HEADPHONE CABLE


Hello all,
Not sure whether to put this in the headphone side, but this category gets much more action.

Anyway, I have a full loom of Audio Envy cables, power & IC.
They are really very, very good cables, regardless of price.

Yes, I have tried some much more expensive cables which have come up short compared to the AE.
And there are a few posts here on Agon that attest to this fact.

But I have not seen any posting regarding their headphone cable.
It is called ToneKraft.

One of my go to HP's is  a ZMF Auteur. It has the OFC cable from ZMF.
Sounding very good, of course.

So, I just ordered a Tonekraft cable for this HP.
Wondering, considering what a big difference the power & IC's made, how this cable might improve the HP sound quality.

I was wondering if anybody had experience with the ToneKraft HP cables & would care to share their thoughts.

I will post my impressions some time next month, once the cable is received and tuned in.

Kindest regards to all my AGon friends for a healthy & happy & much gentler 2021.
P.B.



128x128pastorbob
Hey Jim,
Thanks for the response.
I'm glad you are happy with the Light XLR.

I have always liked & found Cardas cables to be revealing yet "musical".
I still have a pair of Golden Presence interconnects.
So, perhaps I should have been more patient.

Wow, that Luxman piece is very impressive.

The only experience I've had with Luxman was way back in the early 80's.
I obtained an L480 integrated. It was a trade up from a Yamaha integrated and completely blew it out of the water. Just wonderfully rich tone & timbre.

It served me well for years until I blew it up by plugging it into an open ground Chang Lightspeed power conditioner.
The power amp went into oscillation.

I'm pretty happy with my Linear Tube Audio amp, especially with the upgraded p.s.
I recently rolled in some Valvo small signal 12AT7 tubes & it took a leap up in soundstage & imaging (important to we classical music types!).

For the price I consider it hard to beat, but probably not in the Luxman's class.

Happy listening in the New Year!!

Cheers,
P.B.

Hi Bob,
The Cardas Cable that I got was Cardas Light XLR version and I think I made the right choice as after a month or so the cable has proved to be fast and very dynamic and the treble is so clear and detailed wilth no glare whatsoever.
Like you I am total headphone setup and Classical music only.
My equipment details are,

Heavily modded  PC for streaming Qobuz and playing my ripped CDs.
PS Audio Direct Stream Senior Dac.
Luxman P 750u Headphone amplifier.
Sennheiser HD 800 Phones.

I've only had my Luxman for 3 months or so and it has proved to be a stunning addition to my setup. I never had any qualms about moving to headphones only as I am hearing details from recordings that I have never heard before.
Have a happy new year and hopefully we can be rid of covid soon.


 
pastorbob,

Can you recommend a high-quality headphone extension cable? I have the Audeze LCD-XC phones. Just two 1/4" terminations (one male, one female) will work. Kimber doesn't make a KCAG extension cable for headphones as they claim the cable is unshielded and passes microphonic sounds if the cable gets bumped. I didn't make that up. Any company you can recommend? Cardas? I'm hoping for the same experience as jim204.
Thanks @Jim204.

I had ordered a Cardas Clear headphone cable from Drop.
But it kept being delayed so I eventually cancelled.
Which Cardas did you get?

I'll post my impression of the AUDIO ENVY in due course.
In my experience it takes 2-3 weeks to receive, then settling in time.

I have not been disappointed with their product, and they do offer a liberal 45 day audition.

I am running strictly headphone set up:
Linear Tube Microzotl amp with upgraded linear power supply &
Audio Mirror Dac.
Headphones are ZMF Auteur & Beyer T1.

I'd be interested to hear what your headphone set up is.

Cheers & Happy, Healthy New Year.

P.B.
Hi Bob I'm afraid I haven't heard the tonecraft cable but a month or so ago I had occasion to change the cable on my Sennheiser HD 800 phones as that was another manufacturers cable that went out. The Sennheiser cable is very thin and the outer cover seems very soft and thin. So being fed up  with this cable I decided to try another cable manufacturer this time Cardas. When it arrived I had an Initial moment of disappointment  as they were also thin but I did notice it was a fairly robust weave on them. So on to the sound when I put the new cables on the phones I wasn't expecting much for a week or so but I did listen to them straight away and I was not disappointed because my Senns. were now playing in a way I had not previously heard. Instead of just listening for a couple of minutes as I had meant to do I listened for about four hours going through the Beethoven String Quartets and most of his piano sonatas also. I really am glad I didn't buy yet another Sennheiser cable but got my Cardas , I am literally hearing things from my phones I have not heard before. I sincerely hope you get what I have experienced.