Cadmus Founder’s Edition
Simply the more premium and particular version of the Cadmus Cable, the Cadmus Founder’s Edition is the passion project of no other than Suyang, the founder of Effect Audio. Cadmus Founder’s Edition includes a geometrically different Silver Plated Copper (SPC) and Gold-Plated Copper.
”The blend of Silver Plated Copper is mixed for a more substantial mid-range body while the Gold Plated Copper is added to elevate its resolution and widen the soundstage, achieving an enhanced Cadmus.”
Not only the materials and blend are unique, but the Cadmus FE is also a limited edition cable. EA claims that only 100 cables are made, so that makes it a very rare one. The construction and build of the Cadmus FE are fantastically good, with good flexibility and comfort for an 8W cable. It’s identical to the Ares S and Cadmus 8W versions, though it looks very exotic with its blend of wires, compared to the single-color look of the other two.
Cadmus Founder’s Edition Sound
The Cadmus FE is an enhanced Cadmus 8W. With the added gold-plated copper, the sound is richer with better staging and depth, better layering and separation. The mid-range in particular has more vividness, the timbre is more musical and the tonality is more like a HiFi system rather than a studio environment. The mid-bass area has more texture and weight too, which adds more enjoyment to the sound overall.
The texture of the bass is especially noticeable in bass guitar notes, with great detail and resolution. I also liked the thicker notes in the mid-range with vivid vocals and listening to guitar-heavy songs is a blast. This is one of the best cables I’ve used from Effect Audio without a doubt. It’s like a hidden gem if you can find one of course. I’m not sure why the naming was chosen that way, for I think it’s on a different level than the Cadmus 8W.
The sound-stage and layering factors make the Cadmus Founder’s Edition a step above the Signature Series 8W cables, but then the price is much steeper. Unfortunately, the diminishing returns law is once again very present here. However, if you have a budget for great cables, and if you have a high-end IEM, don’t hesitate to get one, if there’s any left!
Cleopatra II OCTA
Replacing the original Cleopatra cable, the new Cleopatra II consist of a dual geometric cable structure, which is finely tuned to optimize the performance of Multi-brid IEMs. With this design, you can expect to experience exceptional clarity and richness in sound quality that is reminiscent of analogue audio. EA used selected premium UP-OCC Silver Litz to craft this cable and the OCTA version has a 26 AWG 8 Wires configuration.
The build quality of the Cleo II Octa is exceptionally good. The braiding is perfectly done and the rest of the cable looks and feels fantastic. The ergonomics are pretty good for a thick 8W cable, and the TermX and ConX options make the cable versatile. You can go for a 4.4 OFC Pentaconn jack with the ”Performance Version”.
Cleopatra II OCTA Sound
The four words that emerged when I was testing the Cleo II Octa were clarity, resolution, sharpness, and imaging. Tonality-wise it’s on the brighter side of things, and I especially noticed that the treble response noticeably improves when I pair my IEMs with the Cleo. The treble is very well extended with a better definition.
The bass is tighter with the Cleo II, even if you pair it with a bass-heavy IEM. You get more control and a better pace. You might feel less impact, but you’ll get tighter decay and response. The mid-range sounds very clean with the Cleo II with great transparency.
The staging performance is holographic, so it’s very good, but not on the same level as the Chiron or Centurion. Those two cost a crazy amount of money so that’s only normal. What Cleo II excels in is detail retrieval, resolution and transparency. In its price range, it’s the king of clarity. The refinement, tightness, micro dynamics, precision, focus and accuracy are all very impressive.
So if resolution, micro details, transparency and focus, together with definition are your priorities, Cleopatra II Octa would impress you. You get a tighter and quicker bass so you might not like that you lose some bass rumble, but you get much better technical performance in the mid-range and the treble.
Conclusion
Effect Audio has been on the move and they keep solidifying themselves in the industry with excellent cables. Their portfolio is now more complicated than ever with many different cables appealing to different budgets and scenarios.
All the cables that I’ve touched upon in this impressions article are very good. But if I have to choose just one, it has to be the Cadmus Founder’s Edition. The fantastic presentation that cable gives simply makes you want to listen to music more. That is special indeed. Big congrats to Suyang for this Limited Edition cable and I feel lucky to have one.
Once again, I recommend checking out Effect Audio if you’re on the lookout for some good cables for your IEMs. Make sure to get good match-ups, and you’ll enjoy the music more.
Page 1: Intro, Ares S 8W, Cadmus 8W
Page 2: Cadmus & Ares S 8W Sound, CODE 23
