Pros:
- Very balanced
- Wonderfully smooth yet resolving tonality
- 3D Holographic stage
- Lightweight and comfortable
- Rhodium plated connectors
- Top notch technicals for a "budget friendly" price bracket
Cons:
- Nothing really
- Ear hook shrink edge was scratching my ears (they have already addressed this for new orders)
Welcome dear HeadFi-ers to my review of the Lavricables Grand Silver IEM Upgrade Cable, in the beautiful newly released Baltic Grey!
This review will probably be a bit different from the cables I have reviewed in the past, simply because the Grand is in a totally different price bracket compared to the kilobuck TOTL flagships I usually review. This will also be the 1st pure silver cable I have reviewed, and while I have some experience with Silver cables, it’s not to the extent I have with pure copper, or copper variants. That’s not say it’s of lower quality, amazing gear is available in all different price categories. The Grand comes in at the paltry price of 489 Euro in my sample’s configuration, a far cry from the eye-watering prices we have grown accustomed to as of late. Now, I could go on and on about cables, their costs, the enjoyment to price ratio, and how even ~500 Euro is still a lot of money for a cable. Agreed on all fronts - it’s hard to imagine I own a cable that costs 10x that, I’m nuts for sure. So going forward I will simply assume that you think aftermarket cables are worth it, and based on my history this is by far the least expensive cable I have reviewed, therefor earning its moniker “affordable”. In a sea of aftermarket TOTL options this cable even seems “cheap”. I will be the first to admit that I was somewhat skeptical of what a cable can do at this price range, which is in and of itself a shame and a metaphor for the state of gear at the moment. Why must something cost as much as a used car to be produce sublime audio experiences? That’s a question I ask myself often, and interestingly this cable arrived at my door at precisely a moment such as that. About to embark on a 2 month intensive summer tour, I was trying to decide what gear to bring with me, struggling with the idea that my gear might get damaged or even ruined along the way. How could I possibly survive without my precious TOTLs? After laughing hysterically at my own insanity, I took a deep breath and decide to take “but” the Grand with me, along with my Jewel customs and Sony 1ZM2, for its exceptional battery life, and amazing sound. The fact that this is my “basic” setup brings some conversations to mind I need to have with myself at the soonest opportunity concerning my state of mind, and quite presumably my flailing bank account balance as well. All that notwithstanding, I left for tour and hoped for the best. I am delighted to report the tour was amazing, and I had a blast with this cable! It sounds awesome, performs well above its price point, is very comfortable and easy to store, which comes into play often in Airports/Trains when I had to either wear it or put it away in not the most comfortable of environments. It didn’t leave me wanting for anything, really. I loved my time with it. But how does it compare? Before we get into that nitty gritty ditty, my brief disclaimer:
I was contacted by Konstantin of Lavricables, (super nice guy by the way) who told me really liked my reviews and asked if I would be interested in reviewing his newest addition. I said I would indeed, and he sent a new cable in the configuration of Baltic Smoked Grey with Rhodium plated titanium looking hardware with 2-pin connectors and 4.4mm plugs. He told me if I liked the cable I was free to keep it, but nothing was required of me in terms of positive feedback or anything of the sort. He offered me their burn-in service which I happily agreed to, (150hrs) which is an awesome service and I really wish more companies did this. When the cable arrived to my house it was all ready to go, which for a reviewer is a delight, no waiting for it to open up, smooth out or settle which can take forever, especially for silver or other exotic materials. Konstantin agreed to let me take the cable on tour to try out as a torture test, after which point I would return home and write the review about my experiences with it. Sneak peak; I am going to keep the cable.
Please enjoy these specs taken directly from the Lavricables website:
• Carefully handmade braided cable consists of 4 cores of AWG20 6n purity cryo treated multi strand litz wire.
• Soldered with Mundorf Supreme Silver 9.5% audio solder.
• Woven Teflon Litz construction is ideal to deliver RFI and EMI rejection and provides low capacitance.
• 6N silver transmits electrical signals faster and with less distortion than ordinary OFC wires.
• High grade Teflon insulation gives a predominant air dielectric and is regarded as the best insulator for bare cable.
• Please note – silk sleeving is available till the Y split.
When all this began I was not so informed about Lavricables. While I had heard of them, and people mentioned the name in passing, I will honestly say that I didn’t know by sight their work or what kind of cables they made. So I checked it out, while browsing their website it’s clear they are a bit more of a DIY style of manufacturer, making me think of Double Helix cables, where one can choose the connectors, length, hardware and cosmetic choices before buying the cable. This is quite a cool idea, as not everyone has the same idea of what is pretty, but it also feels a bit different from the TOTL cables out there where each aspect of the cable, package and experience was carefully considered. To each their own, I am happy to have some choice concerning the cable’s look as long as the sound isn’t affected, and I couldn’t care less about the packaging or presentation. The Grand arrived to my house in a little soft velvet(ish) bag with the Lavricables logo and honestly this is the least annoying and most useful/eco friendly/minimalist packaging I have seen, and I appreciate it. Others may want more, but I simply don’t care or need… I digress.
As I mentioned earlier this review will be a little different/shorter than my usuals. In this price bracket I have less experience, and I have on hand only one other pure silver cable, the Brise Silver Concept 8W (now released as Shirogane, priced at $3500) which costs 7 times as much. I’ve heard quite a bit of cheaper cables, especially the DIY kind when I first got into the hobby, but this is not that in any way. This is a real finished product, carefully built with lots of effort and time going into it. So, I will compare it as apples to oranges, or perhaps wine to champagne could be more accurate. Or great wine and super expensive rare wine - I let you all decide afterwards.
All testing was done with Jewel and A18t as reference standards - using the Sony 1ZM2 on the road, but quite a bit with my AK SP3000 before I left and LP6 Ti AE when I got home. My library is very diverse, from modern jazz and 60s rock to Electronic of all kinds, funk, metal, classical, opera and everything in between. Super fancy mastered stuff, or old vinyl rips or Reel2Reel even, I enjoy it all as long as the music is good. While writing this I was enjoying some Snarky Puppy and Ghost Note followed by Jordan Rakei, Trivium, Gojira, Tool, Moonchild and Dire Straits etc etc - just to give you an idea.
To take a peek at the other cables I have reviewed, so you can get an idea of what else I have heard, you can check them out here if you wish: https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/authors/tokpakorlo.537659/reviews
Let’s get into it!
LOOK and FEEL
The Grand is a very pretty cable, that much is clear from the get go. I am (in)famously not a fan of overly shiny or flashy cables or hardware - I find it overly bling-y, and it attracts too much attention when I am out with it. Yes, I know I am in the minority here. With its exposed pure silver wires somehow the Grand doesn’t bother me at all, I think because of the very cool Baltic Grey sheathing that gives it a much darker and more matte vibe. It looks smoked vs a fully transparent jacket, and I like it. If it was black I would probably like it more, but what’s a little color in my life, or a little brightness in this case. It’s a nice clean look, and matches well with the carbon fiber and matte grey hardware adorned with the Lavricables logo.
I especially like the 2 pin connectors. They are modern looking, and clearly labeled with a ring of red or blue for Left and Right respectively. A huge plus for me was how tight they were in the socket - really really snug! Not a bad tight, just enough to easily get them on, followed by a feeling of security and ease knowing my IEMs won’t fall off, even under my slightly abusive use cases. I wish 2 pin connections would always be tight like this, especially when dealing with expensive IEMs that don’t have a recessed socket. Whilst traveling, this contributed heavily to me being more keen to take my IEMs out in airports, trains or busses, knowing my precious Jewels wouldn’t be found on the floor later on.
As stated before the hardware is a bit more DIY style, in this case the Y split and 4.4mm plug are very nice, but more “off the shelf” looking than others I know or have used. That being they are of great quality, fit and finish is great, and Rhodium plated which I really like. They have a bit of a terminator kind of look, almost like Titanium and carbon fibre, so equally at home in a sci-fi movie or in a fancy sports car. Lavricables also offers Viablue and other staple brands of high end hardware, just know that it’s not necessarily proprietary for their use only. As an example, my chin cinch is just a clear rubber ring - while not being terribly fancy it does hold better than any kind of custom made piece, and was a joy to use. I never had to re-adjust it once in two months, so that’s saying something. I’ve got absolutely nothing against DIY style, it’s probably one of the reasons they are able to sell the cable cheaper without investing in enormous R&D, hardware design research and custom tooling for fabrication. Either way, the hardware is very nice and looks perfectly balanced with the cable’s pale steel grey wires, keeping it decidedly away from flashy, and pointed more so in the darker/moodier/more batman style to which I am accustomed.
The Grand is very soft and supple, especially when compared to the sheathed and shielded stuff I usually use. The wires are a comfortable size, nice looking and easy to wear without being obtrusive. The braid in on the looser side, especially above the Y split. There is a bit of a bounce to the cable, the wear weight is nothing at all, and I found it to essentially disappear for longer listening sessions of which I had many. It unfolds easily and I didn’t have a problem with tangles. There is a slight sense of rubberiness, but I believe that is simply how these kinds of cables feel - I am used to the nylon sheathing which many many people don’t like, so after I stopped thinking about it I no longer noticed. Not unlike cables of this price range there is some microphonics, but nothing more than others built similarly. In normal daily use it was a pleasure to wear, basically disappearing while I was listening - enough to fall asleep a number of times while editing, finding my face deep in my laptop’s keyboard, IEMs still in and music playing. I work too much, but that’s another conversation.
My only gripe with the feel is the edges of the shrink wrap on the ear hooks. The shrink used is a bit thicker than others, and it has a visible edge. Said edge touches right on the middle of my ear, creating a feeling that I didn’t enjoy, gritting a bit, and I was forced to adjust it often. It wasn’t terrible, and after some time it did seem to go away, but I would suggest that they use a thinner shrink for this so it’s not as noticeable. On my other cables this edge is not noticeable at all, even with the gauge of the wire is far far thicker. Small gripe, really the only negative I find with this cable, especially for this price point.
I’ve since spoken with Konstantin and he told me they are already using a thinner shrink here, so I’m sure it’s a problem of the past now*
SOUND
I mentioned earlier that my experience with Silver cables is somewhat limited. I tried a few when I was first starting out, and while they may not have been of great quality, at the time I found them a bit bright. I called myself a Cooper guy, and was proud of it. I felt that - and I think a broad feeling in the audio/headphone community at large was/is - Copper equals warm and emotional, while silver is brighter and colder. Yes, I know now that’s not true, there are huge exceptions to that in both sides, but it’s a guideline that many people still follow on some level. “I don’t think a silver cable would be good on this IEM as it’s already bright” or similar. Cooper is gooey and warm, good for “taking the edge off” a bright IEM or similar. The Orpheus (pure copper) is one of the most detailed and resolving cables I have heard, and the Brise Silver Concept (Brise’s first foray into pure silver) is anything but bright and cold, but rather unbelievably musical, resolving, and a sumptuous listen. Pure silver can be clean and clear but also natural and smooth too. The Grand falls into this description nicely, it is perhaps the most smooth and unobtrusive silver cable I have heard. It’s a lovely listen, a genuine surprise for me. I find nothing to fault, nothing sticks out or bothers me, instead I found myself focusing on how much I enjoy listening to it. Is it the most resolving/technical/gargantuan-stage/epic sounding cable of all time? No it is not. But it is one of the few I have heard where nothing bothers me. That’s quite something right there.
The Grand is very well balanced, I found no particular frequency or area to be highlighted or attenuated. It is neither warm nor cold, and it is definitely not bright or crispy. As stated, it’s quite smooth and even. Not smooth to the point of fault, no removal of transients edges or polishing out the top end, it’s all there just presented in a nice, comfortable and pleasant way. If you’re looking for a lightning fast silver sound with tons of energy and bombastic crispness this might not be your cable. Neither is it overly smooth and boring, striking a nice balance between resolving and musical natures. With different IEMs and source, and a different library than mine I think it could be pushed in a more energetic direction if one chose so. This is a neutral cable, a balanced cable, and so it will carry the source and library along with it. Clean and clear, it should pair nicely with just about anything.
Bass reaches deep and has good texture and grip. I hesitate to say neutral quantity since that’s very subjective, but I personally found it neither too bass heavy or lacking in any way. I personally prefer a more neutral bass presentation, so I can safely say it’s not boosted or shelved, but I don’t think anyone will be bummed out with its lack of oomph. Bass is evenly distributed between sub and mid bass regions, from the deepest depths to punchy thumps, equal in quantity. Quality is very good, well controlled and punchy, an enjoyable bass for sure. Compared to some TOTL stuff it’s not as punchy or deep, not as textured, but at this price point it’s great.
Mids are great too! Nice body, good weight and punch, well controlled and musical at the same time. I would say the mids are pushed ever so slight forward, but not shouty with a peak in the upper mids as some cables do. With the Jewel’s already accentuated 2k area I heard the same or even less presence there which was a nice surprise. I found the A18t’s clinical personality to remain, unaltered while remaining musical and enjoyable. Transients are smooth and clear, but erring more on the smooth side if that’s something you’d worry about. It’s not dull, mids are nicely detailed and clean, but slightly on the smoother side. Again this isn’t an ultra spicy silver cable, it’s really far more tame than that. Vocals and instruments are presented faithfully and clearly, with good texture and space. Detail retrieval in the mids was very good, crisp and resolving, but not to an analytical level. Always musical and enjoyable.
Treble was very nice, smooth and extended. Note weight was rather even here, not drifting off into space and thinning out as some cables do. Here is one place where I suspect some might find a “lack” as I don’t hear the extra sparkle and spice some might equate with silver cables. It’s not overly smooth, like removing information, it’s just very natural and spacious. There is nice sparkle and air, with good amounts of detail and resolution in the high end. The smoothness here may also be something of the same, while I really enjoyed that smooth presentation of treble, I could imagine that some might want more energy there. This as always is YMMV, but continuing im that natural and even presentation the Grand stays true all the way to the top.
Stage size is always quite hard to describe or quantify. The stage on the Grand isn’t huge, but what really surprised me was how spherical and holographic it was. More than once I was rather blown away by how far behind my head I was hearing things with the Grand - even more so than other TOTL cables I have heard. There is quite a difference between stage size and holography, bigger doesn’t mean holographic. Or bigger doesn’t mean better either, unless that’s your absolute favorite thing. I like the example of Traillii vs Jewel - Traillii has the largest stage width of any IEM I’ve heard, but the Jewel wraps around you. More height and depth equates a different feeling, inside the music with the band, while super wide is more like a few rows back, or a super vast stadium feeling. Some may prefer one or the other, this is incredibly personal. But again I was quite surprised by how 3D the stage on the Grand was, wrapping around me even if the width/height/depth was about average. So while there isn’t enormous space between the layers or wildly staggered positioning, there is plenty of room for anything I was listening to, never feeling cramped, congested, or lacking in air. Very nice stage actually, one of my favorite aspects.
COMPARISONS
At this time I only have one pure silver cable to compare, the Brise Silver Concept (Shirogane). This is a staggering cable, perhaps the best I have heard in fact, so I think it’s somewhat unfair to compare them on paper, with a price difference of 7x. In real life I am reminded of just how diminishing the returns are the more you spend on cables - there is a difference for sure, the Brise is better, but it’s not like the Grand feels vastly inferior. That’s in no way casting a shadow on the Brise, more like highlighting the Grand as far better than its price tag would imply. Both are very smooth and enjoyable, with nothing jutting out at you or disturbing the balance. They are both more or less reference neutral tunings with great musicality.
While the Grand is wonderful, the Brise is simply more in ever aspect. It is more resolving, more clean and open, deeper bass and more texture. But the general idea between the two is very similar - pure silver done in a way that is enjoyable and musical, smooth without sacrificing detail. (Although the Brise is Summit-fi insanely detailed and top technically performing while also remaining super musical and smooth - perhaps where that 7x price tag goes). For the money the Grand is the obvious choice for 99% of users, you pay more you get more, but what you get for less is really quite amazing.
The Grand is far lighter, more comfortable and less obtrusive with its 4 thiner wires, vs the Brise’s 8W heavier and stiffer construction. The Shirogane is available also as a 4W version, which would be far thinner and perhaps more equally matched comfort wise, though the price tag is still much higher and out of reach for many/most. There are also quite a few great pure silver cables out there in the Grand price bracket, like the Cleopatra (II), or the widely regarded Eletech Plato, both of which I didn’t get a chance to hear yet. DH Cables makes a pure silver as well. Honestly I avoided such cables for fear of them being too “silver” sounding, but now I see that I have probably been missing out. I will make an effort to check out more of these in the future, perhaps I’m even becoming a Pure Silver guy!
CONCLUSION
My time with the Grand has even very enjoyable, and I can’t think of a better way to test and review a cable than being stuck with it, and only it, for two months on the road. I especially enjoyed it in airports, where its light weight and tight 2 pin connectors kept me feeling safe and secure while I head-bumped my way through terminals and shuttle buses. I did quite some AB testing before I left, and again when I got home, but the best time I spent with it was just enjoying tunes along the way. I’m an event/documentary photographer, and each day on tour I can spend 3-8 hours on my computer editing and processing. Precious time to melt into my music, to step away -literally- from all the noise and crazy energy, retreating into my hotel room or bed in some dorm, to just work and be inspired. The Grand succeeded at this in spades, and I didn’t notice anything missing or lacking. I just enjoyed the music. Funny enough, when I got home the first thing I did (after spending a lot of time with my wife and son) was to grab my Summit-Fi gear and get my mind blown. And it was glorious, and yes there was a difference, and I did appreciate it. But what crept in a bit at a time was the little things I wish I could change, a bit more this, a bit less that etc. Just goes to show that the more performance you go for, the harder it is to be perfect. Comparing all the other TOTL cables I have heard, and I’ve heard many, I could now say something rather confidently. For the money, the Grand performs far above its price point and is a wonderfully enjoyable listen. Good detail, a stage with 3D presentation, a smooth and very musical cable for a lot less.
I’m not saying that the Grand will replace my big boys, or that it’s perfect, but it has more than proved its worth and secured a spot for itself in my extremely curated collection. My permanent travel cable maybe, or perhaps staying glued to my A18t. A great option for those wanting great top tier performance for much less. It’s very hard to complain or find fault, it’s a fabulous cable and super “affordable” from where I am sitting. Well done Konstantin, well done indeed!
Thanks for reading my friends!
If you want one of these for yourself you can order it directly here.
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