[joey99]

 
How much did you pay for it?
 
I Paid $80 + $8 shipping from seller JapaneseLady on amazon global (USA)

that s great price ... my friend was in Tokyo and it was 80000yen .. so about the same.

 

[gerelmx1986]

 

 
How much did you pay for it?
 
I Paid $80 + $8 shipping from seller JapaneseLady on amazon global (USA)

that s great price ... my friend was in Tokyo and it was 80000yen .. so about the same.

i will test it today and later store it

 to use when the stock one breaks (XBA-A3 stock cable feels flimsy compared to the stck of the XBA-H3)

 

[gerelmx1986]

Here we go
 

 
The box is typical of sony eas to open package came sealed with easy to rip-off plastic, te back ha deutsch, español, english fncais, che, japanese and other languages explaining the cable design
 

 
Opening the box you encounter with a tray that has a black envelope witht eh cable inside, i was expecting a bit more of protection IMHO especially arround the delicate MMCX connectors, fortunately correos de Mexico handled it with care, below the envelope there is an instruction manual and warranty card.
 
The build is very nice, the thickest cable i've ever seen (for headphones of course

 if i didn't mention this well power transmission lines are the bigegst i've ever seen).
 
The connectors are pretty solid and easier to detach/reattach tho i won't be fiddling with it too much, infact after this i will be back to the stock and use it until it dies.
 
The jack is probably the biggest jack i've ever seen boy so huge and adds weight to the cable.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Sound quality
 
I note an improvemtn over stock cable, the bass has tightened up more and the 3D-ness of the soundstage is Holy cow, sooo big i find it to have an airier presentation and more air between instruments Haynd Quartet Op. 17 No. 4 in C minor KODALY QUARTET. the cello sounds very nice and tight, violina dn viola very airy and overall stage is big and properly separated giving nice presentation.
 
Works for LUte-Harpsichord ROBERT HILL, the bass 16' string made of gut sound very WOW Slams very deep!, The Prelude, fugue and Allegro  in E Flat BWV 998 starts with a nice thummmmmpp!!!!, very nice high notes ascendint and the more thummps going to the lowest notes of the lautenwerck, the space recorded got bigger and airier nice reverb arround the instrue¿ment and after it. Switching to the Fugue of the same piece Hell wow the detailed and dancing of the notes, as he was with me playing, takes me to an extra level of detail retrieval the most minuscule click of the plectra (harpsichord quills) are heard rubbing against the gut strings!!!!! something i never heard not even with the stock cable, as well the meachnism of pulling in and out the upper keyboard (coupling)

 

[gerelmx1986]

The sound qyuality improvement is noticiable, more tightened bass, more spaciousness and airiness they improved my XBA-A3 nice wider soundstage than before
 
But IMHO i am like this thigs i dislike i tend to finish with them first, f.e cookies i don't like from an assorted package i eat those first and leave the delicious ones for the end... same i will do with the upgrade cable, leave it unused until the stock one dies
 
The books are of German as a foreign language for the curious DEUTSCH ALS FREMDSPRACHE... Arbeitsbuch is work book
The courses are not cheap 4000 pesos each bi-mester (arround 250 euro), with 4 of those  i've completed for another ZX100 + XBA-A3 + MUC Upgrade cable, doing so i can go with my boyfriend and marry him, if i'm correct there is a "language law" in germany that states if the foreigner doesn't speak at least A1 (basic german) they will likely deny me the residence

 

[cuiter23]

Nice Pics and Impressions!
 
On another note, I have my XBA-A3 for sale if anyone is interested. Like new condition used only for a couple months (Comes with original box, carrying case, and spare tips). Reason for sale is that I am looking to upgrade to the Z5

 

[RedJohn456]

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

Originally Posted by gerelmx1986 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
  Here we go
 

 
The box is typical of sony eas to open package came sealed with easy to rip-off plastic, te back ha deutsch, español, english fncais, che, japanese and other languages explaining the cable design
 

 
Opening the box you encounter with a tray that has a black envelope witht eh cable inside, i was expecting a bit more of protection IMHO especially arround the delicate MMCX connectors, fortunately correos de Mexico handled it with care, below the envelope there is an instruction manual and warranty card.
 
The build is very nice, the thickest cable i've ever seen (for headphones of course

 if i didn't mention this well power transmission lines are the bigegst i've ever seen).
 
The connectors are pretty solid and easier to detach/reattach tho i won't be fiddling with it too much, infact after this i will be back to the stock and use it until it dies.
 
The jack is probably the biggest jack i've ever seen boy so huge and adds weight to the cable.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Sound quality
 
I note an improvemtn over stock cable, the bass has tightened up more and the 3D-ness of the soundstage is Holy cow, sooo big i find it to have an airier presentation and more air between instruments Haynd Quartet Op. 17 No. 4 in C minor KODALY QUARTET. the cello sounds very nice and tight, violina dn viola very airy and overall stage is big and properly separated giving nice presentation.
 
Works for LUte-Harpsichord ROBERT HILL, the bass 16' string made of gut sound very WOW Slams very deep!, The Prelude, fugue and Allegro  in E Flat BWV 998 starts with a nice thummmmmpp!!!!, very nice high notes ascendint and the more thummps going to the lowest notes of the lautenwerck, the space recorded got bigger and airier nice reverb arround the instrue¿ment and after it. Switching to the Fugue of the same piece Hell wow the detailed and dancing of the notes, as he was with me playing, takes me to an extra level of detail retrieval the most minuscule click of the plectra (harpsichord quills) are heard rubbing against the gut strings!!!!! something i never heard not even with the stock cable, as well the meachnism of pulling in and out the upper keyboard (coupling)

 

Nice pics. Sony nailed the ZX100 design imo, really attractive.

 

[jmills8]

I have both the A3 and Z5, both are great and they have similarities and they have differences. Z5 a bit more refine, clearer and balanced but when amped. A3 has a slight V Shape which is fun. Z5 bass goes a bit deeper and thicker mids. Z5 made of metal.

 

[RedJohn456]

 
do you have fiio x7 impressions?

 i've come to a conclusion, soundstage is recrding/headphone depandant ather than DAP
1000 pesos more than what i bought my A3 for... screw** have no money right now

Sorry buddy missed this post earlier.
 
Soundstage depends on the song and headphone honestly. But the X7 has a 3D feeling to my ears. Recordings sound deep with good depth and layering. Like you're listening to them in person, really good detail and presentation. A step up from my Geek Out V2, imo.

 

[gerelmx1986]

Sorry buddy missed this post earlier.
 
Soundstage depends on the song and headphone honestly. But the X7 has a 3D feeling to my ears. Recordings sound deep with good depth and layering. Like you're listening to them in person, really good detail and presentation. A step up from my Geek Out V2, imo.

Felt just what you describe "if you were listening to them in person" right now with the upgrade cable O___O i was skeptic about cables my typical attitude was "cables?1?! pleaseeee!!!!!" this cable has changed my mind of cables as a mere conductor
 
the stock ones are good too but feel unfortunately cheap and i fear they won't last so long, especially if they get cauf in my buttocks sometimes and i pull my walkman futher  they get puled

 

[Kerouac]

Originally Posted by gerelmx1986 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
O i was skeptic about cables my typical attitude was "cables?1?! pleaseeee!!!!!" this cable has changed my mind of cables as a mere conductor

 
Welcome to the world of upgrade cables. Even when it's (like the sceptics say) 100% placebo, it works for my ears/brain

The Z5 is my only iem that I still use with stock cables, because I'm afraid to screw up the connector parts.

 

[gordec]

Any recommendation for a decent quality replacement cable for the XBA Z5? The stock ones are fine I just don't like the stiff portion right next the buds that's suppose to wrap around the ear. I use a custom ear sleeve, so I don't wrap the cable. It ends up to be a drag. Thx ahead.
 
I see 2 on ebay. This Chinese one is only $20. http://www.ebay.com/itm/OCC-Silver-Plated-Upgrade-Audio-Cable-For-SONY-XBA-Z5-XBA-A3-XBA-A2-XBA-H3-H2-/301761194052?var=&hash=item46425e6844md3pNzAku-l952hqF1P_14Q
 
The lunashop has one for $66 http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pure-PCOCC-Earphone-Cable-For-Sony-XBA-H2-XBA-H3-XBA-Z5-xba-A3-xba-A2-xba-A1-/251885432689?hash=item3aa58aaf71:g:E5oAAOSwrklVCpLv

 

[dweaver]

How about buying the A3 cable from Sony? I believe it is not as stiff and would have the locking design in the connector.

 

[gerelmx1986]

How about buying the A3 cable from Sony? I believe it is not as stiff and would have the locking design in the connector.

I have it and IMHO prefer it to the earhooks with the epense of soetimes moving and havinf to readjust them from time to time, maybe the stiff part is near the jack, the wool cord is pretty thick

 

[gordec]

How about buying the A3 cable from Sony? I believe it is not as stiff and would have the locking design in the connector.

That Sony MUC-M12SM1 cable is nice, but it's like $100. I don't want to spend that much. May go with the cheap $20 Chinese one.

Sent from my SM-N910T3 using Tapatalk

 

[gerelmx1986]

 

How about buying the A3 cable from Sony? I believe it is not as stiff and would have the locking design in the connector.

That Sony MUC-M12SM1 cable is nice, but it's like $100. I don't want to spend that much. May go with the cheap $20 Chinese one.

Sent from my SM-N910T3 using Tapatalk

I picked mine from $80  up from amazon