# Aftermarket cables for the HE-6/ HE-500 etc.



## TruBrew

So the LCD-2 and HE-6 receive a lot of comparison. That is not a surprise considering they are both new top end Ortho headphones. What I don't understand is why is there a long discussion on what aftermarket cables to use with the LCD-2, and no thread for the HE-6.
   
  I have read some discussion on the topic inside the HE-6 thread, but that discussion is so long and filled with other information as well. I thought it might be time to change that.
   
  I own both the LCD-2 and HE-6, but am more interested in re-cabling the HE-6 as it is my preferred can of the two. If I had the money I would do both. For that matter, I may not be able to afford new cables for my HE-6 in the near future, but it is never too early to start looking.
   
  Please comment on your experience using the HE-6 with aftermarket cables.


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## cifani090

Stefan cables have a cable. You could customize it to your liking


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## sridhar3

Double post.


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## sridhar3

A quick search and I stumbled upon these:
   
http://www.moon-audio.com/HiFiman.htm
   
http://apuresound.com/v3.html
   
  I didn't find anything for HE-6 at ALO and Whiplash.
  
  Quote: 





cifani090 said:


> Stefan cables have a cable. You could customize it to your liking


 

 Looks like they make two, E-Series and Endorphin:
   
http://www.stefanaudioart.com/Headphone%20Cable%20E-Series%20HE%206%20SE
   
http://www.stefanaudioart.com/headphone%20cable%20HE%206%20endor%20se


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## johangrb

I'm very happy with my HE-6 & a Double Helix Molecule cable. (From tube amp speaker terminals).


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## DragonOwen

Waiting for arrival Silver Dragon V3 cable with Neutrik 4-pin XLR jack for my HE-6, it was shipped from US yesterday. So according to statistic it will come to me in about 15-25 days. I will write my impressions here when it will arrive.
  P.S. Will be listening with NFB-10ES, which is already in my town on customs, so I probably will get it on the next week.
  P.P.S. Sorry for my bad English.


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## TruBrew

I anticipate hearing your thoughts. Your English seems fine, so no need to apologize for that. it is 1000 times better than my Russian. I dated a Russian girl for a few months while she was in town on vacation. The only time he spoke Russian around me was to talk about me to our mutual friend. So that is off topic.
   
  The Double Helix cables seam interesting. They have a huge price range. I would love to hear some more thought on those. I have always heard silver brings out the top end, which in my opinion the HE-6 does not need. The silver dragon seems like a great idea for my LCD-2. The HE-6 is however my preferred can and more likely to receive a cable upgrade. I hope more opinions start to come in.


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## MacedonianHero

trubrew said:


> So the LCD-2 and HE-6 receive a lot of comparison. That is not a surprise considering they are both new top end Ortho headphones. What I don't understand is why is there a long discussion on what aftermarket cables to use with the LCD-2, and no thread for the HE-6.
> 
> I have read some discussion on the topic inside the HE-6 thread, but that discussion is so long and filled with other information as well. I thought it might be time to change that.
> 
> ...




Of all the stock cables I've received with headphones, I prefer the HE-6's version. So I'm very happy to stand pat with them.


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## Frank I

Funny but the Denon D7000 also has the 7N OCC cable and the HE^ is also OCC so no need for any other cables on either headphone for me. The HE6 cable is light and flexible. Wish the Denon was the same construction but is also very light but need to cared for properly or it will kink


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## Nuwidol

Two birds one stone?


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## sunneebear

Trevor at Norse is supposed to be working on a HE6 cable.  I have tried the Norse 8 conductor on my HE6 and I think it is a improvement over the stock.  Treble is about the same, difference is richer vocals and more body and presence in the bass.
   
  Then again the stock cable if almost perfect in every way.


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## TheSatelliteGuy

Does anyone know where to buy the cable that the HE6 comes with. I would like to make a extension and would like to use the same cable. I asked the people at HiFiMan and they said they do not deal in cable and only the manufacture would know and I found they were very reluctant to  help find the exact cable type. Stax has always offered extension cables and HE6 should. The stock cable is not bad but really sits you down in one place. I would love a extension.


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## TruBrew

did you try head.direct.customerservice@gmail.com. That is the email address for Head-Direct, who sell the He-6. I don't know if that is the same contact email you used, but I am surprised to hear of their unwillingness to help you.


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## TheSatelliteGuy

Yes I did. I also thought it would be nice to get a XLR ending in a speaker cable connection made out of the same wire and there was no interest in helping. We are not in the cable business as I remember. I then asked if they knew where I could get the same cable. Once again I do not know, only manufacture knows. Can not contact them. So it goes. I think with a set of cans that have the reputation of HE6 that they would supply a cable with speaker  termination. I got 5 great amps that will not drive these cans with the 1/4 inch plug. How short sighted to include a 1/4 inch plug, only. Worthless. So is the pretty presentation box which you can not put the cans in with the cable attached. Short sighted, indeed.


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## sunneebear

Fang had a speaker pigtail box in the beginning, I think he will have it again soon because of the popularity of people running the HE6 out of amps.  You ask here and someone can make you a XLR4 to binding post adapter.


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## Happy Camper

thesatelliteguy said:


> Yes I did. I also thought it would be nice to get a XLR ending in a speaker cable connection made out of the same wire and there was no interest in helping. We are not in the cable business as I remember. I then asked if they knew where I could get the same cable. Once again I do not know, only manufacture knows. Can not contact them. So it goes. I think with a set of cans that have the reputation of HE6 that they would supply a cable with speaker  termination. I got 5 great amps that will not drive these cans with the 1/4 inch plug. How short sighted to include a 1/4 inch plug, only. Worthless. So is the pretty presentation box which you can not put the cans in with the cable attached. Short sighted, indeed.




I sent my 1/4" pigtail that comes with the 6s to hiflight. He took the 1/4" adapter off and lugged the cable. He then put the 1/4" adapter on a pigtail he makes. Perfect IMO.


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## somestranger26

thesatelliteguy said:


> Yes I did. I also thought it would be nice to get a XLR ending in a speaker cable connection made out of the same wire and there was no interest in helping. We are not in the cable business as I remember. I then asked if they knew where I could get the same cable. Once again I do not know, only manufacture knows. Can not contact them. So it goes. I think with a set of cans that have the reputation of HE6 that they would supply a cable with speaker  termination. I got 5 great amps that will not drive these cans with the 1/4 inch plug. How short sighted to include a 1/4 inch plug, only. Worthless. So is the pretty presentation box which you can not put the cans in with the cable attached. Short sighted, indeed.




You can actually turn the 1/4" into a speaker adapter if you remove the 1/4" part. There should be 4 conductors, and you can mark them like L+/L-, R+,R- based on where they were soldered.


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## TheSatelliteGuy

Thanks for the wake up call.


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## johangrb

Actually on my 1/4" there was just 3 leads: L+, R+ and common ground (silver wrapping). I asked Fang about using that for speaker terminals at RMAF- he recommended getting a balanced cable with 4 leads for the speaker terminals. He just shrugged when I asked him on why that would be better (than using my SE cable).
  
  Quote: 





somestranger26 said:


> Quote:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


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## DragonOwen

Today recieved Silver Dragon for HE-6 with 4pin Neutrik XLR plug from moon-audio... You know after few minutes of listening with this cable I was thinking: "What a crap stock cable is...". I don't even want to connect back stock cable for direct comparission, because the difference is so large that it's just useless to compare them... It's just Silver Dragon is better in everything: bass control, detail, "clearness", vocal, ....
  Was surprised that Silver Dragon (made of silver) is less bright than stock cable.
   
  So IMO Silver Dragon is fantastic with HE-6 and I'm very very happy that I decided to buy it.
   
  P.S. And Silver Dragon is not even burned in yet, I'm listening it less than hour by now, so I'm afraid to even predict what will sound be when cable is compleatly burned in...


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## elwappo99

Quote: 





dragonowen said:


> "What a crap stock cable is...".


 


  I find this very hard to believe......  I would like to get a wider range of opinions on this cable. Especially since this cable is so expensive.


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## grokit

Quote: 





johangrb said:


> I'm very happy with my HE-6 & a Double Helix Molecule cable.


 

 X2, using it with an ALO banana plug speaker tap adapter.
   
   
  Quote: 





somestranger26 said:


> You can actually turn the 1/4" into a speaker adapter if you remove the 1/4" part. There should be 4 conductors, and you can mark them like L+/L-, R+,R- based on where they were soldered.


 

 This is what I did at first, it works great.
   
   
  Quote: 





johangrb said:


> Actually on my 1/4" there was just 3 leads: L+, R+ and common ground (silver wrapping). I asked Fang about using that for speaker terminals at RMAF- he recommended getting a balanced cable with 4 leads for the speaker terminals. He just shrugged when I asked him on why that would be better (than using my SE cable).


 

 They must have changed it, mine was one of the early production models.


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## immtbiker

The HE-6 comes stock with an higher priced than stock moncrystaline (sp?) cable that is quite good. I ordered the TWAG balanced cable to use with my SR-71B which costs $300. Honestly the stock cable is a great cable and I don't feel that you should waste your money trying to get an upgraded cable for the HE-6. Fang tuned the HE-6 using the single crystal cable.
  Some things are just better left alone.
  Using speaker taps rather than a low powered headphone amp is probably the best bang for the buck that you can get. The sound improves tremendously with more power feeding the ortho. YMMV.


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## grokit

I agree that the stock cable is great but unfortunately my cat thinks so too, and chewed on it a bit. He doesn't appear as interested in the DHC replacement cable with its cloth jacket. Or my K1000 cable for that matter, which doesn't have a jacket.


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## DragonOwen

Quote: 





elwappo99 said:


> I find this very hard to believe......  I would like to get a wider range of opinions on this cable. Especially since this cable is so expensive.


 


  I bought Silver Dragon because one guy at russian forum (he is one of the most respected guys on that forum and his advices always was very helpful to me) bought his second pair of HE-6 with Silver Dragon (his first is the stock one, he bought it from head-direct) and he wright quite emotinally about the difference: he said that with Silver Dragon HE-6 is sound like different headphones and he described it as that with Silver Dragon they sound like HE-6 with stock cable without damping (maybe wrong word, not sure how to say it in english), but they have bass, "air" and space as HE-6 with stock cable has with damping. So I decided to take risk... I'm really didn't expect such a difference, in my opinion the sound improvement is quite larger than that guy has described, it was quite a shock to me and my words about how bad the stock HE-6 cable is was said only in comparission to Silver Dragon... maybe stock cable is good and he will not lose to other aftermarket cables, but IMO Silver Dragon is clearly better than stock one with HE-6, for me it's a fact (and not only me, there are already 3 people on that russian forum that using HE-6 with Silver Dragon and they opinions is very similiar to mine 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





).
   
  P.S. It's just my opinion though, nothing more, so I'm not persuade anyone to buy this cable (my position is - always lisen before buying, but if that's impossible then it's very-very hard for me to decide... most of the times I don't buy it... for example I only buy HE-6 after I listen HE-6 of my friend). I'm just very happy that I bought this cable and it sound much better than I imagined.


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## sridhar3

Resurrecting this thread.  I recently got HE-6 cables made by Steve Eddy from Q (http://www.q-audio.com/).  His website is currently in need of an overhaul, but if you send him an e-mail (steve@q-audio.com) requesting specifics, he should be able to accommodate you.  He provided me with the headphone cable, a variety of adapters for use with different rigs, as well as a pair of RCA interconnects.  There are bunch of unlisted cable colors, so once again I'd e-mail and ask.  I'm not certain of how accurate the pricing information on the website is, having ordered via e-mail, but Steve will give you a quote based on what you're asking for.
   
  The most obvious advantage of the cable over the provided stock cable is the ergonomics.  The Q cable is extremely light and lacks the stiffness found in the stock cable.  Make no mistake, though, the cable is highly durable.  In order to assuage my own doubts, Steve performed a few strength tests at my behest [pulling wishbone-fashion on the Y-split, as well as towing a car 10 feet (not a joke)], and the cable remained unscathed.  The cable also sounds excellent.  I'm not going to compare the aftermarket cable to the stock cable in terms of sound quality, as the risk of the thread degenerating into a debate on whether cables matter to sound or not may ensue.  However, I can say that the Q cable sounds at least as good as the stock cable (which is of a fairly high quality as well).
   
  Steve is excellent with communication, and backs his cables with top-notch customer service.  I was having a minor issue with the cable, and suffice it to say, it was quickly resolved.
   
  Just to make it clear, I am in no way affiliated with Q.  I'm just a guy who was looking for a great aftermarket cable and found it.
   
  Thanks Steve!
   
  Pics:


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## grokit

Nice pile of Q cables!


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## mrarroyo

X2, would love to try a pair to find out if I could hear a difference. Cheers and enjoy them.


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## scootermafia

Not gonna lie Steve, I kinda want a pair, the question is, what color.


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## Steve Eddy

Quote: 





scootermafia said:


> Not gonna lie Steve, I kinda want a pair, the question is, what color.


 

 Take your pick, Peter. http://www.q-audio.com/threads.html
   
  Sridhar's cables came about because just for fun I thought I'd like to make myself a set of Sacramento Kings cables (our NBA team). So I had some sleeving made in purple, with black and "silver" tracers.
   
  He was trying to decide what color he wanted. I always thought the HE-6's were black, so I suggested black. He corrected me and said they were actually sort of a really dark purple. I said "Purple? You wanna see purple?" and showed him a photo of the Sacramento Kings cables. He rather liked them and that's what he chose, in spite of my warning him that he'd probably get besieged with Barney jokes. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



   
  se


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## scootermafia

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UePtoxDhJSw
   
  If I had to pick, I'd probably go with the cardinal and beige for my alma mater...


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## Steve Eddy

Quote:  





> If I had to pick, I'd probably go with the cardinal and beige for my alma mater...


 

 Great choice! I love Alma Mater!
   





   
  se


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## scootermafia

Your site needs to say very clearly at the top:
   
  "Attention Sports Fans!"


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## Steve Eddy

Quote: 





scootermafia said:


> Your site needs to say very clearly at the top:
> 
> "Attention Sports Fans!"


 

 HA!
   
  Thanks, Peter! That made my morning!
   
  se


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## Baird GoW

Quote: 





sridhar3 said:


> Resurrecting this thread.  I recently got HE-6 cables made by Steve Eddy from Q (http://www.q-audio.com/).  His website is currently in need of an overhaul, but if you send him an e-mail (steve@q-audio.com) requesting specifics, he should be able to accommodate you.  He provided me with the headphone cable, a variety of adapters for use with different rigs, as well as a pair of RCA interconnects.  There are bunch of unlisted cable colors, so once again I'd e-mail and ask.  I'm not certain of how accurate the pricing information on the website is, having ordered via e-mail, but Steve will give you a quote based on what you're asking for.
> 
> The most obvious advantage of the cable over the provided stock cable is the ergonomics.  The Q cable is extremely light and lacks the stiffness found in the stock cable.  Make no mistake, though, the cable is highly durable.  In order to assuage my own doubts, Steve performed a few strength tests at my behest [pulling wishbone-fashion on the Y-split, as well as towing a car 10 feet (not a joke)], and the cable remained unscathed.  The cable also sounds excellent.  I'm not going to compare the aftermarket cable to the stock cable in terms of sound quality, as the risk of the thread degenerating into a debate on whether cables matter to sound or not may ensue.  However, I can say that the Q cable sounds at least as good as the stock cable (which is of a fairly high quality as well).
> 
> ...


 

 I would love to know how much you paid for all those...


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## dukja

Could anyone help me to identify the connectors (similar to SMA for RF) and crimp tool to make our own cable?
   
  Thanks!
   
  EDIT:  found it.  It was SMC RF connector.


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## warp08

This and it arrives tomorrow.  The HE-6 requires far greater current for that tiny RF connector not to be a bottleneck.  So, I have asked Craig to hardwire it, which required drilling out the cups to bypass it and replace the not-so-good internal driver wiring as well.  My plan is to have the HE-500 modded the same way, not necessary because of the same reason, but for consistency.  Can't wait to hear this with the Dark Star.


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## dukja

So did you hear any improvement? 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



  
  Quote: 





warp08 said:


> This and it arrives tomorrow.  The HE-6 requires far greater current for that tiny RF connector not to be a bottleneck.  So, I have asked Craig to hardwire it, which required drilling out the cups to bypass it and replace the not-so-good internal driver wiring as well.  My plan is to have the HE-500 modded the same way, not necessary because of the same reason, but for consistency.  Can't wait to hear this with the Dark Star.


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## Steve Eddy

Quote: 





> Originally Posted by *dukja* /img/forum/go_quote.gif
> So did you hear any improvement?


 

 "Our cables are so good, you can hear the improvement even before you get them!" 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



   
  se


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## Loevhagen

Which aftermarket HiFiMAN cable tecnically resembles (copper purity, resistanse and inductance / capacitance) the original HE-6 cable best?


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## Skylab

Another recommendation for the Q-Audio cable. I have not taken in out of my HE-6 since putting it on. Looks nice, nice and light, and I felt it was a nice improvement in both transparency and smoothness over the stock cable.


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## Baird GoW

Quote: 





steve eddy said:


> "Our cables are so good, you can hear the improvement even before you get them!"
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
  LOL. Don't you just love the people who read only half of what is posted.


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## Steve Eddy

Quote: 





> Originally Posted by *Baird GoW* /img/forum/go_quote.gif
> 
> LOL. Don't you just love the people who read only half of what is posted.


 

 Awww, I ain't bustin' his chops or anything. I usually just skim through posts here myself and have overlooked a detail or two. I just couldn't resist a good-natured, smart-assed reply. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



   
  se


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## sunneebear

Steve,
  are the fabric jackets spun from the color threads clients select or do you just have a lot of wire in stock?
  Thanks.


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## Steve Eddy

Quote: 





sunneebear said:


> Steve,
> are the fabric jackets spun from the color threads clients select or do you just have a lot of wire in stock?
> Thanks.


 

 We keep stock on four standard colors; black, dark brown, golden yellow and unbleached natural cotton. However we can also do cables in any of these colors (or combinations) on a custom order basis:
   
  http://www.q-audio.com/threads.html
   
  For custom colors there is a $40 surcharge and the lead time can be 2 to 4 weeks depending on how busy our braiders are at the time we place the order.
   
  Ultimately we can do custom color matching but that would require buying an entire dye lot of thread which is rather expensive.
   
  se


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## warp08

Quote: 





dukja said:


> So did you hear any improvement?


 

   
   
  Wow, just wow...I'm stunned.  I've been sitting here for an hour flipping the tracks at my MBP.  I have never heard the HE-6 sound like this and even with the stock cable it is one of my all-time favorites from a quality, balanced source.  I'll post more impressions later when the Dark Star and my new Frost Audio BlackFrost XLR ICs have been thoroughly burned in (the Dark Star won't arrive until next week at the earliest).
   
  So, the gear I have to test isn't even optimized.  I'm missing my SonicWeld Diverter SPDIF converter, so I'm running a straight Locus Design Polestar USB to USB-mini->iBasso DB2->Hirose to Protector balanced TWag adapter->RSA SR71B->TWag Protector to Neutrik XLR4 female adapter->Whiplash Reference HE-6.  Mostly Redbook stuff, although  very high quality rips of Japanese SHM-CD or Blue-Spec CD 2010 or 2011 remasters.  In this configuration the SR71B can push up to 60% volume on HI Gain setting before the volume becomes unbearably loud to my ears.  The sound is pure bliss, micro-details are abound, both bass and treble extensions have increased not just in depth but quality as well.  No brightness or harshness, just perfect reference-grade listening bliss.  Presentation has also evolved into a more holographic nature than before.  Punch is there, but less than what I have previously heard the HE-6 is capable of speaker taps and, of course, the Dark Star prototype.  Since the HE-6 requires up to 8 Amps to really shine, the SR71B doesn't quite have what it takes in that department, although it does an extremely convincing job as it is, certainly so given it's a portable amp.  Amazing workmanship from Craig.  The Reference cable is a lot thicker than stock and any other aftermarket cable I've seen or auditioned before, but it is well-dampened and the HE-6 provides more than enough clamping force that there is absolutely no strain or discomfort wearing it.  The beautiful wooden Y-splitter is another highlight, signifying that it is not a mere recabling, but a full custom rebuild of the headphone from the ground up.
   
  I have previously expressed concern about the SMC RF connector Head-Direct has chosen to equip these high-end orthodynamics.  Especially for the HE-6, but even the HE-500 it limits the 3rd party cable manufacturers ability to build a high enough gauge cable that is fully capable of transferring all that power when choked by the small-gauge connector.  The ultimate solution, IMHO, is to bypass it altogether.  This not only allows for getting rid of this particular bottleneck, but also to replace all the inside wiring from the drivers all the way down to the connector so you end up with a homogeneous conductivity cable material, as opposed to being forced to terminate at the RF socket.
   
  The downside is certainly cost--my understanding is that a LOT of labor hours are required to do this job--and the fact it is a permanent mod.  But it is a mod that brings out the best of the HE-6 impressive capabilities.  Needless to say, I'm very, very pleased and can't wait until I can test it with the RSA Dark Star and the ESOTERIC SACD source gear.
   
  The HE-500s are already on their way for a similar treatment.  After this intro session, I wouldn't have them any other way...it's good to be spoiled when it comes to upgrades.
   
_Edit:  I have posted the stock picture again because I have made no photos of my own yet, and just noticed that my post was placed to the following page, so I wanted to make sure casual browsers are aware which mod this post refers to._


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## scootermafia

I was curious about this myself, so I destroyed a HE-6 solder connector - heated it to 1000 degrees and forced the center pin out of the Teflon.  Taking some measurements, the pin is between 1.3mm and 0.9mm, with its widest at the solder cup where the wire is soldered on.  The body of the plug where the negative signal goes through is pretty big as it's the entire metal body, so I'm not going to go into that, let's just consider the positive signal going through the center pin.  
   
  The average size of wire for headphone cables is a 24 gauge conductor, or 0.5mm diameter.  So, in this case, the cable would be the current limiting part, the connector would not be a bottleneck.  Only starting around the 18-19awg mark (closer to 1mm) would the HE-6 connector be a current limiting bottleneck.  
   
  However, it is a good idea to hardwire headphones because there are fewer solder joints.  The only downside is that you are now married to that cable.  One could always try a cable with connectors, and get it hardwired if they liked the sound.  
   
  Here's a pic of the pin next to a bare piece of 24 gauge stranded wire:


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## dukja

Thanks a lot for this info and your sacrifice of one connector.  Be careful that the outgasing of Teflon could be dangerous at that temperature.


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## chirawatf

Quote: 





skylab said:


> Another recommendation for the Q-Audio cable. I have not taken in out of my HE-6 since putting it on. Looks nice, nice and light, and I felt it was a nice improvement in both transparency and smoothness over the stock cable.


 
   
  I have both He6 with stock cable and LCD2 Rev.2 with Q-audio cable.
   
  I feel that LCD2 sounds more natural than He6 because LCD2 has tonal balance at lower mid and bass but He6 with stock cable has the tonal balance dominate at treble and upper mid. 
   
  The depth of sound stage from LCD2 is better than He6.
   
  Does Q-audio cable change the tonal balance of He6 to more lower mid and bass?  Does Q-audio cable improof the depth of He6's soundstage?
   
  Thank you, skylab.


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## cifani090

Quote: 





scootermafia said:


> I was curious about this myself, so I destroyed a HE-6 solder connector - heated it to 1000 degrees and forced the center pin out of the Teflon.  Taking some measurements, the pin is between 1.3mm and 0.9mm, with its widest at the solder cup where the wire is soldered on.  The body of the plug where the negative signal goes through is pretty big as it's the entire metal body, so I'm not going to go into that, let's just consider the positive signal going through the center pin.
> 
> The average size of wire for headphone cables is a 24 gauge conductor, or 0.5mm diameter.  So, in this case, the cable would be the current limiting part, the connector would not be a bottleneck.  Only starting around the 18-19awg mark (closer to 1mm) would the HE-6 connector be a current limiting bottleneck.
> 
> ...


 






Just destroy the cable... is 24 gauge cable common in most if not all headphones?


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## Skylab

Quote: 





chirawatf said:


> I have both He6 with stock cable and LCD2 Rev.2 with Q-audio cable.
> 
> I feel that LCD2 sounds more natural than He6 because LCD2 has tonal balance at lower mid and bass but He6 with stock cable has the tonal balance dominate at treble and upper mid.
> 
> ...


 

 I do not think the Q Audio cable changes the HE-6's tonal balance at all.  If you feel you need more bass, you likely need a more powerful amp for them.  The Q cable DOES improve the depth of the soundstage though, IMO.


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## Happy Camper

It wasn't until I tried my current setup that I found that the 6 has great bass. Same with soundstage. The 6 will not step out of the planar shade until you put serious driving power on them. This is where the 2.x has an advantage. If you are using the same amp for both, you're underpowering the 6.


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## chirawatf

@Skylab and Happy Camper.
   
  I use Burson HA160D as DAC and connect to my 30 Watt tube amp (Minute EL34 in push pull design).
   
  Do you think its still under power for HE6?  If so how much minimum power requirement for He6's maximum performance?
   
  Do tube amp and solid state amp need different power requirement for HE6?
   
  PS. With my current setup I don't need more bass, bass hits hard enough but a little too much tonal balance to treble and upper mid region.  If I can alter tonal balance to more lower mid and bass, it will fatigue my ears less.
   
  Thank you.
   
  (Skylab I want to tell you that I bought He6 because of your comments, which I'm happy with He6 but still has a little room for improvement...ha..ha..ha.)


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## Skylab

A 30 watt tube amp is probably enough - you are running from the speaker outputs?


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## Happy Camper

If you are using a tube amp, get the resistors on it to protect your amp. I used a 40 wpc tube amp with nice results. Try a tube roll to tweak this?


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## wuwhere

Quote: 





chirawatf said:


> @Skylab and Happy Camper.
> 
> I use Burson HA160D as DAC and connect to my 30 Watt tube amp (Minute EL34 in push pull design).
> 
> ...


 


  I'm using a tube amp too with 6550 output tubes, upper mids and treble are natural, not too much. I can listen for a long time without fatigue.
  EL34s are supposedly lush in the mids and perhaps a little soft at the top compared with 6550s.
   
  Have you tried bringing down the bias a little or is it auto-bias?
 Also, as Happy Camper suggested, try rolling the driver tubes, what kind of tubes are the drivers?
  In my amp, I'm using Amperex Bugle Boys 6DJ8s, they sound sweet and nice.


----------



## chirawatf

My Minute EL34 Push Pull headphone tube amp design has the same power for both 4Pin XLR jack, 1/4 jack and speaker outputs.
 I prefer using 4Pin XLR to connect directly to He6 because no need to use 4pin XLR to speaker output adapter that can degrade audio signal.

 I also change EL34 tube from russia made to Siemen EL34 D83 which I satisfy with detail, bass impact, good speed (very important for me), soundstage and tonal balance when using with LCD2 Rev.2 + Q-audio cable.  So I decide to looking for cable replacement to change tonal balance of He6 and hope that I can enjoy both LCD2 rev.2 and He6 without tube rolling everytime I change the headphone.

 PS. My Minute EL34 Push Pull has 2 tubes of 5U4G at power supply unit, 4 tubes of 6N1P and 4 tubes of EL34 at amplified unit.  Power output is 30-40 Watt/channel at 8 ohms.


----------



## wuwhere

So you are not using the speaker out of your amp for your HE-6. The headphone out may not have enough power to drive the HE-6. Perhaps you should use the speaker out instead of the headphone out.
   
  You can use the speaker out for your HE-6 and the hp out for your LCD.


----------



## chirawatf

Someone please reviews in depth between He6+stock cable and He6+Q-audio cable.
   
  The aspects I concerned are detail of the treble-mid-bass, atmosphere presentation in the record, soundstage both width and depth, imaging, trasparency, dynamic, PRAT, sibilance.
   
  If Q audio cable obviously improofs He6's sound, I would order another Q audio cable with speaker output connectors. (Nowaday I have LCD2 Rev.2 with Q cable)
   
  Thanks.


----------



## cifani090

Quote: 





chirawatf said:


> My Minute EL34 Push Pull headphone tube amp design has the same power for both 4Pin XLR jack, 1/4 jack and speaker outputs.
> I prefer using 4Pin XLR to connect directly to He6 because no need to use 4pin XLR to speaker output adapter that can degrade audio signal.
> 
> I also change EL34 tube from russia made to Siemen EL34 D83 which I satisfy with detail, bass impact, good speed (very important for me), soundstage and tonal balance when using with LCD2 Rev.2 + Q-audio cable.  So I decide to looking for cable replacement to change tonal balance of He6 and hope that I can enjoy both LCD2 rev.2 and He6 without tube rolling everytime I change the headphone.
> ...


 

 Very nice tube amp!


----------



## paultel 2009

Just wanted to add my two cents re: the HE-6 cable from Q-Audio.
   
  Sonically, I find it to be very smooth and transparent. Ergonomically, it's just a dream to use. And aesthetically, I think it looks gorgeous - in an impeccably understated way.
   
  Moreover, Steve at Q-Audio has a first class approach to customer service and is a pleasure to do business with.
   
  Frankly, I couldn't be any happier.
   
   
   
  (Other than being a recent customer, I have no connection or affiliation with Q-Audio or Steve.)


----------



## grokit

Quote: 





wuwhere said:


> So you are not using the speaker out of your amp for your HE-6. The headphone out may not have enough power to drive the HE-6. Perhaps you should use the speaker out instead of the headphone out.
> 
> You can use the speaker out for your HE-6 and the hp out for your LCD.


 

 The XLR headphone jack on that amp may be the same power as the speaker tap, with the resistors already inline for impedance correction? Anyways if you try the speaker taps directly be careful, protecting tube amps is the main reason for using those resistors.


----------



## wuwhere

The best thing is to ask the manufacturer. And the resistors are necessary to protect the output transformers.


----------



## chirawatf

@grokit
   
  Yes, XLR headphone jack on my amp has the same power as the speaker tap (confirmed by manufacturer).
   
  @Wuwhere
   
  My amp has auto bias.
   
  @paultel 2009
   
  Could you please give more details according to my post #59?
   
   
*Thanks for everyone's opinions*.


----------



## paultel 2009

Quote: 





chirawatf said:


> @paultel 2009
> 
> Could you please give more details according to my post #59?


 

 Well yes and no 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			




   
  First off, I'm no where near as qualified as many other contributors at describing sonic differences.
   
  Also, I haven't actually done any direct A/B testing so my comments as they relate to the stock cable are based entirely on memory.
   
  Also, also, I do not look for (or indeed expect) after-market cables to significantly alter the sonic characteristics of a given set of headphones. Rather, I expect them to "reinforce" or "underscore" the sonic signature that I am already getting. It's a sort of... "more of the same" kind of thing. Other members here refer to the last 5 percent, or the icing on the cake.
   
  Caveats out of the way. What I will subscribe to the Q-Audio cable is: absolutely no loss of detail to treble-mid-bass, no discernible change in terms of frequency response and tonal balance, and no loss of extension at either end. Perceived gains include: slightly improved openness and transparency, a "smoother" sound and a greater sense of control. Probably more soundstage depth, but about the same width. The area which I feel most comfortable being definite about is sibilance. The Q-Audio cable (for me, at least) produces noticeably less sibilance than stock from recordings and/or passages which I find suffer from this problem.
   
  I hope that in some ways helps. But at the end of the day, I tend to judge a replacement cable as an overall package. Which, for me, most definitely includes the "look", "feel" and "usability" of the thing.


----------



## chirawatf

@paultel 2009
   
  He6 with Q-audio cable can reduce sibilance, improof depth of soundstage, more transparency, smoother, more openness, more control....then it's worth for me.
   
  Steve...where are you?...ha ha ha


----------



## chirawatf

According to everyone's advice.
   
  Just ordered Q-audio cable for He6, terminal end is 4 banana jacks to connect with speaker output.
   
  Steve's response is super quick.


----------



## sridhar3

Quote:


chirawatf said:


> According to everyone's advice.
> 
> Just ordered Q-audio cable for He6, terminal end is banana jack to connect with speaker output.
> 
> Steve's response is super quick.


 

 Congrats!  Please make sure to post some impressions once you take delivery of your cables.


----------



## Baird GoW

chirawatf said:


> @paultel 2009
> 
> He6 with Q-audio cable can reduce sibilance



Remove what sibilance?


----------



## wuwhere

Quote: 





chirawatf said:


> According to everyone's advice.
> 
> Just ordered Q-audio cable for He6, terminal end is 4 banana jacks to connect with speaker output.
> 
> Steve's response is super quick.


 

  
  Let us know how it sounds.


----------



## wuwhere

Quote: 





baird gow said:


> Remove what sibilance?


 


  Good question. I don't have any sibilance issue at all with the stock cable with my current setup.
   
  And I don't understand the control either unless you changed amps.


----------



## cifani090

Not many pictures of yall HE-6 cables?


----------



## sridhar3

Quote:


cifani090 said:


> Not many pictures of yall HE-6 cables?


 
   
http://www.head-fi.org/t/552059/he-6-owners-which-aftermarket-cable-do-you-use/15#post_7584131


----------



## chirawatf

@ Baird GoW and wuwhere
   
  Regarding of sibilace, sometime I hear too much ss zz from female singer's voice that can fatigue my ears for example First of May/ Olivia Ong, I believe/Susan Wong.
   
  From my experience the cause of sibilance in my system are...
  - Bad record, I hardly hear sibilance if the source is audiophile record, Bluray concert.
  - Interconnect both digital cable (USB cable) and analog cable (RCA, headphone cable). I think it cause from surrouding interference waves that lead to distortion of audio signal.  The better design cable, the lesser chance to have sound distortion.  The stock He6 cable has some distortion at upper mid and treble region, then I hope Q-audio cable can reduce this distortion. (Let's see later after I get Q-audio cable)
  - Headphone design, the more transparency, detail headphone the more chance to have sibilance of singer's voice.
  - Source, I use computer which has a lot of noise pollution to audiosignal (Wireworld Starlight 5.2 USB cable, Van Den Hule the Second can improof this problem).
  - Underpower amplifier (my minute el34pushpull has enough power should have no this problem).
   
  These are from my own experience, may be i'm wrong...please advise.


----------



## wuwhere

- A low quality recording/low bit rate can cause sibilance. That is not a fault in your system. I have a couple of songs I downloaded that are like that.
  - I'm not streaming from my computer. All of my music files are in an external hard drive accessed by my universal player Opp 95 through a SATA cable. No USB to SPDIF conversion, I don't have to deal with jitter and other problems with that conversion.
  - I've never heard of cable distortion.
   
  Its hard to say where the problem lies.
   
  By the way, your amp has Russian tubes 6N1P, you may want to roll them with western tubes.


----------



## DragonOwen

Quote: 





cifani090 said:


> Not many pictures of yall HE-6 cables?


 

 Not exactly the photo of cable itself, but it's seen on this picture (HE-6 with Silver Dragon [Neutrik 4pin XLR] connected to NFB-10ES and HE-500 with Silver Dragon [Furutech 6.3" Plug] connected to SCHIIT Lyr):

  Some other photos:


----------



## cifani090

Quote: 





sridhar3 said:


> Quote:
> 
> http://www.head-fi.org/t/552059/he-6-owners-which-aftermarket-cable-do-you-use/15#post_7584131


 

 I guess thats all im going to get


----------



## sridhar3

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *cifani090* /img/forum/go_quote.gif
> 
> I guess thats all im going to get


 

 I can take more if you'd like.


----------



## cifani090

Quote: 





sridhar3 said:


> Quote:
> 
> I can take more if you'd like.


 

 Well i need more variety's of cable's like on the LCD-2 cable thread, all the different designs of cables people bought.


----------



## scootermafia

All the man asked for was some non-purple cable pictures.


----------



## paultel 2009

Quote: 





cifani090 said:


> Well i need more variety's of cable,s like on the LCD-2 cable thread, all the different designs of cables people bought.


 
   
  Q-Audio. Black, 2.0 Metre. Notice the subtle brown speckles denoting the right channel. Pics 1&3 are a bit washed out, giving the cable a blue cast it doesn't have. Pic 2 is actually fairly close. In the flesh the cable is unquestionably understated, but it has real class


----------



## chirawatf

My experience with Q-audio cable for He6 is very impressive.  Q is better than stock cable, I would say 30 percent!  Less distortion in upper mid and treble region, sound's body is fuller, better sonic separation so I can hear more microdetails with Q cable, better soundstage both width and depth, better transparency.
  The bass of Q is slightly less than stock cable in quantity but is better in quality.  
  I love Q-cable, i use it with He6 and LCD2 rev.2 (I have two Q-cables now).
  Here is my picture of Q-audio cable with banana jack termination for my He6.


----------



## cifani090

Thanks guys, great cabled headphones


----------



## dukja

One questions for the DIY cable guys:
   
  I saw the solder type SMC connector:
http://doublehelixcables.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=4&products_id=57
   
  Are those just need solder and then screwed on?  The SMC came with HE-6 are the crimped type, right?  Those will need a tool to crimp on, so I am thinking getting the solder one that may be easier.   Any comments?  Thanks!


----------



## Steve Eddy

The SMC connectors that came with your HE-6 are the same type of connector. The only difference is that the ones that came with your HE-6 include a ferrule that slips over the ass end of the connector. It's intended to be crimped over the braided shield of the coaxial cable that the SMC connector was specifically designed to be used with. All of the male SMC cable connectors are solder type with respect to the center pin. The female cable connectors have a removable center pin that can either be crimped or soldered.
   
  se


----------



## Steve Eddy

By the way, the "sexing" of the SMC connectors is a bit odd. The male connector actually has a female center contact. It's surrounded by a cylindrical insulator. The cylindrical insulator fits inside a hole in the female connector which has a male center contact.
   
  se


----------



## dukja

Steve:
   
  Thanks for the reply!  Shame on me that I have not used the connector that you kindly offered.  But I will, trust me on that one.
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




  And I will report back any change of SQ due to this recabling.
  Quote: 





steve eddy said:


> By the way, the "sexing" of the SMC connectors is a bit odd. The male connector actually has a female center contact. It's surrounded by a cylindrical insulator. The cylindrical insulator fits inside a hole in the female connector which has a male center contact.
> 
> se


----------



## grokit

I have a Double Helix cable on my HE-6 and it seems that the SMC connectors they use are more substantial than the ones that HiFiMAN use/sell. Less expensive as well.


----------



## scootermafia

Mine have a solder contact for the center pin and are intended to have the ground crimped on as Steve mentioned, however, I just solder the negative wire to the textured ground crimp part - then I cover it with the heavy-duty glue shrink.  That's why they feel heftier than the stock ones, same connector otherwise.


----------



## grokit

Well you do a great job on them


----------



## TruBrew

I changed the name of the thread. Anyone have an objection or better suggestions? I figure the thread might get some more conversation if its scope is opened a bit.


----------



## DragonOwen

Here is my current HE-6 cable - MS Audio laboratory hybrid silver and copper cable. It looks not very good, but the sound is what important and in terms of sound it beat my Silver Dragon which my friend reterminated to LCD-2 soon after I bought MS Audio cable, because I didn't listened HE-6 with Silver Dragon anymore. So here the fotos, though I don't think that you will like the looks of it


----------



## Ultrainferno

I just got this one. It's a Norce UP OCC cable with adapter so I can use it for the LCD-2 and the HE-500 at the same time.
  Awesome looking and sounding


----------



## sunneebear

I hard wired a Norse 8 to my 6 and it sounds invisible.   I do not think you can get a better cable for the money.


----------



## BleaK

Anyone tried moon audio blue or black dragon with HE500?


----------



## MrQ

The left channel on my stock HE-6 cable has just died after eight months. For a horrible moment I thought the driver had died until I changed the contacts. The problem seems to be in the black plastic section, because the volume cuts back in if wiggled.
   
  I can get it replaced, but I think it's time to get that Q cable I've had my eyes on. Ideally I want to get a hard-wire done and bypass the connectors altogether. Happened once, it can happen again.


----------



## Ultrainferno

Too bad this thread isn't as popular as the LCD-2 aftermarket cable thread. Come on guys!


----------



## keph

Trevor form Norse audio made me a one of a kind 8-wire HE cable...i guess i am the first owner to own these babies...the sound is amazing it adds more body to my HE-500 vocal and bringing it more forward, mids are quite the same but its a bit thicker now and the bass had more THUMPH then before..These are the most beautiful cable i have ever seen and own...light as a feather and very very flexible...its just amazing..


----------



## WNBC

I'm hoping to have my HE-500 by the end of the week.  I will let you know how the Moon Audio Silver Dragon compares to the stock cable.
   
  Probably a lot more owners of the LCD-2 than the HE-500, though the price difference should be in favor of the HE-500.  
  
  Quote: 





ultrainferno said:


> Too bad this thread isn't as popular as the LCD-2 aftermarket cable thread. Come on guys!


----------



## WNBC

I had the Norn Norn with my LCD-2.  Fantastic litz cable.  I wanted to try another maker this time around to get a new flavor but I may eventually think about the Norse adapter system that allows one to go between Hifiman and Audeze. 
  
  Quote: 





keph said:


> Trevor form Norse audio made me a one of a kind 8-wire HE cable...i guess i am the first owner to own these babies...the sound is amazing it adds more body to my HE-500 vocal and bringing it more forward, mids are quite the same but its a bit thicker now and the bass had more THUMPH then before..These are the most beautiful cable i have ever seen and own...light as a feather and very very flexible...its just amazing..


----------



## Ultrainferno

Quote: 





wnbc said:


> I'm hoping to have my HE-500 by the end of the week.  I will let you know how the Moon Audio Silver Dragon compares to the stock cable.
> 
> Probably a lot more owners of the LCD-2 than the HE-500, though the price difference should be in favor of the HE-500.


 


  Looking forward to that!


----------



## Ultrainferno

Quote: 





keph said:


> Trevor form Norse audio made me a one of a kind 8-wire HE cable...i guess i am the first owner to own these babies...the sound is amazing it adds more body to my HE-500 vocal and bringing it more forward, mids are quite the same but its a bit thicker now and the bass had more THUMPH then before..These are the most beautiful cable i have ever seen and own...light as a feather and very very flexible...its just amazing..


 
   
  Great cable and pic!!


----------



## Ultrainferno

Quote: 





wnbc said:


> I had the Norn Norn with my LCD-2.  Fantastic litz cable.  I wanted to try another maker this time around to get a new flavor but I may eventually think about the Norse adapter system that allows one to go between Hifiman and Audeze.


 


  Exactly what I am using


----------



## keph

Thx Ultrainferno...wishing i had the LCD2 so i can also order the adapter like yours...
   
  Quote: 





ultrainferno said:


> Great cable and pic!!


----------



## MrQ

Quote: 





wnbc said:


> I'm hoping to have my HE-500 by the end of the week.  I will let you know how the Moon Audio Silver Dragon compares to the stock cable.


 
  I have some Beyer T1's I bought from Moon Audio with Black Dragon cable. Build and sound wise I have no complaint, but I've always found them a bit heavy. That's why I'm looking at the Q cable, especially with orthos.


----------



## WNBC

Luckily, mole for mole, Ag is lighter than Au 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			




  But, I will see if I can live with the weight.  There is a decent discount when you purchase both the headphone and cable from Moon so I opted for the combo.  

  
  Quote: 





mrq said:


> I have some Beyer T1's I bought from Moon Audio with Black Dragon cable. Build and sound wise I have no complaint, but I've always found them a bit heavy. That's why I'm looking at the Q cable, especially with orthos.


----------



## BleaK

I have HE500 on the way from moon audio with the black dragon v2, hopefully it will sound good


----------



## DragonOwen

Quote: 





bleak said:


> I have HE500 on the way from moon audio with the black dragon v2, hopefully it will sound good


 

 I think that cable of silver is better for them than copper cable (silver put vocal on the front and make it more emotional and I think this is very good for HE-500... as well as LCD-2, which I selled recently (they were also with silver dragon cable, but with 4pin XLR connector)). But if you like "dark" sound then maybe copper will be better for you...


----------



## WNBC

Hifiman is using silver in the stock cable so I figured I'd go with the Silver Dragon.  I did not find the Norse Norn Litz copper to be dark with the LCD-2 so I am fine trying out copper down the road as well with the HE-500.  This will be my first silver headphone cable so I'll play with Moon one for a while before ordering a copper version.
  
  Quote: 





dragonowen said:


> I think that cable of silver is better for them than copper cable (silver put vocal on the front and make it more emotional and I think this is very good for HE-500... as well as LCD-2, which I selled recently (they were also with silver dragon cable, but with 4pin XLR connector)). But if you like "dark" sound then maybe copper will be better for you...


----------



## DragonOwen

Quote: 





wnbc said:


> Hifiman is using silver in the stock cable


 

  The are... Now... but when I bought them for $899 they were giving some lame sturdy cable (one of the connecters of this cable have broken after a few connections/disconnections with headphones...) so I ordered it with Silver Dragon at once for additional $151...... and then hifiman make the price $699 and stock cable have becomed silver


----------



## WNBC

Even though you ended up ordering the Silver Dragon, did Hifiman/Head-Direct send the early buyers of the HE-500 the updated silver cable for free?  
  
  Quote: 





dragonowen said:


> The are... Now... but when I bought them for $899 they were giving some lame sturdy cable (one of the connecters of this cable have broken after a few connections/disconnections with headphones...) so I ordered it with Silver Dragon at once for additional $151...... and then hifiman make the price $699 and stock cable have becomed silver


----------



## DragonOwen

Quote: 





wnbc said:


> Even though you ended up ordering the Silver Dragon, did Hifiman/Head-Direct send the early buyers of the HE-500 the updated silver cable for free?


 

 It's a first time I'm reading something about this... I bought HE-500 from moon-audio and they didn't send me any message of this 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 
  Anyway don't really need it, because I don't quite believe that hifiman would give good stock cable to their headphones (the stock cable of HE-4/500/6 make me do such a conclusion...)


----------



## Ultrainferno

Only new customers got the silver HE-500 cable as far as I know, unless you bought it after contacting him


----------



## WNBC

Oh, I'm not saying Moon Audio would send a replacement stock cable, but if you had issues with the stock cable then maybe writing to Hifiman to get the new cable as a replacement.  I've always found their customer service to be good.  I don't know if they would but couldn't hurt to ask.
  
  Quote: 





dragonowen said:


> It's a first time I'm reading something about this... I bought HE-500 from moon-audio and they didn't send me any message of this
> 
> 
> 
> ...


----------



## DragonOwen

Quote: 





wnbc said:


> Oh, I'm not saying Moon Audio would send a replacement stock cable, but if you had issues with the stock cable then maybe writing to Hifiman to get the new cable as a replacement.  I've always found their customer service to be good.  I don't know if they would but couldn't hurt to ask.


 
  I'm probably too lazy for that 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



   
P.S. I'm now more busy with building my electrostatic rig and now in the process of ordering Woo Audio GES with some upgrades (already bought STAX SR-507)... and also want to try how vinyl is sound (already ordered modded Lenco L75 and phono... will propably buy a few LP's on this weekends)..... so I'm pretty busy man


----------



## BleaK

Quote: 





dragonowen said:


> I think that cable of silver is better for them than copper cable (silver put vocal on the front and make it more emotional and I think this is very good for HE-500... as well as LCD-2, which I selled recently (they were also with silver dragon cable, but with 4pin XLR connector)). But if you like "dark" sound then maybe copper will be better for you...


 


  Well, I asked Drew and he adviced me to get the black dragon instead of the silver dragon on the he500. And after reading alot of impressions on the he500 I'm glad I did. I think the warmer copper cable will suit me better


----------



## powerpopper

Quote: 





wnbc said:


> ...I may eventually think about the Norse adapter system that allows one to go between Hifiman and Audeze.


 


  Now that sounds awesome! Must look into that.


----------



## Ultrainferno

Quote: 





powerpopper said:


> Now that sounds awesome! Must look into that.


 


  Have that. Very handy, One cable to rule them all 
   

Sorry for the bad pic


----------



## Carlsan

Anybody see this ebay cable listing: http://www.ebay.com/itm/270844999300?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649
Elite Cardas Starquad HiFiMAN Cable, *Cardas 4x24 Copper Litz Cable*.
  Great price at $150 for 6 feet, or it seems to me at any rate.


----------



## powerpopper

Quote: 





wnbc said:


> Hifiman is using silver in the stock cable so I figured I'd go with the Silver Dragon.  I did not find the Norse Norn Litz copper to be dark with the LCD-2 so I am fine trying out copper down the road as well with the HE-500.  This will be my first silver headphone cable so I'll play with Moon one for a while before ordering a copper version.


 

 Got my Silver Dragon for the HE-500 a couple of days ago. HUGE improvement over the skinny, clear silver stock cable in terms of build quality. Can't say I notice a difference in SQ but I'll live with them for a while and if not, that's ok.


----------



## Adaptivemotion

I did receive my Toxic Poison Pure OCC Silver cable from Frank for my HE-500 a couple of days ago.
  Directly when I started listening to it, all I could say was wow, everything in the SQ went up one notch compared to how the original stock silver cable did sound.
   
  I have not been listening to any other aftermarket cable, but if you are looking for a new one I would recommend you to take a closer look at this cable.


----------



## Chris_Himself

Who makes a good cable for HE-5LE? I know the concept of buying another man's cable being who I am is dumb but I want to support the other people in the industry from time to time. I'm also curious where my stuff stands, but thats a moot point.
   
  Just a short list with some pluses and minuses of each one would be really helpful guys, thanks.


----------



## scootermafia

How 'bout some DIY?


----------



## Chris_Himself

Quote: 





scootermafia said:


> How 'bout some DIY?


 


 Yeah I was thinking of buying a bundle of Nucleotide to make a few, but I kinda like the look of everybody else's cable with the custom heatshrink and stuff


----------



## Benjamin6264

I built myself 3 cables for my HE-6. I've used 3 different wires available online for DIY:
   
  - DHC Nucleotide (8-wire braid, 4 for each channel)
  - Silver Dragon V3
  - Black Dragon V2
   
  I'll try to post some impressions once my HE-6 arrive.


----------



## Chris_Himself

Quote: 





benjamin6264 said:


> I built myself 3 cables for my HE-6. I've used 3 different wires available online for DIY:
> 
> - DHC Nucleotide (8-wire braid, 4 for each channel)
> - Silver Dragon V3
> ...


 


  I figure with the most current running through them, any audio cable would allow the most possible sonic difference. With speakers, it's hard to tell since so much of it gets lost to the air.


----------



## tattare

Anyone recommend a cable for portable use for my HE-400's something in the 3-4 foot range?  Possible 3.5mm L-shape


----------



## tread1963

Has anybody owned and compared both the Q-Cable Q French Silk and Norse Norn 2 8 conductor cable?  I'm in the market for an aftermarket cable and these seem to be similar style, both are Litz cables, and similarly priced.  Also I'm wondering why I haven't found single strand 18-20 awg replacement cables, I understand the cabling would be difficult to manage but correct me if I'm wrong wouldn't a heavier gauge single cable be less resistant and hence carry more musical information.  My speaker cables, from Audioquest are this style, and although they are unwieldy they made an immediate improvement over the multi-strand speaker cable they replaced.
   
  Thanks,


----------



## preproman

IMO to me there was no difference in sound.  Only difference was in the looks.
   
  That's just me..


----------



## joe55ag

Living near Fort Lauderdale, I was able to have a custom Wireworld cable fabricated for my HE-6..
  It is actually their 4 conductor Silver Eclipse interconnect (DNA\Helix conguration)
  The silver\copper of this cable is a perfect match for the HE-6.
   
  The cable is a bit thick, but the sound that flows through it is just tremendous..
  Deep black silence with gorgeous sonics..
   
  Joe


----------



## Happy Camper

Recently I received a new pair of HE-6. I was curious to hear what differences there were between an aftermarket and the original. So I took it over to compare with a pair that was hardwired with a 24 conductor pair. It was opposite what I expected. I thought having more conductors would be easier drive. Instead I found the stock pair was easier to drive and was noticeably louder. There was a difference in the two pairs of HE-6s as the older pair sounded more refined vs raw. So I'm giving the new pair a week of non stop use to remove any break in possibilities and will try it again.


----------



## preproman

Quote: 





joe55ag said:


> Living near Fort Lauderdale, I was able to have a custom Wireworld cable fabricated for my HE-6..
> It is actually their 4 conductor Silver Eclipse interconnect (DNA\Helix conguration)
> *The silver\copper of this cable is a perfect match for the HE-6.*
> 
> ...


 
   
  This has been my experience as well with the Reign 24.


----------



## JohnSantana

So I wonder, how does one determine which cable to buy as the replacement of the original stock cable of the HE-500 ?


----------



## elwappo99

Quote: 





preproman said:


> IMO to me there was no difference in sound.  Only difference was in the looks.
> 
> That's just me..


 
   
I know this is going back a bit but....
   
   
  Obviously your gear isn't high enough quality to hear the difference!!!!


----------



## preproman

Well I just ordered my 2nd a-100 and my 2nd pair of Mad Dogs, this time with a Skuld v2, 8 conductor hardwired balanced cable.  Going to add the Jkenny Ciunas DAC to this rig.  
   
  The amp is only $189 - still not high end enough?


----------



## elwappo99

Quote: 





preproman said:


> Well I just ordered my 2nd a-100 and my 2nd pair of Mad Dogs, this time with a Skuld v2, 8 conductor hardwired balanced cable.  Going to add the Jkenny Ciunas DAC to this rig.
> 
> The amp is only $189 - still not high end enough?


 
   
  Pssh only $189. It can't be that good! 
   
  I'm actually thinking about grabbing a second A-100 to hook up my HE-500 and Mad Dogs. Did you ever get a Mjolnir in house? I'd like to see a comparison between the two.


----------



## preproman

Quote: 





elwappo99 said:


> Pssh only $189. It can't be that good!
> 
> I'm actually thinking about grabbing a second A-100 to hook up my HE-500 and Mad Dogs. Did you ever get a Mjolnir in house? I'd like to see a comparison between the two.


 
   
  In fact - I had the Mojo and the a-100 in house at the same time before.  Even as good a price the mojo is the sub $200 amp is just as good.  A-100 is way better with the HE-6s, with the LCD-3s = same / stand ins: with the sub $200 amp wining in the sound stage department.


----------



## JohnSantana

What type of cable is suitable for the HE500 ?
   
  is it silver, copper or something else that I do not know about ?


----------



## preproman

Silver if you want them to be more lively - copper if you want them to be more on the warm side.


----------



## elwappo99

Quote: 





preproman said:


> Silver if you want them to be more lively - copper if you want them to be more on the warm side.


 
   
  And you could get a gold cable too! Hook that up to the LAu, and it'll be like you're tossing hundred dollar bills off of a cliff! 
   
   
   
  Quote: 





preproman said:


> In fact - I had the Mojo and the a-100 in house at the same time before.  Even as good a price the mojo is the sub $200 amp is just as good.  A-100 is way better with the HE-6s, with the LCD-3s = same / stand ins: with the sub $200 amp wining in the sound stage department.


 
   
   
  Little disappointed to hear that in a way. I was pretty set on grabbing a Mjolnir as at least a bit of an upgrade to hook up for a balanced rig. I'm not super surprised though. When I did a head to head with the Little Dot MKVI+, it was pretty nose and nose.


----------



## preproman

Quote: 





elwappo99 said:


> And you could get a gold cable too! Hook that up to the LAu, and it'll be like you're tossing hundred dollar bills off of a cliff!


 
   
   
  Make it rain....


----------



## preproman

Quote: 





elwappo99 said:


> Little disappointed to hear that in a way. I was pretty set on grabbing a Mjolnir as at least a bit of an upgrade to hook up for a balanced rig. I'm not super surprised though. When I did a head to head with the Little Dot MKVI+, it was pretty nose and nose.


 
   
  Well, it is a speaker amp with an extra large transformer in it.  With hard to drive headphones it don't even break a sweat.  I'm not sure but it may stay in Class A all the time never switching to A/B.  So it will compete at a high level.  It can't touch the F1J though,,


----------



## elwappo99

Quote: 





preproman said:


> Well, it is a speaker amp with an extra large transformer in it.  With hard to drive headphones it don't even break a sweat.  I'm not sure but it may stay in Class A all the time never switching to A/B.  So it will compete at a high level.  It can't touch the F1J though,,


 
   
  That certainly is true. Gets me thinking about putting a 1/4" chassis mount on the front with some resistors in line. Could make a sweet little headphone amp!


----------



## grokit

Quote: 





elwappo99 said:


> Quote:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
   
  Haha I was just thinking the same thing about my Alesis. I would probably end up going the other way though and bypass the volume pots to make it a straight power amp


----------



## JohnSantana

Can anyone please share the guidelines of which cable to select or use between copper or silver ?


----------



## preproman

Quote: 





johnsantana said:


> Can anyone please share the guidelines of which cable to select or use between copper or silver ?


 
   
  John
   
  To each is own.  No one cabe is right.  Go with what you can afford..


----------



## Happy Camper

The highs were more relaxed on the Reign vs the stock cable but the Reign needed more power for equal volume. That was about it on a spot check between the two HE-6s we tried. The 6s were with the same pads and one was newer with less wear.


----------



## Happy Camper

Looks like Norse isn't taking any more orders at this time.


----------



## nk77

Quote: 





happy camper said:


> Looks like Norse isn't taking any more orders at this time.


 
   
  Yeh it seems like that is the case. No idea what is happening. So it seems like Toxic and Q cables are the other top cable contenders for the hifimans? Does Q cable make any silver cables?
   
  EDIT: and Moon Audio of course


----------



## Steve Eddy

nk77 said:


> Does Q cable make any silver cables?




No, we don't.

se


----------



## nk77

Quote: 





steve eddy said:


> No, we don't.
> 
> se


 
   
  While I have you - is the new headphone amp ready?


----------



## Steve Eddy

Quote: 





nk77 said:


> While I have you - is the new headphone amp ready?


 
   
  You've got a PM.
   
  se


----------



## demon321

Toxic silver poison gives more tighten bass and more clear in mid while not harsh.


----------



## scottyfree111

I'm new to the phone scene but thought I'd like to get replacement cables for my HE-500's. Contacted Mr. Eddy at Q, looked at Silver Dragon v3, Cardas Clear (same price at the cans!- LOL), and the Toxic silver poison. If I get those from the UK, I'm trying to figure out if I should get the cables sleeved or not. I don't want the extra weight if possible, but don't want snags either. He also offers a non-shielded version but I don't know how that will affect things. Anyone have experience with this one? Most people tend to recommend silver over copper for this phone, but I'm leaning toward the Q or Poison.


----------



## NiHM

I was in the same boat as you.  I looked at Toxic, BTG Audio, and Q.  I didn't want to endure the ridiculous wait associated with Toxic, and almost went with BTG.  It was the summer sale at Q that sealed the deal for me.  Sadly the sale is now over, but I think you would love the Q cable for your HE500's.  Very flexible, and the french silk is just as good as having another type of cable sleeved.  No worries about snags or extra weight.


----------



## scottyfree111

Great! Mr. Eddy seems like a pleasure to do business with.  I wonder if he'll give me the summer discount? I just don't want to keep thinking did I make the right decision...


----------



## scottyfree111

I didn't want to wait a few months for the Silver Poison cables so I got the Q Audio French Silk for my HE-500's and couldn't be happier. They are gorgeous and easy to move around, much more so than the stock cable. I was a bit worried going from silver (stock) to copper and giving up up a bit of the midrange quality of the stock cable, but sonically they are wonderful and just let music pass through uncolored in any way. Steve is a delight to work with and quite funny too!


----------



## Happy Camper

scottyfree111 said:


> *I didn't want to wait a few months for the Silver Poison cables* so I got the Q Audio French Silk for my HE-500's and couldn't be happier. They are gorgeous and easy to move around, much more so than the stock cable. I was a bit worried going from silver (stock) to copper and giving up up a bit of the midrange quality of the stock cable, but sonically they are wonderful and just let music pass through uncolored in any way. Steve is a delight to work with and quite funny too!


A few months? How about almost a year? For a Toxic cable........ You have to send in your money first too. That's crazy.


----------



## elwappo99

happy camper said:


> A few months? How about almost a year? For a Toxic cable........ You have to send in your money first too. That's crazy.


 
  
 Yea, no matter how good the rep. I've seen a few too many times where reputable sellers take money for an item with a long wait time and then.... silence.


----------



## Happy Camper

They are using their customer's money to build their profits.


----------



## hifimanrookie

happy camper said:


> They are using their customer's money to build their profits.



If ur so negative about the toxic cables..as one of the few i have to admit!!! Why for gods sake are u asking on their thread about if they use raw material??? Pls explain!!! U sound very fishy..and thats my honest opinion ofcourse..

As this sounds a bit off to me..first AGAIN mentioning about the one year waiting time..which is a total LIE!, and u know that mr. Happy camper... Some wait long..but thats because something wet wrong somewhere..any those got a refund if they wished..but noy 1 year..or u must know more then me...but i doubt that..as i check their thread daily.. As most know.. 

And now ur asking on their thread about whether they use raw material? U think people are stupid? If ur so interested in their cables why are u trying to diskredit their name with news thats wellknown.. On this thread?

And for ur info...soon his deliverytime will be 2-3weeks with the new manpower and the new equipment he hired/bought recently....so no more one man show anymore.... 

So guys and girls of the hifiman community..soon his long waiting times ( sometimes 6months) are over... 

I wanna say Something bout other brands with their so called short deliverytimes... GOOD quality brands normally take time to manfactur and to deliver if ur short on manpower (as most of them are)..see NORSE cables ..they stopped new orders for a while so they could go through their backlog..thats because their cables are in big demand..as they make very good cables!.toxic had to do the same with their ebay sales..how many other brands u know of which had to do that because of their popularity? Only those two! As they are top of the line.. 

So happy camper.. Once again..if ur so negative about their deliverytimes (toxic)..why for gods sake u wanna know about how they get their material..it just dont make sense then just a way to attract some kind of negative reactions and in so trying to diskredit toxic..again.. 

I just dont understand this..we all have to respect others..whether toxic, norse, double helix or any other premium brand i heard/owned/exists..they do all they can to give us the best cables they can produce.. As they have a reputatie to behold.. So it makes me sad that some people tryin to diskredit brands for some kind of reason?? Protecting others? Pls!!
And about prepayment for cables..for these kind of things u always have prepayment..i always paid in front for any of my audio stuff... If i would only pay after finishing i think most of the manufacturers would go bankrupt.. Imho ofourse...
Peace to u all.


----------



## Happy Camper

Going to and experience is two different animals. Business practices are typically that the seller invests in their materials to make it reasonably available to the customer. If it's a group buy that states when enough people are gathered, a purchase is made, that's known going in. Your funds are being used to save money. To charge for the order on the front end and then have waits longer than given is not fair to the person putting their money out, irrespective of quality. If I charged my customer for product and collected on the front end and then delayed beyond the corresponded time, I wouldn't be in business. Is it unfair to expect the same of a company charging hundreds of dollars for a few feet of wire? While there are unseen delays that come up, those are communicated and the consumer is aware of the delay. My statement of almost a year is too long. I was inquiring at a time when Toxic was MIA and read some customers nervousness. For that I was making an emotional response. I am sorry. 

As for the question of making proprietary material, it's a question. You seem to be strongly offended for a simple question. If the metal was proprietary to one seller, and runs limited to order size, I could see delays based on minimum sized runs. That was my question. I asked for my HE-6 to be hardwired with their cable, I was told they don't do that work. I truly would like to try his wire. I want to do my own hardwiring to my headphones but can't. I shouldn't have to pay for terminations just to cut them off. 

You've not been around here long enough to have seen a lot of our community get burned with Singlepower for one example. There have been other cable makers do similar so it's not unknown. Even a hint of silence or extended delays causes the alarms to go off. There are no consumer protections offered. 

I have asked the mods to review this mess and take appropriate action to rid any unnecessary fallout from strong commentary. Mine included. You are a Toxic fan so I understand your passion. Wire Gods are strongly defended by their followers. Lesson learned.


----------



## hifimanrookie

happy camper said:


> Going to and experience is two different animals. Business practices are typically that the seller invests in their materials to make it reasonably available to the customer. If it's a group buy that states when enough people are gathered, a purchase is made, that's known going in. Your funds are being used to save money. To charge for the order on the front end and then have waits longer than given is not fair to the person putting their money out, irrespective of quality. If I charged my customer for product and collected on the front end and then delayed beyond the corresponded time, I wouldn't be in business. Is it unfair to expect the same of a company charging hundreds of dollars for a few feet of wire? While there are unseen delays that come up, those are communicated and the consumer is aware of the delay. My statement of almost a year is too long. I was inquiring at a time when Toxic was MIA and read some customers nervousness. For that I was making an emotional response. I am sorry.
> 
> As for the question of making proprietary material, it's a question. You seem to be strongly offended for a simple question. If the metal was proprietary to one seller, and runs limited to order size, I could see delays based on minimum sized runs. That was my question. I asked for my HE-6 to be hardwired with their cable, I was told they don't do that work. I truly would like to try his wire. I want to do my own hardwiring to my headphones but can't. I shouldn't have to pay for terminations just to cut them off.
> 
> ...



With this i think understand where ur coming from with ur initial posting.. So if i was in any way assertive to u..i dont mean it personal.. As if i am not mistaken in another thread we agreed on many things in the past 
And i agree about that customers need to feel safe about their purchases and that there have been and still are companies who are not really honest... But toxic cables are a honest company..anyone having problems with very long delivery times get a prompt refund if they desire it.. But yeah..deliverytime is long..but i read on his thread he has 3new workers around him now full time to clear the backlog and in dec his delivery time would be 3weeks..exceptions like the venom/ exotic cables not considered..

So my apologies if i came up a bit strong..but as u also know in ur many years of membership here..some brands are a bit aggressive intheir ways..and it wouldnt be the first time somebody tried to stir something up..in this case it was not.. But as u said urself..ur post could be read not in the way u say u intended it..

About being a toxic fan.. I am also a darkvoice 337 fan or any other product i own (or owned) and love and believed in..soon blue circle audio lolz... So i am not a toxic fan specifically... I do find their cables the best for the money they cost..but thats personal taste ofcourse..as with all my other hobbies and urs probably also... But U wont find me posting a brand of same product on a specific product appreciation thread of another brand.. Even if i hate that product and find the product i have better.. Its called respect..pityful not all think like that.. And what we had is just a debate..nothing more 

So.. Water under the bridge... Friends again?


----------



## Happy Camper

I'm good. The only reason another vendor was brought up was because you asked. It wasn't intended to be an ad. Posting in the early hours has proven to be my mistake. Things get taken wrong or communication is incomplete and cause these things. 

Peace.


----------



## Toxic Cables

happy camper said:


> Going to and experience is two different animals. Business practices are typically that the seller invests in their materials to make it reasonably available to the customer. If it's a group buy that states when enough people are gathered, a purchase is made, that's known going in. Your funds are being used to save money. To charge for the order on the front end and then have waits longer than given is not fair to the person putting their money out, irrespective of quality. If I charged my customer for product and collected on the front end and then delayed beyond the corresponded time, I wouldn't be in business. Is it unfair to expect the same of a company charging hundreds of dollars for a few feet of wire? While there are unseen delays that come up, those are communicated and the consumer is aware of the delay. My statement of almost a year is too long. I was inquiring at a time when Toxic was MIA and read some customers nervousness. For that I was making an emotional response. I am sorry.
> 
> As for the question of making proprietary material, it's a question. You seem to be strongly offended for a simple question. If the metal was proprietary to one seller, and runs limited to order size, I could see delays based on minimum sized runs. That was my question. I asked for my HE-6 to be hardwired with their cable, I was told they don't do that work. I truly would like to try his wire. I want to do my own hardwiring to my headphones but can't. I shouldn't have to pay for terminations just to cut them off.
> 
> ...


 
  
 Firstly, i run a business, i would only sell products knowing that i already had the materials to complete those orders. Every single penny from outstanding orders is still in either my PayPal account, or my Google checkout account and anyone is able to request a refund at any point and this is always processed immediately.
  
 I do not request full payment in advance, i have posted many times on my appreciation thread that customers are able to make part payment, with the rest being due when the cable is ready to ship and some have taken advantage of this. I do not and will not take orders without some payment being made in advance, i make custom cables, most times to custom lengths and terminations and should those customers change their minds when the cable is ready and payment due, i am stuck with the cable.
  
 As for being MIA, i am always active in my appreciation thread, i check in daily and when i see any concerns i reply immediately. I have also made everyone aware that emails and PM's can take time to reply to, as i need to be making cables. All emails and PM's i receive are always replied to.
  
 Many of my customers are well aware of the reasons for the recent delay's, my son being unwell and the passing of a family member and the large majority 95%+ have stuck it through.
  
 I have now taken on new staff, moved to a much larger fully equipped workshop with some of the best equipment money can buy, and i intend on having 99% of my delayed orders shipped by the end of the month, followed by 99% of all my current orders hopefully shipped by the 15th of November, as has been stated on my appreciation thread.
  
 I am not sure what all this from you is made of, as you don't have an order pending or have ever ordered from me, yet you are complaining more then any of my customers who actually have cables pending from me, many of which are still placing new orders daily.
  
 As for me not investing in materials or all the other comments you seem to be making, i have added some pictures for your benefit. Does this look like the inventory of someone packing up shop, and this is what i have here at home, although i don't keep as much at the workshop. Toxic Cables was started with my own personal money and to this day i am still investing my own money that i had long before Toxic existed.  This is not just a business for me, it's something i enjoy, a hobby and a passion of mine.
  
 I am not here to take advantage of anyone, i have had some personal problems and issues lately and there have been delays and that's all there is to it. I will not sacrifice the quality of my cables, which they are well known for, for the sake of getting them out quicker so that i don't have to refund people. Those who have waited, will receive a perfectly made cable and will benefit from from other promotions for the life of Toxic Cables, that will be made available exclusively to them, for their patience.
  
 This is not Single Power, or any other company, this is Toxic Cables and we are here to stay.
  
  
    
  
    
  
 
  
 As you can see, i have the capabilities to furnish a couple thousand cables, and here is a picture i posted on my appreciation thread a couple of days ago, which you saw of some cables i have made when i come home. Keep an eye out at the end of the month and you will see hundreds more.
  

 I will now ask that you stop continuing to try and damage my companies reputation even further and maybe wait till the end of the month when i said the majority of all delayed orders will ship, which i am sure you saw my announcement on the appreciation thread, before you go on a witch hunt and leave it as is for now.
  
 Once i have cleared my backlog, i will be releasing a new budget line of cables, this will include a new stranded OCC Cryo silver headphone cable, that will start at £115 for a 6ft length, the cheapest stranded silver cable available by far.


----------



## hifimanrookie

toxic cables said:


> Firstly, i run a business, i would only sell products knowing that i already had the materials to complete those orders. Every single penny from outstanding orders is still in either my PayPal account, or my Google checkout account and anyone is able to request a refund at any point and this is always processed immediately.
> 
> I do not request full payment in advance, i have posted many times on my appreciation thread that customers are able to make part payment, with the rest being due when the cable is ready to ship and some have taken advantage of this. I do not and will not take orders without some payment being made in advance, i make custom cables, most times to custom lengths and terminations and should those customers change their minds when the cable is ready and payment due, i am stuck with the cable.
> 
> ...



Respect! That ur willing to post this.. Well done..


----------



## livingtheblues

Looking for a cable options to work with my HE-500s and HE-901 - all I can find is this crappy Canare cable from Hifiman, which, by the way, is a ripoff at $70. I really don't see anything out there at all with the 1/8 in TRRS needed to connect to the 901. Thanks.


----------



## Toxic Cables

livingtheblues said:


> Looking for a cable options to work with my HE-500s and HE-901 - all I can find is this crappy Canare cable from Hifiman, which, by the way, is a ripoff at $70. I really don't see anything out there at all with the 1/4 in TRRS needed to connect to the 901. Thanks.


 
 Most will be able to make a cable using the TRRS if you request it.


----------



## nilov

Hi.
 Anybody heard how He-6 drives with alo green cable?
 Thanks.


----------



## hk91320

I have done something that most people haven't. I have both HE-6 and HE-500. Given that I drive them with speaker amps, I wondered... What if I drive them with a decent quality speaker cables? It so happens that I had some Audioquest Copperhead speaker cables lying around in the house. They are about 7-8 years old but was never used. If I remember correctly they were $2-300/pair for typical 6ft pair of speaker cables. I had 12+ ft pair of these cables, so I connected HifiMan speaker connectors on one end to see what would happen.
  
 Well... they actually sound much better than the stock HE-6 cable that I was using for both cans. More open, more organic, and quite a bit less veiled sounding. Of course, before I tried the speaker cables, I didn't think my HifiMans sounded veiled... This was after about 50 hours of break-in. These cables are heavier (obviously), and somewhat cumbersome to use, but they do sound better. How about that?


----------



## Chris_Himself

hk91320 said:


> I have done something that most people haven't. I have both HE-6 and HE-500. Given that I drive them with speaker amps, I wondered... What if I drive them with a decent quality speaker cables? It so happens that I had some Audioquest Copperhead speaker cables lying around in the house. They are about 7-8 years old but was never used. If I remember correctly they were $2-300/pair for typical 6ft pair of speaker cables. I had 12+ ft pair of these cables, so I connected HifiMan speaker connectors on one end to see what would happen.
> 
> Well... they actually sound much better than the stock HE-6 cable that I was using for both cans. More open, more organic, and quite a bit less veiled sounding. Of course, before I tried the speaker cables, I didn't think my HifiMans sounded veiled... This was after about 50 hours of break-in. These cables are heavier (obviously), and somewhat cumbersome to use, but they do sound better. How about that?


 
  
 Interesting sentiment, usually those high-end audio interconnects given that they use quality materials, techniques, and design are really impervious to radiation and cross talk vs the headphone cables which are usually engineered to be thin and light and proportionate to the headphone. It's been known for a while that keeping the channels separate for as long as you can in the chain if not completely would help out. I bought a set of DHC Complement 2's which are basically audio hoses, there are merits to the excessive sometimes. The Greenhead stuff looks impressive because not only are your channels isolated from using that style of interconnect, but the actual positive and negative conductors are as far away from each other as can be within the same cable. I've never actually seen anything like that before. The next step is we free float individual conductors with foil, PE, PVC, and cotton insulation and dear god will it be unattractive.


----------



## Happy Camper

Monoblocks for the win.


----------



## Rockcoon

I ordered he 500. They on the way...
 Can someone tell me about this cable with sms conection. If i want to change the one in the stock, i have to create the cable by myself? Buy separately sms conectors, the jack, the cable and fell like an electrician tryin to do this, right? There is no ready options, that i can buy, plug and play?


----------



## Amictus

I got a Q cable from http://theaudioguild.com/the-collection/#/q-cables/ with an adapter for the HE-500. It is a huge improvement on the stock cable. Steve is a delight to deal with.


----------



## Tristor

I'm curious what the general consensus/recommendation would be for a replacement cable for the HE-500 where durability is my primary concern?  I've read through the thread and checked out a number of the aftermarket cables recommended, but since I've had no personal experience with them I'm not sure what's going to end up working out best for me.  Unfortunately I've damaged the stock cable on the right side so that it has a short near the earpiece connector, so I need to replace the cable.  It seems like the stock cable was pretty fragile in general, and while I made an effort to treat it gently it still only lasted me about a year.  I'd like to find something that's significantly more durable.
  
 Thanks in advance for the thoughts of the group.


----------



## Rockcoon

amictus said:


> I got a Q cable from http://theaudioguild.com/the-collection/#/q-cables/ with an adapter for the HE-500. It is a huge improvement on the stock cable. Steve is a delight to deal with.



Sounds like an good offer. But something tels me that they won't ship it to Republic of Crimea


----------



## Terja

hk91320 said:


> I have done something that most people haven't. I have both HE-6 and HE-500. Given that I drive them with speaker amps, I wondered... What if I drive them with a decent quality speaker cables? It so happens that I had some Audioquest Copperhead speaker cables lying around in the house. They are about 7-8 years old but was never used. If I remember correctly they were $2-300/pair for typical 6ft pair of speaker cables. I had 12+ ft pair of these cables, so I connected HifiMan speaker connectors on one end to see what would happen.
> 
> Well... they actually sound much better than the stock HE-6 cable that I was using for both cans. More open, more organic, and quite a bit less veiled sounding. Of course, before I tried the speaker cables, I didn't think my HifiMans sounded veiled... This was after about 50 hours of break-in. These cables are heavier (obviously), and somewhat cumbersome to use, but they do sound better. How about that?


 
  
 Hey HK as someone who has both the HE-6 and HE-500 and running them off speaker terminals (I guess that's what you're doing) - how do the two headphones compare on the same amp, same set up. Quite curious as I have an HE-500 I drive via speaker terminals. Any thoughts or a mini-comp review would be awesome!
  
 [ umm ... just checked dates 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			



]


----------



## Steve Eddy

rockcoon said:


> Sounds like an good offer. But something tels me that they won't ship it to Republic of Crimea




Crimea's not a problem now. The U.S. Postal Service suspended service there temporarily last summer during the crisis, but that suspension has since passed.

What I find strange is that shipping everywhere else in the world, we can pay for postage and print labels and customs forms online and just post it to our regular carrier. But when shipping to Russia or any of the former Soviet states, the package has to be paid for and posted at the post office. I guess we still have some relics left over from the Cold War. 

se


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## Rockcoon

steve eddy said:


> Crimea's not a problem now. The U.S. Postal Service suspended service there temporarily last summer during the crisis, but that suspension has since passed.
> 
> What I find strange is that shipping everywhere else in the world, we can pay for postage and print labels and customs forms online and just post it to our regular carrier. But when shipping to Russia or any of the former Soviet states, the package has to be paid for and posted at the post office. I guess we still have some relics left over from the Cold War.
> 
> se



Glad to hear that the US Postal Service does not pay attention to such nonsense as sanctions 

Well, my he500 cans are on the way from the store. First of all i should listen the stock cable, and if it will be so bad, as the some people say, then i will buy yours.

with Q item, I want to get a few things - add some overal smothness, and gain a little bit air in the treble. But most importain thing is sibilance reduction, if such problem apears with the stock silver cord.
Please tell me, Steve, I chose the right company?


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## Steve Eddy

rockcoon said:


> Glad to hear that the US Postal Service does not pay attention to such nonsense as sanctions




Thankfully, aftermarket headphone cables weren't on the US State Department's radar. 




> with Q item, I want to get a few things - add some overal smothness, and gain a little bit air in the treble. But most importain thing is sibilance reduction, if such problem apears with the stock silver cord.
> Please tell me, Steve, I chose the right company?




I'd like to think so, but that's kind of like telling someone whether or not they chose the right girlfriend or something. 

se


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## yuhengtiger

dragonowen said:


> Here is my current HE-6 cable - MS Audio laboratory hybrid silver and copper cable. It looks not very good, but the sound is what important and in terms of sound it beat my Silver Dragon which my friend reterminated to LCD-2 soon after I bought MS Audio cable, because I didn't listened HE-6 with Silver Dragon anymore. So here the fotos, though I don't think that you will like the looks of it


 
 Can I ask for the link where you get this cable? I googled it but did not find out. Thanks!


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## DragonOwen

yuhengtiger said:


> Can I ask for the link where you get this cable? I googled it but did not find out. Thanks!



They only have russian on their site, that is probably the reason you were unable to google it... This is a page with catalog of MS Audio cables: http://msaudiolab.com/cables.html . This is a page of discription of hybrid cable for HE-series headphones: http://msaudiolab.com/cables/he_hybrid.html


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## soulorc

Has anyone here tried the Labkable cable? I heard it is superior than many other cables.
  
 http://labkable.com/products/HiFiMAN-HE300-%7B47%7D-HE500-%7B47%7D-HE6-Silver-Gold-Headphone-Cable.html


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## yuhengtiger

Any one tried the plussound x8 or the whiplash twau cable? Can you share the sound impression please? Thanks.


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## yuhengtiger

yuhengtiger said:


> Any one tried the plussound x8 or the whiplash twau cable? Can you share the sound impression please? Thanks.


 
 Also want to know cardas clear, labkable, norne druag 1, thank you!


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## yuhengtiger

Any one have any recommendations for he6 upgrade cable that are under $800? Thanks.


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