[rmiller511]

  I love the SE846 but I have to give it up due to ear aches.  I've binged on all the high end IEMs for the past year and now I'm paying for it with a sore ear canals.  It's painful enough that I've decided to avoid IEMs for the next few years.  I wish I could wait out the pain but I never want to go this again.  I blame the FitEar F111 for most of it!  Those damned three flange tips...
 
Anyway, I love using this community to buy and sell headphones.  I've been surprised with how reluctant I am to drop my sale price on the SE846.  I understand that there are tons of low ball offers and that is to be expected.  I think part of my problem is how difficult it was to get a pair that worked just right.  I would have paid twice as much if I had known my experience was going to be littered with questions about whether they were working right.  At the end of March, I finally asked Shure (they have exceptional customer service) to do another thorough check on mine and they replaced the left earpiece.
 
They've always sounded amazing especially when they are fully fixed up.  After a buddy of mine tried mine out, he purchased a new pair that was manufactured in April and now he's going through the same crap I did with possible defects (phase distortion first time, cable disconnects the second time).  These defects are not something you notice immediately and most Shure authorized retailers (such as Moon Audio) won't accept returns.  
 
I now have an end-game portable setup of a working SE846, SR-71A (which I think is the best portable headphone amp of all time), and a Cypher Labs Algorhythm Solo DB.  I'm in so much pain that I can't use any of it.  I'm in no hurry to get rid of them but seeing them boxed up and ready to ship is so depressing.
 
Anyone here who has a perfectly working SE846 should be extremely happy.  It's definitely worth it and then some.  If you are looking to get them new or used, get it from someone who is either an authorized reseller or has a receipt from one.

 
 
Sorry to hear about your  troubles.  You must be the guy on ebay that is wanting such a high  price for the used SE846s.  If so, I sent you an offer.  I offered him 800 for the used pair and he came back with a counter offer of like 875, I believe.  If that was you, man i gotta tell you - for 75.00 more than your counter offer, I bought new from a substantial authorized dealer.  When you are talking about the grand neighborhood, I am not about to buy used just for a 75.00 price break.  The knowledge that you are the first owner is worth a whole lot more than that.
 
But if that is you, good luck on selling  them.  I hope you get what you ask for them.  I just sold my NIB W40s for 445.00 on ebay.  Had a lot of inquiries here, but no bites.

 

[rmiller511]

.Sennheiser really should've made the cable detachable would've been much much better...

 
I don't get it.  Kind of says something about their way of  thinking.

 

[dsincere]

I don't get it.  Kind of says something about their way of  thinking.

Yes it does and some people would more than love for them to explain.....

 

[Black Label]

truckdriver: Yah, I am gradually managing to coax the wire into a favourable position. One of those teething problems I suppose. Sennheiser and Shure. Both feature entirely different styles with the former being easier on the ears (wearing the IE8s felt like wearing nothing at all). It takes a bit of getting used to wearing IEMs of the Shure and Earsonics design type.

rmiller51: Both the IE800s and Shure SE846 boast great bass, but the latter does it bigger (Texas bigger) and slightly better. Impact and sub bass is huge from the 846. The 800s did not slam nearly as much as I desired.

The intro the Iron Maiden's "When the Wild Wind Blows" (a big bass guitar part) sounds equally lush, rich and butter scotch warm in both; there isn't much in it (the contest). Caspa & Rusko's FabricLive mix left me in wanting when heard through the IE800s, but the SE846s' immense sub bass delivery is well up to the task of representing what this sort of music is really meant to sound like. Then there's the conclusion to "The Rebel Faction" by Primal Fear that really goes "whomph!!!" The IE800s blew me away when I first experienced this, however it became clear later that this impact had a real airy quality to it. The SE846s meanwhile delivered the same impact but this time it was less shall we say airborne - more at ground level.

Someone said the bass sounds boxed in or words to that effect; perhaps it's not to their liking, but the bass delivery from these puppies has kept me wowed and entertained since day dot. As daft as it might sound, it wasn't until about 18 months of owning the IE8s that I stopped feeling the wow factor and yearned for bigger and better. For some reason the IE800s veneer waned quickly (probably because of seldom present sub bass) however I feel that the SE846s will keep me impressed for a good while yet.

In terms of detail there is not much to pick between them.

I must say that verbalising the qualities of both is a very tall task!

 

[zolom]

Just picked up my new SE846 silver cable by Ted Allen from Headphones Lounge http://headphonelounge.com/silver-iem-cables/
 
Beutifuly crafted, reasonably priced  and  Noticable SQ  improvment against the original Shure cables.

 

[piksnz]

I am bit confused. Please help.

Thinking about getting the ultimate IEM (universal only). Had almost made my mind for Roxanne, but also weighing SE846 with balanced cable and now I heard about Tralucent Ref1s. My music taste is pop, classical, jazz.... Everyday music source is my AK240 DAP. Unfortunately I cannot try any of these IEMs in New Zealand. So I have to make the decisions based on the member fede

I couldnt find any comparison between balanced SE846, Tralucent Ref1 (I know it is not out yet) and Roxannes.

When giving your views please consider I am willing to use AK240's balanced out,

 

[milford30]

I am bit confused. Please help.

Thinking about getting the ultimate IEM (universal only). Had almost made my mind for Roxanne, but also weighing SE846 with balanced cable and now I heard about Tralucent Ref1s. My music taste is pop, classical, jazz.... Everyday music source is my AK240 DAP. Unfortunately I cannot try any of these IEMs in New Zealand. So I have to make the decisions based on the member fede

I couldnt find any comparison between balanced SE846, Tralucent Ref1 (I know it is not out yet) and Roxannes.

When giving your views please consider I am willing to use AK240's balanced out,

 
I guess you need to state your preference, and what you are looking for in an iem, big bass? clear mids? warm mids?

 

[Stlrman]

846's: big bass , check
Clear mids, check
Warm mids , check

 

[milford30]

846's: big bass , check
Clear mids, check
Warm mids , check

 
they were just examples, I was asking his preference in sound like exciting and upfront or laid back and musical

 

[burtomr]

I am bit confused. Please help.

Thinking about getting the ultimate IEM (universal only). Had almost made my mind for Roxanne, but also weighing SE846 with balanced cable and now I heard about Tralucent Ref1s. My music taste is pop, classical, jazz.... Everyday music source is my AK240 DAP. Unfortunately I cannot try any of these IEMs in New Zealand. So I have to make the decisions based on the member fede

I couldnt find any comparison between balanced SE846, Tralucent Ref1 (I know it is not out yet) and Roxannes.

When giving your views please consider I am willing to use AK240's balanced out,

 
My solution: ordered Ref1's

 

[spook76]

I am bit confused. Please help.

Thinking about getting the ultimate IEM (universal only). Had almost made my mind for Roxanne, but also weighing SE846 with balanced cable and now I heard about Tralucent Ref1s. My music taste is pop, classical, jazz.... Everyday music source is my AK240 DAP. Unfortunately I cannot try any of these IEMs in New Zealand. So I have to make the decisions based on the member fede

I couldnt find any comparison between balanced SE846, Tralucent Ref1 (I know it is not out yet) and Roxannes.

When giving your views please consider I am willing to use AK240's balanced out,

First consider the price:
SE846 $1000 USD
Roxanne Universal: $1300
Reference 1: $1650 ($2950 with the uBer cable which many who own the 1plus2 insist you must have to get the most out of them).

Next whether balanced cables with the AK240 2.5mm plug is available yet. With the SE846 and Reference 1 (non proprietary cable) yes as for the Roxanne other than the AKR03 (the AK240/Roxanne sold in Asia) still does not to my knowledge have a balanced cable available.

 

[utdeep]

I had the Tralucent 1Plus2 and I didn't like it at first.  I eventually got used to how it presented music but I got frustrated with the ridiculously expensive cable upgrades (plain, gold, silver/gold, gold v2, uBer) for a very expensive IEM.  In the end, it was the IEM I liked the least.
 
I wouldn't make that mistake again.  The Reference 1 might be good but I'm familiar with the game now.  I've seen it before with Xin's version per month amps and the ever increasing price of AK's players. By this time next year, you'll have a Reference 2 with dubious upgrades.
 
IMHO.

 

[burtomr]

  I had the Tralucent 1Plus2 and I didn't like it at first....

 
Ok, so that's 1plus2's and 846's....so where are you at now?

 

[Solude]

Sig says NAD.

 

[rmiller511]

Have heard so many people rave about the westone star tips (foam), in this thread and others, decided last night to give them another try.  Long story short, I will never use anything else.  I don't know why I had the troubles I have had in the past trying to coax a good sound out of them but for some reason last night they worked, and without much effort.  The difference is substantial....so much better.