[damobananna]

 BTW How ever it sounds i am pretty sure this cable from unknown maker  will slap the Westone epic in the face, they look nice and all but pffft i think the epics sound is severely lacking (mine are for sale if you are looking please disregard).
I know this is a high end thread but i scored these for 110 usd the guy said they are privatly built but use dhc wires they are for ump50 the copper is assured to be type 2 litz occ copper and i believe that is all i need, anything more than 200 a cable is getting excessive not saying as a fact its just what i think
 

 

[teds headfood]

that looks like one of my new T2 occ copper cables. no they are not DHC WIRE but peter did recommend my new wire manufacturer as my old one (hakugei metals) were complete aholes to deal with.

 

[damobananna]

sweet , pair well with umpro 50's or you think i should have gone with silver like everyone else?

 

[mdiogofs]

  Rhapsodio RSD Silver Litz 8-braid ($600)
 
Rhapsodio’s Silver Litz cable has a nice bass texture, but colder mid-bass presentation along with a black background. This creates a very clean stage, with a slight recess in the lower midrange. The upper treble is extended, and the Sivler Litz can be considered a high resolution cable. The treble has good sparkle, and overall the cable has a slight V-shape. This shares some similarities with the Toxic Silver Widow; but the Silver Litz has higher resolution, while simultaneously having a blacker and colder atmosphere, while the Silver Widow has a closer to neutral background. The Silver Litz is an excellent cable to pair with warm iems, or those seeking better definition.
 
classification: winter
 

 
Hey! Is this the same cable? http://www.rhapsodiostore.com/products/rsd-silver
 
In the website pic there is a MMCX connector but in you pic it is 2 pin... 
 
I would'n mind getting a slightly thinner sound of my S-EM9, since it is a warm IEM...What do you think? Do you think they will match good? Looking for a cable and this is a great price I think with the discount...There is also the Luna MK2, what do you think? But I guess I don't want to spend that much...

 

[flinkenick]

   
Hey! Is this the same cable? http://www.rhapsodiostore.com/products/rsd-silver
 
In the website pic there is a MMCX connector but in you pic it is 2 pin... 
 
I would'n mind getting a slightly thinner sound of my S-EM9, since it is a warm IEM...What do you think? Do you think they will match good? Looking for a cable and this is a great price I think with the discount...There is also the Luna MK2, what do you think? But I guess I don't want to spend that much...

 
Well here is a mmcx version with the S-EM9 hehe.
 
You can order whichever plug or connector you like. I had it first in mmcx for the S-EM9, but then i got the 2-pin version and had the cable changed to 2-pin. 
 
TBH, I find the S-EM9 as it is already a bit thin. It has a somewhat distant midrange so it's one of the leanest sounding of all my iems. That being said, the RSD Silver Litz will indeed make it thinner by pushing back the lower midrange. It has a 72 * 0.06 Litz wire construction, and is one of the cleanest and highest resolving Silver Litz cables I've heard. The downside however was that it is also somewhat cold and it has some microphonics. I absolutely loved the combination for electronic music, but it lacked some emotion for band-based music. They're selling the last ones at discount now btw.

 

[jmills8]

ALO COPPER/SILVER 8 Braid.

 

[Dan E]

Hello everyone,
 
After many months of intensive testing I cut down my candidates to 4-5 cables and would be happy about further help/thoughts/impressions from your side. I use the Plenue S, paired with the FitEar 335 SR.
 
My favorites so far are:
 
Rhapsodio copper wizard
YY Pro Neptune
YY Pro Pluto
Whiplash TWag V3 T-series (12 connectors)
Plussound X8 gold plated copper
 
 
I am looking for a cable with maximum sound stage. Since I am listening to any kind of music (from classic to metal and electro) I found that most of the metal mixes (like the X8 Trimetal) reduce the sound stage too much or amplify stages, which is not universally favorable for me. Furthermore, I am looking for a crystal clear sound on all stages, such that instrumentals sound awesome. But for fast metal, the sound should be well separated and full on all stages.
 
My request looks like the need for a miracle cable :/ I am not even sure if anything like this exists. If you have thoughts about my choice or can recomment further high-end wonder cables (price doesn't matter) please let me know
 
One more genreal question: since OCC silver has the highest conductivity of all metals used in building cables, is it right to say that a super pure, many braided OCC silver should physically have the clearest sound and widest soundstage, since it is the best conductor available?
 
Best regards and many many thanks,
Dan

 

[PLUSSOUND]

   

Thanks for considering our X8 cable as one of your top pick!
Yes, there is a wire that will offer what you are looking for. We've sent a PM with more info.

 

[Rei87]

  Hello everyone,
 
After many months of intensive testing I cut down my candidates to 4-5 cables and would be happy about further help/thoughts/impressions from your side. I use the Plenue S, paired with the FitEar 335 SR.
 
My favorites so far are:
 
Rhapsodio copper wizard
YY Pro Neptune
YY Pro Pluto
Whiplash TWag V3 T-series (12 connectors)
Plussound X8 gold plated copper
 
 
I am looking for a cable with maximum sound stage. Since I am listening to any kind of music (from classic to metal and electro) I found that most of the metal mixes (like the X8 Trimetal) reduce the sound stage too much or amplify stages, which is not universally favorable for me. Furthermore, I am looking for a crystal clear sound on all stages, such that instrumentals sound awesome. But for fast metal, the sound should be well separated and full on all stages.
 
My request looks like the need for a miracle cable :/ I am not even sure if anything like this exists. If you have thoughts about my choice or can recomment further high-end wonder cables (price doesn't matter) please let me know
 
One more genreal question: since OCC silver has the highest conductivity of all metals used in building cables, is it right to say that a super pure, many braided OCC silver should physically have the clearest sound and widest soundstage, since it is the best conductor available?
 
Best regards and many many thanks,
Dan

hi
If you're looking for the ultimate soundstage (width), I would highly recommend the plussound X8GPS. It has the widest soundstage of ANY cables that I've heard to date. The problem however, is that it is artificially wide, and can make the presentation a little, unrealistic. Here's a pic of my own plussound X8 GPS. However, because I've opted to use mundorf supreme silver gold solder, and changed the braid to a lose square braid, the sound may differ slightly from the standard X8 from plussound itself. (Yes, the solder and braid use does affect the sound in subtle but audible ways). 



However, if you can consider a cable with a wide yet realistic soundstage, yet packs a very good 3D imaging and is very transparent on the details while being slightly on the warm side, I will suggest the PWaudio 1960 cable in its 4 wire form (its a coaxial design, so a 4 wire would be equivalent to the standard 8 wire). I've heard the entire lineup from effect audio, Toxic, Whiplash and plusssound, and nothing comes close to that. WIthin DHC, I suspect that the PRION will be of a similar caliber, prehaps even bettering it, based on what I heard from the PRION wire in an inter-connect form. However, the PRION only comes in headphone form (sorry, no IEM 2-pin form), and while mindblowingly good, is prohibitively expensive. 

 

[Dan E]

Hello,
 
thanks for suggestions and impressions! I tested the GPS X8 as well and found it inferior to a clean 8 braid OCC silver cable at first (so I didn't include it in my list), since it took away the physical punchiness of the sound. I love the feeling of strings and drums picking my eardrum. This analyticity got lost with softening the treble with the gold plating. However, on the second try I started to like the cable and am thinking about its purchase.
 
For how long have you been using the cable? Do you get tired or started to dislike its sound signature at some point or is it also after longer use a top choice?
 
 
What I like about the copper wizard is that its soundstage is even wider in my mind. Its extremely natural, so any piece of music sounds like people sit around you and play. That is indeed gorgeous - and I think not too many cable makers offer an 8-braid balanced OCC copper cable.
 
As for PWaudio.. I am living in HK and can test all the brands easily, so that is going massively for me. However, since I couldn't find PWaudio anywhere I may not dare to risk an online purchase over an awesome cable that I tested intensively myself. The prion sounds amazing, but as you said it is not available for IEMS :/
 
The struggle is still real, but I am glad to see comments and opinions on the current selection
 
Best,
Dan

 

[flinkenick]

The Rhapsodio Copper Wizard is warm from its mid-bass and slightly dark overall, with a natural tonality, though not overly sparkly in the upper midrange. However, it is to date still the highest resolving cable I heard and that alone makes it special for me. This counts specifically for the 8-braid, the 4-braid misses a bit of its magic. I think partially because the sleeving only goes until the splitter, but the difference was noticeable. To be honest, I don't remember its soundstage being wider than normal, but soundstage for cables is not a priority for me. The few times soundstages appeared more spacious was with hybrid designs, though coming at the cost of the bass presentation. But each cable always seems to have his own up and downsides, including the very nice but expensive ones over a $1000.. I've yet to come across the one that can do it all.

 

[mdiogofs]

I imagine the profit of makers on those 1000$ copper cables...And many of them come from China, the country where labour work (and materials) is very cheap...They must go to the end of the Earth to get the most rare materials available and magical "stuff" to put on a...4 feet copper wire. It's insane. And silver cables are almost the same, although the material is a bit more expensive. Keep buying this...Audiophiles buy list: a 1000-1500$ IEM (with cable) and a...1000$ cable. In my head, a 25% of the IEM price for a proved good cable could be acceptable, could be...Above that let's just call it cable makers taking advantage of audiophiles "craziness", with greed. Diminishing returns kicking with the strongest force there is. This is just my 2 cents.
 
Anyway, there's an 8 braid copper for less than 200$ : http://www.head-fi.org/products/null-audio-vitesse-copper-cable/reviews/13242 and it's stated very good material and performance. From 200$ to 1000$...That cable must give sound orgasms every second 

 

 

[Rei87]

  Hello,
 
 
For how long have you been using the cable? Do you get tired or started to dislike its sound signature at some point or is it also after longer use a top choice?
 
As for PWaudio.. I am living in HK and can test all the brands easily, so that is going massively for me. However, since I couldn't find PWaudio anywhere I may not dare to risk an online purchase over an awesome cable that I tested intensively myself. The prion sounds amazing, but as you said it is not available for IEMS :/
 
 
Best,
Dan

I've been on this cable for close to a year now, and I will agree that it is rather analytical and thin, without the warm body that comes with a copper cable. It is not, as you surmised, a punchy cable. Rather, it just presents information to your ears with its transparency. 
That said, I do not have a single 'top cable'. Personally, I value transparency as my foremost criteria, signature be damned, as I lsiten more to my gear than my music, and hence I dont really care how the song sounds like, as long as I can hear every bit of detail in my song. So within my lineup, I seek to optimize the source performance, and everything else is just there to provide some unique characteristic which I use to mix and match depending on the song. Case in point, I use my GPS when I wish to stretch the soundstage as far as it can go, and pull the instruments as far away from each other as possible. For another song, I may use a lusher cable if the song to balance off a trebly song and so on. To put it simply; I dont have a 'favourite cable' as all my cables are of equal value to me. The moment one cable is surpassed by another in that same aspect; I usually sell it off and move on. I see my cables as a tool, rather than a source of enjoyment heh. 
 
Quote:

  I imagine the profit of makers on those 1000$ copper cables...And many of them come from China, the country where labour work (and materials) is very cheap...They must go to the end of the Earth to get the most rare materials available and magical "stuff" to put on a...4 feet copper wire. It's insane. And silver cables are almost the same, although the material is a bit more expensive. Keep buying this...Audiophiles buy list: a 1000-1500$ IEM (with cable) and a...1000$ cable. In my head, a 25% of the IEM price for a proved good cable could be acceptable, could be...Above that let's just call it cable makers taking advantage of audiophiles "craziness", with greed. Diminishing returns kicking with the strongest force there is. This is just my 2 cents.
 
Anyway, there's an 8 braid copper for less than 200$ : http://www.head-fi.org/products/null-audio-vitesse-copper-cable/reviews/13242 and it's stated very good material and performance. From 200$ to 1000$...That cable must give sound orgasms every second 

 

Truth be told, I agree with you wholeheartedly that the audiophile industry is getting a little over the top with the crazy prices. But, on the other hand I am also privvy to some of the cost prices that these cable manufacturers purchase their cables at, before rebranding it under their name within their lineup. I can say that, some of their cables are not cheap at all, and when you factor in their own individual profit + retailer profit, you can see why those cables comes to be priced the way they are. Heck, some of my cables which were purchased directly from the manufacturersthemselves as a raw wire already crossed the 400 mark (for just 5m), and I've yet to include the cost of any braiding, soldering, and parts. 




On another note, cable 'performance' is usually relative to the price. I used to be wowed by sub-200 cables when I first entered the game, now, going back to my very first upgrade cable, I wish I could have that 200 back to defray the costs of some of my 1.4k cables 

 

 

[Dan E]

Hello again,


Did anyone try multiple different gold plated OCC silver cables and can tell me a bit about the differences and which ones are the best available ones? I am specifically referring to how the plusssound GPS X8 compares to the effect audio Mars and the whiplash Twau, but if there are more 8 braid GPS cables on the market that are astonishing I would be happy to hear your impressions about them as well.

Best,
Dan

 

[flinkenick]

  I imagine the profit of makers on those 1000$ copper cables...And many of them come from China, the country where labour work (and materials) is very cheap...They must go to the end of the Earth to get the most rare materials available and magical "stuff" to put on a...4 feet copper wire. It's insane. And silver cables are almost the same, although the material is a bit more expensive. Keep buying this...Audiophiles buy list: a 1000-1500$ IEM (with cable) and a...1000$ cable. In my head, a 25% of the IEM price for a proved good cable could be acceptable, could be...Above that let's just call it cable makers taking advantage of audiophiles "craziness", with greed. Diminishing returns kicking with the strongest force there is. This is just my 2 cents.
 
Anyway, there's an 8 braid copper for less than 200$ : http://www.head-fi.org/products/null-audio-vitesse-copper-cable/reviews/13242 and it's stated very good material and performance. From 200$ to 1000$...That cable must give sound orgasms every second 

 

It's understandable to think an expensive cable is hard to justify against a cheaper one using the same material. But whether its made of copper or silver will have the least effect on its performance compared to other variables. It's like saying why pay $2000 for a Spiral Ear 5-way Ultimate, when you can get a 5 BA iem from China for $400. Just because they share important features doesn't mean they'll sound even close.. The purity of the wire, the thickness and number of wires in a Litz construction, or the shielding, will have a greater effect and define the price. I've had both the copper and silver Null Audio Vitesse wires in the past. I think it's more of a waste of money to pay for something inferior that gives a marginal upgrade, than to pay two times more for something that can have more of a transformational effect. But that's me - to each their own. I've learned through trial and error what budget cables can and can't offer, and that pricing is very similar as iems. There is an increase in performance, and a decrease in price to performance ratio. 
 
When it comes to pricing, I have no doubt there are greater margins on a $1000 cable than a $100 one. But the manufacturer still has to develop a cable that will have a lower turnover compared to cheap ones, and pay for a staff and expensive rent for one or multiple locations. It doesn't automatically have to mean everybody is out there to rip people off. If that was the case, the market couldn't sustain itself.