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Review: The CablePro Freedom Cables for the Audeze LCD and Hifiman Headphones
Ted Paisley started CablePro in 1989. He was doing custom installation and wiring for high end audio installations and realized that the sound of many systems were being limited by the wire that was being used. He decided that he could make wire with a much better sound quality and decided to offer some cables for installation with his custom work. That was the beginning of the CablePro. The Freedom cable is their newest offering and it is priced very competitively at $169.00. The base price is for a 5 foot cable with a standard 1/4 inch jack. There are options to customize the cable in any length and termination that you would need for your system. The cable used for review was a 10 ft optional single ended configuration for the HE500 which brought the total price of the cable to $210.00 and the 5Ft standard cable was used for the LCD2.2. The cable is UPOCC copper. The copper used is considered one of the best quality copper to use in high end cable design. The Freedom cable is designed as two coaxial cables separated all the way up to ear piece and stuffed with cotton filler . This helps to reduce any noise to the earpiece. The cable is housed in a plastic black vinyl jacket in the standard configuration and the cotton jacket is available as an option. The cable is well built and has some weight to the design. The cotton sleeve is more attractive than the black vinyl sleeve that comes standard. The cables were burned in for about 100 hours prior to me doing any critical listening.
Sound
The HE500 comes shipped with the silver stock cable from Hifiman and I felt that the silver cable was very grainy and hard sounding. It was also bright. Silver has the tendency to sound bright to my ears in most configurations I have heard them used with. The Freedom cable immediately transformed the hE500. The sound went from being bright to being more natural. The brightness disappeared and the musicality starting to come through with the Freedom cable in the system. I started to completely forget about the cable and became involved with the music. The tone of the instruments became much more like live music. I could hear deep into the sound stage. The delicate brushes used on drum recordings became very noticeable. I could hear in a very clear and non congested manner everything that was going on with the recording. The focus of the sound stage was more 3D and you could see a clear picture into the sound stage. The grain completely disappeared. It was like using windex on a dirty window. The veil was lifted. The cable made the HE500 go from a pretender to a contender for one of the best headphones on the planet. The LCD 2.2 has a ribbon type copper cable that comes stock with the headphone. The stock cable is an OFC copper design and has a warmer sound signature than the silver cable used with the hE500. The cable is a decent cable and the sound is good. The Freedom cable increased the transparency. It also made the music listening experience more enjoyable. The differences were subtle but the Freedom cable had a little more transparency and a grain free presentation. The Freedom cable did step up the performance of the LCD2.2 a notch. The differences with the LCD2 were not as drastic as I had heard with the he500 but an improvement over the stock cable nonetheless.
Conclusion
The CablePro cables are being offered at a very competitive price. Ted Paisley designed a real world cable that is being offered for anyone looking for an upgrade for their planar headphones. I enjoyed my time with both cables. The Freedom transformed the HE500 and improved the LcD2.2. The cables are a little heavy but when placed on the floor should be acceptable to most users. The cotton jacket is also more attractive and the one I would personally order if I were to purchase the Freedom Cable. If you in the market for an an excellent upgrade cable at a real world price the Freedom Cable should be on you must audition list. Offered with 30 day trial period it is a no brainer. If you do not like the cable you can return it for a refund. The sound quality is excellent and it is a cable that I feel confident recommending. Very nicely designed and an enthusiastic thumbs up. The CablePro is available factory direct. Their website is hereCablePro delivers high performance at home and on the road! | The ...
Ted Paisley started CablePro in 1989. He was doing custom installation and wiring for high end audio installations and realized that the sound of many systems were being limited by the wire that was being used. He decided that he could make wire with a much better sound quality and decided to offer some cables for installation with his custom work. That was the beginning of the CablePro. The Freedom cable is their newest offering and it is priced very competitively at $169.00. The base price is for a 5 foot cable with a standard 1/4 inch jack. There are options to customize the cable in any length and termination that you would need for your system. The cable used for review was a 10 ft optional single ended configuration for the HE500 which brought the total price of the cable to $210.00 and the 5Ft standard cable was used for the LCD2.2. The cable is UPOCC copper. The copper used is considered one of the best quality copper to use in high end cable design. The Freedom cable is designed as two coaxial cables separated all the way up to ear piece and stuffed with cotton filler . This helps to reduce any noise to the earpiece. The cable is housed in a plastic black vinyl jacket in the standard configuration and the cotton jacket is available as an option. The cable is well built and has some weight to the design. The cotton sleeve is more attractive than the black vinyl sleeve that comes standard. The cables were burned in for about 100 hours prior to me doing any critical listening.
Sound
The HE500 comes shipped with the silver stock cable from Hifiman and I felt that the silver cable was very grainy and hard sounding. It was also bright. Silver has the tendency to sound bright to my ears in most configurations I have heard them used with. The Freedom cable immediately transformed the hE500. The sound went from being bright to being more natural. The brightness disappeared and the musicality starting to come through with the Freedom cable in the system. I started to completely forget about the cable and became involved with the music. The tone of the instruments became much more like live music. I could hear deep into the sound stage. The delicate brushes used on drum recordings became very noticeable. I could hear in a very clear and non congested manner everything that was going on with the recording. The focus of the sound stage was more 3D and you could see a clear picture into the sound stage. The grain completely disappeared. It was like using windex on a dirty window. The veil was lifted. The cable made the HE500 go from a pretender to a contender for one of the best headphones on the planet. The LCD 2.2 has a ribbon type copper cable that comes stock with the headphone. The stock cable is an OFC copper design and has a warmer sound signature than the silver cable used with the hE500. The cable is a decent cable and the sound is good. The Freedom cable increased the transparency. It also made the music listening experience more enjoyable. The differences were subtle but the Freedom cable had a little more transparency and a grain free presentation. The Freedom cable did step up the performance of the LCD2.2 a notch. The differences with the LCD2 were not as drastic as I had heard with the he500 but an improvement over the stock cable nonetheless.
Conclusion
The CablePro cables are being offered at a very competitive price. Ted Paisley designed a real world cable that is being offered for anyone looking for an upgrade for their planar headphones. I enjoyed my time with both cables. The Freedom transformed the HE500 and improved the LcD2.2. The cables are a little heavy but when placed on the floor should be acceptable to most users. The cotton jacket is also more attractive and the one I would personally order if I were to purchase the Freedom Cable. If you in the market for an an excellent upgrade cable at a real world price the Freedom Cable should be on you must audition list. Offered with 30 day trial period it is a no brainer. If you do not like the cable you can return it for a refund. The sound quality is excellent and it is a cable that I feel confident recommending. Very nicely designed and an enthusiastic thumbs up. The CablePro is available factory direct. Their website is hereCablePro delivers high performance at home and on the road! | The ...
