Cable Skeptic Tests a $279 IEM Cable & Declares "The Best Ever!" - Review Effect Audio Ares S 8W

The Scientific Audiophile, long time cable skeptic, tests a nearly $300 IEM cable - The Effect Audio 'Ares S 8W'. We are stunned by these "best ever" IEM cables to ever grace our listening room.
Effect Audio website: www.effectaudio.com/
‪@effectaudio1876‬
Purchase Links: (I make NOTHING if you use these links or not, nothing if you use the discount code)
15% discount through May 14, 2024:
www.effectaudio.com/news/15th...
Additional 10% coupon code (valid till 14th May 2024): SCIENTIFICAUDIOPHILE10
Purchase link: linktr.ee/EffectAudio_SA
#audiophile #iem #cable #hifi #headphones

[@scientificaudiophile]

Locking comments as we prepare for the winner of the lottery.

[@sidesaladaudio]

“These are the best cables I ever heard” They’re going to quote that in their marketing 😂

[@scientificaudiophile]

I could see that happen - "Scientific Audiophile declared our Ares 8 cable the BEST he's ever heard!"

[@ryanmccann2539]

The packaging alone must boost the fidelity of the cable by bathing it in excellence. I simply must hear it.

[@wahid-lg1kk]

The color should give it a smooth and open sound..

[@crazyprayingmantis5596]

Who would have thought that you can't hear a difference between copper and copper. Amazing 🤯

[@rickszabo4312]

Thank you and your loving parents for raising such an honest audiophile. As a Canadian I promise that I will work the required 600 hours of overtime to earn in Canadian dollars to cover the required cost of shipping those fancy pants cables.. Keep these vid's coming.

[@carminedesanto6746]

Holy smokes …that a pretty frank and honest review. Have a great day.

[@scientificaudiophile]

You won the cables. Check out the end of this video for details on how to receive it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/kKPMgoiHidCmnK8 (the jist is send an email to [e-mail] and I'll reply with a code. Add another comment with the code I send to make sure you're not just someone else sending me an email, and I'll get your address and mail you the cables)

[@carminedesanto6746]

THANK YOU 😁 I’ll contact you shortly. Have a great weekend.

[@worojak]

Thanks for the review!

[@rm-mastering]

Love you're review, so so good. So amusing. It has the most important chuckle factor, I whish there were more like you. Thanks. ❤❤❤😂

[@scientificaudiophile]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@sidesup8286]

I think he's funny too. But I am starting to see him as sort of a rebel without a cause. These people who pay a kings ransom for ultra expensive cables are not gullible farmhands with a pitchfork in hand. People who can afford cables like that should more accurately be pictured as doctors, lawyers, surgeons, successful businessman, Wall Street investors, Real Estate investors, Oil Tycoons, College Professors, Scientists, etc. Playing intercontinental psychologist and making these people out to be gullible, stupid, and delusionary makes one really scratch their chin. If his goal is to try and keep rich people from giving away big money on products that don't deserve it, without ever living with said products himself....well there are better causes in this world. What's the best a rebel without a cause like him can accomplish? Maybe saving someone with a $400,000 Lamborghini from foolishly (in his opinion) buying an $800 cable?

[@rm-mastering]

@@sidesup8286 Hi Sidesup8286, people who pay a king's ransom for ultra expensive cables I would hope are not gullible, well that's debatable. I’m coming from an electrical/physics background and can appreciate any research and development invested to produce a great cable. I'm a firm believer and can interpret data that shows any advantages or benefits why consumers should spend ridiculous amounts of money. So often I see top tier products claiming this or that and in most cases perform on par or worse than budget components. Why is it that no ultra high end cable manufacturers provide any real data to back up their claims. I’ve seen so many cables with add on bits tacked to their cables that claim this and that but show no real evidence. There is one reviewer who posted a review and tested a variety of analogue RCA cables costing into the thousands using a test analyzer recoding data up to 195Mhz, I mean really, what were we supposed to see, his findings were inconclusive in determining what happens that high up has any correlation of the sound of a cable - nothing was noted or found, also the panel of judges were from the supplied cable manufacturers - I wonder if this had any effect on the out come and lets not forget the monetisation for a reviewer to post a good and honest review (laughable). The point I feel you’ve missed is that spending copious amounts of money on a cable has proved no real benefit and companies rely solely on marketing to sell their ultra expensive products. By the way, comparing a cable to high performance cars is a good example you pointed out for what I’m talking about, you can see the performance data and specifications of the performance car, best of luck getting any info for an expensive cable. I could go on and on about this but please feel free to spend a lot of money if that makes you feel good just to own it without any real evidence or backed claims. Be carful of youtube reviews - money makes the world go around...

[@Sharur1]

amazing content as always

[@nabman_]

Phew....for a moment I thought you became a cable pusher. I even cocked the unsubscribe trigger. 🤣

[@scientificaudiophile]

And I wouldn't have blamed you!

[@rb89509]

I admit I own some silver and copper foofoo braided cables, but have never spent over $19.99 for them on Amazon or AliExpress. Everyone of them does produce the highest fidelity my 63 year old tinnitus ravaged ears have ever heard though.

[@keiths1969]

Good review. Very informative, definitely earned my subscription.

[@scientificaudiophile]

Awesome, thank you!

[@scotteaton963]

This is a great and creative way to make an important point that should no longer need to be made. Thanks!

[@ulfolundin8167]

great.Thank you

[@dianabentley5751]

Good video. Glad I subscribed.

[@scientificaudiophile]

Thanks for the sub!

[@Daniel-un6cy]

This was awesome😂

[@moonabhinav]

I really thought he became the same he vowed to slay!! They had us in the first half!!

[@ThomLieb]

Interesting experiment!

[@Roddy451]

I liked the background. The "Leaning-Tower-of-Pizza" speakers. Those cables are, huh, massive. Almost Kimber Kable 8TC big.

[@scottbennett3119]

Great video! I didn't see that coming... lol

[@scientificaudiophile]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@AsAgral]

Psychoacoustics fidelity strikes! The name of this video almost got me :)

[@PurpleGeezus]

"that last six inches is really important" Scientific Audiophile Italian heritage confirmed

[@scientificaudiophile]

Actually Greek, but we're so similar it makes no difference.

[@jerrypowers7671]

That would make a bad ass necklace for my Mr. T starter kit.

[@scientificaudiophile]

A-Team

[@jerrypowers7671]

@@scientificaudiophile i pity the fools that don't buy this.

[@chriscondict3104]

The end was hilarious. Makes total sense. I would buy not that expensive ones for different terminations. Balanced for the most part. If it doesn't measure different it won't sound different

[@Mizar-XED]

I just love them thick and long!

[@michaelsegel8758]

Great video. They look great, and to your point... there seems to be a diminishing return in terms of thickness of the cable. That the difference in cables is negligible. So it gets down to your preference in terms of the thickness and stiffness of the cable. I wonder what sort of tests you could do to show signal loss in the cables and if it matters.

[@scientificaudiophile]

You could hook the cables to an analyzer and test the signal or you could test the IEMs with different cables and see if the frequency response and decibel level changes.

[@michaelsegel8758]

@@scientificaudiophile And did you do that beyond a subjective test? Or would the difference be negligible? Meaning outside of human hearing? (Or even a dogs?) Don't get me wrong, its a beautiful cable and if I got it for free I'd love it. But if I had to spend the money... I'd put it elsewhere.

[@scientificaudiophile]

@@michaelsegel8758 no, I stayed subjective.

[@alansugano1315]

Excellent review! Now for the review of a 9* Sound. Maybe there isn't one. The search goes on....

[@chrislj2890]

I should have known there would be a hilarious "gotcha" for those things, lol. They remind me of the firehose sized Monster Cable speaker cables I foolishly bought back in the '90s that had enough copper to wire the Playboy Mansion, dildos included. I would have no use for them since I do not use IEMs anyway. If I want to compact my earwax I will just use a Q-Tip like God intended.

[@crazyprayingmantis5596]

Yeah I don't know how people jam these things into their ears

[@chrislj2890]

@@crazyprayingmantis5596 I have rather small ear canals so no can do. I do use AirPods for videos but they just hang in your ear.

[@Ksn228]

Cables do sound different though. Depending on the weight, hook shape and strength I get different optimum insertion depth, and it does objectively affect the sound of the IEMs. Not to a degree tips do, but in some cases it can be make or break.

[@makukh]

Nice review, especially the part about sound quality evaluation. Still miss your infinite rating system mark in this video 😉

[@scientificaudiophile]

Thanks. How do I rate perfect? There is no such wine, not such meal. Suggestions needed!

[@makukh]

@@scientificaudiophile Could be the wine gods used to drink at Olympus )

[@Shadepariah]

The last time I didn't rate a cable 10/10 was when the wires pulled out of the connectors

[@AlanWakeford]

I wonder if you could make a cable where the 2 wires were inductively coupled. Probably wouldn't make a difference since that usually only protects against crosstalk which is probably not going to happen much between your phone and head.

[@krjohnson29]

Wow! Incredible 😂

[@nudebaboon4874]

I think this is the best review on IEM cables that ive ever heard.

[@scientificaudiophile]

Thanks!

[@proffessasvids]

The best cables lol. Reassuringly expensive I might add. You are my audiophile hero xx

[@kirkskeys]

Can the longer cable length increase the resistance and cause a filtering effect in the higher frequency range? IEMs are tiny little speakers and I’m not certain that a longer cable will give the same frequency response. What are your thoughts?

[@scientificaudiophile]

100% true, but the length would have to be in meters to make such a difference.

[@steves6614]

Excellent

[@timharbert7145]

If the end were cut, is it thick enough to be a decent, desktop speaker cable?

[@scientificaudiophile]

Specs say it's 24 gauge - so I'd say yes!

[@TheNEOONE1]

Here for the win!

[@humanbass]

Why there is not even FR graphs so we could see if the Ares attenuates or accentuates any frequency?

[@Boojakascha]

Joking aside: These cables can be more or less microphonic, which matters a lot while walking. But to support your point: there is no correlation between price and degree of being microphonic^^

[@gusgusnft8231]

Pretty awesome. I hope you review the new WiiM Ultra 🔥

[@scientificaudiophile]

I hope so too!

[@howardskeivys4184]

“Gorgeous”, “super beautiful”, superlatives I would not use to describe cables. Girls, yeh! But each to his own, whatever floats your boat.

[@newperspective7]

Cables cables cables!!! I want!!

[@TheVeganVicar]

😇 May God Bless You Always! 😇

[@necrosrandist]

I love cables 🎉

[@100Dion]

I dislike preformed ear hooks on cables but that cable looks really nice just wish they weren't so expensive lol

[@davidorrick63]

Great review I would rather upgrade my amplifier rather than my cables have a great day

[@markt8260]

What’s the tensile strength of the $270 cable. Can it be used as a tow strap?

[@scientificaudiophile]

Yes

[@HalRockwell]

All the cables I have ever heard are the best cables I ever heard!

[@ArmidaMusic]

I expected you to say they were like every other cable, but not "the best cable I've ever heard." Then again, the cable that comes with the Nova are also the best. PS.: Good luck, everyone!

[@SpirallingOut]

I've seen "better than stock"-looking, thick weave copper cables go for about $50. I've also seen hybrids containing gold and silver for about half the Ares S 8W cost. Effect themselves do a $5000 "Centurion" hybrid. I'd be really interested in laughing at the lack of audible difference with that cable vs the plethora of much more affordable cables.

[@Ay.Caramba]

Incredible results, but surely there must be some minor differences with the Ares?

[@scientificaudiophile]

Yes, they’re shorter.

[@Paulex57]

Gonna pair these cables with my cheap truthear hola's just to make them sound like $300 iems :))

[@gregoryeiding5395]

Dude, you almost had me - thought you’d sold out haha

[@IanKnight40]

I think you should donate them to Diane Bish as an appreciation of her contirbution to Audiophile Hifi test discs.

[@charlesdouglas7862]

These cables would pair well with a bottle of Chivas Regal 18.

[@epitar]

I could use another best cable I’ve ever heard to add to my shoebox.

[@MLantier]

I was so incredibly intelligent that I bought a similar pair of those cables directly from China on AliExpress. So I only over-payed by about $100... So there!

[@bling5279]

Weight is the most important factor to me for IEM cables

[@DWHarper62]

I want the Ares cable so that I can wear it like a gold pimp chain around my neck...

[@pqodbenliah]

I am quite excited to win the best sounding audio cables you've ever heard.

[@dab505279]

Your humor is the best. You are using humor aren't you? I wonder if Randy enjoys your humor as much as I do.

[@scientificaudiophile]

Randy freakin loves me, I think. And no, I never use humor.

[@peterzapp2091]

IEM cable or anchor cable?

[@wahid-lg1kk]

Ya, I want those cables, just to look cool.. I can let people try them and laugh at them when they say how much better they sound then the ones they are using.. My neigbour has Simgot EA2000, I can start on him.. Do I have to be in North America to receive them?

[@scientificaudiophile]

You have to be in the United States. Sorry, but international shipping is prohibitively expensive- unless you're Amazon, then it's dirt cheap.

[@wahid-lg1kk]

@@scientificaudiophile well put me in anyway, send by snail mail if I win, I will send the fee. Mail works good to my location, takes 3 months. I mean if it's not too big a hassle, probably won't win anyway..

[@finweisilra]

I want the best sounding cable in the world, but not the Novas nor Simgots, but the Ares!

[@jakedavila4468]

Blackout drunk is always best!

[@bushwack28]

true

[@mistaBorg]

if 2 cables have vasly different impedence, you might hear a difference but i highly doubt normal cable A and normal cable B will have that wide of margin. I tried like 7 iems and switched their cables around , honestly could not find sound diff. if anything microphonics from my shirt are heard more. I recommend pvc coating so no microphonics, and silver plated copper so it wont oxidize too fast like moondrop copper cable...

[@scientificaudiophile]

With different impedance, length would make a difference, if significantly longer.

[@Ducbloke]

it is more about look and feel.

[@Neucher]

The nova cable is really nice. Can't wait for the foam tip review 🫡

[@FabioKasper]

That cable looks sick though.

[@scientificaudiophile]

Packaging and cable are very nice. They definitely cost more to produce than a generic cable.

[@takeseven-]

Not living in the States but I guess I already have the best sounding cables 😂

[@TheWorldTeacher]

No cinch? 😢

[@sighheinrich]

I don't want the cable, but thank you for the offer.

[@scientificaudiophile]

Sadly, you're going to get it if you win!

[@sighheinrich]

@@scientificaudiophile But... but I have moved outside of the US now.. so you would have to ask your dad for even more money to spend on shipping. :)

[@luuieluie]

I want the cable just to see what $275 looks like in cable form 😮

[@crazyprayingmantis5596]

It probably looks like disappointment

[@iamamadman6542]

Final proof: cables matter!

[@johannesterl9083]

spezial if you dont have a Cable 😅

[@iamamadman6542]

@@johannesterl9083 Absolutely right. From cable to no cable, the rating drops to zero. That's a huge difference! One moment I have to do a quick calculation, a difference of 10 points. Proof!

[@steveromine5227]

It's nice to know I do not need to spend crazy money for cable.

[@sidesup8286]

Great cables are like Bigfoot. It is rare to find one that makes a big improvement. Especially at the lower price ranges. At that level they do soind different a bit; but better? When I got up to the over $500 cables, is when I really heard big undeniable improvements. The sound was not just different, but better. So listen to a lot of cables and find that rare Bigfoot cable. The best cables have many wonderful qualities, & the best cables are not "blurred" like Bigfoot!

[@sidesup8286]

That's why no one can ever get a good clear picture of Bigfoot. Did you ever think that Bigfoot IS blurred?

[@garyedwards9617]

OK, I'll bite . I have Nordost blue heaven cables. I have ZMF silver hand braided cables. I have all interconnects from the same co. Blue Jeans. Same for the speaker cable. I did this slowly. It took me years to understand. I believe cables make a nice difference.

[@wahid-lg1kk]

I had my son set up a blind test, with one of those silver kz cables, and a couple of custom cables. I failed to detect any difference. But when I am looking at the cables, I do detect a difference, not big, but perceptable.

[@AndiGomez-yu2dx]

@@wahid-lg1kkconfirmation bias is real, and this is exactly what people experience when they use expensive power cables and expensive speaker cables.

[@wahid-lg1kk]

@@AndiGomez-yu2dx Ya that was my point 😁 It's kind of hilarious, actually..

[@AndiGomez-yu2dx]

@@wahid-lg1kk yeah, I find it hilarious too when I see these so called golden ear 👂 audiophiles convince themselves that spending thousands on speakers cables is actually worth it lol 😂

[@scientificaudiophile]

Send the cables you think sound different to someone who can analyze the output and record it. See if there is a difference in the human hearing range. Placebo effect is shockingly powerful.

[@_DeepGroove_]

It’s obvious why the cable that Effect Audio sent did not get an 11/10: it was not nearly expensive enough! I bet you a bottle of rosé Chateau Bish that they will correct their mistake after this review.

[@andrehendrik]

They look beautiful ... but they also look heavy!

[@scientificaudiophile]

I could barely lift my head 😞

[@nonothing9685]

Did you remember to burn the cables in first?

[@scientificaudiophile]

OMG - No! I listened for 300 - 400 hours, but that isn't even close to the minimum necessary! I feel like a fool!

[@nonothing9685]

@@scientificaudiophileNo journalistic integrity. You'll be hearing from my lawyers.

[@crazyprayingmantis5596]

I put mine on the BBQ for at least 650hrs otherwise they sound cold 🥶

[@kennethoransky4881]

Why not? I'd like to test for myself.

[@rejean2744]

Ares, the "God of War" cable could not beat the mere mortal cables you tested it against? The Scientific Audiophile is like the Oracle of Delphi with the truths he tells.

[@naren.freak1c]

Looks like by selling cables one can make more money than selling IEMs/Headphones. Because they can say it warms the sound or more details or some fancy words to promote it but if it's a iem they can't do that.

[@kongtzengchang4225]

I want it to mod for my wife necklace.

[@dorisisaway355]

Thicker cables let more sound through.

[@crazyprayingmantis5596]

That's why all my cables were stolen from a suspension bridge and they're 25cm thick.

[@jasonk5979]

Your problem is that you didn't use 400.00 plus power cables. You also forgot a 4000.00 power conditioner and good enough audio equipment to hear the difference. Otherwise the electrons don't get conditioned for expensive headphone cables. (Sarcasm).

[@scientificaudiophile]

It's sad that you needed to add (Sarcasm) to your comment. Are that many people that dense?

[@jasonk5979]

@@scientificaudiophile Yes unfortunately there is always one person. Lol

[@scientificaudiophile]

And you thought it was me. Thanks for your faith in me. 😢

[@Inferno_Assassin]

There's no doubt the Ares looks great even if it does nothing for the sound. I can see if you have multi-thousand dollar IEMs wanting something like this. That being said, I have not and probably will not ever buy a set of IEMs that expensive let alone a cable like this!

[@scottwheeler2679]

what are the worst cables you ever heard?

[@scientificaudiophile]

Effect Audio Ares S 8W

[@anatol1204]

I want the best cable in the world 😅

[@Sharur1]

imo, the nova cable is too long for walking around and working out

[@scientificaudiophile]

You’re entered to win the shorter cable, without the last 6”.

[@darrinfyfe7728]

You almost had me.😅 I'm in Canada so don't enter me.

[@asx1248]

Why are you paying for shipping? Shouldn’t your Dad be doing that?

[@scientificaudiophile]

He is, but instead of shipping overseas I could have buy a $80 bottle of 🍷 instead of a $60 bottle.

[@VonKickass]

You’re wrong! PassionForSound ran many scientific tests and proved that Ares S cables must sound better - because they’re expensive! I thought you understood audiophile logic

[@scientificaudiophile]

If they had an extra zero on the price, that would have made the sound quality significantly better.

[@stanmyers5994]

Looks like you could garot somebody with that cable

[@thelonewolf666]

only people with psychological issues hear difference in cables

[@scottlowell493]

Logically, one would have to personally test all cables in existence to make that claim.

[@scientificaudiophile]

No. Logically someone would have to prove that a cable is sending a signal that a human can hear differently than another cable. There are cables made with filters to make the sound different, but no cable has ever been designed to transmit MORE signal that a human can hear than one that is designed to meet specifications.

[@scottlowell493]

@@scientificaudiophile I have to remind these self- proclaimed aural sex gods that wire has no gain. Neither does a filter. I heard a difference in some high end crap. Why? They rolled the treble off, so the rest of the spectrum seemed more prominent. Some cables started the roll off at 7khz. Sounded dull to me vs a normal cable without special effects built in.

[@arehnf-js9wb]

I don't lean back on chairs. I sit up nice and straight.