ddHIFI RC20A RCA Cables – 40 Centimeters Of Pure Sound
ddHIFI RC20A is a $79 USD pair of interconnect cables designed to go typically from the DAC to the AMP of your choice, and to be a better option than using the basic entry-level options that you can typically grab. Today we will review them, and see if they bring in any changes to the sound compared to the AmazonBasics RCA Cable (15 USD).
Introduction
ddHIFI is a company specialized in designing micro accessories for audio, and portables, and the RC20A cable we are reviewing today stands to bring a more stylish, cleaner look to your setup, and also to improve the sound of your setup at the same time. With most setups that would even need an interconnect costing upwards of a couple hundred US Dollars, it is good to see an option that can be bought in either 20cm or 40cm, and which is affordable. To give you some idea of how easy it is to purchase ddHIFI, we have currently working shop links for AVstore, Aliexpress, Amazon and even seen them pop up at Walmart. As an Amazon Influencer, I earn from qualifying purchases, and using the purchase links in my reviews helps me maintain this website and YouTube channel.
I’d like to thank ddHIFI for providing the sample for this review, in exchange for my honest opinion. This review is a description of my personal experience.
Product Link
You can grab one from www.amazon.com here – https://amzn.to/3SHcE7w
If you’re in the UK, you can grab one from www.amazon.co.uk here – https://amzn.to/48nVRw1
And if you’re from Europe, you can grab one from www.amazon.de here – https://amzn.to/42Hn4bM
Build Quality/Aesthetics
Whenever you get a new headphone amplifier, separate from the DAC, you get to ask yourself if you need a good interconnect to pair the two, and most of the time, you’ll just get the most affordable option, sometimes even dollar store cables, as most of them can theoretically do the job just fine. This being said, setups made like this tend to look quite unappealing and it ends up cluttering your home and desk with either cables which are longer than you need, and sometimes with cables that do not perform sonically as you may desire.
Although an interconnect would theoretically be filtered by the 10 kOHM impedance at the amplifier side, some cables are made in such a way that they can affect the sound, by reducing the dynamics, resolution or even being prone to EMI nor electromagnetic interference, and it would be rather hubris to get a high-end system and see the performance being kept down by a short interconnect cable because you didn’t want invest a couple of dollars more, so here’s where ddHIFI comes in handy. There are companies that will make you a custom interconnect, but most of the time it will be for more than what ddHIFI is selling their RC20A cables for.
The construction of the RC20A is solid, they have high-end RCA connectors, and the connector doesn’t have that outer jacket that we typically see with cables, instead finishing the entire connector and stress relief inside of RC20A, and leaving an arc-shaped termination at the connector side. The internal construction of the RC20A cables is also interesting, we have three strands of PCOCC Copper, with individual shielding for each. The copper wires are AWG23, and on the outside we have silver plated OFC, above which we have a PVC jacket.
The grounding plates on RC20A are dust proof and are far less prone to oxidation, so the whole connector looks hidden, with just the central pole being visible. Both the Grounding plates and the main signal core are made of pure copper, and they are electroplated with pure 24K Gold for the best conductivity. The two lengths available for RC20A are 40CM and 20CM, with the 20CM variant being more recommended if your devices are rather thin, and the one I have is the 40 Cm variant as I have too many devices to test and wanted to make sure that RC20A will fit in for future reviews as well.
There is separate color coding for the cables, Black and RED so you don’t have to keep track, in case the RCA plugs on your DAC and AMPs are not easily visible. With a special high-temperature resistant insulating resin inner cover, you can be sure that even for AMPS and DACs that do get hot, the cables will remain untouched for years to come. The cables have an aluminum alloy double-color metal shell. There seems to be no talk in the technical data, but at the middle of the cables, there is a golden ring, which does not seem to serve any function purpose, although it does seem to give structural integrity to the cable braiding and offers a tiny accent which makes the cable look even cooler.
To test the RC20A, I have used a multitude of setups, including FiiO K11 feeding a JDS Labs Atom AMP+ Hevi, HIFIMAN EF600 feeding a Feliks Echo 2 Tube Amplifier, an Aune S9C PRO DAC feeding an Aune S17 PRO Headphone Amplifier, a FiiO K9 PRO ESS DAC feeding an SMSL AO200 MKII Speaker Amplifier, a JDS Labs Element III MK2 Boosted feeding a Keces S300+ Stereo Amplifier, a HIFIMAN Golden Wave Serenade DAC feeding a HIFIMAN Goldenwave Prelude Headphone Amplifier, and an Audio Analogue AAdac feeding a Violectric HPA V340 Headphone Amplifier. I have used the RC20A interconnect cable for most of my amplifier reviews since early 2023, when I received it, as it is more conveninent to plug in on my desk compared to other interconnects that I have up to this point.
In every single situation, the sound has been perfect, the cables are flexible, the connectors are tight, but won’t pull out the RCA plugs from your source and amplifier, and the color coding is useful.
As the cable will be at the back of your device, getting the shorter variant won’t be an issue if your devices are not too thick, and the cable itself blends in nicely with my white desk. There is no interference and no sonic issue with the cable, and nothing that I can complain about, plus it comes in a nice package.
Sound Quality
With audio cables, there is always the hesitation to talk about sonic quality, and especially with an interconnect such as ddHIFI RC20A, there isn’t much to talk about the sonic quality. It basically does what it is supposed to do, provides a transparent, clean signal with no alternation that I can notice, and with a perfectly linear response to the signal.
This is to be expected, but it has excellent dynamics, transparency and won’t affect the soundstage, tonality or overall presentation of the system it is implemented in, having more or less the same sound as most interconnects which are not humoristically cheap. I did get to test the RC20A against a 10 USD interconnect RCA cable I could find locally in a store, and the sound difference was quite evident, the cheaper hama interconnect crushing the dynamics, having a lower resolution and somehow making the whole setup sound duller and less engaging.
Comparing the RC20A to an AmazonBasics cable, the sound is great for both, although for the most rigorous of listeners, you will notice a slightly warmer sound coming from the ddHIFI Cables, a slightly smoother treble, and a slightly better dynamic and clarity. I also noticed a slightly lower noise floor, but the most important difference would be that the Amazon Basics cable pulls quite strongly on the RCA plugs of most devices, almost breaking them, while RC20A has just the right amount of tension to feel secure, but doesn’t force the RCA connectors of the host device in any way.
While the differences between interconnects are not huge, if you spent hundreds or thousands of USD to make a good system and really invested in every other component, it is worth getting a proper interconnect as well, even if just for the peace of mind and to find the best resolution, dynamic range and clarity possible.
If you want a slightly smoother and warmer sound cable, but with a higher dynamic and a more engaging presentation, ddHIFI RC20A can provide that nicely, while AmazonBasics will offer a colder, more neutral sound, but for a more affordable price. The differences in build are evident, and RC20A just looks much better for a high-end setup, but it is not long enough to be used for a subwoofer, although ddHIFI makes a separate cable for subwoofers too.
Value and Conclusion
At the end of the day, for 79 USD, you can get a high quality interconnect which will give you peace of mind that the signal is not getting affected, that there is no interference, and which looks really nice, so if you’re looking for an affordable way of improving your current setup, I fully recommend getting ddHIFI RC20A as the link between your DAC and your AMP.
Product Link
You can grab one from www.amazon.com here – https://amzn.to/3SHcE7w
If you’re in the UK, you can grab one from www.amazon.co.uk here – https://amzn.to/48nVRw1
And if you’re from Europe, you can grab one from www.amazon.de here – https://amzn.to/42Hn4bM
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Full Playlist used for this review
We listened to more songs than those named in this playlist, but those are excellent for identifying a sonic signature. I recommend trying most of the songs from this playlist, especially if you’re searching for new music! The playlists are different for Spotify, Tidal and Youtube, and based on the songs I enjoy and are available on each!
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_cjBXGmwSHSdGcwuc_bKbBDGHL4QvYBu
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5J3oloz8Riy9LxEGenOjQ0?si=979ba4f082414be7
https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/330fd544-8e5b-4839-bd35-676b2edbb3d5
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