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GSP cable for LCD-2 |
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Fatmangolf
Moderator Group Joined: 23 Dec 2009 Location: Middlesbrough Status: Offline Points: 8960 |
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Posted: 31 Jul 2013 at 10:44pm |
The back story is that Morris Minor (Bob) kindly loaned me a cable for his LCD-2's which John and Graham had custom made.
Frankly the cable is an excellent upgrade which I will be looking at in the Autumn. I used a number of tracks and compared to the stock cable and my DIY 5m cable. These were not blind tests as I would have tripped up when stepping back and forth from the sofa to the hi-fi... My listening comments can be summarised as follows: - I was stunned by the HF clarity. It is detailed without brightness. Cymbals, finger noises on strings, breathing are all audible if picked out, without being obtrusive. This made the HD Bach Harpsichord Concerto and REM's Out of Time come to life, and ripped CD's of Dislocated Boy and Killing in the Name were dynamic, instruments clear in the mix, and exciting to listen to. - The bass is deeper so kick drums were tight thumps, double bass was present in the orchestra. The Massive Attack tracks I tried were awesome. - The midrange of the LCD-2's seems to be slightly more detailed than with my cables, the phrasing of the backing vocals on the REM tracks could be easily picked out. - I think the stereo image is a bit wider with the sense that tracks on the far left or right were well outside my head. The overall impression is a musical and natural reproduction of the music. It is what the LCD-2's do, done even better. Thanks to John and Graham for their R&D. Bob for lending me something he must be missing! Edited by Fatmangolf - 31 Jul 2013 at 10:51pm |
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Jon
Open mind and ears whilst owning GSP Genera, Accession M, Accession MC, Elevator EXP, Solo ULDE, Proprius amps, Cusat50 cables, Lautus digital cable, Spatia cables and links, and a Majestic DAC. |
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morris_minor
Moderator Group Joined: 27 Mar 2012 Location: Surrey Status: Offline Points: 6015 |
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Thanks for your thoughts on this cable Jon! They thankfully echo mine, and your conclusion "It is what the LCD-2's do, done even better" seems a perfect summing up. I'll post further comments when the cable's back with me in a few days, but in the meantime here's some technical info that Graham sent me, along with a picture of the GSP cable, and for comparison (visually) the stock ribbon cable.
Edited by morris_minor - 01 Aug 2013 at 9:23am |
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Bob
Majestic DAC/pre-amp Accession MC/Enigma, Accession MM, Reflex M, Elevator EXP, Era Gold V Solo ULDE, Novo, Lautus USB and digital, Libran balanced, CuSat50 2 x Proprius + Spatia/Spatia Links |
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morris_minor
Moderator Group Joined: 27 Mar 2012 Location: Surrey Status: Offline Points: 6015 |
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Ok. Having got reacquainted with the GSP cable I find it hard to add to the excellent comments Jon made earlier.
Detail, especially in highs and mids, is more apparent and the soundstage is wider and deeper. Bass remains fullsome but not overblown, and I thought it was slightly more controlled than the stock cable. This seems "boring" now in comparison to this offering from Graham and John. I could go over the top and describe the listening experience with many albums, but I'll confine myself to two. The Florilegium LP of Vivaldi's Gloria in D (Christopher Hogwood) now had a stunning clarity (as opposed to just 'good') in both vocal and instrumental lines, and the acoustic now gave an almost holographic feeling to the music. World Circuit's Orchestra Baobab album 'Made in Dakar' exhibited all the exuberance present with the stock cable but added a discernable upping of the toe tapping quotient with improvements in dynamics, detail and depth. I should think there's undoubted "synergy" going on here with the Solo ULDE, and in the case of the Vivaldi LP also the Reflex M and connecting CuSat50s. This prototype cable is a lot less flexible than the standard cable but I didn't find this a problem. LCDs aren't a headphone for mobile use IMO, they're too big and heavy. A benefit though is that it doesn't get tangled and twisted like the stock cable. I've no idea if Graham will add this cable to the growing range of GSP cables, or even if versions for other headphones (Sennheiser?) are possible. The Audeze 'phones use standard mini-XLRs so this simplified the connections. I'll have to echo Jon's conclusion about this cable. It takes everything we like about the LCD2s and just makes it better. |
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Bob
Majestic DAC/pre-amp Accession MC/Enigma, Accession MM, Reflex M, Elevator EXP, Era Gold V Solo ULDE, Novo, Lautus USB and digital, Libran balanced, CuSat50 2 x Proprius + Spatia/Spatia Links |
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suede
Senior Member Joined: 25 May 2011 Location: Sweden Status: Offline Points: 1200 |
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Any chance of having a HD250 replacement cable made at a reasonable cost?
I bought an original replacement cable from Sennheiser but it didn't sound the same to me. The soundstage and dynamics got much more cramped and listening got dull in comparison and despite myself I tried to have it burn in by using it for a month or more but no luck. So now I use the old cable although it sometimes loses connection with the left driver if the cord gets pulled. I dread the day this becomes too bad and I have to return to the inferior new cable. Perhaps there are more people on this very forum who'd be interested in the possible upgrade this might bring to already one of the greatest headphones not currently on the market. |
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Graham Slee
Admin Group Retired Joined: 11 Jan 2008 Location: South Yorkshire Status: Offline Points: 16298 |
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OK, I'll try and find some plugs for them...
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That none should be able to buy or sell without a smartphone and the knowledge in how to use apps
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morris_minor
Moderator Group Joined: 27 Mar 2012 Location: Surrey Status: Offline Points: 6015 |
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Senny owners: please form an orderly queue behind suede . . .
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Bob
Majestic DAC/pre-amp Accession MC/Enigma, Accession MM, Reflex M, Elevator EXP, Era Gold V Solo ULDE, Novo, Lautus USB and digital, Libran balanced, CuSat50 2 x Proprius + Spatia/Spatia Links |
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Drewan77
Senior Member Joined: 25 May 2013 Location: Chester,England Status: Offline Points: 1544 |
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If HD250/650's share the same cable connector, then I'm in....
My employers have been using 3D printing for a while now and it is definitely the future…send off your bespoke design and hey presto, a little while later a working model arrives. Mr Graham Slee is the first living, breathing iteration of this. Where else would anyone get such responsiveness? Highly impressive
Let’s just hope that when he receives his 60,000 service they don’t turn down the gripe-ometer, we all enjoy that part of the current version! Edited by Drewan77 - 09 Aug 2013 at 6:04pm |
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Older than I once was, younger than I'll be
............................. Andrew |
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