[twister6]

This is absolutely correct, but almost every wire used is made by several thin woven wires, litz or not. A solid cable would be extremely rigid to be used with earphones.
Therefore a 23awg cable would made by a higher number of this thin woven wires compared to a 26awg.

I think the main reason to go from 4 to 8 wires is that this solution is cheaper than engineering a brand new cable with a lower awg.

Yeah, there is a gray area now what considered to be just a litz (maybe all uniform thin woven wires?) vs multi stranding (a multi-sized stranding with a high strand count like in Horus). Manufacturers are trying to get creative, trying engineer something different. As you said, it's easier than re-iventing the wire.

And another one, bringing out shielding to a separate connector for an ultimate separation (like in HSA VENOM) - now you a partitioning the cable below y-splitter, less mobile but pushing a limit of more isolation and ground separation.

 

[kubig123]

Yeah, there is a gray area now what considered to be just a litz (maybe all uniform thin woven wires?) vs multi stranding (a multi-sized stranding with a high strand count like in Horus). Manufacturers are trying to get creative, trying engineer something different. As you said, it's easier than re-iventing the wire.

And another one, bringing out shielding to a separate connector for an ultimate separation (like in HSA VENOM) - now you a partitioning the cable below y-splitter, less mobile but pushing a limit of more isolation and ground separation.

yes,
I'm very interested in the Venom. I actually ordered one with a 4.4mm Furutech plug, but I wonder the real application of the shielding, for the 4.4mm plug the shielding is connected to the 5th pole, but with the WM1Z, if I'm not mistaken, the 5th pole is not connected to the ground.

 

[twister6]

yes,
I'm very interested in the Venom. I actually ordered one with a 4.4mm Furutech plug, but I wonder the real application of the shielding, for the 4.4mm plug the shielding is connected to the 5th pole, but with the WM1Z, if I'm not mistaken, the 5th pole is not connected to the ground.

Are you sure it's not connected to the ground? Btw, I did a little test, plugged in 3.5mm cable to SE jack of WM1Z, and was able to check continuity of the ground pin to the chassis, meaning the ground of SE jack goes to internal ckt ground and tied to chassis which is an expanded ground So, you better keep your WM1Z in a case without touching the chassis when listening from SE jack and walking across the carpet lol!!! Otherwise you can get some ESD pops.

 

[kubig123]

Are you sure it's not connected to the ground? Btw, I did a little test, plugged in 3.5mm cable to SE jack of WM1Z, and was able to check continuity of the ground pin to the chassis, meaning the ground of SE jack goes to internal ckt ground and tied to chassis which is an expanded ground So, you better keep your WM1Z in a case without touching the chassis when listening from SE jack and walking across the carpet lol!!! Otherwise you can get some ESD pops.

Good idea!
I just got a right angle pentaconn, I’ll check if there is continuity between the ground and the chassis.

 

[noplsestar]

Few words about Eos, which I am also really enjoying at the moment. The difference between Ares II and Eos is the plug and high quality platinum-based solder. People might expect these are just minor parts in comparison to the wire, but they contribute a rather large portion of the signature, if I would estimate maybe around 30% or more. One must not forget these form the contact point between the cable and the other parts of the chain, and influence aspects like the resistance of the signal. Eos is not my first experience with the Furutech / Platinum solder. A while back I had my plusSound GPC reterminated from 2.5 to 3.5 by MS, and they used their favorite combo at the time consisting of the Furutech plug with Mundorf silver/gold solder. When I got the cable back, it had lost its characteristic completely; it transformed from a warm natural sound to a clear, open sound, pretty much void from warmth; in an a way it resembled going from Zeus to Zeus-ADEL for me. Other characteristics as the stage and midrange remained similar, but the difference in tone was striking. I sent back the cable, and they replaced the Mundorf solder with the platinum solder, making it have the same plug/solder as the Eos. While the GPC still wasn't nearly as warm as it was first, it had a smoother, more natural signature.

So moving on to Eos, which is a variation of Ares II, but with a different signature. Ares II is warmer, while its lower treble is also a bit brighter. Eos has a more linear signature that comes closer to neutral, due to a slightly more elevated mid- to upper-treble. Not to the extent of something like Horus or 1960 4-wire which really pushes out microdetail, but its finer detail is more pronounced than Ares II, making it more resolved overall. It is a bit of a musical variation of neutral in a way, that sounds detailed, but presents it in a smooth, coherent manner. Its mid-bass is slightly elevated, but clear on impact, just very enjoyable to listen to, while it maintains a similar airiness as Ares II. While its treble is smoother, it is also more transparent; just a lovely lower treble tone. Overall, Ares II is warmer and darker, although its timbre is slightly more accurate for instruments in comparison. Eos on the other hand is more versatile for me, as I also enjoy synthetic-based music. Unfortunately I can't tell whether or nor people will find it complementary or worth the upgrade to Ares II if they already own it, but I personally do. I don't find Eos good for its pricerange; I find it good regardless of its price.

Your impressions about the plug correlate with those of @twister6 ´s when he wrote about the psquare plug and that it contributes to the sound of the cable quite a bit (like greater soundstage). But the plug of the EOS is not the psquare plug, am I right? How do they differ? I guess the psquare it a bit "above" the one of the EOS, because they use it for their cable flagships?

 

[Deezel177]

Your impressions about the plug correlate with those of @twister6 ´s when he wrote about the psquare plug and that it contributes to the sound of the cable quite a bit (like greater soundstage). But the plug of the EOS is not the psquare plug, am I right? How do they differ? I guess the psquare it a bit "above" the one of the EOS, because they use it for their cable flagships?

The Eos uses a Furutech plug. I believe it’s a full copper core and a rhodium plating. The Horus and Lionheart’s PSquared plug is based on Oyaide’s Platinum-Palladium plug. You can’t really compare how the two products rank based on how they’re used, because the Furutech plug was selected by Music Sanctuary; not Effect Audio. In terms of price and in terms of company reputation in Japan, Furutech products are actually more highly-regarded than Oyaide products. I’ve never A/B compared the two, but the general consensus says Furutech is the top dog.

 

[chaiyuta]

@noplsestar : Based on my experience, PSquared (in other word, Oyaide PP) provides lush vocal, more bass quantity than gold plated plug and eliminates any harsh treble but trade-off to smaller sound stage compared to rodium-plated plug. While EOS plug (which is Furutech CF-7254) provide the best of detail retrieval and enlarge soundstage, but trade-off to less bass quantity compared to thicker gold-plated plugs and Oyaide PP plug.

Can't be said Oyaide PP is the best of all plug. Both provide different sound tendency.

 

[Deezel177]

@noplsestar : Based on my experience, PSquared (in other word, Oyaide PP) provides lush vocal, more bass quantity than gold plated plug and eliminates any harsh treble but trade-off to smaller sound stage compared to rodium-plated plug. While EOS plug (which is Furutech CF-7254) provide the best of detail retrieval and enlarge soundstage, but trade-off to less bass quantity compared to thicker gold-plated plugs and Oyaide PP plug.

Can't be said Oyaide PP is the best of all plug. Both provide different sound tendency.

This matches my impressions of the Lionheart and the Eos, but of course, the difference in wire composition kinda makes the comparison unfair. But your impressions are very valid.

 

[chaiyuta]

Let's see once PSquared Plug becomes available to other EA cables for instance, Thor Silver 2+. I guess they might compensate each other well. hehe.

P.S. Oyaide PP is sold as DIY part only 3.5 mm. 3-pole, therefore 2.5 mm. 4-pole version is limited to EA PSquared plug for EA cables only.

 

[Deezel177]

Let's see once PSquared Plug becomes available to other EA cables for instance, Thor Silver 2+. I guess they might compensate each other well. hehe.

P.S. Oyaide PP is sold as DIY part only 3.5 mm. 3-pole, therefore 2.5 mm. 4-pole version is limited to EA PSquared plug for EA cables only.

Yes, I guess that's why they don't have the signature green lines that the 3.5mm version does.

 

[twister6]

Yes, I guess that's why they don't have the signature green lines that the 3.5mm version does.

I have been told that only 3.5mm Psquare will have green separation lines. 2.5mm Psquare won't have those lines, and Eric confirmed that Horus comes by default with 2.5mm Psquare, the review sample I received didn't have green lines.

 

[PinkyPowers]

In the Dominion of Dreams – A Review of the Effect Audio Leonidas
​

 

[hattrick15]

In the Dominion of Dreams – A Review of the Effect Audio Leonidas
​

Great review! It's clear you love the Leonidas with the Fourte, but what do you think about how the Leonidas would match with the A18 Tzar?

 

[PinkyPowers]

Great review! It's clear you love the Leonidas with the Fourte, but what do you think about how the Leonidas would match with the A18 Tzar?

I tried really hard to plug Leo into the A18, but since I don't have it, or even heard it, my efforts were rejected by the cable. I got the impression Leonidas wants nothing to do with those IEMs.

lol. No. I'm sure it would sound amazing. Without having any chance to verify this, it's just a guess. But Encore, Zeus, and Fourté all benefited, so...

 

[Omega139]

Hey guys,

I was looking to buy a new balanced cable for my K10's. I was looking for something in the 300-400 range. In terms of voicing, I definitely don't want something that will bring out more warmth and bass, since my K10's are already kind of warm. I was looking for something that would give me more clarity, kind of like my Andromedas