Review: Shure SE530

[LFC_SL]

Notwithstanding tragedy befalling my UM2s, I am personally reluctant to buy another universal IEM, especially after seeing the light at the end of the tunnel that are full sized cans. I stumbled in here out of curiosity

Reading your review, it would appear you share the same thoughts re: E4 bass (you countered with EQ). But then with the SE530s you had to undo your EQ settings, so that is a good indication

And your comments about tips are so true. Amazing the impact it can have. I am rocking the "Olives" on my UM2s currently

[redaxis]

This could have discussed before and maybe im in the wrong place, but since this is se530 review so i guess there are many se530 users seeing this page.

I wonder how you guys take care of the cables? I heard even the newer se530 cables still prone to stiffening due to human body oil then crack. How you guys clean them? Came accross some suggestions cleaning them with car care products for vynil, rubber, or leather. I've tried Lexol's Vinylex on my E4c, it did the opposite, it hardens the cable further! Now my E4c cracked and i've ordered a new se530, I'd like to baby it from the first day using it. Please share if any of u guys have some good way taking care of the cables.

[fabianwseko]

Great Review!!!

[silverskull]

awesome review!love the mids on my 530's.long live 530's!

[grumpyoldman]

Just came across this lovely review, too late for me, as I got the 530s a month ago. Very accurate description! I listned to them un-amped till 10 days ago, now using the Shadow (RSA), that brings out the real potential of this little beauties! I Think where they really excel is the reproduction of the human voice, male or female, on good recordings it is mind blowing, my only chance to go to concerts these days.....

To hijack this thread, I cleaned them a couple of days ago and for the first time noticed that the casing is actually open, between the black part and the bronce part there is a tiny gap (below 1mm) just wide enough to get the wire in....and grime! Is this a vent? I guess it is a good idea to keep you bodily secretions out of there.......

[grumpyoldman]

I forgot......I was not soooo convinced with the bass listening to my ipod classic and my MacBook Pro (hissing!) and with the shadow, there is a lot of deep down bass, that I never heard before. On most tracks I am sorted in the bass department, for bass heavy tracks the ipod does not cut it, it gets muddy but all that low bass still sounds sahrp(ish) and very punchy from the MacBook Pro....

[s1rrah]

Originally Posted by grumpyoldman

I forgot......I was not soooo convinced with the bass listening to my ipod classic and my MacBook Pro (hissing!) and with the shadow, there is a lot of deep down bass, that I never heard before. On most tracks I am sorted in the bass department, for bass heavy tracks the ipod does not cut it, it gets muddy but all that low bass still sounds sahrp(ish) and very punchy from the MacBook Pro....

I haven't had my 530's for a long time now ... sold them ... but what I do remember is that the bass is very dynamic in regards to what tips you use. I found the "yellow squishies" to be the best in regards to bass performance. They were a bit more "tight" and "taught" sounding whereas the black "olives" were a bit more "muddy"/"woolen" sounding. But then again, that's just my own ears talking ...

Have fun.

I *do* miss those headphones, however ... daily ... a great set ot IEM's ... wish I'd never sold them!

[grumpyoldman]

I use the memory foam tips, but I heard now several times the yellow tips are better/different....will try them, as I need constant new ones anyway..grrrrr

BTW, how do the SE530s compare to your grown up cans? I am thinking of buying some cans, to gain soundstage, but....since I can not spend thousands of USDs, what will I loose?

[s1rrah]

Originally Posted by grumpyoldman

I use the memory foam tips, but I heard now several times the yellow tips are better/different....will try them, as I need constant new ones anyway..grrrrr

BTW, how do the SE530s compare to your grown up cans? I am thinking of buying some cans, to gain soundstage, but....since I can not spend thousands of USDs, what will I loose?

Compared to my "grown up" cans?

The SE530's were still my fav for certain times/moments.

Really ... I have Grado GS1000's and a pair of Shure SRH840's and the SE530's were every bit as mature, detailed and amazing as either of those two full sized headphones.

Don't get me wrong ... when i put the GS1000's on, I very often think my desktop speakers are still playing ... the sound stage and imaging is just freakishly bad ass. This is something that I can't live without and no IEM will ever approach it.

But that said ...

I found the SE530's to be just as enjoyable if only for the fact that they were nearly as detailed/revealing as my Grados ... but were just crazy good at isolating and shutting out the rest of the world. Something I found just as intriguing and lovely as I do great imaging and sound stage.

So long story short ... I considered the SE530's to be a seriously important headphone in my smallish arsenal and I regret selling them to this day. I'll eventually buy another pair.

On another note ... like I said, I have recently bought a pair of the new "closed" back headphones from Shure ... the SRH840's and I quite like them. If I had to compare them to one of the Shure IEM's, I'd most likely say they sound most like the E4C series of IEM's from Shure. Very "flat" and accurate across the board without the slightly exagerrated bass of the SE530's ... but what bass is there is very very well portrayed. The 840's are quite obviously a "pro audio" headphone. They sound like the many times I've sat in a studio and listened to engineers master tracks. Some folks might call this unexciting but it is still, in the end, a very accurate and true sound that Shure has come up with in their new flagship full sized can. They compliment the far more colored, more "flamboyant" Grado GS1000's very very nicely. And the isolation on the 840's is stellar.

Anyway. Rock on.

.joel

[grumpyoldman]

Hello joel,

seriously good advice.....I was thinking of getting some closed cans, for my good and in the best interest of my surrounding.....I was thinking of Beyer DT250, Sennheisers HD250 pro or Audiotechnika ATH m50, seems like the shure are in the same price and similar performance bracket.....the iems analyzed the tracks very good, I just want some cans for a greater soundstage, and fun....so I thought the DT250 might deliver that most, but i will look around (and listen out!) it is amazing that the "pro" models (like the sure you mentioned) come down in price to become affordable , but i guess for soundstage I better had gone for some open cans, which I cant really, so I have take some compromise....I bet in the end I get some closed cans just to decide I prefer the Se530s anyway, wast of money, but the time is better spend than many other hobbies one might have!

Cheers josip

[s1rrah]

Originally Posted by grumpyoldman

Hello joel,

seriously good advice.....I was thinking of getting some closed cans, for my good and in the best interest of my surrounding.....I was thinking of Beyer DT250, Sennheisers HD250 pro or Audiotechnika ATH m50, seems like the shure are in the same price and similar performance bracket.....the iems analyzed the tracks very good, I just want some cans for a greater soundstage, and fun....so I thought the DT250 might deliver that most, but i will look around (and listen out!) it is amazing that the "pro" models (like the sure you mentioned) come down in price to become affordable , but i guess for soundstage I better had gone for some open cans, which I cant really, so I have take some compromise....I bet in the end I get some closed cans just to decide I prefer the Se530s anyway, wast of money, but the time is better spend than many other hobbies one might have!

Cheers josip

Just a little word on the "fun" open headphone question ...

I certainly would not say that the SRH840's fall very much in the "fun" category. Much more appropriate to say they fall in the "accurate" category. They sound like headphones that an audio engineer would really love (and a certain sort of "audiophile" that can appreciate accuracy of sonics, myself being one such lover of music).

That said, I prefer listening to my more "fun" GS1000's as they are more uniquely riveting due to their personality and coloration.

If you want a very nice and decently priced closed headphone that is a hell of a lot of "fun" to listen too then perhaps demo/consider some Denon D2000's over the SRH840's ... better yet, get them both in your house and let your ears make the final conclusion.

Best.

.joel

[grumpyoldman]

Hello Joel,

I must be what you call an an audiophile.....bought the 840s, and I love em. The soundstage is much wider compared to the SE530s, but I don't know if that makes sense, they also are less "precise", in locating sources and in clarity. There is like a slight mist on the sound (compared to SE530s). I find the sound of the 840s very laid back, it is relaxing to listen to them, and to my ears they have more bass than the 530s, but that may be influenced by ear channels, mine are very narrow, even the smallest foams are tight....However, the bass son the 530s is more precise, faster, punchier....also the mids are soo much clearer on the 530s, the feeling of a human voice singing right behind you is much more real. On the other side I find the 530s more engaging, so it is very nice to switch to the 840, till the ears get warm....

I also found the SE530s in combination with the MacBook Pro and shadow sometimes a bit cold and analytical, the iPod classic with shadow is better (except for bass heavy tracks, lacking in precision), however the 840 sound better with the MacBook and the shadow for all tracks I tried so far......they sound absolute amazing with my old archos 40GB player, very punchy and loads of fun!

I had the chance to compare the sound to some Bose headphones (on my iPod) I guess they had a bit more to offer in the bass department (OTT imho), but not nearly the precision of the 530s or even the 840s in the mid-range, but listenable, fun, as you said before, but what do I do with female voices? Preferred the 840 any time...then I tried QuietComfort® 3 from bose....very impressive on Superstition......till you hear Stevie sing, they are soooo in you face and artificial , I could not listen to them.....

So overall, the 840 keep me happy, but I would on balance prefer the SE530s (if I had to choose one....and only one) because they are are clearer, have a decent bass, but mainly because they do sooooo much for the mids, vocals, saxophones, cellos, etc, in combination with good recordings and sources.