I can believe that. It’s a good job that you managed to stick with 2.5mm all this time - CEMA may have some nice cables but their 4.4mm plugs didn’t play well with my gear (Cayin, Hiby and Shanling) so they eventually had to go. From all accounts it seems to affect only 4.4mm plugs. Penon’s plugs on the other hand work every single time and if I’m spending $50 or more on a cable I don’t want to have to deal with that uncertainty.
I made a switch to 4.4mm the same time as you did, I think. In order to utilize the few pigtails that I had, I went with yet another adapter. Counter productive I know but thats how I found out even adapters alter sound to a degree. I guess I’m lucky with my older CEAs, they were problem free so far (touch wood). I get what you mean, there‘s an unspoken confidence buying with Penon knowing their after sales will take good care of us. Edit to add: and product quality!
@Redcarmoose
Thank you for your cable comparison with Neo 5
I think that Bass cable is intriguing but it looks really big and stiff comparing to the others lol
I have the G4 but in MMCX, I have received an adapter from Penon - a female MMCX to 2Pin which I might try with Neo 5 once I receive it
Probibly in many ways the ISN G4 and Penon Bass are comparable, though they obviously sound different a little. The G4 has that Graphene expansion, where imaging is big and the Penon Bass is a tad warmer and has a smoothness? Really I need to spend more time with the Neo 5 and both cables, which I will do tomorrow.
I never tire of seeing iterations of the Volt. Once again fighting the urge to sell mine and order the ciem. Mostly it’s the thought of going through the 500-hour burn-in all over again that is holding me back.
The juggernauts that once was, Orb and Globe, has now almost vanished to obscurity, just after three years, not because of its capabilities but merely the speed and volume the industry traverse in. Same can be applied to the 8 wire occ silver plated cable that came with it. A cable thats barely muttered around here if ever. A sign of how uninspiring it was in this time and day. By now it has since been superseded by more premium examples for subsequent IEM releases, a move that clearly showcased Penon’s commitment in delivering better value and products to their fans. While CS819 became the new gold standard, yet it’s not always exclusively so. There‘s was a single instance of anomaly that broke the chain where the newer and more robust OS133 was selected instead of CS819 for Fan 2, with reasons only known to Penon.
Equidistant between those two releases is the quite popular and charming Volt EST. It has since garnered a small fan following, cult even, I dare say, which I’ve excluded preamble as I felt there seems to be some renewed interest of late albeit sporadically, besides I’d like to keep to the theme things-round.
Let’s quickly touch base with Volt’s cable before moving on shall we? Firstly a round of applause to Penon that went with blue to color match those gorgeous swirling cloud faceplates! Otherwise It’s somewhat similar to CS819 but slightly stockier and in full silver plated flavor. Another cable likewise rarely ever mentioned nowadays.
I can go on with other pairings on their stable but I’ll spare you some unnecessary reading time.
Bluesy, CS819 their similarities
The uninteresting one
Orb/Globe stock standard
Not much of a looker but no ugly duckling either.
Left: OG / Right: v2
Admittedly even Fan’s stock wire fared much better in the visual department - and on another note it’s quite a disservice to see Fan came supplied with a SE plug instead of balanced simply because it’s dynamic driver clearly demands it.
I’d also like to touch on Sphere for a second, since it is the one and only original OG, the very first things-round that started the romantic series which I’ve yet to own but stock photos on its cable suggests it’s KZ’ish in appearance?
Moving back to the topic of Orb/Globe wires, there are a total of two version at time of writing with the first only available together with their respective IEMs whereas v2 is currently on their catalog for $18.90 separately, there’s also a mic option if one wishes.
I won’t be doing anything drastic here like an A/B thingy, in fact I’ll simply assume both versions would perform similarly be it in ergonomics, et cetera, et cetera.
Now onto some visuals.
If one were to casually eyeball it, both versions may appear identical at first glance be it the metal furnishings or wires, however that’s far from the truth.
Braiding / Splitter / Chin slider
The actual item actually feels marginally bulkier and suppler. It also appears to have looser braiding from mid section to plug end but tighter towards the connectors compared to OG.
Inner core looks roughly the same gauge diameter wise to my aging eyes, just maybe the sheath on the v2 is slight thicker? I can’t be certain. You be the judge here.
Top: v2 / Bottom: OG
Plug Now available in 4.4mm
Top: v2 / Bottom: OG
Ear-guide
Left: OG / Right: v2
In summation
What we are looking here are two entirely different cables, from wires all the way to accessories, finishing even if you care to scrutinize. An interesting development nonetheless after all this time, to me at least for an otherwise boring cable.
Perhaps I should plug it in sometime to find out if it’s any better?
Hello All, I am very close to pulling the trigger on the 10th, but my only concern is the fit. I have the vortex and Dunu DK3001pro and they fit great, but both are also pretty tiny. The Raptgo Hook X I have fits great for me also.
That being said I had the Blessing 2 Dusk in the past and those were a horrible fit for me so I had to sell them.
Can anyone comment on the fit of the 10th? how do they feel after a couple hours of wearing them? they look like they are pretty chonky boys. Thanks.
The actual item actually feels marginally bulkier and suppler. It also appears to have looser braiding from mid section to plug end but tighter towards the connectors compared to OG.
Inner core looks roughly the same gauge diameter wise to my aging eyes, just maybe the sheath on the v2 is slight thicker? I can’t be certain. You be the judge here.
Interesting. I did think my latest CS819 (which came with the 10th) looked and felt ever so slightly different so had to unearth one of my older ones to compare it with (I have four. Don’t ask. Just… don’t ask).
Awful lighting atm but the difference is more obvious above the split:
The older CS819 is on top in both photos. It looks less obvious in photos than irl but the wires of the old CS819 look slightly thicker necessitating a slightly looser weave.
Admittedly even Fan’s stock wire fared much better in the visual department - and on another note it’s quite a disservice to see Fan came supplied with a SE plug instead of balanced simply because it’s dynamic driver clearly demands it.
As always, agree with this. The Fan DD is so under-served by its SE plug. Of course it could be argued that many Fan owners probably already have a bunch of balanced cables… in which case I really wouldn’t mind having it shipped without a cable, so as not to add to the growing stash of stock cables that are likely never going to be used.
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