KLS
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
- Dec 31, 2008
- Posts
- 1,585
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- 23
Actually I got them for nearly 2 months...
Out of the box, I was seriously disappointed. When my pair of SM3 arrived, I was having honeymoon with CK10. So, everyone who has CK10 know that transaperency and clarity are some of their strong points. My first impression was (with the supplied comply tips, which goes in deep into the ear), SM3 has no high and veiled in the mids. You know if you have a pair of CK10 on hand and your $400 new purchase saying 'sorry I don't deliver any treble'...
I emailed Franck, asking him whether SM3 needs any burn in. He said no burn in is needed, and he recommended me to use some silicone tips, but not those from Etymotic as they will suck out treble. Franck didn't mention which type of Etymotic's, my guess is the triple flange. Strange thing here is, since Franck is suggesting me to use some silicone tips, why Earsonice doesn't supply silicone tips which come with the products? I asked for a frequency responese chart, twice, and was isgnored twice. My last little hope was to try burn in, even Franck said that they don't need any, because I believe that burn in is the panacea for all the disappoinment in audio equipment
Past 300 hours, as Franck said, nothing change. I brought them with me to a trip, so I didn't have a chance to buy tips and try them with different tips immediately. Then I got some Westones silicone tips (which turn out to be total rubbish), and some Shure yellow foamies. I guessed that deep insertion is the cause of lacking clarity. So I tried the Shure foamies. By the way, I haven't found a solution on the tips yet...
Time passed and now I realised most of the time I am using SM3
I think after a month or so, my brain has adapted to the sound signature. I see people saying W3 is very tip-dependent, so as SM3 in my opinion.
Some thoughts on different tips on SM3:
With the stock long comply tips: A little bit veiled in the mids, treble is laid back, more laid back compared to IE8. Vocal is the most forward compared to what I have now: IE8, CK10, TF10, e-Q7. Soundstage is good! This is what I call wide soundstage for an IEM. Instrument separation and imaging is impressive for a warm sounding phone.
With Shure yellow foamies: Treble becomes more prominent. However, the dynamic is all gone. Mids go several row backwards. 3D presentation is not as good compared to the stock tips.
So, I guess I just have to try some Monster triple flange. @average_joe, do you hear any difference between the stock tips and Monster tips?
Out of the box, I was seriously disappointed. When my pair of SM3 arrived, I was having honeymoon with CK10. So, everyone who has CK10 know that transaperency and clarity are some of their strong points. My first impression was (with the supplied comply tips, which goes in deep into the ear), SM3 has no high and veiled in the mids. You know if you have a pair of CK10 on hand and your $400 new purchase saying 'sorry I don't deliver any treble'...
I emailed Franck, asking him whether SM3 needs any burn in. He said no burn in is needed, and he recommended me to use some silicone tips, but not those from Etymotic as they will suck out treble. Franck didn't mention which type of Etymotic's, my guess is the triple flange. Strange thing here is, since Franck is suggesting me to use some silicone tips, why Earsonice doesn't supply silicone tips which come with the products? I asked for a frequency responese chart, twice, and was isgnored twice. My last little hope was to try burn in, even Franck said that they don't need any, because I believe that burn in is the panacea for all the disappoinment in audio equipment
Past 300 hours, as Franck said, nothing change. I brought them with me to a trip, so I didn't have a chance to buy tips and try them with different tips immediately. Then I got some Westones silicone tips (which turn out to be total rubbish), and some Shure yellow foamies. I guessed that deep insertion is the cause of lacking clarity. So I tried the Shure foamies. By the way, I haven't found a solution on the tips yet...
Time passed and now I realised most of the time I am using SM3
Some thoughts on different tips on SM3:
With the stock long comply tips: A little bit veiled in the mids, treble is laid back, more laid back compared to IE8. Vocal is the most forward compared to what I have now: IE8, CK10, TF10, e-Q7. Soundstage is good! This is what I call wide soundstage for an IEM. Instrument separation and imaging is impressive for a warm sounding phone.
With Shure yellow foamies: Treble becomes more prominent. However, the dynamic is all gone. Mids go several row backwards. 3D presentation is not as good compared to the stock tips.
So, I guess I just have to try some Monster triple flange. @average_joe, do you hear any difference between the stock tips and Monster tips?