Build Quality & Ergonomics
The build quality of the Chiron is remarkable, which should be expected from EA and the price of the unit itself. As I mentioned, all barrels are made from titanium material.
The braiding of the Chiron is rather loose than tight, so despite being a thick 8-wire cable, it’s very very flexible. The EA UltraFlexi insulation plays a huge role here. The new braiding type allows a very comfortable handling experience and there’s no microphonics whatsoever.
The cable feels very soft and great in the hand as well as on the ear. The memory wire area is quite thick since these are 26AWG wires. But EA compensated that well enough with a fixed and soft memory wire area. That means you can’t adjust it, which is fine by me because some adjustable memory wires tend to be uncomfortable. This area has a very soft touch to it. The shape of this area is excellent so there’s no issue regarding comfort. Of course, after some listening time, you start to feel the weight of the 8-wire cable around your ears, but it’s kept to a minimum so it won’t ever get too uncomfortable.
Accessories
Effect Audio Chiron doesn’t come with any accessories, unlike the Centurion (outside of ConX). There’s a new Chiron leather case that you can purchase at an additional cost. For a cable like this and especially at this price, I think the case should’ve been included.
Also, paying additional fees doesn’t add up with Effect Audio’s recent push with their new Axiom, which boasts the sustainability claim. The case looks fantastic from what I can see, but not including it in the package is not a good decision in my opinion.
Update: EA informed me that they changed their policy about this and now the new Chiron case is included in the package. We didn’t have this information during the writing of this review.
Sound Summary
Cables are a hot topic and my opinion has never changed since I started this hobby; cables matter. They certainly make a difference. Sometimes tiny and sometimes big. However, I accept that a cable should be the last component that comes up to one’s mind when upgrading a system. First, you need to sort everything else out.
Like all of their Hall of Fame cables before, the Chiron performs amazingly well. However, it takes a different route than the Centurion, aiming toward a darker and full-bodied territory with outstanding bass and very strong imaging, despite its smooth sound.
The sound is quite bold as well with punchy and rumbling bass, a full mid-range and well extended smooth treble. The bass response in particular is terrific with the Chiron, especially when paired with a dynamic driver IEM. You get fantastic punch, kick, rumble and texture.
The mid-range is full sounding with quite a bit of warmth with great note size. The timbre is especially good, and the sound is incredibly textured and smooth. But the most striking feature of the Chiron is the bass. If you have a hybrid IEM with a dynamic driver, you’ll be surprised how the Chiron scales it up with fantastic texture and response.
So if you have flat sounding high-end IEMs, the Chiron will pair perfectly to give more texture, dynamism and better musical timbre, with a nicely layered and deep sound stage. However, I wouldn’t recommend pairings with warm-sounding gear.
vs. Centurion
When compared to the flagship Centurion, the Effect Audio Chiron has a warmer approach with denser and more intense sound. The bass has more body and punch, the mid-range is smoother with a fuller delivery, and the treble is smoother with a bit less energy. It’s a softer cable in terms of overall sound signature, with a darker tonality and very musical delivery.
The Centurion has more energy and attack, with a flatter bass and more energetic treble. Its overall sound is flatter and more balanced, and it overall sounds wider in terms of staging. Both have their strengths but when compared to the Centurion, the Chiron doesn’t have the same level of imaging and sharpness. It instead produces a very smooth sound and retains the technical performance which is already a lot better than many cables on the market. However, the technical performance of the Centurion is higher for me.
Yet, if you have a Vision Ears IEM for instance, and plan to use it for a long time, and if you have a huge budget for a cable, you don’t have to get the flagship one. The Centurion has an out of this world pricing partly because of its premium accessories and wire material. But the Chiron performs excellent with IEMs such as Phönix so it might be a more sensible choice.
If you have a huge collection of IEMs you can still get the Centurion because it simply has no weakness as a cable. There’s no synergy problem with it, unlike the Chiron. This one needs the proper synergy to impress, and once you find that pairing, it’s incredible.
Page 1: Intro and Design
Page 3: Comparisons and Conclusion
