I bought this with some trepidation to replace the stock cable on my Final Audio B1 IEMS. The stock cable was uncomfortable over my ears from day one, it always held the coiled shape that it got from being stored, which caused it to rub annoyingly against my face & eyeglasses. Worse, it was clear/bright silver & in less than one year, it was beginning to stain yellow in some areas, which I thought looked disgusting. The B1s sounded great, though & Final Audio gave considerable credit for that sound to their cable... so I was afraid to change it.
This Fortitude is the softest, most supple cable I've ever seen. It is incredibly comfortable & hangs completely loose. The casing is clear, but obviously the wire is copper, so staining should be less of a problem. I'm extremely happy, based on those merits alone.
What I was not expecting, however, is that all of the hype I've read about the way these cables improve sound turns out to be absolutely true. The B1 is my favorite IEM because of its bass. It produces such a laid-back, bassy sound, though, that I was a little afraid that if the reviews were not exaggerated, the B1s might actually become too dark with this Fortitude cable. No way, though -- the bass improved. It hits harder, the response is quicker & the soundstage is indeed slightly wider with more air up top, as well. It didn't darken anything. Horns & male vocals, in particular, are richer & more lifelike, now. The background is even blacker & honestly, the B1 has always had a SOMEWHAT blob-ish soundstage (it improves after break-in), where the sound can seem to be congregated in three general areas. This cable remedies that problem very noticeably, dispersing the soundstage elegantly in most recordings.
To my surprise & my delight, the B1's mids & highs were not affected at all to my ear, which is perfect, because they always sounded great.
Since I bought the B1s, I've sold every other IEM I've ever had. Unfortunately, that means I can only testify to the quality of this cable in one application. I know those IEMs very, very well, though, & they sound spectacular. This cable clearly improved them. That says a lot. I would recommend the Fortitude cable without reservation. In fact, I think it's a bargain.
