Pair up.

Here is how I hear 3Cu pairs up with different IEMs and compares to corresponding stock cables.

64 Audio U18t w/M20

Stock SPC to 3Cu – soundstage gets a little wider as well as deeper. Right away you can hear and feel a deeper bass with more sub-bass rumble and bigger mid-bass impact. Lower mids have a little more body as well, while upper mids pushed a little back, not as forward as with the original cable or any other cable. Treble has a little more sparkle and a little better definition. With mids being pushing a little back, the sound is slightly more v-shaped, and with soundstage changes I also feel the sound being a little more out of my head with a bit less intimacy in comparison to a stock cable.

64 Audio Fourte

Stock SPC to 3Cu – Typically, many aftermarket cables I tried with Fourte make it only brighter, thus I don’t mind using Fourte with a stock cable which doesn’t push its vivid tonality over the top. While going from Stock SCP to 3Cu, you don’t notice as much of a change in a soundstage because Fourte has a very wide staging to begin with. But you do hear an improved transparency and improved retrieval of details (some serious micro-detail retrieval). Where I hear the most difference is in a little beefier low end, as expected, with deeper and more textured sub-bass extension. Lower mids are a little less congested (in comparison) and upper mids have a more natural transparent tonality. Treble has more airiness and better definition, being even more crisp and vivid. In comparison to other aftermarket cables, 3Cu still takes an edge of Fourte brighter top end. But if you absolutely want a smoother top end at the expense of analytical micro-details, stock cable is still the way to go.

Noble K10UA

Stock SPC to 3Cu – Interesting pair up where in comparison I don’t hear as much difference in soundstage expansion, it’s on a similar level. Also, I found that bass doesn’t sound deeper with 3Cu, but overall bass is more articulate and tighter, perhaps due to a little shorter decay which gives bass more control. Lower mids are the same, while upper mids/treble have a more natural, more organic tonality yet at the same time have a better definition and even improved retrieval of details. I hear treble being less splashy here as well. It’s not exactly a night’n’day difference, more of a subtle refinement, but it’s noticeable since the top end sounds more natural now. I also want to add that color of 3Cu cable matches great the rose-gold finish of K10UA shell.

Empire Ears Legend X

Ares II to 3Cu – Another very interesting pair up because LX comes standard with EA’s Ares II pure copper cable. In this pair up between two cables the soundstage is nearly the same. But to my very big surprise, I hear an improvement in bass presentation. While you still get a very deep textured rumble, the mid-bass is more controlled and has a little less impact, making it more balanced with the rest of the frequency spectrum. I guess, going from a pure copper to a copper enhanced with other materials does affect the mid-bass impact, as well as tightening it up so there is no spillage into lower mids, and I preferred 3Cu in this pair up. Upper mids have a natural detailed tonality, though a little brighter, and the same with a treble where I hear a little brighter tonality with some improvement in definition.

HiFiMAN RE2000

Stock SPC to 3Cu – In this comparison I find soundstage expansion to be nearly the same, very wide and open. But when it comes to the bass, the difference is more noticeable with a deeper sub-bass and more mid-bass impact, where the bass is slightly more elevated now. Lower mids are still neutral, while upper mids have a little more body and sound more natural to my ears. It’s still as revealing as with a stock cable, but just a little more natural in comparison. Treble has more sparkle, more airiness, and overall being more vivid, but surprising not harsher as I would have expected.

Comparison.

In this test, I wanted to hear how 3Cu compares to other premium cables, using SP1000 SS as a source.

w/64 Audio Fourte:

EA Horus vs 3Cu – the same soundstage expansion, 3Cu bass goes deeper with more sub-bass rumble, while mid-bass impact is similar. Mids with 3Cu have a little more body with a little more natural tonality, while Horus adds more microscopic analytical details and has a little more air between the layers. Treble is very similar, crisp, vivid. 3Cu is not going to change Fourte tonality drastically, but it can fine tune it, taking the edge off analytical retrieval of details in favor of a little smoother and more natural tonality of mids.

PWA 1960 2wire vs 3Cu – 1960 has a little wider soundstage, the common trend of 1960 cables. With bass, 3Cu adds a little more body to sub-bass rumble and a little boost in mid-bass impact, very slight though. The big difference here is in presentation of mids, where with 2wire mids are more forward and brighter, while with 3Cu they are slightly pushed back and a little smoother in tonality. Fourte mids are micro-detailed and even so you are losing a little bit of that analytical edge with 3Cu, mids are still very revealing. 2wire treble is a little crisper and has more airiness, while 3Cu takes the edge of that vivid definition, still crisp and revealing but a little more controlled.

w/64 Audio U18t:

EA Horus vs 3Cu – very similar soundstage expansion, perhaps with Horus having just a little edge in width, though I’m thinking it could be a perception due to more airiness in that pair up. With 3Cu you can hear a deeper sub-bass and a little more mid-bass impact. Lower mids have a touch more body and upper mids are smoother and more organic in comparison to a more layered, more revealing mids with Horus pair up. Treble also has more control with 3Cu, well defined but with a little less sparkle and airiness, while treble with Horus has more airiness, more crunch/sparkle, and higher definition. While I preferred 3Cu over Horus in pair up with Fourte, here is the opposite way, where I liked more analytical retrieval of details with Horus, but 3Cu is a great option for anybody who wants a smoother U18t upper frequencies.

EA Lionheart vs 3Cu – very similar soundstage expansion in this comparison. While both have nearly the same mid-bass impact, I can hear 3Cu going a little deeper with more sub-bass rumble. Mids have a lot of similarities, with a little difference in presentation where 3Cu brings them a little forward while Lionheart pushes mids slightly back. Bigger difference here is in treble where 3Cu has more sparkle and more airiness while Lionheart is smoother in comparison. It’s still very well defined and crisp, but 3Cu gives a sound more airiness and more crunch. Here, I liked pair up with 3Cu better per my personal taste, but for those who still think that U18t TIA treble needs to be tamed a little bit down, Lionheart is a better solution.

Conclusion.

What I like about PlusSound Tri-Copper cable is that it offers a different sound characteristic relative to other cables in my review collection. 3Cu adds more rumble to the sub-bass in comparison to other cables, and in general beefs up the bass, giving low end a little more body. With mids, it takes some edge off the revealing tonality, making them sound a little smoother and more natural. And when it comes to treble, I noticed more airiness and crisper definition. This particular sound characteristic works quite well with brighter tuned and more mid-forward IEMs, making them a little less fatigue.

Of course, don’t expect a cable to change the tuning of your IEM if the sound signature is not right to begin with. But from my experience, cables can fine-tune the sound, helping you reach that sweet spot of sound perfection. Plus, in addition to unique sound characteristic, EXO Tri-Copper cable has a very good ergonomics, feels comfortable to wear, has great built quality, and Christian is a pleasure to deal with.