zb0430
Head-Fier
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- Mar 11, 2009
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After the beginnings of driver failure in my long-used Sensaphonics 2X-S, I splurged and got a set of ES5's, received them about 3 weeks ago. So far, so very good. But, I'm inclined to say this: the 2X-S is no slouch as a dual driver. That said, extension and depth seems to be greater than the 2X-S in every respect. Everything is better, but maybe to a slightly lesser degree than I expected based upon these rave reviews. Still, I am impressed, and happy with my purchase. Here are some of my impressions thus far, relative to the 2X-S which I've grown familiar with over the last 5-6 years, directly from an iPhone 4S with lossless and hi-res music files.
Confort is a big deal to me. I must say, there's nothing that can or will rival the comfort of silicon material for in ears. However, the soft-vinyl tips of the ES5 and the great molds I got come very close. After a minute being in the ears, they warm up and disappear. I give the nod to my Sensaphonics as the most comfortable IEM i've ever used, but the ES5's are a very close runner up. Since I use these for recreation and performance, this is important. I may not be the best bet for this test, as I'm a tall guy with large canals. Others probably are more inclined to have issues with canals being too tight or poorly molded. My large canals are somewhat forgiving as long as the molds aren't too small.
As for fit and finish, I must give the nod to Westone. The ES5's are solidly built, well packaged, and well equipped. The design is great, albeit missing a few of the accommodations of the Sensaphonics. First off, Westone used a Pelican case that is one size too big. The one size below, used by Sensaphnics, makes a great case. The Westone case is fine down in my bag, but it's certainly a bit oversized. The cable is good, better than the 2X-S, but slightly too long. They're removable, unlike my Sensaphonics cable, which is nice for peace of mind. But the ES5 lacks the convenient shirt-clip that's on my 2X-S, which annoys me when performing. However, the overall product of the ES5 simply seems nicer than the 2X-S. The smoke gray color and the entire package look just great. This is partly due to the fact that silicon can't be polished, and is much harder to work with than the acrylic/vinyl combo of the ES5.
Now to the most important part: frequency presentation. Foundational bass is solid on the ES5. It's deeper, stronger, and better than the 2X-S by a small margin. Good extension and impact, although not fit for a bass-head, they're not bass-shy. They simply don't add or take away from the track's presentation of bass. Attack and decay seem good, where some other phones I've used, my 2X-S included, suffer from some fluffiness that masks the bass and mid-bass areas, they can't hit you and immediately follow up with more attack. The ES5 does a great job of presenting bass with a natural feel, but doesn't stumble over faster lines. I found this to be true in Jamie Cullum's version of the jazz tune "One of Those Things", where some of the upright bass work loses definition with my 2X-S. Some quick plucks of the strings muddle together, whereas the bass impact and natural decay of the ES5 allow the bass plucks to be heard from both string attack and bass impact. I was impressed.
The midrange is where these phones start shining to me, which is grand considering how important the range is to get right. Coming from the 2X-S, there was a slight brain "burn-in" that needed to occur. My very first take on the ES5 almost left me disappointed, believing the phones to be too present here. This soon changed. The presentation of the 2X-S is slightly more recessed, although still smooth, which I was very used to. Vocals stand out well in both phones, but the 2X-S can't stand up to the depth of field and the lush-ness of the ES5 midrange. Somehow,, the ES5's manage to present more of everything, in a good way, without muddling things up. I wasn't used to this sound signature at first, and it took me a few listens before I understood: this is what accurate representation in the midrange means. I heard details in the tracks I hadn't ever heard through my 2X-S, not simply because of the ES5's extended highs (which, compared to the 2X-S, is noticeably better). The midrange and soundstage of the ES5's allowed me to hear more syncopated percussion tapping and stereo effects in tracks like "Horizon Has Been Defeated" from Jack Johnson's On & On album. I've heard the track a hundred times through my 2X-S, but the lushness of the ES5 is impressive. Tracks that i've enjoyed for years, such as some of Norah Jones' work from "Come Away With Me" album had new depth, and I could hear slight scratch of clipping in the tube preamp on her vocal when she dug into the mic. I was able to distinguish "analog tone" from "digital tone". Neither sound bad when done well, they're just different. I can get a sense of this character in the midrange presentation of the ES5's, a feat that the 2X-S simply isn't detailed enough to achieve. This nuance is actually pretty amazing, and took me by surprise. The ES5 are relentless in revealing poor recording and mastering due to the clarity and lushness of the mids, but they don't render anything unlistenable to my ears. The 2X-S can't quite boast that same level of detail, although they're smooth and inviting as well. The ES5's are simply better all around.
High end extension is good, not necessarily vast, but neither is it lacking. It's certainly better than the 2X-S by a fair margin, and more extended. It seems just about right to me, and I could lend the term "detailed but warm" to the ES5. I never feel overly fatigued by it. Sibilant tracks don't pierce any more badly than they should, and possibly even get smoothed off a tad. This presentation is great for long listening periods, and I would feel comfortable saying this makes the ES5 a very enjoyable phone to listen to for long sessions. I can listen to fairly crisp albums like Diana Krall's "The Girl In the Other Room" all the way through without fatigue, whereas the slight notch in the upper midrange and 6-7kHz of the 2X-S can sometimes create extra fatigue. Somehow, the ES5 remain both smooth and engaging in this area. They've struck an absolutely great balance here.
Soundstage is good, and positioning of instrumentation in the stereo field is better than any other in-ear headphone I've tried. They outshine the 2X-S here fairly easily, although I have limited exposure to other customs to compare to.
For what it's worth, I'm in the professional audio and music industry, and use these for mixing/monitoring and for my personal listening. As a FOH engineer, guitarist, and vocalist, I'm impressed with the ES5. They're an incredible toy for recreation, but an even more useful tool for doing my job. I'm well pleased with them thus far, and look forward to spending more time with them. The clarity and lushness in the midrange has already made these feel like a great improvement as on-stage monitors, and adds a ton of enjoyment to recorded music as well.
Confort is a big deal to me. I must say, there's nothing that can or will rival the comfort of silicon material for in ears. However, the soft-vinyl tips of the ES5 and the great molds I got come very close. After a minute being in the ears, they warm up and disappear. I give the nod to my Sensaphonics as the most comfortable IEM i've ever used, but the ES5's are a very close runner up. Since I use these for recreation and performance, this is important. I may not be the best bet for this test, as I'm a tall guy with large canals. Others probably are more inclined to have issues with canals being too tight or poorly molded. My large canals are somewhat forgiving as long as the molds aren't too small.
As for fit and finish, I must give the nod to Westone. The ES5's are solidly built, well packaged, and well equipped. The design is great, albeit missing a few of the accommodations of the Sensaphonics. First off, Westone used a Pelican case that is one size too big. The one size below, used by Sensaphnics, makes a great case. The Westone case is fine down in my bag, but it's certainly a bit oversized. The cable is good, better than the 2X-S, but slightly too long. They're removable, unlike my Sensaphonics cable, which is nice for peace of mind. But the ES5 lacks the convenient shirt-clip that's on my 2X-S, which annoys me when performing. However, the overall product of the ES5 simply seems nicer than the 2X-S. The smoke gray color and the entire package look just great. This is partly due to the fact that silicon can't be polished, and is much harder to work with than the acrylic/vinyl combo of the ES5.
Now to the most important part: frequency presentation. Foundational bass is solid on the ES5. It's deeper, stronger, and better than the 2X-S by a small margin. Good extension and impact, although not fit for a bass-head, they're not bass-shy. They simply don't add or take away from the track's presentation of bass. Attack and decay seem good, where some other phones I've used, my 2X-S included, suffer from some fluffiness that masks the bass and mid-bass areas, they can't hit you and immediately follow up with more attack. The ES5 does a great job of presenting bass with a natural feel, but doesn't stumble over faster lines. I found this to be true in Jamie Cullum's version of the jazz tune "One of Those Things", where some of the upright bass work loses definition with my 2X-S. Some quick plucks of the strings muddle together, whereas the bass impact and natural decay of the ES5 allow the bass plucks to be heard from both string attack and bass impact. I was impressed.
The midrange is where these phones start shining to me, which is grand considering how important the range is to get right. Coming from the 2X-S, there was a slight brain "burn-in" that needed to occur. My very first take on the ES5 almost left me disappointed, believing the phones to be too present here. This soon changed. The presentation of the 2X-S is slightly more recessed, although still smooth, which I was very used to. Vocals stand out well in both phones, but the 2X-S can't stand up to the depth of field and the lush-ness of the ES5 midrange. Somehow,, the ES5's manage to present more of everything, in a good way, without muddling things up. I wasn't used to this sound signature at first, and it took me a few listens before I understood: this is what accurate representation in the midrange means. I heard details in the tracks I hadn't ever heard through my 2X-S, not simply because of the ES5's extended highs (which, compared to the 2X-S, is noticeably better). The midrange and soundstage of the ES5's allowed me to hear more syncopated percussion tapping and stereo effects in tracks like "Horizon Has Been Defeated" from Jack Johnson's On & On album. I've heard the track a hundred times through my 2X-S, but the lushness of the ES5 is impressive. Tracks that i've enjoyed for years, such as some of Norah Jones' work from "Come Away With Me" album had new depth, and I could hear slight scratch of clipping in the tube preamp on her vocal when she dug into the mic. I was able to distinguish "analog tone" from "digital tone". Neither sound bad when done well, they're just different. I can get a sense of this character in the midrange presentation of the ES5's, a feat that the 2X-S simply isn't detailed enough to achieve. This nuance is actually pretty amazing, and took me by surprise. The ES5 are relentless in revealing poor recording and mastering due to the clarity and lushness of the mids, but they don't render anything unlistenable to my ears. The 2X-S can't quite boast that same level of detail, although they're smooth and inviting as well. The ES5's are simply better all around.
High end extension is good, not necessarily vast, but neither is it lacking. It's certainly better than the 2X-S by a fair margin, and more extended. It seems just about right to me, and I could lend the term "detailed but warm" to the ES5. I never feel overly fatigued by it. Sibilant tracks don't pierce any more badly than they should, and possibly even get smoothed off a tad. This presentation is great for long listening periods, and I would feel comfortable saying this makes the ES5 a very enjoyable phone to listen to for long sessions. I can listen to fairly crisp albums like Diana Krall's "The Girl In the Other Room" all the way through without fatigue, whereas the slight notch in the upper midrange and 6-7kHz of the 2X-S can sometimes create extra fatigue. Somehow, the ES5 remain both smooth and engaging in this area. They've struck an absolutely great balance here.
Soundstage is good, and positioning of instrumentation in the stereo field is better than any other in-ear headphone I've tried. They outshine the 2X-S here fairly easily, although I have limited exposure to other customs to compare to.
For what it's worth, I'm in the professional audio and music industry, and use these for mixing/monitoring and for my personal listening. As a FOH engineer, guitarist, and vocalist, I'm impressed with the ES5. They're an incredible toy for recreation, but an even more useful tool for doing my job. I'm well pleased with them thus far, and look forward to spending more time with them. The clarity and lushness in the midrange has already made these feel like a great improvement as on-stage monitors, and adds a ton of enjoyment to recorded music as well.
