Penon HiFi Balanced Adapter Cable Review

About Penon Audio:

Penon Audio is a well known Hong Kong based online store that is selling portable Hi-Fi equipments, desktop type DAC’s and Amplifiers.

Disclaimer:

The Penon HiFi Balanced Adapter was provided to me by Penon Audio for review purposes. I am not affiliated with Penon Audio or any third person beyond this review and all these words reflect my true and unaltered, opinions about the product.

The Price:

The Penon HiFi Balanced Adapter Cable is a “Penon Exclusive” product and is available with the following connector variants;

• 4.4mm Balanced Male to 2.5mm Balanced Female
• 2.5mm Balanced Male to 4.4mm Balanced Female
• 2.5mm Balanced Male to 3.5mm Balanced Female
• 3.5mm Balanced Male to 4.4mm Balanced Female
• 3.5mm Balanced Male to 2.5mm Balanced Female
• 3.5mm Audio Male to 4.4mm Balanced Female
• 3.5mm Audio Male to 3.5mm Balanced Female
• 3.5mm Audio Male to 2.5mm Balanced Female

The price of the adapters varies between 28.90 – 29.90 USD (4.4mm adapters costing 1,00 USD more).

The purchase links for these adapters is bellow;

https://penon-official.com/product/penon-hifi-balanced-adapter-cable/

Package and Accessories:

The Penon HiFi Balanced Adapter Cable comes in a plastic box which has a sticker on the top that shows the “Penon” branding, the illustration of the adapter and some technical detail of the actual product.

At the backside of the box is a second sticker that shows the available adaptor variants and the adapter which has been purchased.

Inside the box are the following items;

• 1 pcs x Penon HiFi Balanced Adapter Cable
• 1 pcs x Penon Velvet Pouch

Technical Specifications:

• Material: 8 shares 19 cores silver plated OCC wire (Single Crystal Copper)
• Plug: 2.5mm balanced, 3.5mm Balanced, 4.4mm Balanced, 3.5mm Unbalanced (Gold Plated)
• Cable Length: 8-9cm

Design and Build Quality:

The Penon HiFi Balanced Adapter Cable for Earbuds, IEM’s, DAC’s, DAP’s and Amplifiers.

The cable is made of 3 parts; the male connector (headphone plug), the OCC wire and the female connector.

The cable of the adapter has a braided design and is made of silver plated OCC wire which is a Single Crystal Copper material. This cable features 8 cores and each core has 19 strands.

The cable wires have a nice TPU insulation which is transparent.

The sample I have received has a 4.4mm Pentaconn Balanced male headphone plug and a 2.5mm balanced female connector. The connectors and plugs are protected with a nice CNC machined metal housings.

Each of them features a transparent plastic strain relief for extra protection.

The cable is 8-9cm long and is showing a great craftsmanship.

Equipments used for this review:

• Adaptors       : Penon HiFi 4.4mm/2.5mm Balanced Adapter Cable, Astrotec AT-P02     
•                          4.4mm/2.5mm adaptor, MEE audio 4.4mm/2.5mm Adaptor
• Cables            : DUNU Hulk and iBasso IT01S cable with 2.5mm Balanced Plug
• DAPs/DACs    : Sony WM1A, FiiO Q5s
• IEM’s              : iBasso IT01S, HiFiMAN RE2000

Short Comparisons:

I have read before that adaptors are showing differences in sound performance and indeed there are differences between other adaptors. Now I want make some short comparisons with the Astrotec AT-P02 4.4mm and MEE audio 4.4mm adaptor.

Penon HiFi Adaptor:

The Penon HiFi adaptor shows the highest transparency and clarity level among those three adaptors. It has a slightly better instrument separation than the Astrotec AT-P02 adaptor. The midrange sounds crisper than the AT-P02 and has less warmth and body compared to the MEE Audio adaptor.

MEE audio Adaptor:

The MEE audio 4.4mm adaptor has a tad warmer and fuller tonality compared to the Penon HiFi and Astrotec AT-P02 adapters. It sounds slightly less crisp than the Penon HiFi adaptor and is fuller in the midrange compared to the Astrotec AT-P02. The MEE audio adapter has the smoothest treble presentation.

Astrotec AT-P02 Adaptor:

The Astrotec AT-P02 adaptor is a tad warmer in tonality compared to the Penon HiFi adaptor and shows a slightly better instrument separation than the MEE audio adaptor. The AT-P02 has a tad more midbass impact than the Penon HiFi adaptor but is slightly less in quantity compared to the MEE audio adapter.

Conclusion:

The Penon HiFi Balanced Adapter Cable is a nice looking and very well made adaptor solution that you can use with your Earbuds, In-Ear Monitors, Digital Audio Players, DAC’s (Digital to Analog Converters) and/or Amplifiers.

Pros and Cons:

• + Lots of Adaptor Variants
• + Great Build Quality and Appearance
• + Nice Velvet Carry Pouch

• – None