Brief Backstory: I ordered the mic'd version on a whim during the brief time MP4nation had them for $28.50 on Amazon. I figured they weren't too common, and it was almost 75% off MSRP, so it was worth a shot.    On to the Review: Out of the box, the first thing I noticed was that the cable didn't seem to be as advertised. In the promo pictures, it looks like a sturdier plastic-sheathed twisted cable, but the one I got had rubbery black ones almost reminiscent of iBud cables. After some more research, however, I found out that the mic'd...

I bought these alongside the UE500, with the intent of keeping the one I liked and returning the other one. Auditioning through a stereo, the S4s were a little less lively and smooth than the UEs, and tended towards some fairly bad sibilance, especially on classical tracks with high violin parts that were almost painful to listen to. I liked the UEs better, and returned these.   Despite the sound quality issues, I have to say they were very comfortable and hassle-free, and the build seemed better than the UEs (which have had cable issues since)...

These are my first pair of upper-mid tier IEMs, so I can't really compare these to anything else in their price range. I can say however, that they sound very good to my ears, with much better bass extension than my A151s, and a nice midrange and overall more balanced sound than my M50s. However, they don't have the world's best isolation, and there are some minor build issues, such as the plastic strain relief coming unglued from the housing, though it doesn't really move around and it's easily glued back on. In addition, the strain reliefs on the...

I'm not too experienced of an audiophile, but out of the IEMs that I've tried, the UE 500s are the most balanced that I have heard to date. Compared to the Klipsch Image S4 (to which they seem to be compared most often, due to availability), the Ultimate Ears are more detailed and balanced. Whereas the S4s seem to have more of a v-shaped (Bass/treble-heavy) sound, the UEs have a more balanced (some might say bass-light) sound. However, though the bass is not as heavy on the UEs, it is very nicely textured and is less boomy than that of the Klipsches...