[gevorg]

Digital volume control is another option if you use it on a PC/Mac rather than a portable/streaming device. With Foobar2000/MusicBee/JRiver, you can pad 16-bit content to 24-bit, which gives you at least 8*6 = 48dB of lossless and flawless digital attenuation (i.e. not affecting the original samples, unlike analog volume control). Easily reversible and adjustable for any headphone combination, rather than having it fixed in the hardware for one set of headphone sensitivity. With 24-bit high resolution content, the headroom for digital attenuation is much smaller, depending on how much thermal noise you think there is in the last few bits of that 24-bit source.

http://thewelltemperedcomputer.com/Intro/SQ/VolumeControl.htm

 

[ivanlyf]

Hey everyone,
 
I'm not sure if this is the best place to ask, but does anyone know the difference between Bryston's Balanced Audio cable and other Van Damme cable?
 
Bryston cable:
 
Van Damme EKE, silver-plated pure copper
 
https://store.bryston.com/xlr.html
 
Van Damme cable:
 
Van Damme XKE, mix of pure copper and silver-plated pure copper
 
http://www.van-damme.com/13.html
 
I'm asking as I'm thinking of giving the cable a try but the price difference is huge and I can't find store selling the Van Damme EKE cable. Wondering if it's a custom order specially for Bryston.
 
Thank you!
Ivan

 

[CanadianMaestro]

  Hey everyone,
 
I'm not sure if this is the best place to ask, but does anyone know the difference between Bryston's Balanced Audio cable and other Van Damme cable?
 
Bryston cable:
 
Van Damme EKE, silver-plated pure copper
 
https://store.bryston.com/xlr.html
 
Van Damme cable:
 
Van Damme XKE, mix of pure copper and silver-plated pure copper
 
http://www.van-damme.com/13.html
 
I'm asking as I'm thinking of giving the cable a try but the price difference is huge and I can't find store selling the Van Damme EKE cable. Wondering if it's a custom order specially for Bryston.
 
Thank you!
Ivan

 
Everything on the Bryston store online is overpriced.  For balanced cables, do the cheaper ones. Blue Jeans Cable makes very good ones from Canare for really good prices.
 
http://www.bluejeanscable.com/store/balancedaudio/index.htm

 

[Rob80b]

The ones from MonoPrice (http://www.monoprice.com/Search/Index?keyword=xlr+cable ) are the most affordable

 
and I’m actually running two pairs of their 35’s from my sources at the front of my room to the back of the room behind my listening position, one pair to the BHA-1 and the other to a Bryston 2BLP pro. I also have a 1.5’ pair from my pre to the Bryston 4B SST. Not the highest quality connectors and bit bulky but they get the job done . The rest of my balanced interconnects are custom made....Canare L-4E6S Star Quad with Neutrik connectors.

 

[ivanlyf]

Thanks for your inputs guys.
 
I have contacted Bryston via their website - hopefully they reply it with some clarification.
 
Thank you for your suggestions but I am looking at something a little beyond my Mogami W2549s - which are in the same league Canare, Belden, Hosa etc. yep.
 
Or if anyone knows of a silver-plated copper wire mic cable from the likes of Mogami, Canare or Belden - do let me know the model please?

 

[CanadianMaestro]

  Thanks for your inputs guys.
 
I have contacted Bryston via their website - hopefully they reply it with some clarification.
 
Thank you for your suggestions but I am looking at something a little beyond my Mogami W2549s - which are in the same league Canare, Belden, Hosa etc. yep.
 
Or if anyone knows of a silver-plated copper wire mic cable from the likes of Mogami, Canare or Belden - do let me know the model please?

What do you mean by "a little beyond" the Mogami? Please clarify. Cosmetics? As long as there is shielding and the connector impedances are well-matched to the application needs, you will hear the same sound with Mogami as with more expensive cabling. In fact, pro studios use a lot of Mogami for their recording/mixing gear.
 
Why do you need silver-plated copper wires? Just curious.
 
cheers

 

[ivanlyf]

I'm trying to see if it's possible to extend the treble a wee bit more on my system beyond what the W2549 is already doing.
 
Why silver-plated? I just have a hunch that silver-plating in my setup extends the treble. My power cords for the BDA-2 & BHA-1 are silver-plated copper, the Sennheiser CH800S is also silver-plated. So perhaps a silver-plated interconnect for the final touch?
 
I have previously tried Gotham GAC 4/1 star quads, Canare L4E6S star-quad, Mogami W2534 star-quad & Mogami W2549 cables. I stuck with the W2549 because it behaves as promised - providing me with the extended high frequency I want. The star quads all suppressed the treble.

 

[CanadianMaestro]

What worked well for my system, for high-freq extension, were power cords where the (+) blade of the wall plug was plated with silver on top of pure copper. Not on top of nickel-plating as with many cords. Seems to give an extra "sparkle" with brass and cymbals. The cord wires were copper.

 

[WilCox]

   
Everything on the Bryston store online is overpriced.  For balanced cables, do the cheaper ones. Blue Jeans Cable makes very good ones from Canare for really good prices.
 
http://www.bluejeanscable.com/store/balancedaudio/index.htm

 
+1  
 
I'm a big fan of Bryston and have had their components in my system for over 25 years.  That said, when it comes to cables, you can't do much better that Blue Jeans Cable.  Their Belden 1800F with Neutrik XLRs have replaced all of my "high-end" balanced cables with excellent results.

 

[Rdrcr]

  The ones from MonoPrice (http://www.monoprice.com/Search/Index?keyword=xlr+cable ) are the most affordable

 
and I’m actually running two pairs of their 35’s from my sources at the front of my room to the back of the room behind my listening position, one pair to the BHA-1 and the other to a Bryston 2BLP pro. I also have a 1.5’ pair from my pre to the Bryston 4B SST. Not the highest quality connectors and bit bulky but they get the job done . The rest of my balanced interconnects are custom made....Canare L-4E6S Star Quad with Neutrik connectors.

 
I'm running the Monoprice XLR's.  They're a nice cable for the money.
 
Mike

 

[Armaegis]

   
I'm running the Monoprice XLR's.  They're a nice cable for the money.
 
Mike

 
It's literally cheaper for me to buy monoprice cables than it is to make my own with parts sourced locally...

 

[Armaegis]

Well I got a new piece of furniture today... it ain't pretty, but it gets the job done.
 

 
From bottom up: Bryston 3B, Woo WEE, Bryston 4B, Bryston 2B, some random Behringer EQ
 
Hidden behind is a hefty Tripp-Lite power conditioner/surge protector I got off ebay. No fancy schmanciness there, just a heavy transformer, simple filters, and protective relays (very handy a couple weeks ago during a thunderstorm, I could hear the relays going off and quickly turned off my equipment).
 
Why not the 4B on the bottom? Because I wanted a bigger flat surface on top to put random stuff on

. Actually I put the 3B on the bottom because it's not as deep as the 4B, so I've got a piece of plywood behind it upon which I rest the Tripp-Lite.
 
Off to the side is a NuPrime IDA-8 combo dac/power amp.
 
HE-6 powered off either the IDA-8 or the 2B.
 
The 2B slightly modded, I removed the series resistors (180 ohm I think) in the headphone jack so full power comes out.

 

[Rdrcr]

^^^^
Holy cow!  That is awesome.
 
I'm glad to see you have it on wheels! 
 
And, you're definitely correct on the cables. 
It is insane that the Monoprice cables are so inexpensive.
 
Mike

 

[Armaegis]

Being able to transport a rig on wheels in fantastic. Now I can roll it down a hallway when we need the space. The table was starting to sag under all that weight anyways.

 

[Chris J]

  Hey all,
 
Just wonder if any of you have experienced this wonderful effect before and the explanation behind it:
 
So I've been listening to my classical music on the HD800 driven by the BHA-1 and a BDA-2 DAC for about 1.5 days now. Listening to some Mahler, Beethoven Symphonies & Concertos.
 
The 1 thing I noticed immediately when I switched amplifiers from the TEAC HA-501 to the BHA-1 was the recording became much louder with the BHA-1.
 
Previously, with the TEAC HA-501, I would use Adaptive Volume -> Peak Level Normalize / Night Mode in Jriver MC20 to boost the sound volume / 'reduce the dynamic range'. This way, I could hear the whole recording comfortably especially those instruments playing softly on the background. The drawback was clipping / distortion & a compressed sound.
 
When I switched to the BHA-1, I found Adaptive Volume to be too loud. Hence, I turned it off in Jriver MC20. Every instrument is just of the right volume, the pianos, the violins etc... it's crazy!
 
Does anyone have an explanation for this??? 

 
Did you volume match using an SPL meter?