Laptopia
500+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Apr 13, 2006
- Posts
- 778
- Likes
- 11
I am a recent purchaser of two custom IEMs, the UE11 and ES2, made by Ultimate Ears and Westone, respectively. Both have some fit issues: One of the Westone earpieces extends too far from my ear, and one of the UE11 earpieces does not allow a good seal. The finish on the UE11s was sub-par as well.
I spoke on the phone with customer service reps from both companies, who were very polite & professional and provided me instructions on how to get these issues corrected.
On the same day last week I sent the ES2s and UE11s in for "repair" (a curious thing to call corrections to brand new custom IEMs, but I'll play along). For each I included a detailed letter describing the issues, annotated photos, and new silicone impressions (acquiring decent impressions might be a topic for another thread).
It's a challenge to produce well-fitting earpieces on the first try, so after-sale support is a critical element of the custom IEM purchasing experience. Custom IEM manufacturers have a tough assignment: To "know" a customer's ears without having the luxury of a real, live person standing before them. All they really know about their customers' ears are what is contained in silicone impressions.
This is a good opportunity to compare and contrast not just the fit and performance of the Ultimate Ears and Westone custom IEMs, but also to describe the path it takes to get that legendary fit and performance. I will let you know how it goes.
Watch this space . . .
I spoke on the phone with customer service reps from both companies, who were very polite & professional and provided me instructions on how to get these issues corrected.
On the same day last week I sent the ES2s and UE11s in for "repair" (a curious thing to call corrections to brand new custom IEMs, but I'll play along). For each I included a detailed letter describing the issues, annotated photos, and new silicone impressions (acquiring decent impressions might be a topic for another thread).
It's a challenge to produce well-fitting earpieces on the first try, so after-sale support is a critical element of the custom IEM purchasing experience. Custom IEM manufacturers have a tough assignment: To "know" a customer's ears without having the luxury of a real, live person standing before them. All they really know about their customers' ears are what is contained in silicone impressions.
This is a good opportunity to compare and contrast not just the fit and performance of the Ultimate Ears and Westone custom IEMs, but also to describe the path it takes to get that legendary fit and performance. I will let you know how it goes.
Watch this space . . .