# FiiO Aftermarket IEM cables (RC-WT1, RC-SE1, RC-UE2)



## hatefulsandwich

I can't seem to find much info on Fiio's latest offerings in the IEM cable department. The cables are the RC-WT1, RC-UE2, and RC-SE1 and they're silver-plated OCC. Standard stuff, except the price is only $30 (or $35 for the Shures) from Mp4Nation. I've only ever used the stock cables with my UM3Xes and I've been interested in trying some other cables, but the prices can get quite astronomical. If the Fiios are decent, they could make for a very cheap upgrade option for people. 

At that price I can't see how they wouldn't be worth at least trying, which is why I'm so surprised I don't see much (well, any) mention of them on Head-Fi. Shipping from Mp4Nation takes aaages to get to me, so I'd be interested if anyone else who has quick Fedex available to them could bite and give some impressions.


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## Audio-Phile

I just saw these on eBay, for $27.99.  SPC cables for that price?  Seems crazy.  But too cheap not to try.  Would also like to see if anyone has had experience with these, might be a good backup cable.


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## sling5s

After owning these JH13pro for over six years, my stock cable finally needed replacing.  Decided to try the FillO replacement cable (same price as stock).  Wow, what a difference.  Didn't realize how bad the stock cable was.  The FiiO RC-WT1 really brings the midrange out and makes the treble smoother (takes the edge off) and bass tighter with greater punch and impact.  Soundstage and details improved also.  Everything much smoother. I'm sure the Moon Audio or Whiplash are superior to the FiiO but pretty happy with the FiiO.  Maybe someday I'll try Moon Audio.


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## BRCMRGN

I have to agree with you about the Fiio cables. Great cable for the price. I have replaced several Shure, Westone and Earsonics cables with the Fiio cables. For TOTL IEMs, I have had very good experiences with the Moon Audio Silver Dragon, BTG Starlight and ALO Audio SXC 24. The ALO and Moon cables were ordered in balanced configurations for the HM-901 or AK240.


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## Veetastic

I have the TripleFi 10s and had to replace my cable about once every year until recently when I found out about the Fiio cables. I can't say I hear a difference in sound quality from my stock cables, but their build quality and design is much better.
  
 The first time I bought the cables I really liked it. It was a huge improvement from the stock cables that I was using. First of all, it was braid and felt a lot lighter than the old cable. They claimed that the cable was SPC but I could not tell the difference in sound but I only used my TF10s with my phone so my source was never that good. They looked really cool being silver and all so I'll give them that. Around the ears, instead of using a metal wire like the stock cables did to keep the fit, they had a plastic section that covered the cable. 
  
 So it was really nice and everything but after almost a year it still had that problem near the plug where it wears out so I decided to buy another one because it was a cheap option and it worked a lot better than the stock cables. What they didn't tell me was that they actually revised the cable to make it better. The cable was a lot more neatly braided so it was even thinner and felt lighter on the ears. The plastic that was once used to cover the area around the ears was shrunk to have a lower profile and they used a thinner plastic that was lighter around the ears but still served well to hold the fit around the ear so the wire doesn't fly around.
  
 What really impressed me was the Fiio continued to make their product better without selling it as a newer version for a higher price. They don't even mention it anywhere at all that they updated it. The fact that they did this makes me really these cables. 
  
 Just my two cents.


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## Robgo

I bought one of these for Shure SE535s and I think they're quite poor in pretty much every way. The biggest complaint people have is the microphonics but they also cut out. They are incredibly stiff cables. 
  
  
 The jack also doesn't work 100% on my HRT Microstreamer because of the odd nub they've placed on it. 
  
 
 If you look at where the silver metal casing is and see the brass coloured nub sticking out, it doesn't allow the jack to be pushed in all the way and causes it to cut out occasionally.
  
 The stock Shure cables are better in every way except for the over ears part, which is prone to breaking. 
  
 I've owned a few FIIO products and I've never been happy with them. I don't understand their popularity. 
  
  
 Here you can see reviews on Amazon for it. 
  
 http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00DB41AOW/ref=cm_cr_thx_view


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## sling5s

I have a puzzling experience with my JH13pro with iPhone and any other amp I use. 
 With the FiiO cable, the bass is wooly, and loose. The sound is hazy and muddy.
 When I add a 70 ohm or 120 ohm impedance adaptor.  The bass becomes tight, controlled and punchy the way it should be.
  
 What is FiiO cable doing that is causing this and why is adding impedance fixing the problem?
  
 Any ideas?
 I believe the FiiO is causing some impedance mismatch.


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## Fungus

sling5s said:


> After owning these JH13pro for over six years, my stock cable finally needed replacing.  Decided to try the FillO replacement cable (same price as stock).  Wow, what a difference.  Didn't realize how bad the stock cable was.  The FiiO RC-WT1 really brings the midrange out and makes the treble smoother (takes the edge off) and bass tighter with greater punch and impact.  Soundstage and details improved also.  Everything much smoother. I'm sure the Moon Audio or Whiplash are superior to the FiiO but pretty happy with the FiiO.  Maybe someday I'll try Moon Audio.


 
 Same experience but with my um3x. I just wish for the cable to be less stiff with less microphonic and a right angle jack.


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## Fungus

sling5s said:


> I have a puzzling experience with my JH13pro with iPhone and any other amp I use.
> With the FiiO cable, the bass is wooly, and loose. The sound is hazy and muddy.
> When I add a 70 ohm or 120 ohm impedance adaptor.  The bass becomes tight, controlled and punchy the way it should be.
> 
> ...


 
 Or your hearing


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## gozyla86

I have replaced my stock Shure 215 with RC-SE1. The sound seem better with abit more punch and tigher in bass and sound seem warmer to me.
 The only problem (which i plan to replace it today) is the left side seem a bit loose. whenever i turn my head from left to right, sometimes the sound just cut off.
 Bought it from Noisy Motel, melbourne.


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## Mooses9

bought one of these cables on this date for my w4r


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## Mooses9

These cables are garbage their quality control must be nil. fiio needs to stick to amps i cannot believe they would put out a product of this calibre with they credit of their amp name behind it. They have me completely pissed off.


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> These cables are garbage their quality control must be nil. fiio needs to stick to amps i cannot believe they would put out a product of this calibre with they credit of their amp name behind it. They have me completely pissed off.


 
 No, it's even worse than garbage. I'd rather give it to my pet rabbit to nibble on than put up with the stiff and annoying microphnoics.


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## Mooses9

Their quality control needs to be looked into and then their quality itsself needs to be looked into. I am not normally a cheap guy and i dont normally dabble in cheap things like cables under $250.00 but i needed one to hold me over because at the time i had no cable at all. Figured what the hell yeah what the hell.


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## sling5s

Mine sounded warm and lush and thought wow! This is nice.  Than more I listened to it, the bass bled into everything. I contacted them saying it's causing some kind of impedance mismatch because my JH13 sounded wrong: the bass was mushy, bloated and lose.  They said it was the JH13 problem and not the cable. 
  
 I have now some PlusSound custom cable.  The sound is smooth but so detailed.  Really brought out the mids on my jh13.  Yes, there is something wrong about these cables.


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## Mooses9

These stupid cables damaged my w4rs their pins are not consistant and and i noticed on them that what was consistant was one pin was longer than the other and that not only that the pins had a larger circumferance than the stock cable and was spaced farther apart. So when i tried to push the cable in and felt resistance i thought well the stock cable has some resistance they have a tight fit. No it was that these cables were thicker and spaced farther apart. Which in turn. Alongated my hole for my cables.

I should have never and would never use these cheap pieces of garbage ever again. Nor would i reccomend fiio to anyone not for a amp or these crappy cable this took the cake.

They obviously have no quality control at all whatsoever even if the pins werent spaced out they would have never fit they were too thick. Not to mention what was with one pin longer than the other?

I give them 0 stars out of 5 and if we can do -0 out of 5 i will give them a -5 out of 5 pure crap they are putting out.

Like i said i normally stick to high end. And i will never stray from them again per i never seen such poor quality in my life jesus.

NOT TO MENTION I HAVE HAVE A FING ENLONGATED PIN HOLE IN MY WESTONE W4R FIIO THANKS A FING LOT!!!!!!!


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> These stupid cables damaged my w4rs their pins are not consistant and and i noticed on them that what was consistant was one pin was longer than the other and that not only that the pins had a larger circumferance than the stock cable and was spaced farther apart. So when i tried to push the cable in and felt resistance i thought well the stock cable has some resistance they have a tight fit. No it was that these cables were thicker and spaced farther apart. Which in turn. Alongated my hole for my cables.
> 
> I should have never and would never use these cheap pieces of garbage ever again. Nor would i reccomend fiio to anyone not for a amp or these crappy cable this took the cake.
> 
> ...


 
 You've have gotta be kidding me!! That means my beaufitifl um3x is damaged? I was sceptical of this happening and actually posted an enquiry about this before making my purchase, whether or not the fiio and epic cable had the same pin size but nobody responded. Damn Mooses9, I wish you could of reported sooner so I didn't have to become another victim. Now I'm so mad. This news has really ruined my day. Just bloddy great. God damn you Fiio, mark my works, I'm going to suit you for this. Hopefully my pins are more consistantly placed and hasn't hasn't inflicted any damage the sockets of my um3xs. Cross my fingers.


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## Fungus

Bloody great, I just tried to remove the connector but it's so tight that I can't get it out!!


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## Mooses9

fungus said:


> Bloody great, I just tried to remove the connector but it's so tight that I can't get it out!!


 
  
 Well that either means one of 2 things the pins diameters are keeping them from being removed, or you just have a tight fit and the pins have nothing to do with it, i hope for your sake the pins have nothing to do with it.


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> Well that either means one of 2 things the pins diameters are keeping them from being removed, or you just have a tight fit and the pins have nothing to do with it, i hope for your sake the pins have nothing to do with it.


 
 I just got them out after a lot of effort. I don't remember requiring this much effect when removing the stock cable. How do you know for sure that the sockets of you W4rs now has elongated pin hole? Do you see a small crack or is the stock cable now very loose?


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## Mooses9

Here is a picture of the westone epic on the right and the fiio on the left as you can see the fiio pins are shorter and the farthest the left pin is taller along with that you can clearly see against the epic cable the fiio pins are thicker or fatter in diameter which would maker them father in diamter from pin hole to pin hole.

it didnt make a crack it just made my pin hole elonggated and i would say slightly loose. Whilist i could not properly insert them because of the fact tjat the pin hole did not lin up they where too thick and this caused a issue in insertion of the cable.

I currently have my westone epic cable in my earpiece otherwise i could show it however i dont want to keep removing and insering the pins for fear of making the pin holes loose. But i am mearly trying to show the flaws in the cables fiio is selling.


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> Here is a picture of the westone epic on the right and the fiio on the left as you can see the fiio pins are shorter and the farthest the left pin is taller along with that you can clearly see against the epic cable the fiio pins are thicker or fatter in diameter which would maker them father in diamter from pin hole to pin hole.
> 
> it didnt make a crack it just made my pin hole elonggated and i would say slightly loose. Whilist i could not properly insert them because of the fact tjat the pin hole did not lin up they where too thick and this caused a issue in insertion of the cable.
> 
> I currently have my westone epic cable in my earpiece otherwise i could show it however i dont want to keep removing and insering the pins for fear of making the pin holes loose. But i am mearly trying to show the flaws in the cables fiio is selling.


 
  


mooses9 said:


> Here is a picture of the westone epic on the right and the fiio on the left as you can see the fiio pins are shorter and the farthest the left pin is taller along with that you can clearly see against the epic cable the fiio pins are thicker or fatter in diameter which would maker them father in diamter from pin hole to pin hole.
> 
> it didnt make a crack it just made my pin hole elonggated and i would say slightly loose. Whilist i could not properly insert them because of the fact tjat the pin hole did not lin up they where too thick and this caused a issue in insertion of the cable.
> 
> I currently have my westone epic cable in my earpiece otherwise i could show it however i dont want to keep removing and insering the pins for fear of making the pin holes loose. But i am mearly trying to show the flaws in the cables fiio is selling.


 
 Didn't fiio release two different versions like they did for ultimate ears? 
 Mine look identical so while don't have my stock westone cable to compare with, I'm certain the pin holes on my um3x are already elongated.


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## Mooses9

FiiO RC-WT1 re-cable for Westone Earphones - Compatible with W4R, UM-3XRC, Jh13, JH16
Sold by: PitbullAudio
  
  
 exactly what i bought and received.


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> FiiO RC-WT1 re-cable for Westone Earphones - Compatible with W4R, UM-3XRC, Jh13, JH16
> Sold by: PitbullAudio
> 
> 
> exactly what i bought and received.


 
 yep I also got the same one. Referring back to the photos, the pins on yours seem wider than mine albeit the same length.


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## Mooses9

fungus said:


> yep I also got the same one. Referring back to the photos, the pins on yours seem wider than mine albeit the same length.


 
 yeah it seems that possibly fiios production is inconsistent.  i dont know if you can tell but on mine, one pin on each  pair of pins one of them is longer than the other i dont know what thats about.


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> yeah it seems that possibly fiios production is inconsistent.  i dont know if you can tell but on mine, one pin on each  pair of pins one of them is longer than the other i dont know what thats about.


 
 Well on my, only the two pins on the right side are of different length like yours but the left side is symmetrical.


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## Mooses9

have u tried to put the epic cable in and see if it is loose? or goes in easier than it did before?


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## Fungus

Selling poor quality cable is one thing but causing damage to other equipment because of the poor fit and quality inconsistency is another. I could honestly rant on about how pissed I am with fiio ruining my precious um3x...
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





 I have very limited disposable income and was looking to keep using my um3x for many years to come and not buy another pair of high end iem. So much for that happening ..sigh Plus the rc limited edition blue colour version is hard to come by, it's not like can just get another pair.


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> have u tried to put the epic cable in and see if it is loose? or goes in easier than it did before?


 
 No yet, they're at home. Is the epic cable exactly identical to the stock westone cable. Reason I'm asking is that the stock cable has the adjustable plastic that goes around the ear but the epic doesn't. I have the stock cable.


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## Mooses9

fungus said:


> No yet, they're at home. Is the epic cable exactly identical to the stock westone cable. Reason I'm asking is that the stock cable has the adjustable plastic that goes around the ear but the epic doesn't. I have the stock cable.


 
 i believe they are the same, i know at one time they were marketing the w4r with the epic cable, or just simply calling their cables ''epic'' because they do have a ''epic pro'' model but not exactly sure what model that fits.
  
 believe me, when i seen that it damaged my w4r i was mad as hell. i have ocd and like to keep my gear excellent condition and when i seen that, i was floored esp given the w4r are $500.00 iem's and this is a $30.00 cable  i was very very angry this kind of thing should not happen. people spend good money for their gear.


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> i believe they are the same, i know at one time they were marketing the w4r with the epic cable, or just simply calling their cables ''epic'' because they do have a ''epic pro'' model but not exactly sure what model that fits.
> 
> believe me, when i seen that it damaged my w4r i was mad as hell. i have ocd and like to keep my gear excellent condition and when i seen that, i was floored esp given the w4r are $500.00 iem's and this is a $30.00 cable  i was very very angry this kind of thing should not happen. people spend good money for their gear.


 
 I know how you feel. I've had my um3x for nearly 3 years and was only at the end of last year that the stock cable failed. In all those years. I've kept it in such good care..practically babied it. I actually kept using it despite that the sound was cutting in and out on the left side near the jack simply because I was contemplating whether or not to spend $75 on a cable. I feel stupid for making the wrong choice. I should of compared the pins with the stock cable before jamming it in. I'm such a tool.


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## Fungus

I don't know what I should do from here:
  
 1) should I try to put the old broken stock cable in to test out the socket's tightness knowing that either way I'd have to put it out again causing the sockets to because even looser than before
 2) go buy a epic cable only to realise the socket is loose and not longer holds the pins together, pointless purchase.
 3) not bother with both and just sell off my um3x and get another pair or quit my audiophile journey (my um3x's are my 'end game' as far is universal iem goes)


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## Fungus

I do remember changing the cables of my ultimate ears superfi 3 studio (same connectors as tf10s) a few times, all were stock cables and the sockets are now so loose that the pins won't even hold the pins if I just dangle it upside down. So maybe , just maybe that once the stock cable is removed, the sockets elongate and there's just nothing users can do about it. Just a hunch and to make myself less depressed.


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## Mooses9

fungus said:


> I know how you feel. I've had my um3x for nearly 3 years and was only at the end of last year that the stock cable failed. In all those years. I've kept it in such good care..practically babied it. I actually kept using it despite that the sound was cutting in and out on the left side near the jack simply because I was contemplating whether or not to spend $75 on a cable. I feel stupid for making the wrong choice. I should of compared the pins with the stock cable before jamming it in. I'm such a tool.


 
 i would be pissed i love the um3x, i loved my um3x and i didnt have the blue edition.
  
 i went ahead and purchased another pair of westone w4r and im thinking of sending in my damaged pair of westone w4r to westone for a full product replacement it will set me back $250.00 but i will get a pair of W40'S to fix this screw up.
  
 im like you im pissed at myself for being a tool and not just forking out the money for a new epic cable and doing what i should have done, esp on iem's that are rare and cost so much to replace.
  
 god you live and learn but your pockets hurt so bad. uuuuuuuuuuuuggggggghhhhhh.......


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> i would be pissed i love the um3x, i loved my um3x and i didnt have the blue edition.
> 
> i went ahead and purchased another pair of westone w4r and im thinking of sending in my damaged pair of westone w4r to westone for a full product replacement it will set me back $250.00 but i will get a pair of W40'S to fix this screw up.
> 
> ...


 
 I don't have much faith in the mmcx connectors used in the new westone series. I've heard that the iem can easily detach from the cable and a few people  already ended up loosing one side whilst whilst commuting.


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## Mooses9

fungus said:


> I don't have much faith in the mmcx connectors used in the new westone series. I've heard that the iem can easily detach from the cable and a few people  already ended up loosing one side whilst whilst commuting.


 
 yeah haha i hold the same opinion on the mmcx, i love the 2 pin style and cannot ever unstand why everyone converted over to the mmcx style, i have the se535 and i love the sound of them and if it wasnt for loving the sound of them i wouldnt own them, i actually owned them a few times and i got rid of them a few times because of the mmcx style. but i love them so much i cannot get away from them. its like the westone w4r and se535 are my go to.....the um3xrc are my go to however those are near impossible to find so i have to stick with the w4r (


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> yeah haha i hold the same opinion on the mmcx, i love the 2 pin style and cannot ever unstand why everyone converted over to the mmcx style, i have the se535 and i love the sound of them and if it wasnt for loving the sound of them i wouldnt own them, i actually owned them a few times and i got rid of them a few times because of the mmcx style. but i love them so much i cannot get away from them. its like the westone w4r and se535 are my go to.....the um3xrc are my go to however those are near impossible to find so i have to stick with the w4r (


 
 The concept is good. The problem is by allowing the connectors to swivel would only wear out the connectors in at matter of time. If it didn't swivel, it would be perfect. I've own the se425 and 535 and the left and right connectors were difference in tension, one side would swivel more freely than the other side.


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## Mooses9

fungus said:


> The concept is good. The problem is by allowing the connectors to swivel would only wear out the connectors in at matter of time. If it didn't swivel, it would be perfect. I've own the se425 and 535 and the left and right connectors were difference in tension, one side would swivel more freely than the other side.


 
 yeah i personally think its a conspiracy that shure goes to mmcx and then everyone else follows in their footsteps. if there was a problem with the 2 pin then i could see but there was not, not at all. the problem i had with the mmcx was that i was getting short outs from the mmcx male side going side to side causing shorts.
  
  
 but as for this fiio issue i hope that our problem can let others at least give the fiio a second thought about purchasing their product if only their cables. i can see that fiio is eager into getting into the cable scene but they should test the waters first before jumping in head first. i know they probably think they are a established company and all. but thats in amps. not headphone cables.


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> yeah i personally think its a conspiracy that shure goes to mmcx and then everyone else follows in their footsteps. if there was a problem with the 2 pin then i could see but there was not, not at all. the problem i had with the mmcx was that i was getting short outs from the mmcx male side going side to side causing shorts.
> 
> 
> but as for this fiio issue i hope that our problem can let others at least give the fiio a second thought about purchasing their product if only their cables. i can see that fiio is eager into getting into the cable scene but they should test the waters first before jumping in head first. i know they probably think they are a established company and all. but thats in amps. not headphone cables.


 
 I believe the problem with the 2-pin connector is that even despite using the correct pin size connector cable, any wobble/movement when removing and inserting the pins repeatedly will expand the socket. That's how so many people get loose sockets in recessed sockets or in our case, inserting in a ****ty fiio cable to make matters 10 times worse. The correct why way to prevent his problem is to ensure the pins of the cable are of the same diameter as stock/epic and to pull the pins straight out with a pair of pliers. 
  
 Mooses9, did you wriggle the connectors when removing the fiio cable or pull it straight out? 
 
 I don't care if fiio are reputable in their amp and daps, I'm never going to buy any fiio products EVER again. I would be nice for others to learn from our experience but I doubt the majority of buyers would be bothered reading though this thread before buying given the low price. The truth is, before buying, I knew there was something fishy due to the low number of reviews on-line and low rating. The only reason why I took the plunge was because somebody mentioned the cable was so amazingly thinner and lighter than the stock cable. When I looked at it, I was like, what a load of bull, don't know what he/she was smoking. I bet it was someone working for fiio.


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## Fungus

So I got home and put in the stock cable and as expected, the cable was extremely easy to put it, no resistance what so ever. I can now also pull out the cable out without needing to wriggle the pins back and forth so yes, the sockets of my um3x have expanded. CONGRATS FIIO, just what I wished for


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## Mooses9

damn man, so sorry 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 to hear that. that pisses me off and its not even my gear. but thats now 2 people who's iem's are affected by their cables. i wonder how many more are affected and dont yet know it. because they havent tried their stock cable.


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> damn man, so sorry
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
 Am guessing an extremely high percentage. The mass majority of high end iem owners are so concerned about getting the absolute best sound out of a cable that they are willing to dish out ridiculous amounts of money, sometimes more than the iem itself, for 3rd party and diy cables and don't bother paying attention to the correct size connector but then on the other hand not everyone's so concern about keeping their gear in tip top shape especially when they're looking to sell it off in a hurry to try the next best thing.


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## hifistarter

I purchased a replacement Fiio (SE-1) cable for a set of Shure SE215 (Special Ed.), was super excited, and tried them out, even blind test vs. stock cables and it was clear the "sound" was better (pardon I am still learning) yet the fit was not the greatest on their sockets / interconnects.   The Left side was nice and snug, once mated to the IEM, yet the right was loose and had some play - I am an Engineer (Mechanical) by profession - this bugged me a bit and upon measuring found a .1mm difference between the L & R side cable plugs that did not enable a positive pre-load on the retainer ring to reaction shoulder. As such in going forward I will build up the R outer shell with some CA to enable a good and tight connection.


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## Mooses9

Well there goes another person that is now 3 unhappy customers i wonder if we go sniffing around how many more we shall find.

In my opinion i would rather pay alot for a product and know its made with quality than Run into this. Our gear is too expensive to chance it on cheap products like this and sure noone is making us buy their products but these products dont even seem like there is a quality control.


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## hifistarter

I feel that once money is spent trying to upgrade certain components that the fit and finish should reflect some sort of "upgrade" i.e. actually improve upon stock, be it with sound, usability or fit.  I will take from this, that although I have "upgraded" the cable, I may go to another vendor - where it will take some time to make a Cable, LOD, or other custom wire - wait and hope that for me the customer it will be made per my request / criteria.  I also do concede that although I have purchased "lower end" IEM SE-215's that I should not expect SE-846 performance, but being that I am slowly upgrading the quality should go up as well with cost.
  
 Oh well, rant over, and in going forward I will be a bit more cautious and "Invest" more wisely.


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## Mooses9

True i guess its easier to come to that conclusion because you didnt have your headphones damaged by these cables. but i definitely see where you are coming from and mean no disrespect or offense .


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## Fungus

My cherished um3x aren't getting any listening time any more all thanks to fiio. I'm now forced to listen to my w3's which aren't nearly as enjoyable but it's better than getting reminded of the poor sockets 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





  I don't think I'll ever get over this tragedy


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## Mooses9

wow that is a real shame. i really frown upon fiio for not making a better product. even though the cables are only at $30.00 which is a low price point i guess i expect more. and i got much less. its just cheap china or japan or wherever they are from junk. hopefully our lessons are be a warning to others who are looking into getting these cables and look the other way and just stick with your stock cable because believe me in the end the stock cable is better than the fiio cable by a long shot not to mention it wont mess up your $250.00-$500.00 IEM'S.


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> hopefully our lessons are be a warning to others who are looking into getting these cables and look the other way and just stick with your stock cable because believe me in the end the stock cable is better than the fiio cable by a long shot not to mention it wont mess up your $250.00-$500.00 IEM'S.


 
 Actually for $30, I find to be great value if it' weren't for the fact it screwed up my um3x. I'd recommending it to anyone who own iem/s with expanded sockets to the point where the stock pins just falls out. I know because I have a broken pair of ue super fi 3 studios and the fiio cable fits in like a glove whereas the stock cable just falls out.


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## Fungus

I'd rather someone smash up my w3's with a sledgehammer than end up with elongated sockets on my um3x.


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## Mooses9

But you know what i was thinking for your case, and i dont know for sure, is i wonder if the ultimate ears stock cable would work for your um3x? you know they um3x arent mine but i am mad about it, because it shouldnt happen. esp not to limited edition gear like that. damn


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> But you know what i was thinking for your case, and i dont know for sure, is i wonder if the ultimate ears stock cable would work for your um3x? you know they um3x arent mine but i am mad about it, because it shouldnt happen. esp not to limited edition gear like that. damn


 
 I think the stock ue and westone cable has the same pin diameter. The only difference being the westone pins are slightly longer.


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## Mooses9

I wonder if the diameter would be enough to hold the pins in place i wonder how much longer the westones are vs the ue.


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> I wonder if the diameter would be enough to hold the pins in place i wonder how much longer the westones are vs the ue.


 
 About one and a half millimetres. The stock westone pins do hold in place, it's just that I can pull it out without needing to wriggle it back and forth.


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## Mooses9

fungus said:


> About one and a half millimetres. The stock westone pins do hold in place, it's just that I can pull it out without needing to wriggle it back and forth.


 
 well i guess the only real solution is to glue the epic cable in place, or find another solution to the problem if you could. customs maybe? however that should make you extra mad to spend extra money to go to the audiologist to get molds made and the whole 9, to get your um3x back to working usable condition.


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## Mooses9

Well it looks like another Fiio cable has claimed another victim a pair of ultimate ears triple fi 10s someone posted in the portable headphone forum that their earpiece was falling off the cable and needless to say the hole are stretched. So another on claimed by Fiio I hope Fiio is taking notes on their cables reeking havoc on headfi supporting members I find this truly unacceptable. They are ruining hundreds of dollars worth of iems and some people it's all they have they don't have money to go out and buy another pair and if they are ruined They are done. That's that's not acceptable.




truereflections

offline
28 Posts. Joined 8/2011
one of my ear buds can't stay in the fio cable...can anyone recommend a fix/solution? don't really wanna lose it !!! thanks


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> Well it looks like another Fiio cable has claimed another victim a pair of ultimate ears triple fi 10s someone posted in the portable headphone forum that their earpiece was falling off the cable and needless to say the hole are stretched. So another on claimed by Fiio I hope Fiio is taking notes on their cables reeking havoc on headfi supporting members I find this truly unacceptable. They are ruining hundreds of dollars worth of iems and some people it's all they have they don't have money to go out and buy another pair and if they are ruined They are done. That's that's not acceptable.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
 it's because of Fiio's screw up that I had to spend extra money on a pair of w3's just to reduce the usage of my um3x.


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## Mooses9

i really do wish that fiio would take a notice at this issue that people seem to be having and take a note and do something about it. i really feel sorry for the people i see on ebay who buy iem's with this cable already install per they are basicly buying damaging iem's per this cable being installed in said headphones and they just dont know it yet and that is just a shame. and as for our community i hope more people can see this post and see what some people have are are going through and stop themselves from becoming a victim of this cable. because it is cheap and it WILL damage your headphones and IF you think it wont i wouldnt advise you to try if your headphones are cheap have a go but if they are $250-$500.00 i would say stay far far away 


> *FIIO ADDRESS THIS ISSUE WITH THIS CABLE NOW! THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE! *


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## hifistarter

I am curious has anyone contacted fiio and received a reply? I had sent an email a while back, and have not heard back as of yet.


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## Fungus

hifistarter said:


> I am curious has anyone contacted fiio and received a reply? I had sent an email a while back, and have not heard back as of yet.


 
 How long ago?


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## hifistarter

Well I should make a correction, I received the auto-reply that they are currently on Holidays at the time.  Yet nothing directly from the Support Techs.


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## Mooses9

Any real reply yet?


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## hifistarter

No, they will not return from Holiday until the 25th per the auto reply.


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## Mooses9

Oh well definitely do keep us updated on the matter.


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## hifistarter

As soon as i do i will.  I will note that i mentioned this thread as well to fiio, being that my issues are not as serious as others here.


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## hifistarter

Nothing yet, I am sure they are sifting through all the holiday emails.


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## Mooses9

Wonder if they will say anything and take any responsibility...


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## Fungus

As to be expected from Fiio


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## Mooses9

i would really love for someone from fiio to come into this thread and albeit the thread is somewhat messy however we are pissed off w4r/um3xrc limited edition/ultimate ear tf10 owners/ having a spat they shall read and take into consideration that their product damaged our earphones and i feel highly disrespected by their lack of workmanship and lack of research and development into each and every in ear monitor before they go ahead and give the go ahead and ship out products. just because you have  somewhat handle on AMPS doesnt give you the go ahead on cables. like i said when i skin though ebay and i see these cables on headphones people think they are getting a good deal when they dont even know they are buying a damage product from someone who probably doesnt even know they damaged their product before they even sold it. pretty messed up cycle i would say would you. i would


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## hifistarter

I got an Email last night so here is a copy and paste, they suggest i take this up with the retailer (Amazon) yet do not ask me for specifics directly, nor do they acknowledge the thread here on Head-fi.
  
The newest Email is their response, the latter being my initial inquiry. 
  
  

  
Dear ******** ,

 Thank you for your mail and support to FiiO!

 Maybe you can ask the seller a replacement. I can't confirm whether all cables have this issue. No custome told us this issue before. I guess it is that cable issue.

 If you have any other question, please feel free to contact us or post a message on FiiO forum (http://www.fiio.me/forum.php) directly! We will reply you ASAP.
 Have a nice day!

 Best Regards,
 FiiO Customer Service

 Note: To help track your query, we have generated a Ticket Id. Your *ticket Id is S93531-T19400*. Please include this ticket number in all your communications with us.
  

From:"***********”
 To:"support@fiio.net" <support@fiio.net>
 Cc:
 Subject:Shure SE1 cable replacement fitment issues.
  
Hello,
  
I have purchased a set of SE1 cables for my Shure IEMs and have noticed the fit between one monitor is tight and the other is loose. As such i am back to using the stock Shure cable. There is a thread on Head-fi about these cable issues and others as well. 
  
Regards,
********


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## Fungus

hifistarter said:


> I got an Email last night so here is a copy and paste, they suggest i take this up with the retailer (Amazon) yet do not ask me for specifics directly, nor do they acknowledge the thread here on Head-fi.
> 
> The newest Email is their response, the latter being my initial inquiry.
> 
> ...


 
 You should copy and paste the url of this thread to them so they have to acknowledge this problem. Write to them it's not the matter of getting a replacement cable from the supplier since every fiio cable that has the 2 pin cables have elongated pins, not to mention the pins being different lengths. Tell them they should take responsibility for the damage caused to people's iem as the damage is irreversible. I honestly think you should send a blunt reply or else they won't take you serious enough.


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## hifistarter

I did right after i received it.  i stated that they needed to look into this site, and provided the link.  i also stated that their response was unacceptable as it is their responibility not the resellers.  Also I stated its a quality issue.  All I have received was the auto reply.


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## Mooses9

this is what i figured from fiio i didnt figure they would take any kind of any or responsibility for their lack of responsibility in their actions its not just that their product is less than acceptable for shipment for sale but its not acceptable for them to blow off their customers who have now had damage from using their unacceptable products. even stopping production to overlook their products to see where their flaws are and fix them to me would be a suffice it wouldnt fix my iem but it would stop anyone else's iem from being destroyed! and to me that would be enough. however its unlikly they will take that kind of action. makes me sick


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## hifistarter

i have contacted both Amazon and ebay and provided the link here, to try and warn potential buyers of subpar products.


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## Mooses9

dude im heated from this


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## sling5s

They seem to always point the finger on the IEM seller.  That said my JH13 was the problem. Bad service.


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## Mooses9

they must feel so proud the portable amplifier section is filled with the majority of their threads talking about their products, im SURE if there was a issue in one of those threads or topics of coversation, they would come to the rescue, see and thats why they shouldnt make cables, because they cane take blame for the products they create, and mind you, i find it to be a mindless product too, one that they were like HEY ALO has they foot in the door and they make any and cable lets do the same......thats not the same,thats just not the same, the thing is when ALO goes and they make a product they spend alot of time research and developing the product before it ever hits the shelf hell before it ever hits their own shelf and then they take that cable and then go in and they make adjustments and developments and researches you get my ideas here, they do the same with their amps its why their amps are so good.
  
 while i cannot hate on the new comers or people who dont have $650.00 to drop on a amp that sound like god is personally whispering sweet nothings into your ear in a warm bubble bath i scoff at the fact that fiio has a choke hold on basicly the whole first page of the  portable headphone amp section. and its like what happened to headamp they make excellent amplifiers, what about ibasso another company that makes great amps, like i said i understand not everyone has deep pockets, but this overthrow of one company controlling the majority is crazy when there are so many other companies that arent so big but create big sounding amps.
  
 maybe i am just egotistical and i will just take all my high  end amps and dacs and my dom perignon and call it a night blah...


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## hifistarter

Another reply everyone,  they did not comment on the Linked thread as of yet.
  
 I have decided to return these to Amazon for a refund and have taken this as a leason learned.
  
 Here is the reply from Fiio.   The top email is from Fiio, the lower was my reply to their initial response.
  
 _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
  
  
Dear ********************** ,

 Thank you for your mail and support to FiiO!

 Dear customer, the previous reply is not auto. If it is our product issue, we will take the responsibility of it. We suggested you ask the seller a replacement first because they can send the replacement to you soon. As we are in China, it will take you much time to get it. If he refuse to help, we will send a replacement to you. We suggested you ask the seller for help not to absolve us from responsibility, instead it will save you much time to solve this problem. Sorry for this inconvenience. 

If you have any other question, please feel free to contact us or post a message on FiiO forum (http://www.fiio.me/forum.php) directly! We will reply you ASAP.
 Have a nice day!

 Best Regards,
 FiiO Customer Service

 Note: To help track your query, we have generated a Ticket Id. Your *ticket Id is S93531-T19400*. Please include this ticket number in all your communications with us.
  

From:"***************>
 Time:02/28/2015 21:07:47
 To:"FiiO Customer Support" <support@fiio.net>
 Cc:
 Subject:RE: Shure SE1 cable replacement fitment issues. [Id: S93531-T19400]
  
Thank you, but that is not much help to me, what if the next set is not good either?

 Please go to this thread and read of all the issues the owners are having on Head-fi, a site supported by Fiio.

http://www.head-fi.org/t/669112/fiio-aftermarket-iem-cables-rc-wt1-rc-se1-rc-ue2/60#post_11366840


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## Mooses9

at this point it isnt about them accepting responsibility for their crappy product that they made, it is about making sure noone else purchases their item, im not quite sure how to pass this thread around i know there are alot of new beginner headfiers and they will jump on this cable easy. one oh its ffio and 2 its aftermarket and cheap so they would easily fall into the trap.and there goes there headphone.
  
 fiio is a shameless company there are some company's out there that stand by their name and they make good on their mistakes, but fiio is shameless they obviously have no care no hide it. its pathetic. i bought their cable in a pinch its not my style im not cheap, but when i first got into the hobbie i had some fiio stuff, but quickly moved up from there, i would never buy another fiio product ever they are shameless they just want you money they couldnt careless about customer service, they dont care about your personal products. they dont stand by their name.


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## hifistarter

All I could do was give these a bad review on Amazon and have since sent an e-mail to both eBay and Amazon to declare these as subpar products that cause damage to OEM components.   This I hope will help deter future buyers.


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## hifistarter

Anyone else talk with Fiio lately?


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## Mooses9

its more than likely we will not hear anything from them, and it makes me sick so many people support them in the amp section, when they are putting out this product.and refuse to address it.


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> its more than likely we will not hear anything from them, and it makes me sick so many people support them in the amp section, when they are putting out this product.and refuse to address it.


 
 +1
 I was recently banned from a Fiio thread for stating the truth 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





.


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## hifistarter

mooses9 said:


> its more than likely we will not hear anything from them, and it makes me sick so many people support them in the amp section, when they are putting out this product.and refuse to address it.


 
 Yeah I was not to convinced with their customer support, and have since gifted my e11k amp to a buddy.  I still have the X1, until I am able to afford an N6


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## Mooses9

yeah, i cannot even get firmware for my hifiman hm-602 from them, they have stonewalled me i am trying to get older firmware and they are acting like they dont have posession of them, and giving me the run around within the company. while i love my hm-602 they cannot help me with any kind customer service, it makes me weary because if anythnig goes wrong im screwed.


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## Fungus

mooses9 said:


> at this point it isnt about them accepting responsibility for their crappy product that they made, it is about making sure noone else purchases their item, im not quite sure how to pass this thread around i know there are alot of new beginner headfiers and they will jump on this cable easy. one oh its ffio and 2 its aftermarket and cheap so they would easily fall into the trap.and there goes there headphone.
> 
> fiio is a shameless company there are some company's out there that stand by their name and they make good on their mistakes, but fiio is shameless they obviously have no care no hide it. its pathetic. i bought their cable in a pinch its not my style im not cheap, but when i first got into the hobbie i had some fiio stuff, but quickly moved up from there, i would never buy another fiio product ever they are shameless they just want you money they couldnt careless about customer service, they dont care about your personal products. they dont stand by their name.


 
 +1


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## Joe Bloggs

*Please note that the conditions of the offer laid out in this post are pending revision as per this post below*



fungus said:


> mooses9 said:
> 
> 
> > its more than likely we will not hear anything from them, and it makes me sick so many people support them in the amp section, when they are putting out this product.and refuse to address it.
> ...




We have not banned anybody from any FiiO thread in recent memory. If you were banned from the thread it is not our doing but rather the action of the neutral mods of this forum. Moreover, we do not have mod privileges outside of our own FiiO subforum. If that's where you were banned, you may point me to the place where it happened and I may look into it. Otherwise, definitely not our doing.



mooses9 said:


> yeah, i cannot even get firmware for my hifiman hm-602 from them, they have stonewalled me i am trying to get older firmware and they are acting like they dont have posession of them, and giving me the run around within the company. while i love my hm-602 they cannot help me with any kind customer service, it makes me weary because if anythnig goes wrong im screwed.




The president of Hifiman would be mortified to hear that you thought FiiO owns Hifiman :eek: What made you think that?  

Now, I was just directed to this thread by a helpful member here. You may note that I'm FiiO's customer service representative.

If you are sure that our cables have indeed broken your earphones, you may send your broken earphones together with the particular pair of our cables that was allegedly responsible. Back in our factory we will check

1. whether the cables are authentic FiiO cables of our manufacture
2. If answer to (1) is yes, whether they fail our stringent quality control criteria regarding the plug pins (which go into tens of thousands of Westone-spec cables we have sold; we are NOT seeing the kind of reports seen in this thread as a general problem)
3. If answer to (2) is "fail", whether by forcing these cables into Westone IEMs one would indeed damage their sockets
4. If answer to (3) is "yes", whether the particular pair of IEMs sent to us with the cables have indeed been damaged this way, such that original Westone cables do not fit them securely anymore, mechanically and / or electrically.

IF the cables you send us are genuine FiiO products and are found to be capable of repeatedly, reproducibly damaging Westone IEMs in the manner you described, we are prepared to make suitable reparations, up to and including monetary compensation equivalent to the price of the IEMs so damaged.

Fair enough?

This offer goes for anyone here who said their earphones were damaged by FiiO cables.


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## Fungus

joe bloggs said:


> We have not banned anybody from any FiiO thread in recent memory. If you were banned from the thread it is not our doing but rather the action of the neutral mods of this forum. Moreover, we do not have mod privileges outside of our own FiiO subforum. If that's where you were banned, you may point me to the place where it happened and I may look into it. Otherwise, definitely not our doing.
> The president of Hifiman would be mortified to hear that you thought FiiO owns Hifiman
> 
> 
> ...


 
 Yes I am sure.
 What's the address I can send to and will I be reimbursed for the shipping costs if proven right?


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## JamesFiiO

I am sorry for any inconvience about the quality issues about our headphone cable. 
  
 anyway, the headphone cable can't work alone so it must work with your headphone/iem and them there are always come with trouble, although it is not a common situation. but I can see it already make some troubles cause there are something we can't control, 
  
 like the size of the headphone and the operation when people use our cable. It is not a easy work for everyone. 
  
 for example, AK used 2.5 socket as balanced headphone out, but there are always some people try to pluged in a 3.5mm headphone jack and damaged the socket. so how can we do? 
  
 I am not complained or try to defende ourself or say it is not our duty, but it is not easy to identify the reason, and this business is only very very small part of FiiO so we will decided to stop the production of the aftermarket IEM cables in the coming soon, hope you guys can
  
 understand us.
  
  
 James


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## Joe Bloggs

fungus said:


> Yes I am sure.
> What's the address I can send to and will I be reimbursed for the shipping costs if proven right?




I will pm the address to you.

Please note that, sure as you are about the situation, the investigation may not necessarily go your way. The FiiO cable may turn out to be fake. Above all, you have noted yourself that even by using stock cables alone, the 2-pin sockets expand and become loose with stock cables after repeated insertions. Thus it would make sense for an aftermarket cable (which by definition will be used for at least a second insertion) to have thicker pins that are held more securely by even a worn socket. You speak of our fat pins "breaking" your phones--but what if instead our pins are as thin or thinner than stock pins, being used by definition on worn sockets, and we receive complaints of earpieces flying off and becoming lost from our cables?

Thus, while you speak of our cable ruining your Westone, others may have had their Westones "rescued" in the sense that even after the sockets have become too loose for stock cables to fit, our cables can still be fitted securely.

It seems we're at a bit of an impasse here. Sorry to be backtracking here, but the condition I first raised ("such that original Westone cables do not fit them securely anymore") do not seem appropriate if stock cables themselves can also eventually cause this result. So if aftermarket cables have fatter pins,

--when is it a good thing by allowing tighter engagement even after repeated insertions and removals?
--when is it a bad thing by speeding up the loosening process?

It seems that given the nature of Westone 2-pin connectors (that you have yourself noted in this thread), a Westone IEM cannot be considered "broken" at the socket while _some manner of 2-pin plug_ can still produce a secure connection, mechanically and electrically. A truly badly designed plug can still positively "break" a Westone IEM by, say, being so wrongly dimensioned that forcibly jamming it into the socket produces cracks in the IEM, breaks the soldering at the socket, or otherwise renders the IEM unfunctional with any cable.

And what about the rest of the equation? Is the FiiO cable inferior to the stock cable in construction and sonic quality such that you WANT to go back to the stock cable but are unable to do so?


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## illi4

Could you please advise whether RC-WT2 is compatible with Shure? I would prefer it over the straight jack of RC-SE1 but not sure about the compatibility.


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## Mooses9

i was not refering to hifiman refering to owning fiio i obviously know they dont, i was just stating how they too lack luster just as much customer service as Fiio. i cant believe people are even still thinking of buying these cablesi learned my lesson the hard way, as did some others, it amazes me that companies can just put out a product with no service behind it.
  
 thus, why i spend all the money i do on ALo cables, or Whiplash Cables or boutique Cables, they are expensive, but they have not just a name behind their product but service. unlike fiio, or hifiman, and some might scoff that i say hifiman, but its just my expierence with them and their customer service. i mean to outsource your customer service in china but sell in the USA ......THEN DONT SELL IN THE USA IF YOU CANY READILY ANSWER A QUESTION I DONT WANT TO SENT A EMAIL I WANT TO TALK TO SOMEONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!.


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## illi4

And BTW are these Fiio cables as bad as people write on the internet? Everybody seems to state that microphonics is just horrible. Is this so? If yes, I should probably get the cable from another manufacturer.


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## Mooses9

DUDE  LOOK at teds cabes save your money but something of quality dont risk breaking your iems, seriously.


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