[Ivabign]

Has anyone tried the custom sleeves made by Spiral Ear? Imagine something from them that costs less than average 

 

 

[moedawg140]

  Has anyone tried the custom sleeves made by Spiral Ear? Imagine something from them that costs less than average 

 
 

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

 

 
I'm not sure if anyone has tried the custom sleeves from Spiral Ear because if they did, I'm sure they would want to post how awesome they are, or they didn't post because they either don't read this thread, or they didn't want to post how they weren't the best for them.
 
The Spiral Ear custom sleeves are 79 euros (as of 9-8-14 coverts to $102.12 USD plus shipping fees) compared to Sensaphonics Custom Sleeves' $150 (with shipping and $25 off from my entire order), which comes to about the same price, maybe more for the Spiral Ear once you factor in shipping fees.  I also feel that there are a few caveats that should be discussed:
 
1.  Spiral Ear is not Shure's preferred and/or recommended custom sleeves company.  Sensaphonics is.  Meaning, Shure has already done the hard work in finding the right company to create custom sleeves for almost all of the IEMs they offer.
 
2.  I would imagine you would have to send your beloved SE846 to Spiral Ear so they can create and fit the custom sleeves correctly.  You run a risk of them mishandling your earphones, and/or the earphones getting damaged in the mail, and as a result, would be out much more than a few dollars of purchasing Spiral Ear custom sleeves instead of the Sensaphonics Custom Sleeves (if you even save that much).  With Sensaphonics, you can keep your cherished SE846 and never have to send them in.
 
3.  You run a chance of purchasing them and going through their process and finding out that it really is not the best that it could be.  Even if the materials they use (possibly medical grade silicone, I would imagine and hope) feel great, there may be refit issues, and there is a higher chance of that especially since they are not Shure's preferred company.  Which brings me to number 4.
 
4.  And in my opinion, one of the biggest caveats of all, directly from Spiral Ear's website: "

Note: It is only possible to ship directly within European Union countries."  I'm sure you can find a way, maybe, to ship to other countries, but why go through the hassle, when Sensaphonics already has a multiple-country network?  Need refits with the Spiral Ear (if everything goes right except for fit)?  Good luck with the hassle of shipping it cross-country (for most of us) and possibly having to ship your stellar SE846 to them again, running the same risks as mentioned above.​

 

5.  I have done the work as well, analyzing and documenting every bit of the Sensaphonics Custom Sleeves and making it very easy for prospective purchasers and lurkers to be well informed about the product, and make their own educated decision regarding purchasing the 'sound' investment.​

 

[Ivabign]

Moe...
 
While I agree with many of your points - I probably should have been a bit clearer with my intent. I was thinking of spreading the love - that here was a company of quality that perhaps was offering a service for the OTHER IEMs that might be bettered by the same operation that Sensaphonics offers for Shure products. Lord knows I wondered how my 1p2's might sound with their own custom sleeve - and a couple of other IEMs that might be worth the effort...
 
Certainly if I was going to buy sleeves for any of my IEMs I would weigh the pros and cons of each choice - I may want to pay more just to get black silicone - that aside, more choices are always better than less...

 

[moedawg140]

  Moe...
 
While I agree with many of your points - I probably should have been a bit clearer with my intent. I was thinking of spreading the love - that here was a company of quality that perhaps was offering a service for the OTHER IEMs that might be bettered by the same operation that Sensaphonics offers for Shure products. Lord knows I wondered how my 1p2's might sound with their own custom sleeve - and a couple of other IEMs that might be worth the effort...
 
Certainly if I was going to buy sleeves for any of my IEMs I would weigh the pros and cons of each choice - I may want to pay more just to get black silicone - that aside, more choices are always better than less...

 
I agree with spreading the love as well, but with all of the points that I mentioned, it is a no-brainer to go with the tried and true - especially if you can't even have the Spiral Ear's custom sleeves sent to you (unless you did some finagling with the company).  
 
As for OTHER IEMs, they all of have their own recommended third party custom sleeve companies...actually I can't think of any that have recommended a specific company to create custom sleeves for them, aside from Westone's custom sleeve line for Westone's universal series.  With that said, other IEM companies may do well with something like Spiral Ear, Westone, and ACS, but the case and point is that with humble regards to Spiral Ear, Sensaphonics has a partnership with Shure, and I have already stated (others have as well) that the SCS is phenomenal.  No reason to try to reinvent the wheel.  Anyways, Sensaphonics already has a partnership with Elcea/Elacin as well to accommodate European customers.
 
I was not even going to mention colors, but since you did, the Spiral Ear custom sleeves are only offered in THREE colors: transparent (high gloss crystal clear with an anti-yellowing protection), black opaque, and custom transparent-black.
 
If you read the review, Sensaphonics offers black as a color, transparent charcoal (crystal smoke) as well as over 35 different color/swirl/solid/crystal colors.

 

[warrior1975]

@ivabign-i asked about doing sleeves for the Ref1, they weren't able to, I'd imagine it's the same for the 1p2. If you check the Ref1 thread, a fellow head-fier is getting sleeves for his Ref 1. I don't recall which company, maybe Westone? Regardless, check that thread if you are interested perhaps they can assist you as well. I'm waiting to see how it came out for the Ref 1.

sorry for the OT.

I decided to go with Whiplash for my Shures, his newest cable Reference silver, gold plated one...I will keep you guys updated.

 

[Pepito]

I posted my comparisons between the HPL SPC cable and HPL Reference Litz cable in the HPL thread, but I figured it'd be useful here as well. 
 
I received the HPL Reference Silver Litz cables in the mail today. I ordered an accompanying Litz IC for my Pico and RSA Protector. First off, build time and shipping was a little longer than last time. 2 1/2 weeks for build and 2 weeks for shipping (USPS had my package sitting in LA for 3 days...) It was quite a long wait compared to my previous order (2 1/2 weeks build and shipping time). 
 
All the following impressions/comparisons were done with a Silver Plated Copper cable (balanced) and RSA Protector/Pico combo as the baseline. As a side note, I have always been a skeptic behind cable upgrades.
 
I'm going to skip past the build quality and workmanship as the high quality of Ted's products is well known. The only problem with my order: I asked for a FBI heat shrink but it was not applied. No biggie though; I just needed a way to distinguish between my cables. 
 
The Litz cable itself is slightly thicker than my SPC and it has this nice sheen to it. Comfort and flexibility is the same as well.
 
Moving onto the most important part, the sound:
 
Bass: Noticeably tighter. The same weight and quality of bass that the 846 can deliver is still there. 
 
Mids: The mids (along with the highs) are what I purchased the Litz for. One thing I noticed with the 846's is that the attack/delay was a little sluggish. The Litz eliminates this, making the already excellent 846 even better. This faster sound leads to an improvement in clarity. Male vocals on the 8's are slightly recessed, but with the Litz they are brought forward to where they should be. Upper mids are more pronounced as well. 
 
Highs: There is a little more air in the highs. Once again, the attack and decay of cymbals are faster and more accurate.
 
Soundstage: This is one area I did not expect to hear an improvement. However I was pleasantly surprised when I noticed a slight increase in soundstage. Width wise there is a marginal improvement, but the real winner here is the depth. 
 
Overall, the Litz cable provides the perfect upgrade for my 846's when compared to the SPC cable. All the gripes I had with the 846's were solved with the Litz. I am very happy with the Litz and my only regret is not purchasing the Litz initially.   
 
Thanks Ted!  

 

[Ivabign]

   
If you read the review, Sensaphonics offers black as a color, transparent charcoal (crystal smoke) as well as over 35 different color/swirl/solid/crystal colors.

You can't expect me to read every word - I focused on the sound 

 That Sensaphonics offers multiple color options is great - my only problem is that my 846's fit perfectly - I can use Shure foams, Westone foams and silicone and my seal is perfect and they fit in my ear like a glove - actually the 8's are the best fitting universals I own.

 

[moedawg140]

You are correct, warrior1975, the company is Westone the head-fier chose for his Ref. 1 custom sleeves. He chose the No. 7 custom sleeves option.

 

[truckdriver]

Maybe...Maybe not....I own both and I like both ....yes the 8s are better :..it hits lower in the sub bass region which is what I love ....but I still found myself liking the iE800 it's a nice IEM in many ways plus it's an innovative move forward it may not be perfect as nothing is I think even the 8s could've been made with a better seal between the nozzle as there's stronger yet forgiving materials that could've been used ..... But I tell you after hearing them you will fall in love with the Shures

 
You're right about the gasket between the nozzle and earpiece. The last time I changed filters I saw a few tiny pieces of black material on the counter-top when I finished. Now I wonder if the result is similar to a vent (as in not quite airtight). The bass has been a little weird lately and I wonder if this gasket issue plays a role.
 
WARNING: Here I go again with another hair-brain theory.
 
Since I returned to the black filters that came with this 846, I've changed the EQ in ways that I would have never imagined doing. I'm a bass boosting kinda guy. Now I have the bass (on the EQ) down almost 3db from zero and no other bass enhancement on at all. At one time I had the bass up 8db at 40Hz with the EQ flat at zero on Viper4Android. I think it could be possible that my need to decrease the bass is due to those gaskets not being tight. The overall tonality is also a little different. It's more live-like (more speaker-like).
 
I didn't reduce the bass because it was too much (or too heavy), but rather it was just washed out sounding. It needed to be lowered to restore control and deepness.
 
I wish I had a brand new 846 to compare too mine (with the worn gaskets). I must admit though, I'm not complaining about the way the 846 sounds right now. It's good (real good).

 

[moedawg140]

You can't expect me to read every word - I focused on the sound   That Sensaphonics offers multiple color options is great - my only problem is that my 846's fit perfectly - I can use Shure foams, Westone foams and silicone and my seal is perfect and they fit in my ear like a glove - actually the 8's are the best fitting universals I own.

Sir, I never said anything of the sort regarding you read every word - and you focusing on the sound is a statement I don't understand with regards to the discussion. But, if you truly are focused on the sound, then just know that the SCS is just about the best you will get with regards to sound, in my (and other SCS owner's) honest opinion. If the seal of your SE846 is 'perfect' and they 'fit in your ear like a glove', then why would you mention custom sleeves from a company that is not tried and true such as Sensaphonics? I'm sorry, I do not understand the logic of your rebuttals. The reasons that I have stated initially more than warrants users to choose Sensaphonics over Spiral Ear, as the sleeves can't even be shipped anywhere other than the European Union.

 

[Ivabign]

Sir, I never said anything of the sort regarding you read every word - and you focusing on the sound is a statement I don't understand with regards to the discussion. But, if you truly are focused on the sound, then just know that the SCS is just about the best you will get with regards to sound, in my (and other SCS owner's) honest opinion. If the seal of your SE846 is 'perfect' and they 'fit in your ear like a glove', then why would you are mentioning custom sleeves from a company that is not tried and true such as Sensaphonics? I'm sorry, I do not understand the logic of your rebuttals. The reasons that I have stated initially more than warrants users to choose Sensaphonics over Spiral Ear, as the sleeves can't even be shipped anywhere other than the European Union.

Moe - apparently the tone of my replies has been lost on you - I am in a good mood and thought that my words (and emojis) would have been fairly apparent. I am not rebutting you - I am simply mentioning the fact that there is another option for other IEMs. I would also state that Head-Fi members come from all over the world - and that a company that doesn't ship to the USA doesn't preclude their mention here as many members can order from them and receive them with no issues whatsoever. We aren't the only country on the planet. 

 < (this emoji means I am not trying to be anti-patriotic or anything)

 

[warrior1975]

Wait, there are other countries besides the US? Do you know if they speak American?

just kidding obviously, but can't we all get along?

 

[Pepito]

There isn't a day that the SCS doesn't get mentioned. The cult feeling in the 846 thread is overwhelming. There are other options out there, many people in this thread get extremely defensive when someone mentions anything that isn't talked about daily.

Let's get back on track, music to make the 846's sing! https://youtube.com/watch?v=1LmX5c7HoUw

 

[moedawg140]

  Moe - apparently the tone of my replies has been lost on you - I am in a good mood and thought that my words (and emojis) would have been fairly apparent. I am not rebutting you - I am simply mentioning the fact that there is another option for other IEMs. I would also state that Head-Fi members come from all over the world - and that a company that doesn't ship to the USA doesn't preclude their mention here as many members can order from them and receive them with no issues whatsoever. We aren't the only country on the planet. 

 < (this emoji means I am not trying to be anti-patriotic or anything)

 
Sir, there are options for other IEMs, but in this case, I am simply stating that the Spiral Ear option (for the Shures) you have posted is not the best option, as I have explained in detail previously.  If someone wants to go that route, they are more than welcome to.  I'm pretty sure that if you read the description of Spiral Ear fully from their website, you would have probably not posted it as you very well know that the European Union are not the only countries on Earth.  I am fully aware that the United States is not the only country on the planet.  [size=12.8000001907349px]The Spiral Ear company that you mentioned only ships to countries in the European Union, whereas Sensaphonics has a network - and international partners - that reaches more countries in a wider area around the world.  This explains exactly how I feel towards my love for the entire world.  Why not go with a company that reaches the most countries in a much wider area as opposed to one that does not reach beyond a few?  I am stating why the Spiral Ear [/size]is not the best decision to purchase custom sleeves for any and all Shure IEMs. It just doesn't seem like the wisest decision to me, for the various reasons that I have stated previously.  

 

[hermes3893]

Guys, do these still sound great straight out of an iphone alone? I would be driving them out of an O2 at home, but they would see the most use on my commute, at the gym etc.