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ALO Balanced Silver Plated Copper Litz from Sony ZX2 w/ CA Andromeda IEM

Discussion in 'IEMs and Portable Gear' started by purr1n, Nov 16, 2016.

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  1. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Making a separate thread for this because I've been asked by numerous folks about this. @KenBall was gracious enough to make these cables with the proper termination (3.5mm TRRS) for the Sony ZX2 with only a few days notice before the big meet. I believe this cable is the same as the cable provided with the Andromeda. It's the silver plated copper litz, but with a balanced termination to take advantage of the separate L+R grounds of the ZX2. The ZX2 doesn't provide any more power with a balanced connector, but it does isolate the L+R grounds from each other, much like some of the EC amps (BA, Studio, 445, 2A3, etc.)

    Compared to the SE connector, the balanced connection provides the same kind of improvement that is heard from going SE to the balanced XLR on the aforementioned EC amps with Sennheiser headphones (HD6X0, HD800). I mention the Sennheisers because on the EC amps, the Sennheisers seem to benefit more than other kinds of headphones such as Grados by going to the balanced output.

    The improvements are not anything major, and are small enough to where it could be a matter of wishful thinking. I have gone through the trouble of going back and forth several times with different tracks and these are my observations: I hear a tiny improvement in microdetail, a small improvement in separation and imaging precision, and deeper bass. (I always forget the deeper bass part, but yes, I hear this too from the EC amps with Senns when the grounds are kept floating instead of common).

    Someone asked me if going to the balanced cable was worth it. My answer is yes, but only you plan on sticking with the Andromeda and ZX2 (or whatever other DAP capable of similar or better gains with its balanced output). The differences are subtle, and I probably wouldn't notice for a while if someone secretly swapped the cables and I wasn't looking. I'm not the kind of person that buys an IEM or DAP every other month and then sells it two weeks later. (I used UERM for years with the Sony X Walkman and maybe a Leckerton UHA-6S in between every now and then), so in my case, getting the last 2-3% of performance for that extra three hundred bucks or so makes sense. Also, I imagine the strain relief and MMCX are bitch to solder, so I'm not going to bother making my own cables.

    Now I am curious about the copper cables. I've never been a fan of silver plated copper, at least in the context of the bright sounding HD800. I know a lot of you guys run Andromedas and some use the ZX2. Let me know if there is any interest in a copper balanced version. I can use SBAF funds and send both out so people can evaluate for themselves.
     
    purr1n, Nov 16, 2016
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  2. Merrick

    Merrick A lidless ear

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    I have a TRRS balanced cable I got from Impact Cables which I like quite a bit, but it is very thick (won't fit into the supplied Andromeda case when coiled up). I would be curious to A/B that and the Litz one to see if I can hear any differences. I have a ZX2, a GOV2+ Infinity, a Pono, and the Jotunheim. The latter two have adapters to hook in a 3.5mm TRRS. I've also ordered an iematch, which I believe does balanced through 3.5mm TRRS as well.

    I see you're discussing two cables. I could A/B all three. I'll have to check with Impact and see what they used for their wiring.
     
    Merrick, Nov 16, 2016
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  3. thegunner100

    thegunner100 Hentai Master Chief

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    Thanks for the writeup and suggestion Marv. I'll be keeping the Litz cable from CA as stock 3.5mm but will be getting a balanced cable from Impact Audio as per @Merrick's suggestion. For anyone interested, I am getting this 3.5mm Right Angled TRRS plug from ebay for my cable order. It's basically a copy of the Oyaide RA plug but in TRRS configuration.

    http://m.ebay.com/itm/Right-Angle-H...-Male-Plug-Connector-/390940590056?nav=SEARCH

    I've been using my UERMs for 3.5 years now along with the dx50/90 for 3 years until I got the zx2 recently. I can definitely see myself using the zx2 for a couple of years but with CA's innovations, it's hard to say if the Andros will last as long as the UERMs.
     
    thegunner100, Nov 16, 2016
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  4. Warrior

    Warrior RIP 2021

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    I bought the Reference 8 cable balanced for my Vegas, but not sure if I'll hear a difference with my Fiio X7. I prefer my Cowon P1, but it's not balanced. I'd need the Cowon S, and it's just not worth it.
     
    Warrior, Nov 16, 2016
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  5. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    After my first PWAudio No 5 cable it's all I want forever for IEMs. I will pay the premium for the damn thing.
     
    zerodeefex, Nov 16, 2016
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  6. Warrior

    Warrior RIP 2021

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    Never heard of them. I'll have to check it out. I love cables, as useless as I think they are. Just love the beauty of some of them.
     
    Warrior, Nov 16, 2016
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  7. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    And FWIW, I went back and forth a dozen times and can't reliably point to TRRS being a noticeable improvement on the ZX2.
     
    zerodeefex, Nov 16, 2016
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  8. Warrior

    Warrior RIP 2021

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    I've never heard a difference on anything balanced, sadly. Probably good, I get to save money for once. Although I still want to get the Cowon S just so I can have the Vegas balanced.
     
    Warrior, Nov 16, 2016
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  9. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    I've heard a difference on EC amps as well as amps that are actually fully differential and use some mechanism to enable a SE output. Just not on the ZX2.
     
    zerodeefex, Nov 16, 2016
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  10. Merrick

    Merrick A lidless ear

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    Where are you buying these from in the US? Or are you not buying them in the US?
     
    Merrick, Nov 16, 2016
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  11. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    Christian got Mike Kubota to pick me up my first one from Japan. I'm trying to get @3X0 to pick me up a second one but he's pretending he doesn't see me bugging him on work chat.
     
    zerodeefex, Nov 16, 2016
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  12. Merrick

    Merrick A lidless ear

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    Guess I'll stick with Impact for now then!
     
    Merrick, Nov 16, 2016
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  13. Warrior

    Warrior RIP 2021

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    @zerodeefex good point, I should disclose the only balanced setups I've tried are the shitty ass AK devices and the Fiio X7. Neither are near the level of EC.

    I've tried rwak 120b, ak100ii up to and including the ak240. Only difference was power. Heard the increase in volume. When volume matched, zero difference to my ears. Hell, I couldn't tell a difference between the ak100ii and ak240. Considering how much I read on head-fi, I thought it would be very noticeable.
     
    Warrior, Nov 16, 2016
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  14. deafdoorknob

    deafdoorknob Almost "Made"

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    marv, if you still have the tinsel wire, you might want to try it with the andro with z0 devices as it is highly likely that much like the Linum BAX**, the cable itself has a higher resistance than the litz cable.*

    *KB mentioned elsewhere that the litz cable increases the bass output by almost 3db compared to the tinsel.

    **Linum BAX has a 1.5ohm resistance, the music cable is twice that, and super BAX is half that.

    for some unknown reason, ime, ALO's SPC seems to avoid the stereotypical SPC signature and errs towards a warmish cast.
     
    deafdoorknob, Nov 16, 2016
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  15. Cellist88

    Cellist88 Friend

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    For me the balanced trrs makes a difference. Before i got the andromedas, i had 1964 ears v6s. They were clear and balanced but soundstage wasnt so big. I really didnt like the zx2 with them se. For me zx2 sounded worse than the chord mojo with these iems. That was before i got the balanced which made a huge difference.

    Going to the andro to the zx2, it was much subtler but still very noticeable as i knew what to listen for. Without trrs, the sound is a big fuzzier and diffuse. What really is the difference for me are the microdynamics and nuances...on se they dont come out well and it sounds veiled to me, being more bassy. The transients hit hard, but feel uncontrolled.

    On balanced everything is tighter, better placed, and the biggest improvement for me is the timbre.

    I still think people would try the third setting i mentioned for the zx2. I had an eu zx2. Now i have a us zx2. Difference is still there. Makes the difference between trrs and se bigger
     
    Cellist88, Nov 21, 2016
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  16. Friday

    Friday Friend

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    If you happen to know someone making a trip down to Singapore, they have a distributor here called Music Sanctuary which retails it for 220SGD (~155USD)
     
    Friday, Nov 21, 2016
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  17. muse

    muse Facebook Friend

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    What specifically is it about this cable that you like?

    I'm from SG and Music Sanctuary here is running a 15% BF off for PW Audio cables. If you ever want a second cable or anything of that sort, just drop me a PM and I can purchase and ship it for you (they ship to the US as well but from what I recall it's pretty expensive)
     
    muse, Nov 21, 2016
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  18. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    @Marvey

    Just ordered the PWAudio No. 5 copper litz 3.5mm TRRS balanced cable for my Andromedas from Music Sanctuary (it was on sale). It should arrive in 2-3 weeks (I am cheap and did registered airmail with tracking instead of spending $40 for fedex). Want me to send it your way for evaluation once it arrives?

    I also have the 3.5mm TRS version @CEE TEE gave me a present. I love it so much and the ergonomics are so much better than the cable you have I found it was worth the $136 (on sale right now) to splurge on the TRRS version.
     
    zerodeefex, Nov 21, 2016
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  19. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    missed your post :) Things I love about this cable:
    1. Ergonomics are ridiculous
    2. They never tangle
    3. They aren't microphonic as far as I can tell
    4. They feel luxurious
    In short, for me, they are the perfect IEM cable.

    @Marvey will tell you I'm not a cable believer but I perceive these benefits to be worth the purchase for this cable for me (which is why I took advantage of the music sanctuary sale and had them ship a cable to me here in the US). :)
     
    zerodeefex, Nov 21, 2016
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  20. Friday

    Friday Friend

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    +1 for the Singapore economy! Though I should say that I am not affiliated to MS, and kind of disagree with their hardcore attitude towards cable rolling (no IEM cable should be worth 2K, even if it's paired with a 2K IEM).

    As for zerodeefex's impressions, I can concur with them having spent a few months with the cables. It also helps that (to my ears) they don't detract from the mids compared to other options that were available.
     
    Friday, Nov 21, 2016
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