[toucam]

Hi everyone,

This is my first post ever on Head-fi

I've been browsing this great forum for a few weeks now and I know this is going to be the only place that I cry out for help.
I've owned Shure E3C for over a month now, and I've been thinking about making a step forward in the Hifi land but it's not as easy as I thought it was.
I mainly use canalphone with my photo ipod, without amp. I mostly listen to Trance, Pop (stuff like Dido, Natalie Imbruglia, Coldplay ...), some Opera and Classical and I'm also a heavy bass head (hence Trance

)
E3C to my ears is great is but I need more bass. I want something that balance between details and bass, just simple as that. Ipod is the main source and I'm not planning to use amp whatsoever. So my sole purpose here is to find a pair of phone that works well with ipod, nothing else.
Based on that, can you recommend me a good pair of phone, I'm a total newbie, so please just use plain and simple words from your own experiences.
I will also use only universal fits, not the custom mold ones.
I've been battling between: E5C, UM2 which one shoud I go for?
If I'm aiming at the above should I forget about the upcoming E4C and Ultimate Ears super.fi 5Pro ? Or should I wait? My budge is $400.

Cheers.

 

[james3shin]

I don't see the harm in waiting, seeing as how the future is sounding very nice according to Jude's review of the E4C's...the new Ultimate Ears should be good contenders as well. I see no reason to take the plunge yet. Just wait, a little bit longer.

*EDIT* Oh, I forgot to welcome you to the boards...Welcome. I too was just a viewer at one point and have slowly been making posts as well.

 

[donaldekelly]

The new Ultimate Ears super.fi 5Pro is supposed to have better detail than the UM2. For $250 it will be cheaper and supposedly better than the UM2 I just bought.

I don't think anyone really knows yet how the suprer.fi 5s compare to the new Shure E4c. Jude says the E4c is better than the more expensive E5c. E4c = $199 or even less if you jump in fast and do a price match

 

[vranswer]

My vote goes to E5s all the way. I've owned the UM2s, and while they're similar, they're just not as refined sounding IMO. If you like the E3s, you'll find the E5s to have a more balanced presentation, with absolute loads of bass, overwhelmingly so on some recordings. I've actually flipped on Bass Reducer iPod EQ preset for some of my more bassy CDs.

Getting them to fit and such may be another matter. They are perfect for my usage, but a quick search will show others who've had issues. The Shure 'memory' wire causes a love-hate reaction in nearly all of us, but in the balance I've gotten used to it and even find it handy in certain aspects. But the sound.....clear, articulate, detailed. E5s' sensitivity makes them awesome for listening straight out of the iPod. In fact, I enjoy my E5s even more plugged in to my Rio Carbon. I think the Carbon's amp section is better, as music is much clearer with better sound stage, etc. Not a knock on iPod, however, as they rock it too! It's just that if you ever decide to utilize iPod's line-out and a good amp...........

Good luck, and sorry about your wallet!

 

[Spiritboxer]

I'm very happy with my E3's but I can't wait to see how the Super.fi 5Pro does upon release. Sounds like a dream phone at that price and if you like extra bass, the EB model might be worth looking into.

 

[PrototypeX2]

Welcome to Head-Fi!

Personally, I would take the risk and get UE Super.fi Pro/5EB.
But if you would like to stay safe, e4c is the best choice I think.
(To add that I would wait for these two models)

 

[TMC]

Wait for both to be released and then read comparisons about E4C vs Super.fi 5 pro/EB, someone who has E3C will probably chime in too. If you really have to rush out and get something my guess is the EB version would suit your taste better.

 

[some1x]

The problem is that it might be a while before the Super.Fi comes out, and even longer before meaningful reviews are posted.

 

[donaldekelly]

Blue onion on the UM2 vs the E4c:

"I compared the E5s to the E4s and found the E5s to be superior. The E4s do have much more air and space to them, and the bass is very impactful, but there were details I heard in the E5s that I did not hear on the E4s. I also felt the E4 was lacking in timbre and texture when compared to the E5s. Jude has had considerably more experience than me though, so it is very likely that my perceptions were the result of an untrained ear.

As for a comparison to the UM-2, I did go home and listened to my UM-2s that night. My conclusion (based on what I had heard earlier that day) was that the UM-2s were superior. Obviously, there was a significant time lag, and thus, my perceptions may again be incorrect."

http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/showt...light=e4c+jude

 

[donaldekelly]

UM2 and UE5 Pro

http://www.misticriver.net/boards/sh...=ultimate+ears

This link used to have a kind of review by Jmmmmm (emails posted by sweetspot) saying that he liked the Um2s better until he had listened to the UE Super.Fi 5 Pro for a few weeks and then he thought the UE had better detail, etc.

Apparently Sweetspot thought better of posting the "review" until the product was released.

 

[gords]

I love the E5cs. Their deep, full sounding bass is to die for and I've never had problems with the memory wire.

 

[bLue_oNioN]

The OP loves bass. The UM-2s have more bass than the E5s.

 

[tayano]

wait for the UE's.

 

[blackreplica]

Quote:

Originally Posted by toucam Hi everyone, This is my first post ever on Head-fi I've been browsing this great forum for a few weeks now and I know this is going to be the only place that I cry out for help. I've owned Shure E3C for over a month now, and I've been thinking about making a step forward in the Hifi land but it's not as easy as I thought it was. I mainly use canalphone with my photo ipod, without amp. I mostly listen to Trance, Pop (stuff like Dido, Natalie Imbruglia, Coldplay ...), some Opera and Classical and I'm also a heavy bass head (hence Trance ) E3C to my ears is great is but I need more bass. I want something that balance between details and bass, just simple as that. Ipod is the main source and I'm not planning to use amp whatsoever. So my sole purpose here is to find a pair of phone that works well with ipod, nothing else. Based on that, can you recommend me a good pair of phone, I'm a total newbie, so please just use plain and simple words from your own experiences. I will also use only universal fits, not the custom mold ones. I've been battling between: E5C, UM2 which one shoud I go for? If I'm aiming at the above should I forget about the upcoming E4C and Ultimate Ears super.fi 5Pro ? Or should I wait? My budge is $400. Cheers.

I'm almost exactly in the same boat as you. i have the exact same music preferences, and am a new member, the only difference being that i own an iriver ihp-h140 instead of an ipod and own a shure e2c canalphone instead of an e3.

I've been dying to make the jump to a dual driver phone for so long. IMHO, you would probably want to jump to dual drivers as well to justify the upgrade which would knock out the e4c. when the e4c was first talked about here, i preordered on microphonesolutions (i might have got the name wrong) but when the thread came out on the UE Super Fi Pro i flipped flopped and decided to wait for that one instead cos it was dual driver.

So i waited a little bit...then heard it was coming out end may...then waited, and it all went to hell. i couldnt wait any longer, saw a good deal on ebay for a new pair of UM2s ($275, only a few bucks more than the UE super.fi) and thinking than the westone will probably be better (due to its price point, and the many opinions i read about the um2), went ahead and ordered the UM2s. they should arrive here in a week or so. I could post my opinions here on them when they arrive, if you like. I'm just like you, my player is half filled with trance music and i love bass, although i would like more treble detail. The e2c is a fun phone, and made me happy for a long time, but i've decided to go to the next level, and i hope the UM2s are what i am looking for.

And lastly, to head-fi > My wallet sincerely detests each and every one of you. I am seriously considering deleting my bookmark to this site and never reading about phones again once my UM2s come. Aw hell, maybe i'll quit head-fi once more members here have bought the e4c and super.fi and posted their reviews. yes....that sounds like a good time to quit...i think..or maybe if....I HATE YOU ALL!!!

 

[Jmmmmm]

If you are a basshead, get the um2's or e5's, undoubtably.

As the only person I know of that has both the um2's and the ue5pro's.. the um2's have much more bass than the 5pro's. In comparison to the e3c and um2's, the amount of bass on the 5pro's is closer to the e3c than the um2. So, as a basshead, your choice should be between the e5c and um2. I've never heard the e5c, so I can't compare them. However, the um2's are supposed to be a little more balanced, and I have no reservations in recommending them to you. I am confident you would be happy with them. The person on ebay blackreplica referred to is supposed to be reputable, and several people have ordered from him. I bought mine on here, though.

Quote:

Originally Posted by blackreplica I am seriously considering deleting my bookmark to this site and never reading about phones again once my UM2s come.

it doesn't matter. i deleted the head-fi bookmark while studying this past week, and it didn't work. I just typed in the website by hand...