Toxic Cables - Impressions and Discussion Thread
May 7, 2012 at 11:51 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 10,329

Austin Morrow

Headphoneus Supremus
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Everyone that I know in the forums has said nothing but absolutely positive things about Frank's cables, and his commitment when it comes to customer service. Toxic Cables, in my honest and unbiased opinion, makes some of the best cables around, and for a relatively low cost.
 
I have an HD650 cable from him, and it's the cheapest, the best sounding, and one of the highest built cables I have ever had, and I have tried a lot of cables.
 
I'm interested to see everyone's else's opinions about Frank and Toxic Cables.
 
May 8, 2012 at 12:32 AM Post #2 of 10,329
Well, I ordered an balanced adapter on the 25th of April  and still waiting 
rolleyes.gif
 .Will let you know what I think about the built quality when it arrives....
 
May 8, 2012 at 5:49 PM Post #3 of 10,329
Ive tried every cable under the sun and then some.

This guy knows how to make a great cable, especially if you value attention to detail, quality materials and good communication.

He has even recabled the super delicate sony r10 headphone for me, and i wouldnt have trusted anyone else with such a rare, special headphone. We all know how easy they can be killed.

I Really recommend his work. Nicest guy in the business. He handles all my cabling now and for some of my friends too.
 
May 8, 2012 at 9:52 PM Post #5 of 10,329
Quote:
Thinking about getting on of Frank's cables for my HD650's.  Anybody have input on sleeved vs. naked braid?  Would one have more microphonics than the other?

 
Fome what I've tried, it's apples to oranges. Looks vs. durability.
 
May 9, 2012 at 10:14 AM Post #6 of 10,329
I just yesterday received Frank's Silver Poison, naked, terminated for the iBasso PB-2 and LCD-2.  Unlike many of you, this is the first time I've ever heard balanced output AND the first time I've ever heard my LCD-2 through anything other than the stock Audeze cables.  
 
That said, I can still proclaim that for me, going from single-ended with stock cables to balanced with the Silver Poison has brought about the second most dramatic improvement in my listening experience, after only the purchase of the LCD-2.  Seriously, this was huge.  It's a shame I have no way to discern the independent impacts made by going balanced vs. the contributions made by the Silver Poisons, but I am nevertheless stunned at what a difference this has made in listening pleasure.  
 
I opened the package on getting home last night at around 7:00 PM and, but for a quick bite to eat, went koo-koo with the Silver Poisons, until about 3:30 AM this morning.  All my favorite tracks, like I've never heard them before.  I'll spare you any attempt on my part to be more specific about the sound, because I'm hearing improvements across the board - name a trait that's desirable, I'm hearing more of it.  Seriously.
 
I took a break from listening long enough to take this photo with my venerable 6MP Canon S3 IS, but went right back to listening while I was editing it in Photoshop.
 

 
My thanks to all the "smart" people in the other threads whose positive comments regarding the Silver Poison helped to influence my purchase decision.  I am a satisfied customer!
 
Update - This has turned out to be a popular photo.  To satisfy requests for wallpaper versions, here's a 1920x1080:
 

 
And a 1366x768:
 

 
And a 1280x800:
 

 
Mike
 
May 9, 2012 at 10:30 AM Post #7 of 10,329
Quote:
Thinking about getting one of Frank's cables for my HD650's.  Anybody have input on sleeved vs. naked braid?  Would one have more microphonics than the other?

 
Mutombo, I haven't tried the sleeved version, obviously, but I can say that I don't hear any microphonics with the naked version.  It's so light and flexible it just gets out of the way of anything it runs into, instead of forcing a situation where friction could be communicated to the headphones.  
 
With the stock LCD-2 cables from Audeze, I couldn't look down at my feet, for example, without the cables physically interfering with the lowering my chin, and I could both feel and hear the rubbing, but the naked Silver Poison are practically invisible in this regard.
 
I had some trepidation about durability when I decided to order them naked, but now that I've got them in hand, inspecting the clear insulation and examining the way Frank has crafted them, I'm confident they'll be fine - and I don't have to worry about a fabric sleeve getting frayed and woolly time - perhaps a silly thing to be concerned about, but hey, the beauty of the naked Silver Poison has me thinking more about the appearance of my rig than I ever did in the past.  
 
This cable is singing AND blinging!
 
tongue_smile.gif
 
 
Mike
 
May 9, 2012 at 10:34 AM Post #8 of 10,329
zardon,
Quote:
Ive tried every cable under the sun and then some.
 

 
Reading this (and checking your profile) makes me feel as if I've won the lottery.  
 
How could I be so spoiled to have such nice cables without having invested all the time and effort you have to get here? 
 
I've gone straight to Frank's cables without a long road of trial and error.
 
Mike
 
May 9, 2012 at 11:44 AM Post #10 of 10,329
Quote:
 
Mutombo, I haven't tried the sleeved version, obviously, but I can say that I don't hear any microphonics with the naked version.  It's so light and flexible it just gets out of the way of anything it runs into, instead of forcing a situation where friction could be communicated to the headphones.  
 
With the stock LCD-2 cables from Audeze, I couldn't look down at my feet, for example, without the cables physically interfering with the lowering my chin, and I could both feel and hear the rubbing, but the naked Silver Poison are practically invisible in this regard.
 
I had some trepidation about durability when I decided to order them naked, but now that I've got them in hand, inspecting the clear insulation and examining the way Frank has crafted them, I'm confident they'll be fine - and I don't have to worry about a fabric sleeve getting frayed and woolly time - perhaps a silly thing to be concerned about, but hey, the beauty of the naked Silver Poison has me thinking more about the appearance of my rig than I ever did in the past.  
 
This cable is singing AND blinging!
 
tongue_smile.gif

 
Mike

 
Thanks for the excellent feedback.  Exactly what I was looking for.
 
May 9, 2012 at 11:47 AM Post #11 of 10,329
It's funny, because even though my HD650 cable looks exactly the same as a silver poison cable, it says "Viper" along the side.
 
May 9, 2012 at 3:35 PM Post #15 of 10,329
I stumbled upon Toxic Cables whilst doing my monthly ebay search for stranded silver wire. I bought a couple of foot to make myself a new LOD with and was so impressed with both the SQ and customer service that I took the plunge and sunk my hard earned into 16ft for a new TF10 cable:

 
Now, I agree with what zilchOmd says about improvements all across the spectrum, but for me the most noticeable improvement were the mids. No more recessed mids! The Toxic silver has really taken my TF10 to a new level of excellence. It has transformed a pair of fones from ones that I was considering selling - due to mids and 'thick' sound - ( got used to tced nature of GR07's ) into something amazing.
 
If any of you follow the DIY cables forum, or the portable rig ones you may well have read my posts banging on about how great this silver cable is. If your on the fence about taking the plunge I would say go for it, and I dont say that lightly as im not a man of means and wealth. Im glad that a thread has been started in Franks honour, his wire is awesome and deserves far greater exposure. Plus he is not content to sit back with his current product line but is always coming forward with new ideas and innovations. Also - from my point of view what with me being an Englander - its great to have someone in the UK making quality audio equipment.
 
Good work Frank!
 

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