Shure SE535. Any Changes?

Internals are the same. Externals are where Shure changed things.

SQ could potentially be better or worse, but it should remain around the same sound signature as the SE530

There was a note that treble was improved slightly, but I seriously doubt Shure has changed the sound sig significantly. They advertise them as being based on the "award winning sound signature" of the 530s, so they likely sound the same. 

I'm interested in how much they may or may not have changed the SE425's over the SE420's. 

I've just had a peak at the pictures on Zdnet:

http://www.zdnet.com/photos/shure-se425-se535-photos/379869?seq=5&tag=mantle_skin;content

I'm not liking that bulky attachment at all.  I see this as a move to stop RMA's due to cables cracking........cynical maybe.

I'll be waiting to hear opinions on sound and comfort when they're released.

All I can say is "about time!".  The cable situation with the 500 and 530 is shameful.  I had my pair of 500s replaced by Shure with 530s, and now the cable is starting to mess up again.  Now they are out of warranty, so I'm shipping them off to UM to have them re-molded to fix the wire problem.

Denial does not make the problem go away.  The cables were poorly designed and Shure treated the customers who spent $500 on these things poorly IMO.

It is a shame since there is much to like about the 500/530.  And Shure has eaten up a lot of good will by not acknowledging and addressing the problem in a reasonable way in a reasonable time. 

Hopefully the 535 will address the cable portion of this issue, although you still have the customer service issue. 

I agree, I don't really care for the connector, and the cynic in me said they did it so we can't interchange with the UE and Westone cables and have to buy from Shure.  Perhaps they had a valid engineering reason.  I guess time will tell.

-john

I disagree.  Shure has been fabulous standing behind their product.  The return rate for the "supposed" defect once reported in the 7-8% range and after they corrected the cable it went down even more.  I say "supposed" because it was determined that it was certain body skin oil types causing the cable deterioration.  For the record,  I have owned several Shures and used daily for exercising/sweating, etc for up to almost a year and have never had a problem.

hmm, maybe thats the solution, everybody should sweat on shures cables to make it last

IIRC, the slight chance of sound is due to the rearrangement of the BA drivers. It will be great even if it just brings out a tad more treble extension. The only thing I really wish to see is Shure starts to lower the MSRP closer to $300, which will make them very competitive.

Not trying to start a flame war, but if the return rate is so low, then it should be a slam dunk for them to stand behind their product unconditionally. 

Although, it is unclear to me that 7% is a small number.  If they sold 50 thousand of them, that would be like 3,500 with premature failure?  I have no idea what the volumes these things sell at, but it sounds like a lot of returns to me.

And keep in mind, return rate is likely only for people who managed to return them.  It is unclear how many people looked at the warranty page, saw the poof of purchase requirement (and other requirements) and threw them in the trash.

I agree the new cables are better.  Like I said, it caused mine to fail *outside* of the warranty period this time, *and* the cable is not visibly frayed, it only shorts out as I move my head.  Doesn't change the fact at this point my choices are to send them to Shure and pay several hundred to be repaired, try to crack them apart and re-cable them myself, send them to someone like UM for a re-shell, or throw them in the trash.

-john

Quote:

Originally Posted by ccfoodog 

Not trying to start a flame war, but if the return rate is so low, then it should be a slam dunk for them to stand behind their product unconditionally. 

 

Although, it is unclear to me that 7% is a small number.  If they sold 50 thousand of them, that would be like 3,500 with premature failure?  I have no idea what the volumes these things sell at, but it sounds like a lot of returns to me.

 

And keep in mind, return rate is likely only for people who managed to return them.  It is unclear how many people looked at the warranty page, saw the poof of purchase requirement (and other requirements) and threw them in the trash.

 

I agree the new cables are better.  Like I said, it caused mine to fail *outside* of the warranty period this time, *and* the cable is not visibly frayed, it only shorts out as I move my head.  Doesn't change the fact at this point my choices are to send them to Shure and pay several hundred to be repaired, try to crack them apart and re-cable them myself, send them to someone like UM for a re-shell, or throw them in the trash.

 

-john

Warranty term is not just as simple as to ensure the consumer's investment being safe. It also serves to prevent item falls into grey market too easily as to undercut the official distributor and dealer, which need to maintain a certain margin of profit since they have to pay rent, keep stock and provide service. These are of no concern to third party seller who get their SE530 from unknown origin, liquidation, or worst, stolen goods.

The problem with forums is, you can't verify statistic by forum posts, as people generally don't post when they have no problem, so you end up getting a lot more posts about cracking cable but you don't see post like 'how bad is SE530 cable? Do I need to worry since mine still haven't cracked after 1.5 years?'

BTW, Shure doesn't repair broken SE530 at all, they replace. If it is out-of-warranty, generally they will offer a replacement (with very limited warranty) with cost. I don't remember the fee but it will be more than remolding. There is another option: put them on sale for other to remold.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chimera-se 

Hey ccfoodog, when did you purchase your 530's? I'm only asking because I'm wondering if the cord issues have gotten any better. There was some talk about the recent models being improved but then I just lost track of the discussion. I bought mine about a year ago, and although I've fallen in love with the Shure sound, and personally haven't had any cord issues of yet, I'm always wondering when they'll crap out. I haven't worried about a devise this much since I bought my xbox 360! Lol. At this point if they do die it will just be an excuse for me to upgrade to customs. I personally would not buy a pair of 535's just for the new cord but everyone's needs are different. Just my opinion though.

FYI, any SE530 since 2008 has the new cable.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by ClieOS 

BTW, Shure doesn't repair broken SE530 at all, they replace. If it is out-of-warranty, generally they will offer a replacement (with very limited warranty) with cost. I don't remember the fee but it will be more than remolding. There is another option: put them on sale for other to remold.
 

They have a price list here. (PDF warning)  It usually works out to repairing or replacing it at about 1/2 the street price.

My SE530s suffered a non cable related failure inside their warranty and Shure replaced them inside a week.  Their reliability may be questioned but I think their customer service is quite good.

Anyone heard any new info on release date for the SE535's? ES has estimated date as the 10th and I'm looking forward to receiving them for upcoming vacation. I've owned two previous IEM's from Shure (E3C & E4c) and never had any complaints with the products.