Modular Headphone Cables? (1 Viewer)

[ManW_TheUncool]

Anyone tried modular headphone cables like these from Hart Audio? IF so, how do you like them?

Headphone Cables

All headphone cables are 4.5 ft in length and terminate to a female 4-pin mini-XLR, mating with all of our Interconnect Cable designs. Pair your headphone cable with the interconnect(s) that matches your source and you're all set.

hartaudiocables.com

Am considering going this route now that I have both a new pair of HiFiman Sundara (and their included cable has been flaking out as is apparently quite common... and is rather short for some of my uses anyway) and old-ish Sennheiser HD600 and will likely switch between them and a couple different at-home rigs -- don't know if I'll ever use them w/ my iPhone though...

At first, I was just gonna go w/ something like this for the Sundaras, but a few reviews complaining about the microphonics of the cable made me reconsider... and a rep at Headphones.com, where I bought the Sundaras, recommended Hart Audio:

See on Amazon

Yeah, I realize HTF isn't full of "head-fi" types, so maybe I won't get much of any feedback here, but figured I'd try anyway before probably moving on to the head-fi forum... Maybe @dpippel has some input to offer? Don't know who else...

TIA! Cheers!

_Man_

 

[dpippel]

Anyone tried modular headphone cables like these from Hart Audio? IF so, how do you like them?

Headphone Cables

All headphone cables are 4.5 ft in length and terminate to a female 4-pin mini-XLR, mating with all of our Interconnect Cable designs. Pair your headphone cable with the interconnect(s) that matches your source and you're all set.

hartaudiocables.com

Am considering going this route now that I have both a new pair of HiFiman Sundara (and their included cable has been flaking out as is apparently quite common... and is rather short for some of my uses anyway) and old-ish Sennheiser HD600 and will likely switch between them and a couple different at-home rigs -- don't know if I'll ever use them w/ my iPhone though...

At first, I was just gonna go w/ something like this for the Sundaras, but a few reviews complaining about the microphonics of the cable made me reconsider... and a rep at Headphones.com, where I bought the Sundaras, recommended Hart Audio:

See on Amazon

Yeah, I realize HTF isn't full of "head-fi" types, so maybe I won't get much of any feedback here, but figured I'd try anyway before probably moving on to the head-fi forum... Maybe @dpippel has some input to offer? Don't know who else...

TIA! Cheers!

_Man_

You're going to get microphonics with any cable that uses a braided outer sleeve, Man. That's been my experience anyway. But, some people are more sensitive to it than others. Since it's Amazon, you can always buy the Hart, try it out, and return it if not to your liking.

As for me? You'll laugh when I tell you about the cable I use with my Sundara:

Corpse Cable GraveDigger for Focal Elear / Clear / Elegia / Stellia / Radiance / Elex / Celestee / Clear MG / Clear MG Pro - (4-Pin) XLR - 6ft

Looking for a slightly shorter length of super high-quality headphone cable for your Focal Elear / Clear / Elegia / Stellia / Radiance / Elex / Celestee / Clear MG / Clear MG Pro headphones and your balanced-drive headphone system? Here is our very best top-shelf Corpse Cable headphone cable...

corpsecable.com

Yes, it's $215. In my defense I bought this several years ago for a pair of Focal Clears (they also work with the Sundara), and I got a good deal on a used one. It's an AWESOME cable though. Very well made with ZERO microphonics. I don't believe that headphone cables have any kind of effect on what you HEAR, but a well-made cable is worth it to me for improved ergonomics and build quality.

 

[Dave Upton]

I've used almost every cable type under the sun, and most of mine are modular.

I prefer cables with soft braided exteriors - Norne Audio and some amazon knock-offs come to mind.

I actually found an Etsy seller who I purchased my HD650 cables from that i've been very happy with: Impact Audio Cable https://www.etsy.com/shop/ImpactAudioCables

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

Think I'm pretty ready to order an entire kit from Hart Audio. More expensive than I originally wanted to spend, but the modularity and quality will likely be worthwhile enough in the long run...

Those other options look nice, but they're probably a tad more expensive than I'm prepared to go, especially given how much they cost relative to the rigs I'm using... although the Impact Audio ones might only be just a tad more expensive than Hart Audio, except they certainly don't make understanding their system easy/straightforward (whereas Hart Audio offers a lot more helpful info on their site and is more clear on how much I'll end up spending for my anticipated uses)...

IF I liked using IEMs, I'd probably wanna try those other options w/ focus/priority on IEMs and how they're likely much more sensitve/susceptible to microphonics and whatever other subtler sonic issues, but no IEMs in my foreseeable future -- just some inexpensive pseudo-in-ear wireless buds for casual portable uses where this won't matter at all...

BTW, this fun(ny) commentary sorta sums it up re: (very) expensive cabling... even though I won't go quite so far as insist nobody has "golden ears" that can actually hear what I probably can't (or care to spend quite enough to hear):



Thanks much for the feedback though...

_Man_

 

[Clinton McClure]

They’re not wrong. It was the third violin from the right…