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userfriendly said:

Here's a suggestion:
Add an update log, showing the dates each IEM was added.

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There is a date (month/year) in each review as well as dates for the most recent additions in the table of contents.

 
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7swell said:

Does that imply that the SE215 is not a good choice? I was considering getting it as a backup IEM because the $100 price tag isn't bad at all, but it seems you weren't impressed. Ah well, looking forward to the review.

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No.. I think someone commented that the SE535 sounded dull but I thought it sounded very lively and dynamic next to the SE215. 
 

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ljokerl said:

Meelec A151 single/bi/tri-flange tips should fit but of course the A151 came out long after the PL50 so I'm not sure anyone has tried the tip combination. I think T200s from Comply will fit also but you may want to search through the long PL50 threads for confirmation.

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i checked the meelec site, but looks they dont sell tips for a151?
 

 
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ljokerl said:

No.. I think someone commented that the SE535 sounded dull but I thought it sounded very lively and dynamic next to the SE215. 
 

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I'm pretty sure I listened to the SE215 at the same time, or SE4XX, it had the same body shape as the SE535.
 
I A/B'd them and they sounded 100% identical, and both sounded rather dull, so after due consideration I think I must have been auditioning fakes in that store, and have never heard a real SE535, so I take back my comments.
 
I also auditioned an SE210 in that store and it sounded nothing like the previous time I had heard an SE210, much to my confusion...
The people working there were very nice and customer-service oriented, and I thought it must have just been a bad fit or I had a cold, but nah... terrible store... seems like I've never heard a genuine shure, except the SE210.

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pianist said:

Well, different strokes for different folks. Seems like |Joker| just doesn't like Shure sound signature. There are many other people who don't like it and that's fine. That doesn't mean Shure is no good of course. I personally love the Shure signature lush midrange, rich, textured, laid back sound. I thought all Shure IEMs I tried - and I tried almost all of them - sound great. They are not for those who like a sharp aggressive sound, but rather for those who prefer a rich, somewhat dark, laid back listening experience.
 

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Intersting.
 
 

 
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pianist said:

Well, different strokes for different folks. Seems like |Joker| just doesn't like Shure sound signature. There are many other people who don't like it and that's fine. That doesn't mean Shure is no good of course. I personally love the Shure signature lush midrange, rich, textured, laid back sound. I thought all Shure IEMs I tried - and I tried almost all of them - sound great. They are not for those who like a sharp aggressive sound, but rather for those who prefer a rich, somewhat dark, laid back listening experience.
 

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you have to remember, joker is not the person that's telling us what we are supposed to feel. Reviews on head-fi are taken with a grain of salt. So when joker says something about a IEM, it's his perception of it, not anyone elses. If shure's do not fit joker's criteria for good headphones, it may for others. Everyone has a different taste and everyone has a different preference. Joker has done a great job in compiling a list of IEMs and reviewing each one so he has experience in this. Everyone in head-fi knows that you're not supposed to take only one person's opinion on IEMs so i really do not understand why you're trying to say that the shure's are actually good IEMs. If you want to say your own opinion about shures make your own thread and review them. Other than that, this isn't the place to say that joker is wrong. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, so make your own thread and have people flock over to your thread to disagree with you. It's the way this forum runs
 

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lazysleepyboi said:

you have to remember, joker is not the person that's telling us what we are supposed to feel. Reviews on head-fi are taken with a grain of salt. So when joker says something about a IEM, it's his perception of it, not anyone elses. If shure's do not fit joker's criteria for good headphones, it may for others. Everyone has a different taste and everyone has a different preference. Joker has done a great job in compiling a list of IEMs and reviewing each one so he has experience in this. Everyone in head-fi knows that you're not supposed to take only one person's opinion on IEMs so i really do not understand why you're trying to say that the shure's are actually good IEMs. If you want to say your own opinion about shures make your own thread and review them. Other than that, this isn't the place to say that joker is wrong. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, so make your own thread and have people flock over to your thread to disagree with you. It's the way this forum runs
 

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I agree w/ most of what you are saying but how is rating a phone over 9.0 make it NOT a good sounding phone?  Most of people's criticism of the ratings here have little or no perspective whatsoever and should be considered arbitrary noise.  Fanboys are just upset that someone can be critical of their favorite phone.  I like how the same folks spouting off the amazing virtues of their darlings never seem to offer a critique of what they do wrong.  Then again, I guess when a phone is as perfect as the 530 that's hard to do.     
 
I also forgot to add two dimensional, typical flat note BA sound to my previous sterile, unnatural, over liquid, poorly textured comments.  The 530 paints an interesting picture if you like wall art.  I prefer audio sculptures.  YMMV.

Great comparison, makes buying earphone sooo much easier 

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confispect said:

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Yeah, it looks like my collection will have a major upgrade in the next several months. I'll have the following:
 
Meelec CC51 (Meelec rumored that they'll have a Version 2, although it is coming soon)
MTPG
Sennheiser IE8
 
That should be beneficial so I won't have to rely on my other two IEMs.
 
Besides, I was curious I how these sound, so I'll have to find out myself.
 
 

seeing as its on going, i shall comment.  now im not going to tell joker hes wrong but all our ears are differently shaped, have different frequency responses and different preferences.  joker is more inclined towards a bright, sparkly sound and i can see that often his ranking and scoring reflects that.  brighter sizzling high IEM's he scores higher than i would and smoother gentle treble things he ranks lower. (although i still think hes mad for scoring the MTPC as he did, crazy generously scored that one.)  likewise im quite sure that should he read one of my reviews and i complain a little about too much treble he will know how it relates to what hes likely to hear and what his tastes are.
 
now i know he says he marks biased on technical ability's not just personal preference as i do too but im well aware we all are still swayed in part by what we like and what we find comfortable.  for me too much crispy treble tires me out and for me thats a fault.  for him i think hes more likely to find gentle, easy on the ear, rolled off treble to make for a lifeless and dull sound.  neither of us are really right as what we hear may not be what you hear or what you want to hear.  its why im not big on giving numerical marks to things, id rather say what level they are on and from there on its the sound sig that determines whats "best." 
 
 
for me however i hear more what pianist hears and im a great big fan of the 530, its a spectacularly dynamic and emotive IEM.  its mid range is stunning and its bass is near perfection for me.  its highs well, arent perfect but i could hear them all day, i doubt i could do that with say the TF10.  so for me the 530 is my favourite Top Tier but id be more reluctant to grade them numerically as aspect weighting will always be the deciding factor there.

Yes I'm sure as a human species we have taken different paths in evolution, some hunted fish and some hunted bats, this was millions of years ago, and now as a result we prefer different IEM's because we are more attracted to the bat and fish frequencies, which once upon a time where adamant for our survival on this planet, so they trigger happy chemicals in our brain, is that what you're saying?

There are also the rare "dolphin hunter" humans that come from antlantis and had to have acute hearing to the ultra high frequency echolocation of the rare hyperborean dolphin, these people should opt for the Final Audio $1000+ range as it is more tailored to their unique happy triggers.

I have never declared my scores absolute or representative of anything but my own impressions of the earphones so I don't understand why everyone's getting their panties all up in a knot. In fact, there is an FAQ section and a disclaimer in post #8 asking people to read the damn text and only refer to the chart in that context. If an earphone that adequately covers about as much of the spectrum with three armatures as most do with one or two sounds natural and appealing to someone, great, but I can't rank an earphone like that up with any of the other triple-driver flagships. Not even the TF10, which itself is by no means a paragon of accuracy. All of my issues with the SE530 are laid out in the body of the review. Those who don't hear the earphones the way I do or are willing to overlook this or that for the solid midrange performance - fine - but I don't really see where this discussion is going. For obvious reasons I've never changed any scoring due to someone else's impressions or opinions. I have no intention of carrying my distaste of a particular earphone into any appreciation or recommendation threads as some here do and have never purposely contradicted another poster for the sake of interjecting my own opinion. Those who feel that this thread or the individual reviews it contains are biased, erroneous, or otherwise useless have my blessing to ignore it altogether. 
 
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Originally Posted by kanuka /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
i checked the meelec site, but looks they dont sell tips for a151?

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It seems they do not. Not sure why that is.

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mark2410 said:

joker is more inclined towards a bright, sparkly sound and i can see that often his ranking and scoring reflects that.  brighter sizzling high IEM's he scores higher than i would and smoother gentle treble things he ranks lower. 

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I don't actually think that's quite accurate.  He scores the Monster Gold, MD's, Radius DDMs, SM3, 530 highly.  Those are all warm and not paragons of brightness.  Don't forget, it was the SM3 that caused him to readjust his scale.  I for one think he does a great job not over emphasizing FR in his scoring.  Oh well.