A Casual’s Review of NMD Cables’ Nova, Mist, Sakura, and Dusk Premium IEM Cables

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Disclaimer: Please note that I am not an audiophile, and this review does not delve into the technical aspects of the IEMs. My impressions are based on my personal preferences, and others may have different experiences with this product. I also have a very limited experience with audio products so please take this review with a grain of salt.

The NMD Cables Nova, Mist, Sakura, and Dusk were lent to me as part of a review tour in the Philippines.

Pros

  • Looks and feels premium
  • There’s definitely a difference in audio output between each of them

Cons

  • Price
  • Heavy (subjective)
  • The storage case could be bigger to properly fit the thicker cables

Package Inclusions

  • The cable itself
  • A cable strap
  • A round storage case
  • A pouch
  • An aluminum calling card
  • A storage box
Note: For the purpose of lighter shipping, NMD Audio sent 2 storage boxes and 1 storage case instead of 4 of each. Nonetheless when buying the cables from them, you’ll get all of these.

General Usage Impressions

  • All the cables feel weighty and heavy. Since my IEMs are all lightweight, all of the cables feel like they are pulling them out from my ears if they were not sealed well.
  • I like the red and blue strips on the connectors to denote right or left. Very easy to tell which side goes where at a glance.
Storage Case
  • The storage case weighs ~52g with an internal diameter of about 7.3cm.
  • It seems to be a little small for some of the cables, especially the Mist, since it’s pretty thick.

Cable Strap
  • The cable strap is made out of washable kraft paper. I’m not familiar with this material, but I’ve read online that some companies make bags out of this material and it’s safe to machine wash and iron or steam. Not sure if that will fix the creases that were already on them.

Nova - 161 USD / https://nmdaudio.com/products/nova
  • Wire Number: 4 Strands, 21 AWG
  • Material: OCC Silver x 1 (Centre) / Silver-Plated OCC Copper x 2 / OCC Copper x 4
  • Structure: Coaxial Litz Type 2
  • 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿: Gold-plated Tellurium Copper / Rhodium Plated Tellurium Copper
  • 𝗧𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 5u Gold-plated Tellurium Copper
  • Length: 1.2 m
Nova Impressions
  • The Nova cable weighs ~31.6g.
  • Since the cables are pretty thick and don’t bend easily, the earhooks are loose and are not “locked in” behind my ears, which can be annoying at times.
  • Coming from a budget 3.5mm cable, the Moondrop May that I used sounded a tad bit warm, but with the Nova, it not only brightened the vocals, but also boosted the bass! I was pleasantly surprised by the big difference. I like how these are tuned the best!


Mist - 471 USD / https://nmdaudio.com/products/mist
  • Wire Number: 4 strands, 20.5 AWG
  • Material:  Copper & Rare-Earth Element Alloy (Core) / 7N OCC Copper (Shielding Layer)
  • Structure: Coaxial Litz Type 2 wIth Shielding Layer
  • Connector: Gold-plated OFC / Silver-plated OFC
  • Termination: 10u Gold-Plated OFC
  • Length: 1.2 m
Mist Impressions
  • The Mist cable weighs ~41.7g.
  • The earhooks for the Mist are better locked behind my ears compared to the Nova. I think it’s because of how heavy the cables are.
  • Coming from the Nova, the sound these cable changed were the lows to mids. It’s warm, but not as warm as the Nova. The soundstage seems to also have changed, but I can’t put my finger on how.

Sakura - 619 USD / https://nmdaudio.com/products/sakura
  • Wire Number: 4 Strands, 24 AWG
  • Material: Cryogenic Treated 5N OCC Silver
  • Structure: 3 Different Wire Gauges / 4-layer Golden Ratio Structure / Clockwise and Anticlockwise Twisted Layer
  • Connector: Silver-Plated OFC / Gold-Plated OFC
  • Termination: 10u Gold-Plated OFC
  • Length: 1.2 m
Sakura Impressions
  • The Sakura cable weighs ~36g.
  • Similar to the Mist, the earhooks are better locked behind my ears and don’t slip out if I tilt my head to the sides.
  • I also noticed that the soundstage is wider, bass is deeper than the budget 3.5mm cable. The tuning is very neutral and I think will not be fatiguing for long listening sessions.

Dusk - 743 USD / https://nmdaudio.com/products/dusk
  • Wire Number: 4 strands, 19 AWG
  • Material: Cryogenic Treated & Graphene Coated Copper / Silver /Platinum Alloy
  • Structure: Air-Tube Core / Crossed Overlapping Stranded Design
  • Connector: Silver-Plated OFC / Gold-Plated OFC
  • Termination: 10u Gold-Plated OFC
  • Length: 1.2 m
Dusk Impressions
  • The Dusk cable weighs ~44.6g.
  • Same as the Mist and Sakura, the Dusk also are better locked behind my ears due to the wire weight. Unfortunately, being the heaviest of the bunch this one fatigued me the fastest.
  • It sounds almost similar to the Sakura, but has more bass


Final Thoughts

I honestly don’t have any IEMs worthy of these cables, as I only have the Moondrop May and Truthear Hola, both under $70. But since I recently borrowed a Moondrop May, I was able to do an A/B test between the cables

I always thought that cables won’t make much of a difference, as long as they’re all made the same way. NMD Cables proved me wrong by actually making cables that DID make a difference that a casual like me can hear!

And while the price isn’t for everyone, I think these cables are a worthy upgrade down the line for those who are passionate about high fidelity music.