[musicman59]

Earlier this year I was looking for some Furutech wires to make a pair of speaker cables when is found http://aphroditecu29.com/
I sent and email and Robert (owner of the business) replied back promptly. After several emails crossed and finally a very pleasant phone conversation I placed an order for a pair of speaker cables based on Furutech high-end wires in a double barrel configuration.

The cables arrived very fast. Their construction and looks are first class and the sound is just plain incredible!

The conversations with Robert continued but this time headphones cables and my experience with the T1. He asked me for the opportunity to develop his top of the line headphone cable and install it in my T1. So beased on the great job he did with my speaker cables I felt very comfortable trusting my T1 to him.

The cable is made based on the WireWorld OCC copper DNA Helix wire. In the case of the T1 it is a 3 wire per side system in a double barrel configuration. It is actually one independent cable per side. (That was based on my specifications but I am sure Robert can make it anyway you want it.) and they are terminated with multifilament nylon and ViaBlue XLR connectors.

Here is a picture of the T1 with the Zeus cable.

The headphones are in their way back to me so I will update this thread after I receive them but here is some comments from Robert before shipping them back.

“Well I thought I would let them burn in for an hour or so with My Densen Disc and Sheffield. So I sat down to give them a final listen before I packed them up to make sure everything was in proper working order, and I must say these are by far the best headphones I have ever listened to!!! Thanks a lot, now I might have to buy myself a pair But seriously, it was like switching from regular cable to a high definition channel. Very impressive! And it takes a lot to impress me... My new cables have impressed me on everything I have auditioned them on, but the T1s not only sound the best, they were also by far the most significantly improved. Can't wait to hear your impressions of the Zeus cables.”

I will post my listening impresions after I receive them.... stay tune.

 

[MacedonianHero]

Wow...those are certainly some fancy looking cables and terminations!

I'd love to hear your thoughts on them when you've had some more listening time.

 

[DarKu]

Congrats!
Awesome looking cable and knowing wireworld power cables, i'm sure this one will be as good. Patiently waiting some impressions

 

[musicman59]

Here are two more pictures of Robert's exceptional job. After my experience with his speaker cables I have no doubt these ones will sound incredible. He is a prefectionist so if he liked the T1 with this cable so much to be convinced to buy a pair that tells me all.

 

[argentum]

Badass! And now the obvious question - how much did it cost?

 

[SleepyOne]

Very nice pics! Look forward to your review.

 

[Xan7hos]

good god that looks gorgeous

 

[gbacic]

Yeah it looks good, but it also looks very heavy.

I've given up on cables.

 

[musicman59]

Argentum,
If you are familiar with Wireworld cables you will know they are on the xpensive side and this cable is based on a Wireworld Continuos Cast Ohno copper wire (3 of them in each side). The price for the cable (2 of them) 8 foot long with Viablue XLR connectors was $499. It is right in the ball park of the other 3 companies I quoted.
The TRS to XLR adaptor made of the same wire to match the cable is $130.

Robert has regular 2 wire (per side) cables, different awg and also OFC and OCC silver wire. He basically can do whatever configuration you want. if you are interested I would recommend you to send him an email through his website.

gbacic,
I have not receive it yet but I do not think it will be heavy at all.
Sorry to hear you have give up on cables. I don't know what bad experiences you have had to give up on them but in my case all have been good and I am a cable believer not only for my headphones but for my whole Hi-Fi systems.

 

[kostalex]

 

[joomongj]

Very very nice. Lookin' forward to your impression.

 

[ShinyFalcon]

Are those "solderless" (removable) terminals on the T1?

 

[musicman59]

No, They are soldered. The only onw that has a terminal is a the black wire whcih is the physical ground attched to the boddy of the driver.

 

[musicman59]

As I promised here is a quick write up of my opinion about the sound of the T1 after the wonderful re-cable job done by Robert from Aphrodite Cu29 audiophile grade audio video cable and electronics
I received the T1 from TTVJ, Home of High End Audio about 5 weeks ago. Since I open them I have really tried to like them. First I found them extremely picky about their position in my head. The slightly move and the presentation of the soundstage change. I also was finding them a little bit harsh and in the bright side and finally there was something about the soundstage presentation that did not sound right to me. It was kind of diffused and not being able to pin point with precision the different instrument and voice.

After 200 hours of burn-in I visit a fellow headfier that own the T1 re-cabled with the Black Dragon. We both listen to both T1 with his Zana Deux and Phonitor and both of us came to the same conclusion. My stock T1 was brighter than his Black Dragon T1. He recommended me to put more burn-in hours.

After 400 hours of burn-in I did not hear much improvement. I was preferring my HD800 by a big margin and even preferring my D7000 by small margin. The thought of selling them came to my mind. I had high expectations for the T1 and I was not satisfied with them.

About that time is when I met Robert and after an incredible nice job with my Furutech Double Barrel speaker cables I decided to take the chance to let him develop his top of the line headphones cable call Zeus. The cable is based in Wireworld OCC DNA Helix 24 awg. Robert made my cable based on my specifications. It is a 3 wires system per channel in a double barrel configuration 8 foot long with Viablue XLR connectors.

As you can see in the pictures in this thread the job Robert did is magnificent. For those who thought the cable would be heavy well it is not. Actually it is lighter than the stock cable thanks mainly to the proprietary wire isolation developed by Wireworld . The Viablue XLR connectors are first class. One of the advantages this connectors have is that they are made of pure copper with no nickel in the mix like other top brand connectors.

How the Zeus sounds? Well after just over 100 hours I can happily say that my T1 are sounding the best ever! The first thing I noticed was that the T1 were playing louder are the same volume level I used before with the stock cable. I asked Robert why this was happening and his answer was it was due to the decreased resistance of the DNA Helix design and the proprietary materials used in the conductor insulation. Not to mention the extreme purity of the occ copper conductors Wireworld is capable of producing.

The second thing I noticed was that the headphones were totally quiet. The space between instruments and voices in the soundstage is totally black. The soundstage actually expanded width wise and also in height which was one of my complaints with the stock cable. Before with the stock cable I felt the soundstage somewhat compressed in height (compared to my HD800) but not anymore but regarding soundstage the biggest improvement was in depth. This is the first time I perceive this kind of soundstage depth in a pair of headphones.

The tonality of the headphones did not change drastically. The bass still is fast, deep and with great impact. The midrange turned sweeter and with much more texture. Voices are totally natural but the biggest change was in the highs. They are still there with great precision and sharpness but they lost all the harshness I was hearing before.

The total sound of the T1 turned to be perfect now. No more brightness, no more harshness like before just sweet perfect and totally enjoyable sound from top to bottom.

Ah! Remember that diffused soundstage presentation??? It is gone! Now every instrument, every voice, every sound it is in its own space in the soundstage providing a wonderful holographic presentation.

My version of the Zeus is $499. Not cheap but in the ball park of equivalent cables that I quoted from other known companies. Is it worth the money? You bet!
Now with the Zeus the T1 are at the level of my beloved HD800 and I am sure that for many T1 lovers will be the best headphone out there no questions asked.

For people interested in a regular design (not double barrel) here is what Robert quote me:

A standard Y cable design with 4 conductors, Zeus Quad24 24awg OCC copper @ 6' with ViaBlue 6.3mm TRS is 269.00 + 21.00 each additional foot

Balanced with ViaBlue XLRs or Wireworld Reference Silver pin XLRs add 50.00

Furutech 6.3mm TRS and XLRs also available
Same price installed or configured with connectors for Sennheiser 650/600

Same standard Y cable with...
24awg OFC 239.00 and 10.00 each additional foot
22awg OCC copper 309.00 and 39.00 each additional foot
22awg Silver-Clad OCC copper 449.00 and 75.00 each additional foot
22awg Solid OCC Silver 1269.00 and 210.00 each additional foot
And for the Goldman Sachs executive in your life...
20awg Solid OCC Silver 2339.00 and 390.00 each additional foot

If you have any questions about the cables just email Robert from his website. He will reply fast and is great to work with.

 

[Bilavideo]

Oh man, you make this sound so attractive. I'm starting to slobber.