Qables!
After my intensive reading of Head-Fi, I realized that regarding my current rig, there is one major flaw - source.
Taking output from the headphone jack of an iPod is actually quite an 'average' source. Its nothing special and because the sound is going through all those el-cheapo components right out of the DAC (Digital to Analog converter), quality suffers.
So I realized that I needed to get a Line Out Cable.
What this cable does is let me get pure line-out audio from an iPod. It bypasses the tiny mediocre amp and circuitry leading to the headphone port and gives me unaltered pure analog signals straight from the source.
So I went out, did my research, and settled on a Qables Performance Line cable (Other great makers are ALO Audio and Moon Audio. There are a lot of people who make their own. The most expensive cables cost around $300 or more). Here's my mini-review.
After listening to just a few songs (without burning-in the cable) - the difference is bloody obvious, and I only expect it to get better as proceed to burning it in.
From the iPod (ALAC), to the Qable, to a Headroom AirHead, to the ER-4Ps, let me tell you, it sounds miles better.
I don't even have to delve into specifics, the overall sound itself is far richer, crisper, warmer, cleaner. The most pronounced improvement is in the mids - they seem to pop a lot more than before. The bass is much more well-rounded and a wee bit stronger (appearance of even lower frequencies). Taking the boom of a bass drum as an example, instead of being a single sound occurrence, like a little singular pop, it has a beginning fade-in, the pop, and an end fade-out - there's a little more resonance and impact. Overall, the sound feels a lot more balanced, everything seems to blend together in harmony (warmer) - I especially love this because the ER-4Ps tend to lean toward the clinical/cold side sometimes. The soundstage is also extended by a bit, but this one took a bit of time to realize. Really, it is a very large difference from the headphone port.
Overall, an LOC (especially a quality one) is a fantastic investment. Don't worry Mom, I paid for it myself.
Azhar Chougle | www.azharc.com
