[TooNice]

16 core cables are ultra thin and just cheap. You are better off to buy Moondrop Line T or NiceHCK GTC5.

Hmm, generally speaking do more core = thicker?

Aren't based on the description on Amazon JP, the GTC5 is 4 core - wouldn't it make it quite thin unless they purposely beef it up somehow?

They are also $65 over here, which is well above my budget for a cable..

 

[helloh3adfi]

Hmm, generally speaking do more core = thicker?

Aren't based on the description on Amazon JP, the GTC5 is 4 core - wouldn't it make it quite thin unless they purposely beef it up somehow?

They are also $65 over here, which is well above my budget for a cable..

I bought them for $30 on Single's day. At Aliexpress you should be able to get $30 coupon, I think. Then you'd get them for $40 outside of Single's day. There are 2 NiceHCK shops, one "NiceHCK Audio store" and the other something like NiceHCK Official Store.

No, more "cores"/strands/strings don't mean thicker. You have to look at diameter of each litz/wire and the amount of litz/wires.

Take a look at the usual 16 core cables https://aliexpress.com/item/32952794266.html
0.05mm*14 per core (total 16 cores)
((0.05mm/2)²*pi) * 14 * 16 = 0,44 mm² cross section

Then at GTC5:
https://aliexpress.com/item/1005004221180130.html
0.08mm*60 per core (total 4 cores)
((0.08mm/2)²*pi) * 60 * 4 = 1,21 mm² cross section


Btw. according to @Dsnuts https://aliexpress.com/item/1005001727115133.html and https://aliexpress.com/item/1005001738547397.html should be the same, shouldn't they?
https://aliexpress.com/item/1005002962743349.html? looks somewhat similar, too.

Finally I also found that silver plated one: https://aliexpress.com/item/1005002834917267.html
I just don't know which of the cables got the most silver amount compared to copper amount? Anyone knows? I mean is it <10 % silver and >90% copper?

 

[Carpet]

16 core cables are ultra thin and just cheap. You are better off to buy Moondrop Line T or NiceHCK GTC5.

Ultra thin is not a feature of 16 core cables, nor are they necessarily inexpensive or cheaply constructed! Your own preference is obviously for cables with less cores. 16 core cables tend to be softer and more likely to come without earhooks. That may be a significant advantage in comfort for some people.

 

[TooNice]

I bought them for $30 on Single's day. At Aliexpress you should be able to get $30 coupon, I think. Then you'd get them for $40 outside of Single's day. There are 2 NiceHCK shops, one "NiceHCK Audio store" and the other something like NiceHCK Official Store.

No, more "cores"/strands/strings don't mean thicker. You have to look at diameter of each litz/wire and the amount of litz/wires.

Take a look at the usual 16 core cables https://aliexpress.com/item/32952794266.html
0.05mm*14 per core (total 16 cores)
((0.05mm/2)²*pi) * 14 * 16 = 0,44 mm² cross section

Then at GTC5:
https://aliexpress.com/item/1005004221180130.html
0.08mm*60 per core (total 4 cores)
((0.08mm/2)²*pi) * 60 * 4 = 1,21 mm² cross section


Btw. according to @Dsnuts https://aliexpress.com/item/1005001727115133.html and https://aliexpress.com/item/1005001738547397.html should be the same, shouldn't they?
https://aliexpress.com/item/1005002962743349.html? looks somewhat similar, too.

Finally I also found that silver plated one: https://aliexpress.com/item/1005002834917267.html
I just don't know which of the cables got the most silver amount compared to copper amount? Anyone knows? I mean is it <10 % silver and >90% copper?

Thanks!

Tricky, they are all quite a bit more than I'd like to spend especially on a $25 headphones.

One question I have, though I am pretty sure it is quite personal, but is there a thickness that is considered pretty "safe"? Not too thick, not too thin for indoor and outdoor use; with and without glasses?

Secondly, how soft are the GTC5? Assuming this the the right cable, I think I can get a coupon to bring it down to under $20. Considering the cost of the cable at full price, the discount makes it quite attractive.. but at the end of the day, it's really the comfort that matters to me.

@Carpet

Do you have any opinion between the GTC5 and the two below?

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32918220523.htm (Supposing highly discounted to be at this price; but what appeals to me is that I can just buy it on Amazon JP for similar price).

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000187078496.html (This one is recommended under Rikudou Goku's database)

 

[Carpet]

Thanks!

Tricky, they are all quite a bit more than I'd like to spend especially on a $25 headphones.

One question I have, though I am pretty sure it is quite personal, but is there a thickness that is considered pretty "safe"? Not too thick, not too thin for indoor and outdoor use; with and without glasses?

Secondly, how soft are the GTC5? Assuming this the the right cable, I think I can get a coupon to bring it down to under $20. Considering the cost of the cable at full price, the discount makes it quite attractive.. but at the end of the day, it's really the comfort that matters to me.

@Carpet

Do you have any opinion between the GTC5 and the two below?

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32918220523.htm (Supposing highly discounted to be at this price; but what appeals to me is that I can just buy it on Amazon JP for similar price).

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000187078496.html (This one is recommended under Rikudou Goku's database)

You can reshape the earhooks by heating with a hairdryer if they don't fit you well. Tripowin Zonie is a good buy for $15, I have a couple of those. TRI Grace is overkill for a $20 IEM, you'd be able to buy a Truthear Hexa for about the same price! Rikudou Goku is a reliable source if that other cable is recommended.

I'd probably buy a NiceHCK C16-3 if I was buying a new cable for Salnotes Zero. I find them very comfortable with glasses and/or mask. Probably not so good for running or hard physical effort though, since they have no earhooks, They are normally on sale for under $15 somewhere on AliExpress (lots of stores stock them). A copper cable will give a slight emphasis to bass, which I like on Zero. I think my last one was $12 in a sale.

The GT5C should be okay as all NiceHCK cables I've had are well made, no guarantee regards comfort. Fit of earhooks and how hard/flexible the cable is does vary from cable to cable in their range.

Consider also using a dongle or BT receiver rather than a USB-C cable. That way you just unplug rather than have to keep changing cables. Basic dongles for USB-C start under $10. Better than a phone jack since LG stopped making phones.

The basic cable on Salnotes Zero isn't bad for a $20 either. You could just use it until a sale comes up. Sales are the time to pick up cables if you can.

Have fun!

 

[TooNice]

Consider also using a dongle or BT receiver rather than a USB-C cable. That way you just unplug rather than have to keep changing cables. Basic dongles for USB-C start under $10. Better than a phone jack since LG stopped making phones.

The basic cable on Salnotes Zero isn't bad for a $20 either. You could just use it until a sale comes up. Sales are the time to pick up cables if you can.

Yeah the thing is that over here in Japan, the Salnotes Zero is $24.50 with the basic cable, and $26.00 with the USB-C with the mic. I can't have both.
I figured that the USB-C with mic could be handy for gaming and mobile phones as I am not sure if dongles work with mic.. also I figured that it's kind of nice not to need a dongle.

Saying that, I think that the IEM will be used 90+% of the time with my laptop since I use TWS with my mobile anyway. I've got away just using my current IEM without mic, and just using my laptop mic for games so far, but sometime I have had complaints from teammates about the clarity of my laptop mic, so I figured it wouldn't hurt to try the one that comes with the Salnotes Zero.

BTW, how cheap can a simple but comfortable cable cost get on sale? The **** I linked is about $13 for the black one, $18 for the one approved by Rikudou Goku, $13.50 for the NiceHCK C16-3 using coupon (I think). Do cables get much cheaper than this?

Edit: Okay, I find it a bit odd that the brand name of the cable I linked is censored on Head-Fi. Is there something I need to know about that company?

 

[helloh3adfi]

Secondly, how soft are the GTC5? Assuming this the the right cable, I think I can get a coupon to bring it down to under $20. Considering the cost of the cable at full price, the discount makes it quite attractive.. but at the end of the day, it's really the comfort that matters to me.

GTC5 is not as flexible as the dirt cheap 16 core cables, but still soft enough. I quite like the ear hooks on them as they hold many IEMs pretty well compared to my other cables. If you don't like ear hooks, you can carefully cut them off.

And if you can apply coupons to that silver-plated XINHS cable, then that would be a no-brainer and better than GTC5: https://aliexpress.com/item/1005001738547397.html

@Carpet If you don't want ear hooks, you can buy cables at Penon shop. They also accept custom orders such as more length, with or without ear hooks and so on.

 

[helloh3adfi]

/delete

 

[Ianus]

Does anyone have any thoughts on the MUSEHIFI Color Cow?

 

[Surf Monkey]

Does anyone have any thoughts on the MUSEHIFI Color Cow?

Yes! I love it. It’s thick. The connections on the cable are solid. It’s pretty colored too.

BUT

It’s discontinued. If it weren’t I’d have more than just the one. It’s the one really good thing MUSE Hifi has made so far and it appears to have been a limited run.

 

[saldsald]

Bought myself another Hakugei. It actually looks greenish not white like in the pictures.
This is a copper alloy CuAg10 (10% Ag basically, which has very similar conductivity as normal non-OCC copper) in foil form. It definitely looks thinner than expected for each wire having a 20AWG.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/100...9516732332231342349e175e!12000031754124715!sh

 

[saldsald]

Hmm, generally speaking do more core = thicker?

Aren't based on the description on Amazon JP, the GTC5 is 4 core - wouldn't it make it quite thin unless they purposely beef it up somehow?

They are also $65 over here, which is well above my budget for a cable..

More core = more sleeving material = less conductor material. You can try to buy from stores that actually tell you how many AWG per wire (core).

 

[saldsald]

Bought myself another Hakugei. It actually looks greenish not white like in the pictures.
This is a copper alloy CuAg10 (10% Ag basically, which has very similar conductivity as normal non-OCC copper) in foil form. It definitely looks thinner than expected for each wire having a 20AWG.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005124014863.html?spm=a2g0o.store_pc_allProduct.8148356.1.6e4735ffDiLyQf&pdp_npi=2@dis!USD!US $102.19!US $102.19!US $102.19!!!!@2103209516732332231342349e175e!12000031754124715!sh

The SQ of this cable is so good! Black background, very dynamic and smooth. The bass has top notch quality, just the right balance with very good punch and definition and speed at the same time. Mids has noticibly more resolution than most cables I have yet not forward sounding. The treble is very smooth especially for female vocale with very good note weight.

 

[stardolphin87]

I am looking for replacement cable for my Celest Gumiho. I need a mic version. Budget range $10. Cable must be available in Asia/Indonesia. Any suggestion? Thank you

 

[Leonarfd]

Hakugei Sea-elf
69$ for the modular options without the DACs.

Bought this primarily to get another modular cable, the cable itself is very nice. The modular connections are better than many other brands, soft fabric, also very flexible and light. So far from testing it sounds like other copper cables with good quality.

As a bonus you get a clean sounding IEM, just a little polite if you like more treble and details.