When we get a headphone we expect it to give us a wowsome experience. Our imaginations take flight and when we do not get what we expected our hearts break a bit. To get more out of our Headphone, we try a lot of things but usually ignore the cable. As we mature into a seasoned audiophile we realise the positive effects of an high quality cable.
In a world where a lot of brands are trying their hand at accessories I don’t think there is anyone more renowned than DDhifi at this point of time. They make varity of accessories like USB cables for both desktop and portable use, multipurpose and hifi carry cases, usb DAC/amps and Headphone and IEM cables.
What I have here with me is their BC150B cable. Priced at $150 it is specifically made for headphones. One can pick the type of headphone connect while ordering and it can be configured to fit nearly every headphone let it be Sennheiser, Beyerdynamic, Shure or Hifiman.
I will be pairing it with Sivga Luan, Blon B50 and my modded Grado Headphones.
Get one from these links:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005484478699.html
Accessories and Packaging:-
BC150B comes in an eco friendly cardboard box with a paper cover that has all the necessary information about the cable. The package looks good and tidy but guess what, it has no accessories to talk about and I can understand that. A high quality headphone case from DDhifi can cost plenty and given the reputation of DDhifi they cannot provide an average case. Maybe a cable tie could have been included, but that too is not necessary for a headphone cable.
BUILD QUALITY:
BC150B uses two different type of silver in different diameters and are mixed with silver plated OCC and Furukawa Silver-copper alloy. BC150B has 22.8awg, 24.3awg and 21.5awg wires that are protected with double shielding and 3 layers of insulation. We get a layer of PVC on the surface to protect the cable from any type of harm and the braided net under it provides better stability and keeps things tidy.
All these layers of protection are good but they make the cable slightly bouncy, stiff and heavy. It’s not as stiff as the Effect Audio Code 23 but it still has memory issues and won’t stay winded if the winding isn’t done according to the cables orientation. I like the quality of parts used. They look premium, have very good finishing, and are light weight even when the 4.4mm jack and U splitter are a bit oversize.
Build quality is fantastic and the cable looks awesome too but we don’t buy a cable for looks so let’s go to the business end!!
SOUND QUALITY:
It feels better when you don’t have to put a lot of effort to spot the improvements and that’s what we get here, no need for critical listening, the improvements are apparent. What BC150B brings is a layer of solidity and a hint of heft layed over the spectrum providing better control over jitter and wayward notes. The finishing region get more defined and the air between instruments improves and all of this make the headphones sound more detailed and transparent. It didn’t take me long to realise the improvements with precision and acuracy too. And the improvements are more apparent with my Modded Grado headphone. It gets much better tonality, timber and the improvements in accuracy, precision and stage expansion are superb.
BC150B has a slightly W shaped feel to it as we get a bit of pop with the vocals without affecting the instruments around it. Another noticable change is with micro and background details. The softer and more subtle notes gain some energy and are more transparent. This is a good and bad thing according to expectations since this reduces the contrast and dynamics a bit.
Let’s do the spectrum breakup analysis.
BASS:
To me, this is the cable for slightly indisciplined headphones that need some control and precision over jitter and unruly notes. BC150B provides tighter and faster notes without affecting the weight or volume of the notes. The sub-bass are nearly unchanged, what we get is a bit more precision and a hair less rumbly feel. Mid bass is tighter but the area of impact and the air moved remains the same. Notes retain their body and slam but retract faster, making way for a cleaner and more defined lower end. Thanks to the slightly faster decay we get more room for layered notes and they do not feel muddy. Faster decay makes the headphone feels more agile and sound cleaner reducing the muddy and wooly bits. If the headphone used to be a bit monotonous, BC150B will introduce better dynamics by reducing after decay residuals.
MID RANGE:
I love the mid range, it shouldn’t be suppressed or downed and that’s what we get with the 150B. There is barely any energy lost with the instruments at the lower mid and after vocals regions. It does have a bit of pop to the Vocals giving a bit more involved feeling. We get better texture and tighter notes with very good definition at the floor providing better layering, separation and air between instruments. Thanks to the extra definition and precise instruments have extra bit of bite and finishing energy, excellent pairing for blunt sounding headphones like Hifiman Sundara and HD6XX. There is little to no extra emphasis on upper mids.
HIGHS:
One of the most impressive attributes of this cable is balance of energy within the high notes. There is no peak or spikes to worry about, even when the headphone has a bit of peaky presentation. We get uniform emphasis across the spectrum, improved extension and details. It does have a bit if energy at the lower treble region that is maintained till the till the upper treble and drops gradually from the upper treble region. This extra energy helps with better transparency and details. The bigger stage helps with improved layering and separation.
STAGE AND IMAGING:
BC150B has nearly 20% bigger stage with both Sivga Luan and Blon B50. It moulds to the headphones stage but do have a bit of X-axis expansion of its own.
Thanks to the extra bit of precision we get improved accuracy, imaging and cue placement. Sadly the added energy kind of takes away a bit of subtleness, sacrificing a bit of contrast. Sonics are very good with the Blon B50 but the Luan didn’t respond similarly.
PAIRING WITH HEADPHONES:
BLON B50:
I paired this cable will a few headphones but the one that impressed me the most is it’s pairing with the Blon B50. The step up from the stock cable is so significant that it feels like a must match made in heaven.
The synergy is superb. The slightly less uniform B50 responds superbly to the extra precision of the BC150B. And the expansion in stage is superb. We get nearly 40% bigger stage and much improved sonics. The overall timber gets lively and more agile. The slightly dampened B50 feels a lot freer. The added dimensions breathes new life into this headphone as the pairing scales as highs as a couple of Headphones 3 times as expensive.
SIVGA Luan:
While the stock cable of Sivga Luan isn’t bad at all, BC150B brings in a bigger stage, better transparency and air between instruments. This pairing is decent. I do not find the improvements as big but the bigger stage and slightly faster decay provides a much cleaner and airy feel. This does rob the extra bit of cohesive feel of the Luan. It now turns into a studio reference kind of headphone that is tuned for accuracy and details with superior transparency and clarity. Extra energy with micro details does make this headphone sound less contrasty and slightly rigid with dynamic flexibility.
CONCLUSION:
There is a lot to like. BC150B has excellent build quality. The parts used are of premium quality, enhancing the aesthetics of the cable.
I love the extra head room, improved imaging and precise notes. For $150, we are getting a lot. Yes, this is not the cable for already aggressive sounding headphones like HD650 but the extra definition and clarity makes it an exceptional pairing with HD6XX and 600. It plays well with the slightly warmer sounding Blon B50 and my modded Grado too.
BC150B is an excellent cable to pair up with soft and smooth headphones, highly recommended.
