[rajdori]

I want to use the 2.5mm balanced output with HiFiman Sundara, which has dual 3.5mm on the earcups.

1)I already bought 2.5mm male to 3.5mm female balanced adapter.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075FMX9T8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_fabc_dn70Fb6KPMBYJ?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

2) I'm planning to now buy a 3.5mm balanced to 3.5mm dual mono balanced cable.

Is this the correct approach?
Also, any suggestions for a cheap balanced cable? I prefer not to spend more than $25.

 

[Lurk650]

You can easily find a dual 3.5 to 2.5 so no need for adapter. Way easier to find than a balanced 3.5 cable

As far as price, honestly, just paying the $42 for the NewFantasia cable will save time and hassle:
https://www.amazon.com/NewFantasia-Balanced-Compatible-Hifiman-Headphones/dp/B07WMPNFS8

 

[rajdori]

I really didn't get what your said. Apart from Hart cables, I didn't find even a 3.5 balanced cable with dual 3.5mm. so, can you link to the adaptor and cable you are referring to?

 

[rajdori]

You can easily find a dual 3.5 to 2.5 so no need for adapter. Way easier to find than a balanced 3.5 cable

As far as price, honestly, just paying the $42 for the NewFantasia cable will save time and hassle:
https://www.amazon.com/NewFantasia-Balanced-Compatible-Hifiman-Headphones/dp/B07WMPNFS8

I really didn't get what your said. Apart from Hart cables, I didn't find even a 3.5 balanced cable with dual 3.5mm. so, can you link to the adaptor and cable you are referring to?

 

[Mouseman]

I really didn't get what your said. Apart from Hart cables, I didn't find even a 3.5 balanced cable with dual 3.5mm. so, can you link to the adaptor and cable you are referring to?

You don't want a 3.5 balanced cable. You want a 2.5mm jack on one end and the 3.5mms on the other end to plug into the headphones. That adapter you linked will likely fry the ES100.

 

[Slater]

I really didn't get what your said. Apart from Hart cables, I didn't find even a 3.5 balanced cable with dual 3.5mm. so, can you link to the adaptor and cable you are referring to?

Loads of them on Aliexpress, many for $25-$28. No adapter needed. Plug into the Hifiman cups, plug into the balanced port of ES100, and done.

 

[Slater]

You don't want a 3.5 balanced cable. You want a 2.5mm jack on one end and the 3.5mms on the other end to plug into the headphones. That adapter you linked will likely fry the ES100.

Exactly.

The “3.5mm balanced” people see are usually TRRS plugs, which are for 4-pole jacks that support mics like phones.

TRUE 3.5mm balanced jacks are only used on a small fraction of DAPs and devices. I think Sony used a few but I’m not sure the extent of them. But clearly it was a bad idea that just caused mass confusion (and probably warranty problems), so 99% of the industry uses 2.5mm and 4.4mm balanced to help reduce confusion. But as we see in a regular basis, those evil 3.5mm->2.5mm adapters still cause confusion and should be outlawed IMO.

 

[rajdori]

Loads of them on Aliexpress, many for $25-$28. No adapter needed. Plug into the Hifiman cups, plug into the balanced port of ES100, and done.

Thx much, but when I search by "2.5mm trrs to dual 3.5mm headphone cable" on aliexpress, I'm only finding one cable worth $55. Can you please share at least a couple links to actual product.

 

[Slater]

Thx much, but when I search by "2.5mm trrs to dual 3.5mm headphone cable" on aliexpress, I'm only finding one cable worth $55. Can you please share at least a couple links to actual product.

I just searched for "Hifiman balanced cable", and they all came up

 

[peter123]

Exactly.

The “3.5mm balanced” people see are usually TRRS plugs, which are for 4-pole jacks that support mics like phones.

TRUE 3.5mm balanced jacks are only used on a small fraction of DAPs and devices. I think Sony used a few but I’m not sure the extent of them. But clearly it was a bad idea that just caused mass confusion (and probably warranty problems), so 99% of the industry uses 2.5mm and 4.4mm balanced to help reduce confusion. But as we see in a regular basis, those evil 3.5mm->2.5mm adapters still cause confusion and should be outlawed IMO.

LH Labs did also use 3.5 mm balanced output on their portable stuff but yeah, quite rare.

 

[rajdori]

I just searched for "Hifiman balanced cable", and they all came up

Found those, thx. I'll just buy the $42 one at Amazon.

 

[charlescc2]

Just tried connecting this to my cousin's iPhone SE, and it's connecting but without audio streaming capability. I can see it connected in the app, control the volume between the app and device, but music comes out of the phone speakers.

I referred to the manual and it says if you see EarStudio on your list of connected devices in phone settings without an "i" next to it that you won't get audio capability, only app usage. The "i" is not showing, so it makes sense that we don't get audio. But the question is why is this and is there anything I can do to fix it?

 

[rkw]

Just tried connecting this to my cousin's iPhone SE, and it's connecting but without audio streaming capability. I can see it connected in the app, control the volume between the app and device, but music comes out of the phone speakers.

I referred to the manual and it says if you see EarStudio on your list of connected devices in phone settings without an "i" next to it that you won't get audio capability, only app usage. The "i" is not showing, so it makes sense that we don't get audio. But the question is why is this and is there anything I can do to fix it?

The ES100 uses separate Bluetooth connections for audio and the app. You probably didn't complete the audio pairing.

I suggest cleaning up and starting over. Forget/unpair the ES100 from the phone and uninstall the EarStudio app. Then pair the ES100 with the phone just like any Bluetooth headphone, and the audio should being working. Finally install and run the app if you also want to use that.

 

[charlescc2]

The ES100 uses separate Bluetooth connections for audio and the app. You probably didn't complete the audio pairing.

I suggest cleaning up and starting over. Forget/unpair the ES100 from the phone and uninstall the EarStudio app. Then pair the ES100 with the phone just like any Bluetooth headphone, and the audio should being working. Finally install and run the app if you also want to use that.

Will have him try that later, thanks.

 

[Hanesu]

Hi!

I was wondering how good the transparency mode of the Mk2 is? Does it sound any natural? Is it comparable to recent TW offerings like the Airpod Pros?