Sennheiser PC37X randomly goes bad after disconnecting the cable ?
Greetings, Yesterday I was using my headset like normal with my macbook, just listening to music and on a call with people like usual, and the headset was perfectly fine. The stock wire that came with the headset is extremely long and yesterday it annoyed me very much that it kept getting tangled with itself, so I decided to see if the cable is replaceable. I pulled out the cable from the headset and saw the adapter, and looked online for a replacement. Upon plugging it back in, the audio sounded extremely muffled and washed out. Im not sure what I did wrong to make it mess up like that as I've always taken good care of it, ive had it for about 2 years and its always just been chilling on my desk, but anywho I thought the cable just went bad and ordered a replacement. The replacement came, and the issue is still persistant, so I am not sure what the issue is I've tried multiple different headsets and the issue is not with the port, and I also tried it with my windows laptop and...
Apr 23, 2024
As far as cables go, I think as long as you have a decent IEC cable (I would go 14 gauge or better), you should be fine. I have never gotten to do tests of very expensive power cables, but I have my doubts. I also believe that tests on components that really shouldn't be having a huge effect should be done double-blind. People want expensive things to sound better, that's just how it is. That said, I think it's possible for expensive IEC cables to make a difference, but I'll be a bit skeptical until I have the chance to do some experiments for myself. For the USB cable, just get something that's not $.99 crap, especially since the WA7's DAC is powered via USB (at least in the non TOSLINK version). Maybe a cheap "audio-grade" USB cable might be good (like an AudioQuest Forest) would be worth it, but I can't say for sure. The only thing I can imagine making a noticeable difference is if the power conductor has a bit of extra insulation between it and the data conductors.
A better place to spend money (if you use the built-in DAC) though would be something to isolate your computer's ground (something like a Schiit Wyrd, HiFimeDIY USB isolator). These devices create a new ground so that your DAC doesn't use the dirty one from your computer (the Wyrd actually has its own power supply, so your DAC does not use any power from the computer's USB port). I once ran the DAC in my WA7 off a laptop, and with my normal charger, it was fine, but then I used my friends charger, which had a ground loop problem, and the noise was absolutely awful. Before I figured out what was going on, I was worried that my DAC was damaged. I've now stopped using the WA7's DAC, since I have a Grace m920 which I've read isolates its USB connection's ground, so I probably don't need an isolator anymore, but I would definitely recommend it for someone using the WA7's USB input.