-rowan-
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NiceHCK have been on form lately with their “better” releases like Himalaya and DragonScale 2. I’ve been buying their cheapies on and off for years but it wasn’t until very recently that I started taking their higher end stuff seriously.
I wasn’t much keen on their prior approach of selling surplus stock from supplying this or that famous cable brand and marketing them as dupes (and those cables were frankly hit and miss - some downright meh, some decent, others simply not to my taste).
But when they announced they were creating their own prototypes from different types of cable material, I was interested. So when they released a small batch of these prototypes during the last Ali sale, I picked up a few. I spent some time getting to know them and these are the ones I like most.
Most of the listening was done on the Himalaya, Titan, Quattro and Impact.
SSOrpheus
Pure silver cable. Very transparent and resolving, particularly in the mids and treble. Not bright or sharp; instead a full sound, more natural and less aggressive than you might expect from an SPC or hybrid. Good sub bass extension and definition though it won’t add note weight.
Interestingly, I noticed a peculiar lack of depth on open listen. I left it on the burner for about 10 hours and it opened right up. Perfectly aware of the different schools of thought on it, but this has got to be one of the more significant burn-ins I’ve actually heard.
Really nice colours but the fabric sheath (if it can be called fabric) is stiff, scratchy and microphonic.
DragonScale 2
(Not one of the new prototypes; but it stands tall among them)
Silver-palladium alloy. Very good upper treble and imaging, wide sound field. More bass pressure than something like SSOrpheus. Less mid-forward and less W-shaped than the likes of AuKing Ultra.
Different price bracket, but if I were to compare this with the much talked about Xinhs silver-palladium cable, the Xinhs is brighter and snappier. In comparison, the DragonScale 2 is much more resolving, brings more natural tonality and decay, has much more bass and is simply the more well-rounded product.
I’ve never heard OG DragonScale so can’t compare them.
AuKing Ultra
Gold plated copper. The vocal specialist of the lot, but also one with very nice treble extension and deep, textured bass. Fab mids for voices. Got my first goosebumps with Himalaya on this pairing. Treble here is more prominent and shimmery than SSOrpheus, but not sharp or fatiguing.
The most substantial bass of the three, though DragonScale 2 is not far behind.
It has an expansiveness in its staging that I associate with good copper. Conveys a clear sense of depth, layering and separation.
Compared to Eletech Raphael, AuKing Ultra is lusher, darker. Raph may be more resolving, or at least more overtly so because of its upper mid/lower treble tilt. ISN GC4 is a bit similar to AuKing Ultra in its darker colouration but AuKing Ultra has better (and more) bass.
Interestingly, Raph has relatively shallow depth compared to GC4 and AuKing Ultra.
Thiccc cable with a very soft fabric sheath and no microphonics of note once the music is playing. My favourite cable of the lot.
I wasn’t much keen on their prior approach of selling surplus stock from supplying this or that famous cable brand and marketing them as dupes (and those cables were frankly hit and miss - some downright meh, some decent, others simply not to my taste).
But when they announced they were creating their own prototypes from different types of cable material, I was interested. So when they released a small batch of these prototypes during the last Ali sale, I picked up a few. I spent some time getting to know them and these are the ones I like most.
Most of the listening was done on the Himalaya, Titan, Quattro and Impact.
SSOrpheus
Pure silver cable. Very transparent and resolving, particularly in the mids and treble. Not bright or sharp; instead a full sound, more natural and less aggressive than you might expect from an SPC or hybrid. Good sub bass extension and definition though it won’t add note weight.
Interestingly, I noticed a peculiar lack of depth on open listen. I left it on the burner for about 10 hours and it opened right up. Perfectly aware of the different schools of thought on it, but this has got to be one of the more significant burn-ins I’ve actually heard.
Really nice colours but the fabric sheath (if it can be called fabric) is stiff, scratchy and microphonic.
DragonScale 2
(Not one of the new prototypes; but it stands tall among them)
Silver-palladium alloy. Very good upper treble and imaging, wide sound field. More bass pressure than something like SSOrpheus. Less mid-forward and less W-shaped than the likes of AuKing Ultra.
Different price bracket, but if I were to compare this with the much talked about Xinhs silver-palladium cable, the Xinhs is brighter and snappier. In comparison, the DragonScale 2 is much more resolving, brings more natural tonality and decay, has much more bass and is simply the more well-rounded product.
I’ve never heard OG DragonScale so can’t compare them.
AuKing Ultra
Gold plated copper. The vocal specialist of the lot, but also one with very nice treble extension and deep, textured bass. Fab mids for voices. Got my first goosebumps with Himalaya on this pairing. Treble here is more prominent and shimmery than SSOrpheus, but not sharp or fatiguing.
The most substantial bass of the three, though DragonScale 2 is not far behind.
It has an expansiveness in its staging that I associate with good copper. Conveys a clear sense of depth, layering and separation.
Compared to Eletech Raphael, AuKing Ultra is lusher, darker. Raph may be more resolving, or at least more overtly so because of its upper mid/lower treble tilt. ISN GC4 is a bit similar to AuKing Ultra in its darker colouration but AuKing Ultra has better (and more) bass.
Interestingly, Raph has relatively shallow depth compared to GC4 and AuKing Ultra.
Thiccc cable with a very soft fabric sheath and no microphonics of note once the music is playing. My favourite cable of the lot.
Is the bass attenuated? 
