I own a couple grado extension cables, and am very pleased by their performance. They are very inexpensive compared to several of the others out there, and they are extremely rugged and flexible. I notice little degradation in sound, although I honestly have not done much comparison to with and without ext. cable. It's very convenient for listening in bed, or at a distance from your rig.
If you will need an extension cable for a permanent installation, perhaps spending more might get you the last bit of performance out of your system -- however for occasional listening, the grado is tops. I have two of them...is that enough of a recommendation?
Like Moo, I'm very pleased with the Grado.....I also have a Sonic Horizon Sunrise extension cable which looks more substantial, but there is a loss of bass that I perceive. Not so with the Grado. Plus, I like the flexibility.
This is an unusual suggestion, but I wonder how the Markertek-built Canare star quad twisted pair cable would work as an extension of that length. In shorter lengths, used as a patch cable, it is great, and has some advantages over the Kimber (see cajunchrist's review and mine). It's very inexpensive, and you can get it with different connectors (Canare F-12 male or female, for example). If you try it, make sure you get the "balanced stereo" cable, not the mono cable! I'm even wondering about how I could use it to replace some of the cables on my desktop Monsoon speakers, the long run that goes to the volume control & muting puck.
Please make this yourself if you don't like the Grado cable.http://www.decibelaudio.com will sell them for $30.00 and last I checked still had free shipping on Grado stuff.I used a Kimber PBJ that was fair,the Grado sounded better.I got a Sonic Horizons cable free with the set of RS1s I bought from HCM audio about a year ago.I didn't like it either,they allowed me to return it for credit.I have been making extensions from Belden cable and 1/4" plugs.A 20 foot extension only costs about $50.00 to construct.I buy the materials in bulk from a distributor but I have seen this stuff at Sam Ash and Guitar Center as well.Before you fret about the quality know that Belden makes cable for a LOT of companies that resell as their own.http://www.diycable.com gives a lot of info about Belden cable.I think my 20 foot extension sounds pretty good(or maybe it's my DIY pride)and is very good looking and sturdy.The Grado is, to a non DIY, the best bang for the buck.
I don't mind spending about $100 for a good extention. I tried the Radio Shack ones (please forgive me), and they sounded yech. Right now I am using about 15' of 18 gage stranded copper wire with PVC insulation. It does not sound too bad, even with the Red Clou at the end of it. Very surprising. Problem is, the cable I made kinks easily, and the wire is hookup wire and not really made for a lot of flexing and stepping on, which I do. So I need a good cord.
What I really want is at least 18 gage cable, with good (not PVC) insulation. I don't need solid gold neutron free connectors, just decent stuff.
All the popular premade cables don't specify cable size and usually don't mention insulation type. I really don't want to upgrade until I know that info.
Then again, if I settled for the standard HD600 cable for so long, I should not be so picky!
But if anyone knows about the specs of any particular cable (Kimber, Ted's Earcandy, DiMarzio, etc), please let me know. I am having difficulty finding this on the web.
Markertek's site says this about the Canare cable they use:
Quote:
Special 4 conductor configuration plus high shield density reduce hum and noise to less than 10% of conventional 2-conductor mic cables. Special construction also reduces handling noise while maintaining excellent flexibility. High density braided shield blocks electrostatic noise to eliminate annoying hum, buzz and radio interference. 4-conductor design cancels electro-magnetically induced noise from SCR dimmers and fluorescent lights. Excellent frequency response is preserved due to low capacitance provided by dielectric qualities of Polyethylene insulation. Handling noise is prevented by use of cotton filter material. Super flexibility results from using large numbers of thin wire strands, plus PVC jacket that remains pliant at extremely low temperatures (brittle point is -56 deg F); no wall between cold shipping and installation. 10 COLORS! Large color selection aids in cable identification and decor coordination. Available colors: Black, Brown, Grey, Green, Orange, Purple, Red, Yellow & White.
I used to use a 10'-Grado extention cable, but found CAT-5 makes an even better headphone extention cable (even with using Radio Shack connectors). The CAT-5 is more detailed than the Grado's . . . almost to the point of being harsh, but not quite. It's not invisible by any means, for serious listening I still go sans extention cable.
I'm using the 15' DiMarzio extension with a Senn 600, out of a Cary SLI-80. I can't tell the difference in sound between that and plugging straight into the amp without it.
But then again maybe its just that my ears aren't good enough to tell the difference.
Unfortunately, I think the 15' DiMarzio might be a little more than the $100 you're thinking of spending.
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