[Inks]

The FX700s seems to be the only other universal that can probably get a 10 fwir. As mentioned it's too bad the availability is poor and the price is steep. 

 

[Omally]

Although I have not heard them, strictly from reviews, I believe the FX700 would be the only IEM deserving of a 10 out of 10 rating for me.
I just do not believe single armatures can produce enough bass without distorting. And believe me I have tried them all.
 
Now we must all wait for Westone 4 to crown the IEM king!
 
lJokerl is not God everyone. 
 
I still have to say THANK YOU so much for this amazing contribution to the community.

 

[singh]

 
 
FX 700 are worth it though! ...still i dont understand WHY are they keeping it exclusive to Japan?
Imagine how i feel !! . i have to import every audio gear
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I thought we had it better than you guys but then Audio-Technica decided to stop selling the CK10 in the US market as well. I think many people take issue with having to import these earphones and I wish that weren't the case but what can you do... Japanese companies have a history of confining some of their top-of-the-line products to the Japanese market. 
 
I think the JVC FX700 has the same problem. 

 
I could have sent you my FX700 if they were not my primary ones !
 
The change in signature is what i am afraid of ! . as the SM3 has filters ( and customs DOnt )
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No plans for an FX700 at this point - as you can see from the planned review list on the front page there's still plenty that needs doing.
 
I don't see why the SM3 couldn't be remolded but I'm not sure of the process's effect on the sound..
 

 

[MaxwellDemon]

Quote:

 
I could have sent you my FX700 if they were not my primary ones !
 
The change in signature is what i am afraid of ! . as the SM3 has filters ( and customs DOnt )

I think someone once mentioned about requesting a really specific remold with certain filters. Not sure which custom remolder it was though.

 

[coldmack]

So if I prefer something that works well with most every genre of music with a hints of natural how would you say my question stacks up? 
 
Where would you say the Panny RP-HJE900, or any IEM that got a 9(in sq) and cost 125 or less?
 

 

[mcnoiserdc]

Please create don't mix customs with universals in the table. instead of downing the rating of the universals in case they get a better rating than all of them, just give them more than 10, in a relative comparison.

 

[esanthosh]

ljokerl,
 
I only have issues with the build quality rating. Guess we can continue to disagree on that

.
 
But as far as 10/10 goes, it does not stand for 'absolute perfection', which no IEM is. It's a relative scale and there's only so much that can be done within it. So, I don't find anything wrong in giving SM3 - 10/10. Sure people will disagree, but is there any IEM which the entire head-fi community agrees on?

 
Strangely, I never had that much difficulty in adapting to DDM or SM3. They both require you to (grudgingly) accept their way of presentation. If you do, you'll see their strengths. I still prefer DBA-02 to SM3, as it is much more aligned with my tastes - lean, fast and exciting. SM3 on the other hand is something that engages and captivates me. To my ears, they don't lack much except for the very lows. The more I listen to it, the more I like it. Since my ownership is still within the 'new toy bias' period, I can't really state that I absolutely love and prefer SM3 over all my IEMs, but I can certainly say that I can't hate them.

 

[rawrster]

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The controversy surrounding the SM3 is what makes me want to hear them. I was extremely close to buying a pair a few months ago but thought it was pretty stupid spending $300 on an earphone with the intention of selling them. Although I guess the CK10 is no longer the 10/10 standard for sound in this thread which is a shame but does make sense. Every good earphone can't be 10/10 so it does make it a bit more exclusive.

I have a feeling that the SM3's status is temporary. I still haven't figured out what I will be doing when the time comes to add the 1964-T. SM3 might get pushed back to the level of the CK10 since there just aren't enough gradations.

That depends how long until your review on them will be but I figured they would be better than any universal you have heard. My current customs has pretty much phased out every single universal I have owned and soon I will be down to three budget oriented earphones with my Brainwavz M2 as the best one. I guess that won't happen to you since you do have a certain affinity with budget earphones.
 
As for the temporary status of the 10/10 sound on the SM3 it is a bit tricky since if your triples are anything like my Livewires then they are a good bit better than the best universal I've heard (although I have not heard the SM3) esp once your equipment chain gets better so you will have to think of something The real question is if the custom you have leads your wallet to bigger and more expensive things

 

[ljokerl]

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So if I prefer something that works well with most every genre of music with a hints of natural how would you say my question stacks up? 

I would say go for the Silver Bullet rev. 2  

 

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Please create don't mix customs with universals in the table. instead of downing the rating of the universals in case they get a better rating than all of them, just give them more than 10, in a relative comparison.

 
I don't see the point of giving something an 11/10 - I think it sends out the wrong message. This isn't Spinal Tap...
 
 
Quote:

As for the temporary status of the 10/10 sound on the SM3 it is a bit tricky since if your triples are anything like my Livewires then they are a good bit better than the best universal I've heard (although I have not heard the SM3) esp once your equipment chain gets better so you will have to think of something The real question is if the custom you have leads your wallet to bigger and more expensive things

I wouldn't  say that the 1964-T is a huge improvement over any and all universals, especially in specific signature aspects, but is the best I've heard as a total package. It'll be a while either way so I have some time to mull it over.

 

[mywallethurts]

any chance the fx700 getting reviewed?

 

[battleaxe]

Out of curiosity have you tired the SA cables on the HJE900(& vice versa) to see how it compares? 

 

[shane55]

 


 
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We do hear things similarly - you are just taking issue with the fact that they aren't as fast/clear/crisp/lean/sparkly as the DBA-02 while I'm welcoming it with open arms. I think I mentioned all of those things but I wouldn't take off points for them because objectively-speaking an IEM doesn't need to be any of those things to be enjoyable. The CK10 has all of those things too and yet it's not an IEM I recommend very often (if ever) because it just isn't an instantly likable sound. Yes, they were hyped. Yes, many bought them who probably shouldn't have; but that happens with every in-ear that becomes popular around here. I think the issue is more with the early impressions of the SM3, which made it seem like a better earphone than any other in every single way, and it isn't. 
 
 

 
While it's true that they aren't as fast/clear/crisp, etc. as the DBA's, I also had them long before the DBA's so I didn't have them to compare. I not only welcomed them with open arms, I did everything in my power to like them. You can revisit the threads and read all about it if you like. I gave them more than a fair shake and wanted them to be as good as many had said.
 
Yes, my tastes tend that way (clear, crisp, bright), but I also know when even those characteristics are wildly exaggerated (read DT880, DT770...). What I did have to compare is the sound of live instruments and many years of listening to music (recorded and live). I didn't find them 'realistic' or 'natural' by any stretch of the imagination. Things were missing in the recordings, sounds and presence were no longer part of the overall mix. They were just plain dead and muted and muffled... without any other cans to compare them to.
 
Of course many love the SM3's sound. I just don't think they do the music justice. I don't find them to be true to the recording. Information is lost. And that is not a matter of taste. I did not hear thing I knew to exist in the recordings. This actually may be a positive thing for some as those missing items are within the upper part of the spectrum, and some are very sensitive to that. So I can see how someone may 'like' them or prefer their presentation to other IEM's, but for me what was missing is critical to the instrument being there with me in the room. Critical to it's presence. Notes would float without any defined point in space. Individual instruments had no 'air'.
 
Of course IEM's don't need to be anything in particular, or need specific characteristics to be enjoyable... heck, the M50 is pretty far from neutral across the spectrum, but holy crap, they are completely enjoyable !

And that's where taste really comes into play.
 
Anyway, my friend, I really don't have that big of an issue with your 10/10 rating for sound. It's an opinion like almost everything else around here. Being that this is a forum (and especially THIS fantastic compendium of a thread ! ) that folks come to in order to gain an understanding of things... I wanted those reading this thread to know that there is a a group of us who feel very differently. It's an odd IEM indeed that would provoke such diametrically opposed views, observations, opinions.
 
I'll chalk it up to QC issues and just go with the thought that I had very different SM3's than you. 

I recommend hearing them before one buys.
 
All the best.

 

[ljokerl]

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any chance the fx700 getting reviewed?

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Originally Posted by ljokerl /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
No plans for an FX700 at this point - as you can see from the planned review list on the front page there's still plenty that needs doing.

 
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Out of curiosity have you tired the SA cables on the HJE900(& vice versa) to see how it compares? 

No - didn't have them at the same time and I'd have needed two pairs of the HJE900 for a proper A:B anyway. 

 

[MaxwellDemon]

Quote:

 
Anyway, my friend, I really don't have that big of an issue with your 10/10 rating for sound. It's an opinion like almost everything else around here. Being that this is a forum (and especially THIS fantastic compendium of a thread ! ) that folks come to in order to gain an understanding of things... I wanted those reading this thread to know that there is a a group of us who feel very differently. It's an odd IEM indeed that would provoke such diametrically opposed views, observations, opinions.
 
I'll chalk it up to QC issues and just go with the thought that I had very different SM3's than you. 

I recommend hearing them before one buys.

The SM3 is actually on my next earphones to check out list. I am actually really surprised about the conflicting view about these earphones, especially since I am also convinced that joker and I probably have very similar taste/hearing (haven't read a review from him that I found myself disagreeing in any level). While this intrigues me by a mile, I am also worried that these might not be the next thing I should be looking forward to... and the UM3X comparison doesn't help either, since I blanched on those. Hmm... decisions, decisions, decisions.

 

[Anaxilus]

If its QC then Shane and myself had the same batch.  We both compared notes for a long time to make sure we weren't imagining things.  The biggest decision I had to make on the SM3 was putting mine up in the FS thread before Shane.  

  For those who like the SM3 sound they are a great candidate for remolds.  Probably inevitable.  But for the money you have other custom options as well.  I did find my MDs and SM3 more similar than different in general signature but it was the differences (bass, soundstage, cost, build) that were too much for me to embrace the SM3.