Ultimate Ears UE 900 Discussion and Appreciation Thread - Page 108

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnSantana 

Rob,

 

Instead of Westone W3 with just 3 Balance Armature, try Westone W4, with 4 BA, that should be a fair comparison with UE900 which is also 4 BA.

as for my personal listening IEM, I'm inclined towards Westone W4, but that just me who doesn't like bright and sparkly Treble.

Interesting.  I have a Westone ES5 (actually, only the left one because I am partially deaf, so the cable is wired by Westone to put both channels into a single IEM), and the one criticism I have with it is that the treble is too smooth/inoffensive.  Bass and mids are incredible, and certainly the treble has great clarity, but it likes the "sizzle" or sparkle that I love.  That's actually why I'm leaning towards to the UE900.  I can at least listen to it and then decide whether the SQ matches what I'm looking for (and return it if it doesn't); with a custom IEM, you gets what you gets.

Thanks for the tip Ultrazino!

Those IEMs to indeed look interesting, I wish I would have known about them prior to my order of the UE900s. The new UE900s I received seem to be working fine so far. I took them for a 8km run and no issue what this time so maybe the bug has been fixed although it might be too early to say. It took me a couple of weeks to break the first pair. Anyways if they break again I'll let you all know, and get myself some German tank IEMs :).. 

Ej out 

Quote:

Originally Posted by RobDogg 

I have just read that the W4R's have improved bass over the W4's.

You should not believe everything you read.

Quote:

Originally Posted by xaddictionx 


Both the W4 and W4R are the same except that W4R empowers a removable cable. I've heard both the 4R and the UE900. My decision was to go with the 4R. In my opinions, both are great IEMs and they definitely doesn't lack bass. The bass on 4R is very well textured and goes really deep. It's more of a quality bass instead of overwhelming bass quantity. Bass on the UE900 however does fall slightly behind the 4R. That said, the 900 does not lack in the bass department just that the 4R does have a slight bass advantage over the 900.
The 900 I would place it along the line of neutrality compared to 4R. The 4R is more of a balanced earphones that juggles everything nicely without placing emphasis particularly on any region. It does have a very slight bass boost however. This makes the 4R a little warmer than the 900 and the mids more smoothing. The 900 on the other hand, does have slightly better clarity due to its flatter presentation of music and lesser bass boost. However I do find the 900 a little fatiguing.
In terms of build quality, the 4R triumphs over the 900.

Perfectly stated!

Also, treble extension is about same on both but with better midrange clarity on UE900 it may give the illusion UE900 has more sparkly treble.

I have owned some UE 900's since September after upgrading from Shure se425. I love the sound and fit, but the build quality is a little suspect. Overall impression has been pretty positive for me. I use these primarily for on-stage for IEM monitoring when I play bass, so they do not get daily abuse. For a $400 universal, they sound pretty darn good. Good solid bass response, but in general a nice flat curve with good instrument separation.     
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by jayaudio116 

What's th
what's the difference between neutral and balance

Neutral is normally flat frequency, balanced normally means anything from slightly warm, slight v, to deep v.  

I just want to add to the bass question that while the W4 extends incredibly deep the subbass perception varies greatly with volume. At low volumes the bass becomes obviously less prominent and additionally the mid-bass covers and hides the subbass make the often praised bass actually feel like less quantity compared to the UE900.

I have read other opinions confirming my perception and the W4's bass loses it's punch at low volumes. It bothers me a lot that the W4 sounds better at higher volumes. I noticed this when I was in a train and a noisy football fan club forced me to turn it up. I was wowed by the bass and punch of the W4 and was ever upset to have it lacking when I listen at home (usually volume 1/16 on iPhone).

Just a heads up. I know most listen at higher volumes anyway.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ultrazino 

I just want to add to the bass question that while the W4 extends incredibly deep the subbass perception varies greatly with volume. At low volumes the bass becomes obviously less prominent and additionally the mid-bass covers and hides the subbass make the often praised bass actually feel like less quantity compared to the UE900.

 

I have read other opinions confirming my perception and the W4's bass loses it's punch at low volumes. It bothers me a lot that the W4 sounds better at higher volumes. I noticed this when I was in a train and a noisy football fan club forced me to turn it up. I was wowed by the bass and punch of the W4 and was ever upset to have it lacking when I listen at home (usually volume 1/16 on iPhone).

Just a heads up. I know most listen at higher volumes anyway.

Very interesting and good news for me as I am primarily a low volume listener. Yet another reason I made the right choice for my needs going with the UE900.

I am using a Windows 8 Phone right now. it`s volume go from 0-30, for quiet environments I listen between 6-9 with 7 being the most typical setting. When On the train or louder environments I am listening 10-12 with 10 being the most common setting. The loudest I have used the UE900 has been 15. Compare this to other IEM`s where I occasionally went all the way up to 20 to get a dynamic enjoyable sound level!