[JasonCA]

About 24 hours until I'll have mine...so excited!

I'm the most excited for you getting it Rockwell75 over others! After all, your review of the original Solaris OG was the reason I finally decided to get my own at the beginning of this year. Because of that, I finally moved away from my Shure 530's after many many years of using it to moving completely over to the Solaris OG. This decision was done after many months of review (yours among many others) and trying other new IEM's too for myself. For a period of time, I was swimming in IEM's and having my own fits.

Overall, I was disappointed after returning to the world of IEM's after many years have lapsed that Shure has been non innovative over the years . Probably this is due to the increased competitive field, but still. My interest started when my Shure 530's started dying and needed to be replaced or at worst fixed. Shure's offering was only the Shure SE846 which made me yawn for the price. And, I wasn't bound to get the Shure 535's just for detachable cables only to arrive at the same sound signature of my Shure 530's that I already own.

Either way, I've never looked back since then and Shure is now completely in my past. I still love the Shure fit though and break them out to appreciate how much the sound quality has improved since then. They were great for their time but the technology has improved beyond them. Not to be cruel, but the Shure 530's are a joke compared to the Solaris OG in every sense.

Point is, I look forward to hopefully a non bias review (your honest opinion) of how much refinement was done in the Solaris SE over that of the Solaris OG despite you being a new owner of the Solaris SE (don't let it go to your head or you become biased by that fact alone). I'm sure you won't though as you seem keen on getting to the truth of descent sounding IEM's and seem to try others as well (e.g. QDC Anole VX and Sony Sony IER-Z1R to name a few). If you don't like them, you seem to let them go and move on. Good for you!

But in your review of this, I'd be interested to hear if the Solaris SE is 50% better or 15% better than the Solaris OG? Or, only a 5% improvement? Based on Ken's words, I don't expect there to be much of a difference from the original sound-wise. But, I would still be interested in knowing what differences you honestly hear?

It's not like the Solaris has moved to incorporating Electrostatic drivers or something that is a bit more revolutionary or innovative to give that wow factor outside of different aesthetics. Although, I do wonder when or if Campfire Audio will begin to incorporate them at some point in their lineup considering others are. Maybe in 2020? Either way, these Solaris SE's are limited in quantity too and can't be had by everyone. Yet, it is nice to see them in the Solaris family for an additional option.

One always has to justify the cost depending on where they are coming from (non Solaris owner to a current Solaris owner) if they want to remain practical. Either way, there will always be newer IEM's from Campfire coming out in the future. For example, just look at the sheer number of Andromeda's Campfire Audio has released this year (good in some ways and perhaps maybe not in others). I can easily afford the Solaris SE, but prefer not to own them all when I'm very content with the Solaris OG as it is. Nothing else really impresses me on the market right now. To me Campfire Audio gives great value for quality sound coupled with build quality that can be appreciated.

Overall, I have to admit I'm in love with Solaris OG signature. And, I've done A/B comparisons and still am most pleased with Solaris OG for me and for my sound preference.

I'm happy for you Rockewell75 and share in your excitement. Enjoy them for Christmas & New Year's!

Likewise, I look forward to seeing what Ken and Campfire Audio does in 2020.

 

[Deferenz]

I recently had a demo of the Solaris, and wow! it definitely made an impact on me. That bass. The bass was hard and pumping. Not that I'm a bass head, but that element really made an impression. I also found them really comfortable to wear. If I had the spare cash I would consider buying a pair.

 

[fokta]

Hahaha... now I know how reviewer being chase for deadline...
Need to do multitasking...

anyway... Looking forward for that SE review...

 

[Rockwell75]

I'm the most excited for you getting it Rockwell75 over others! After all, your review of the original Solaris OG was the reason I finally decided to get my own at the beginning of this year. Because of that, I finally moved away from my Shure 530's after many many years of using it to moving completely over to the Solaris OG. This decision was done after many months of review (yours among many others) and trying other new IEM's too for myself. For a period of time, I was swimming in IEM's and having my own fits.

Overall, I was disappointed after returning to the world of IEM's after many years have lapsed that Shure has been non innovative over the years . Probably this is due to the increased competitive field, but still. My interest started when my Shure 530's started dying and needed to be replaced or at worst fixed. Shure's offering was only the Shure SE846 which made me yawn for the price. And, I wasn't bound to get the Shure 535's just for detachable cables only to arrive at the same sound signature of my Shure 530's that I already own.

Either way, I've never looked back since then and Shure is now completely in my past. I still love the Shure fit though and break them out to appreciate how much the sound quality has improved since then. They were great for their time but the technology has improved beyond them. Not to be cruel, but the Shure 530's are a joke compared to the Solaris OG in every sense.

Point is, I look forward to hopefully a non bias review (your honest opinion) of how much refinement was done in the Solaris SE over that of the Solaris OG despite you being a new owner of the Solaris SE (don't let it go to your head or you become biased by that fact alone). I'm sure you won't though as you seem keen on getting to the truth of descent sounding IEM's and seem to try others as well (e.g. QDC Anole VX and Sony Sony IER-Z1R to name a few). If you don't like them, you seem to let them go and move on. Good for you!

But in your review of this, I'd be interested to hear if the Solaris SE is 50% better or 15% better than the Solaris OG? Or, only a 5% improvement? Based on Ken's words, I don't expect there to be much of a difference from the original sound-wise. But, I would still be interested in knowing what differences you honestly hear?

It's not like the Solaris has moved to incorporating Electrostatic drivers or something that is a bit more revolutionary or innovative to give that wow factor outside of different aesthetics. Although, I do wonder when or if Campfire Audio will begin to incorporate them at some point in their lineup considering others are. Maybe in 2020? Either way, these Solaris SE's are limited in quantity too and can't be had by everyone. Yet, it is nice to see them in the Solaris family for an additional option.

One always has to justify the cost depending on where they are coming from (non Solaris owner to a current Solaris owner) if they want to remain practical. Either way, there will always be newer IEM's from Campfire coming out in the future. For example, just look at the sheer number of Andromeda's Campfire Audio has released this year (good in some ways and perhaps maybe not in others). I can easily afford the Solaris SE, but prefer not to own them all when I'm very content with the Solaris OG as it is. Nothing else really impresses me on the market right now. To me Campfire Audio gives great value for quality sound coupled with build quality that can be appreciated.

Overall, I have to admit I'm in love with Solaris OG signature. And, I've done A/B comparisons and still am most pleased with Solaris OG for me and for my sound preference.

I'm happy for you Rockewell75 and share in your excitement. Enjoy them for Christmas & New Year's!

Likewise, I look forward to seeing what Ken and Campfire Audio does in 2020.

I will post impressions as soon as I have something meaningful to say, however I haven't heard the OG Solaris in a few months now so I probably won't be able to make any definitive statements about relative differences until I get to hear it again. My most prominent immediate comparison will be with the VX. I'm particularly interested how I will react to hearing Solaris again after not having heard it for a few months now. Only a few more hours...can't wait!

 

[Rockwell75]

Its on

 

[Rockwell75]

Got a smokey litz 4.4 to go with my SE Solaris...I think it looks rather nice. Good lord I forgot how much I loved this IEM. Bearing in mind my aforementioned caveat about not having heard OG Solaris for 3 months...I can't say for sure but mids, particularly male vocals, seem a dash more forward and robust than I remember.

 

[MarkF786]

Do any of you SE owners notice the difference in weight? Even with the added weight, it's probably nowhere near as heavy as the IER-Z1R though.

 

[Lookout57]

Do any of you SE owners notice the difference in weight? Even with the added weight, it's probably nowhere near as heavy as the IER-Z1R though.

I weighed the SE and each ear piece is 1 gram heavier than the corresponding OG ear piece. I didn't notice the increase when switching between the models.

 

[Rockwell75]

It is heavier...I'm almost convinced it's bulkier too.

 

[cr3ativ3]

Got a smokey litz 4.4 to go with my SE Solaris...I think it looks rather nice. Good lord I forgot how much I loved this IEM. Bearing in mind my aforementioned caveat about not having heard OG Solaris for 3 months...I can't say for sure but mids, particularly male vocals, seem a dash more forward and robust than I remember.

Hey “rocky” what’s your opinion about the bass / mid bass impact on the SE ? Same / less than OG ?

 

[Rockwell75]

Hey “rocky” what’s your opinion about the bass / mid bass impact on the SE ? Same / less than OG ?

I don't know...I want to avoid putting anything on "the record" with respect to this as I haven't heard OG since Sept. That said the SE Solaris is faring much better in my ABing with VX than OG Solaris did. The presentation feels a little more refined maybe? Like I wouldn't say there is more bass, but the bass that is there is cleaner, more disciplined, less diffused, which may present as more impact without there actually being more impact...or something. I'm absolutely loving SE though...impact or not I love the bass texture and the separation, soundstage and sense of air and sparkle in the highs is to die for. People who preferred Andro to OG Solaris might have a harder time preferring it over SE Solaris. Take all of this with a grain of salt though as I have not had a chance to revisit OG Solaris.

 

[candlejack]

 

[Rockwell75]

I'm trying to be cautious about my assessment of the differences but I'm the most confident that there is an improvement in the mid-range...particularly with respect to male vocals. Mark Knopfler sounds fuller and more forward than I remember. At this point it is fairly obvious that there has been a refinement in certain areas, particularly the mids, upper mids, and sparkle in the higher registers...I would suspect no more than say a 5-10 % though, so not huge. Was this, along with the new look, worth the extra $$, well that's a YMMV thing...but so far I'm quite happy with it.

 

[Rockwell75]

There is definitely a degree of "upper end sparkle" in the SE that I don't recall in the OG...if their target overall was Andro like highs with a bassline of present but polite DD bass contributing to an overall balanced signature...then I think the SE comes closer to this mark than the OG did. I'm hearing nothing of the "nasal" quality that people complained of in the OG. Layering and separation on Solaris is really something to behold...easily the best example of 3d holographic staging I have ever heard. Many people, myself included, have cited a desire for more low end presence and impact on Solaris...but I wonder if this could be done without sacrificing the upper end sparkle and feel of the soundstage...if that's the case then maybe it's a worthy tradeoff.

 

[candlejack]

There is definitely a degree of "upper end sparkle" in the SE that I don't recall in the OG...if their target overall was Andro like highs with a bassline of present but polite DD bass contributing to an overall balanced signature...then I think the SE comes closer to this mark than the OG did. I'm hearing nothing of the "nasal" quality that people complained of in the OG. Layering and separation on Solaris is really something to behold...easily the best example of 3d holographic staging I have ever heard. Many people, myself included, have cited a desire for more low end presence and impact on Solaris...but I wonder if this could be done without sacrificing the upper end sparkle and feel of the soundstage...if that's the case then maybe it's a worthy tradeoff.

Time to update the avatar again, then?
I'm glad you're happy with your purchase. Although, I can't help but think that if you weren't happy enough with the OG to keep it, the SE will probably not keep you satisfied in the long run either.