The UE18 Pro: Ultimate Ears Announces Their New Flagship Custom IEM - Page 5

Thanks Jude. What you said causes a big stir in Thailand head-fi group ... orders are on the way

The real question for me is: are these monitors worth $250 more than the JH-13s (and they only come with 1 year of warranty vs. JHAudio's 2-year)?

I'm a bit biased since I just received my JH-13s, but at my present moment in time, something would have to sound insane to be worth $250 more than the 13s, which are incredible. And I got mine for the $950+freeshipping+freecable deal, so the UE18s would actually have to sound $400 better!

I have no idea what the JH16 sounds like, all Jerry has said that is that it's not "better" than the JH13 but instead is orientated towards on stage performers. And that it'll be officially announced sometime in January. I don't know if maybe somebody on here has been able to hear a prototype, or if they would be allowed to say anything if they had.

Yeah, I don't own any of these products although with my tax return coming up I'm keenly interested. But it seems kind of crazy for UE to price these higher than the JH13, even if they are being marketed to a different audience than the JH13 (performers vs audiophiles)... I think between the acquisition by Logitech and Jerry Harvey leaving UE to start his new company, Ultimate Ears really has lost momentum. Even their universals seem to be taking a beating vs their competitors offerings. Clearly, Jerry Harvey is not the only person in this world capable of designing a high end IEM but he does seem to have something of a Rockstar status in regards to his IEM designs, and I think Logitech needs to be pricing their products more aggressively to keep from losing ground. But what do I know.

The ue18's from what I read are the bass lovers iem of choice at least until we get reviews on the jh-16 for neutrality and accuracy it sounds like the jh-13 would be your iem of choice for now.

Hard to put a price on subjective preferences but there is a definite value in a longer warranty.

Damn it. I have avoided coming to Head-Fi for months because of the hurt this forum has caused my wallet. Then today when I decide to check it for the first time in a while, I see this news. WHY? I have the UE-11's and got them a year ago and was resisting the JH-13's, now I have something else to resist. I really like UE stuff but I also want to check out JH products. Decisions, decisions...

Based on Jude impression... is this the time for me to hop onto the custom wagon!?

As i always like the UE11, JH11 sound. JH13 sounds too neutral to me. Hmm...

EDIT: Never mind i saw this. Maybe i will still go for JH11, UE11.

I would get a custom IEM but TBH I dislike having something so portable. Doesn't make any sense but oh well Also getting them remolded every so often would be annoying.

Oh Lordy...

Now I'll have to think about a UE18Pro vs JH16Pro review? duloop, bleep, urgh...

That's some serious coin to layout for a review. I suggest doing both

Was there any mention of the 18s to be geared toward the inclinations of "professional musicians"? The JH16 seems to have been justified in that department.

You can't hear reviews. You'll only know which you prefer once you've heard them both and can come to your own conclusions.

It's just a number. It doesn't mean anything.

That sound you read above was my brain just resetting. But my wallet is still getting CPR. Buying the Woo WES almost killed it, plus $500 in car repairs and two kids getting $600 in Lacrosse gear is just icing on the cake. Our upcoming tax refund will only pay off half the credit cards now when usually it pays off 90%, so I may end up selling off a bit of lesser gear if I do become deranged enough to consider this. But then there would be no decent phono stage for the NAD/Ortofon vinyl rig, and no Cullen mods for the PS Audio DAC, etc.

Ah, the joys of money

I really don't mean any offense by this (in a personal way), despite how it might sound, but seriously: what do you (or any of us) know about UE's business that would allow you (or any of us) to substitute your judgment for theirs in terms of how to set prices? Don't you think they would have done some market research on the matter? Don't you think they have a pretty good feel for the profile (and thus price sensitivity) of the average customer who might seriously consider purchasing a pair of UE18 Pro? Is $1,350 a completely out of the ballpark figure, given that they've had success with the UE10 Pro and UE 11 Pro at not too distant price points, and that the UE18 Pro appears to represent a sizable leap forward in design? Quite frankly, $1,350 seems just about right to me in this market space, and $1,500 wouldn't have surprised me one bit.

Perhaps they've lost some momentum, or at least that may be our perception of the matter, but I certainly haven't had the opportunity to analyze the trend of their sales figures relative to those of their competitors. They might be doing just fine. It may well be that we're more "in the know" (as audiophiles who follow this kind of thing as hobbyists) concerning what other products are available in this market segment than are most of UE's bread and butter customers. They may get a lot of sales based on their reputation, recommendations from one musician to another, brand loyalty of long standing customers, etc. As I mentioned, I don't have any of that data at my disposal.