[seanwee]

Thanks for all the recommendations everyone, I've narrowed it down to the Nicehck Litz and the TRN T3. Which one is better if I wanted more clarity?

And is the ALO litz worth it over the Nicehck litz? @Dsnuts

 

[Dsnuts]

So let me get this straight. Are you looking or a balanced cable for your FDX1?

If so I really dont advice you to get a pure silver for the FDX1. I know some guys are good with pure silver on that phone. SPC is the way to go imo. You need some copper to maintain that bass end and a thicker SPC will add some stage and dimensions to the sonics.

I forgot who it was. That was asking me which cable to go with. It all despends on how much you want to spend but the cable I would actually match up with on the FDX1 is the ISN S16 https://penonaudio.com/isn-audio-s16.html


Now if you want the absolute best upgrade to the FDX1 I would recommend the Penon OS849
https://penon-official.com/product/penon-os849/

Pure silver will lean out the bass adds more treble end lean out the mid range too. Not a good match for FDX1.

 

[seanwee]

So let me get this straight. Are you looking or a balanced cable for your FDX1?

If so I really dont advice you to get a pure silver for the FDX1. I know some guys are good with pure silver on that phone. SPC is the way to go imo. You need some copper to maintain that bass end and a thicker SPC will add some stage and dimensions to the sonics.

I forgot who it was. That was asking me which cable to go with. It all despends on how much you want to spend but the cable I would actually match up with on the FDX1 is the ISN S16 https://penonaudio.com/isn-audio-s16.html


Now if you want the absolute best upgrade to the FDX1 I would recommend the Penon OS849
https://penon-official.com/product/penon-os849/

Pure silver will lean out the bass adds more treble end lean out the mid range too. Not a good match for FDX1.

I see, well I am using a SPC cable with my FDX1 right now.

I also don't have a pure silver cable yet so I want to get one. I also want to make the midrange leaner and bass tighter so I think silver might be a good fit, not too sure about the treble though.

 

[Dsnuts]

Which cable are you using right now if I can ask.

 

[seanwee]

Which cable are you using right now if I can ask.

Its a custom one from a local Hi-fi store. A DIY cable.

【IEM-437 SPOFC】
Material of Conductor : silver plated oxygen-free copper 6N
Quantity of Wires : 4 wires braided
Quantity of Strands : 37 strands per wire
Diameter : 26awg per wire
Soldering : WBT 0820 soldering tin from Germany (4% silver)
Output Connectors : gold plated pin, black color metal shell (mmcx / 0.78 pin)
Input Connectors : gold plated plug, metal shell with carbon fiber liked pattern (2.5 / 3.5 / 4.4mm)
Length : 1.2m (custom length available, kindly pm)
Color : black
Warranty : 1 year (excluding human factor)
** Also available with multiple plug configurations. Kindly PM us for your desired configuration.
** Custom made. ETA is around 3 weeks.

 

[JEHL]

output impedance of E1DA 9038S is around 0.05Ω@1kHz, measured with Agilent U1733C. amir doesn't use to measure such low output impedance.
the benefits of keeping total output impedance low are explained in https://www.head-fi.org/threads/resistance-of-cables-pics-comments-and-links.907998/

"Low resistance is symptom of quality of wires, plugs, and solders (together with total thickness of the conductor, of course).
Low resistance is important to get minimum total output impedance, in order to minimize tonal alterations when using IEM with balanced armatures.
It's also convenient to decrease attenuation and to increase damping factor and efficiency.

1- BA's input impedance curve varies, mainly from upper mids to highs, while dynamic drivers show a flatter curve. Source and cable impedance curve use to be very flat. Due to the BA's impedance curve, the higher total output impedance, the higher tonal alteration. It usually makes the highs harsher, louder, but it depends of the IEM impedance curve (BA's impedance + crossovers), so there are cases where the effect is just the opposite. In general, there is coloration, unpredictable tonal alteration. Total output impedance below 1Ω, and even lower, if possible, is desirable.

2- Also, and this applies to every phones, DD and BA, and speakers, total output impedance higher than 1/8 of the phones resistance (at 1kHz), provokes tonal alteration and higher distortion, specially in lows. This is critical when using very low impedance phones (below 8Ω, for example); in this case (very low impedance phones), you can also reach actual limits of current of your source, provoking high distortion and/or clipping; the source wouldn't like this neither..

3- Also, you get better efficiency with low total output impedance. Louder volume at same voltage. This is good for energy saving, and for longevity of your source. Low output impedance increases electric damping factor, so it helps to drive hard phones.

However, we have to make some considerations about cables.

1- If your source output resistance is 15 times (for instance) higher than the resistance of the cables you are considering, the resistance of the cables becomes insignificant; the culprit of the problem, if any, will reside in your source.

2- The magnitude of the tonal alterations depends of the IEMs mainly. In most cases, the resistance differences between cables won't provoke highly noticeable tonal alteration at human registers; they'll be below 1dB, or even below 0.5dB at audible frequencies, except if we are talking about cables with resistance close or even higher than 1Ω.
It's all about proportions and perfectionism. If we keep our cable resistance lower than 300mΩ (equivalent to 28AWG copper) or 200mΩ (26AWG), most of us shouldn't notice the alterations."

I wonder who did measure the 9038S output impedance measure, because I'd love to read more on output impedance of sources. Does that mean lowest total output impedance possible is about 100mΩ? Guess with an output impedance that low, no one would need to worry about their output impedance coloring their audio, even with the infamous Campfire Audio Andromeda would apparently have a damping factor of about 30 or so.

But I still wonder, despite the unpredictability of the effect of output impedance. Higher damping factor isn't always better for everyone then?

Also have you measured any of those short Chitty store cables mentioned last page? Mostly ask because shorter cable should mean lower impedance... Right? Makes me wonder if someone is interested in making and or buying a 4 core 20AWG 50cm cable. Does that sound way to niche for anybody?

On an unrelated note, I also ordered the Tripowin Zonie through Amazon Prime mostly because it was the cheapest 2 pin cable available at the moment of ordering it. Interestingly the only specs listed on the zonie is that is a 16 core silver plated copper cable. I wonder if this means there's simply not enough specs on the cable for it to have an index number, #70 is the closest thing I found but only available in pink.

 

[Dsnuts]

Its a custom one from a local Hi-fi store. A DIY cable.

【IEM-437 SPOFC】
Material of Conductor : silver plated oxygen-free copper 6N
Quantity of Wires : 4 wires braided
Quantity of Strands : 37 strands per wire
Diameter : 26awg per wire
Soldering : WBT 0820 soldering tin from Germany (4% silver)
Output Connectors : gold plated pin, black color metal shell (mmcx / 0.78 pin)
Input Connectors : gold plated plug, metal shell with carbon fiber liked pattern (2.5 / 3.5 / 4.4mm)
Length : 1.2m (custom length available, kindly pm)
Color : black
Warranty : 1 year (excluding human factor)
** Also available with multiple plug configurations. Kindly PM us for your desired configuration.
** Custom made. ETA is around 3 weeks.

You know what I would do. Get one of them cheaper pure silver cables either the NiceHCK 4 core silver or them TRN pure silver ones. Give one of those a try to see if that is what your looking for. They wont be too far off from the higher end silver cables. Might as well not spend much to find out is my point.

 

[xtremesystems]

which of these two are better optlion fir kz zsx and cca ca16. i have earstudio es100 and i want use them in 2.5mm balanced output

#Aliexpress US $18.71 46%OFF | KBEAR 16 Core Upgraded Pure Copper Balanced Cable 2.5/3.5/4.4MM with MMCX/2PIN/QDC for KZ ZS10 Pro ZSX C12 BLON BL-03 BL-05 BL05
https://a.aliexpress.com/_B0PK2t

#Aliexpress US $13.27 82%OFF | **** 16 Core Silver Plated Cable 2.5/3.5/4.4mm Balanced Cable with MMCX/2PIN/QDC for KZZS10 PRO AS10 BLON BL-03 BL-05 BL05
https://a.aliexpress.com/_BSS5zr

 

[jibberish]

which of these two are better optlion fir kz zsx and cca ca16. i have earstudio es100 and i want use them in 2.5mm balanced output

#Aliexpress US $18.71 46%OFF | KBEAR 16 Core Upgraded Pure Copper Balanced Cable 2.5/3.5/4.4MM with MMCX/2PIN/QDC for KZ ZS10 Pro ZSX C12 BLON BL-03 BL-05 BL05
https://a.aliexpress.com/_B0PK2t

#Aliexpress US $13.27 82%OFF | **** 16 Core Silver Plated Cable 2.5/3.5/4.4mm Balanced Cable with MMCX/2PIN/QDC for KZZS10 PRO AS10 BLON BL-03 BL-05 BL05
https://a.aliexpress.com/_BSS5zr

I have that KBEAR cable (2 pin 3.5 unbalanced) and it's very nice. It's pure copper rather than spc, so choosing may depend which sonic characteristics you're looking for. For a very cheap pure copper cable though I like it a lot. The construction is good, it's comfortable to wear, and it's got a nice punchy-yet-clean sound. Very nice dark background. I've actually been meaning to pick up a couple of them in 4.4mm when they go on sale next, they can be had for $12 at times.

My guess is that the other one is probably about the same quality fwiw.

 

[xtremesystems]

I have that KBEAR cable (2 pin 3.5 unbalanced) and it's very nice. It's pure copper rather than spc, so choosing may depend which sonic characteristics you're looking for. For a very cheap pure copper cable though I like it a lot. The construction is good, it's comfortable to wear, and it's got a nice punchy-yet-clean sound. Very nice dark background. I've actually been meaning to pick up a couple of them in 4.4mm when they go on sale next, they can be had for $12 at times.

My guess is that the other one is probably about the same quality fwiw.

and this KBEAR is really balanced in 2.5mm? i dont wanna burn my amp

 

[sagor1]

Someone please give me a link for blon bl-03 type-c upgrade cable.

 

[daijoubu86]

Oh boy it's becoming confusing again for me

Hey all,

I just purchased this cable and was curious if anyone has one?

**** 8 Core Upgrade High-end Single Crystal Copper Cable by




It looks to be high quality litz copper 8 wire for $30, and I just had to give it a shot. Now for the wait. . .

Is the difference between this vs the 4 core litz copper Faaeal Hibiscus worth the double in price?

 

[superuser1]

Oh boy it's becoming confusing again for me



Is the difference between this vs the 4 core litz copper Faaeal Hibiscus worth the double in price?

you are paying more for the litz structure of the cable

 

[daijoubu86]

you are paying more for the litz structure of the cable

They are both litz, so I'm guessing the double in price is due to doubling of the cores?
But other aspects such as sound quality, build quality, are they comparable or is the 8 core one significantly better?

 

[deafenears]

This thread seems to mostly be focusing on IEM cables, any decent options for full sized headphones? Looking for something for my Focal Clear. I've thought about re-terminating my ISN C16 but it does seem a bit daunting with 8 wires per 3.5mm connector.

OEAudio also has some affordable adapters converting MMCX to 3.5mm for Focals:

https://www.oeaudio.net/product-page/mmcx-3-5mm-adapter

They have a 2-pin to 3.5mm version too.