance is 3.3 ohms and with the balanced it's < .1 ohms.

There are no hard and fast rules for the ratio of power output or input impedance between SE and balanced. Some are equal, and some are well off - like the Rag 1 (15 wpc@32 ohms vs 3 wpc@32m ohms).

The Rag 2 is 24 wpc@32 ohm vs 6 wpc@32 ohms BTW.

Interesting. I have seen spec for a DAP that was half of the impedance of SE for balanced in which I thought was either an error or rare, but it's usually double the single ended. My BHA-1 balanced output impedance is 4 ohms, twice the single-ended. Which follows what is expected for a typical balanced design, but Rag is obviously an outlier. Lol.

 

[omniweltall]

With the Ragnarok, SE the input impedance is 3.3 ohms and with the balanced it's < .1 ohms.

We gotta put the Gain into consideration as well. Perhaps, that SE is in high gain. With other settings all the same, Balanced is usually twice the SE in terms of output impedance.

 

[descloud]

I don't know about 'best' but I used the silver plated copper cables that I bought for my 400i and they work wonderfully, not altering the signature which made me fall in love with the Ananda's in the first place. Mine were not particularly expensive but do the job very nicely.

Could I ask, how do you find the sound difference between the 400i and the Ananda?

 

[bagwell359]

We gotta put the Gain into consideration as well. Perhaps, that SE is in high gain. With other settings all the same, Balanced is usually twice the SE in terms of output impedance.

Higher input impedance is worse. I got the stats from schiit rag 1 manual. Given the wpc they quote, I'd say they are quoting both in high gain, but that's not clear. Two cans I had didn't show much difference between balanced and SE - fostex fh500rp and MD 4xx - and on Dap's too. But everything else? Huge advantage for balanced and i listen at such low levels I was maxed out on HFM HE-6 at 1 pm max gain most cans medium gain 1130ish so it's not the vol advantage that's coloring my opinion. Its the tighter bass and more nuanced mids and treble over SE. Less fizz more clarity. The better the can the more obvious the difference.

 

[misteral201103]

Could I ask, how do you find the sound difference between the 400i and the Ananda?

Oh man...If I remember today, I'll do a quick A/B and reply again but off the top of my head I'd say this:
The 400i sounds clear and well defined across the frequency range, with the bass and sub-bass a tiny bit lacking (not exactly bass-shy but they don't dig deep). When I listened to the Ananda, it made the 400i sound almost veiled. There is a big jump in details and micro-details, there is considerably more range in the lower registers and a big increase in width, depth and especially height. To me, the 400i is a good suggestion of what a reference signature might sound like, while the Ananda actually delivers it. As I said, I'll try to A/B today to give a better idea. I bought the 400i on a whim because the price was low and I really liked them a lot. I demoed the Ananda and fell in love instantly with the incredibly realistic presentation. I waited as long as I could for the inevitable price drop and then grabbed them. I don't doubt that the Arya is even better but with the gear I have, the Ananda paired much better - my setup needs to be mobile and I didn't want to invest in a new DAP or portable amp.