High End CIEM/IEM Thread!
May 1, 2014 at 7:53 AM Post #316 of 903
 
I would like to know how you find 3dd vs se846.
 
I am now a 846 and hd600 owner and i do love the sound signature of hd600 more while still loving my 846. I demoed the miracle and merlin, they are surely better in other aspects in the 846 but the bass and mid are really great on the 846. The bass is just lacking in the miracle, and the mid are just too reccessed in both miracle and merlin, i expect at least as forward as the hd600, which i find its positioning is the most appropriate.

TBH, I think the demo of 3DD they had at the shop was defective. There is no way that a good iem will sound that mediocre. It has bloated bass, harsh treble, and random dips and peaks here and there. This is when compared with UERM I had. I thought there was something wrong with my gear, but everything sounded fine on UERM. IDK. This is just based on 5min demo. SE846, on the other hand, had satisfying bass and rich mids, which I love. To me, 3DD has slightly better clarity, but much more mediocre tuning.
 
May 1, 2014 at 8:35 AM Post #318 of 903
  What you heard is how it measures so um ya :wink:


I agree, and only your own head and ear counts!
 
I love my se846 too, but i hope it will become better like having some other advantages of other iems/ciems!
rolleyes.gif

 
I think i do miss some treble and details in se846.
I find the mid in se846 is definitely rich, and my minimum requirement of mid is like hd600, a bit laid back but still rich.
And in bass, i am afraid i am just a basshead and my minimum requirement of bass is like hd600 too (where se846 is more exciting, and hd600 more clean and deep).
 
For example, i am really amazed by the details of miracle and dynamics of merlin, but i just want them all in one ciem!
atsmile.gif

 
May 3, 2014 at 1:19 AM Post #319 of 903
Not sure if any of you have heard the dita earphones before, they're rather newly launched product from Singapore featuring a single dynamic driver. There are two models, the answer, and the answer (truth edition), which is basically the same earphone with a custom van den hul cable upgrade. I've compared it to many of the top flagship universal IEMs and CIEMs such as the fitears, JH, Roxanne, Noble, UM, Sennheiser, AKG, Vision ears, and IMO, the answer is easily comparable to all of these top end IEMs. Perhaps these multi BA IEMs do certain things better, for one, the fitears in particular do have a more well defined midrange, but none of these IEMs have either the extension to compete with the ditas, or natural realism of tone. Yes, even the cheaper version without the Van Den Hul cable upgrade.
 
Personally, I listen to a lot of classical music, thus, the full range extension on both ends is really important to me and I guess the answer has a large advantage here. Perhaps on vocal tracks many of these multi BA IEMs could perform slightly better due to the BAs inherent ability to perform well at the midrange, However, in terms of top end extension and low end bass slam, the answer is truly on another level. The bass is powerful, tight, well extended, yet immaculately controlled, giving the full, mellow, and natural tone to the various instruments when the music calls for it. Imaging and soundstage are very good as well, and very natural indeed, especially when paired with the right sources and amplification. In terms of details, the answer doesn't lose out one bit as well.
 
In fact, the answer is perhaps one of the most natural and organic sounding IEMs I've heard to date. Yes, the UM miracle has a more immense soundstage, but it just sounds thin and unnatural in comparison. The JH13 has a really unique midrange tone that gives for a really interesting listening experience, coupled with a wide soundstage. The fitears have a sweet, well defined and strong midrange. The k3003s come close with lots of energy in the upper mids, but compared to the answer, they lack the full bodied low end and that extra energy in the upper midrange sometimes translates into a bit of shoutiness, Basically, many of these  IEMs do perform better in the answer in a couple of ways, but at the end of the day, if I had to pick one pair, I would go with the answer any day, for they sound far more natural at everything they do. In fact, listening to orchestral pieces from the Living Stereo, the answer literally made me feel like I was there, at the concert hall. It's the tone. It's that real. It's that good.
 
In fact, when the makers were designing the answer, they had one goal in mind, to be able to emulate a well tuned 2 channel speaker setup. And I must say that they have succeeded. If you ever get a chance to hear them, remember, though, that these are NOT earphones that would jump out at you on the first listen. Compared to the fitears, or the JH IEMs, for example, they do not have that wow factor on first listen. In fact, had I not known that other people who grew to love them had the exact same sentiments, I would not have made myself sit down and continue to listen to them. However, the more you listen, the more it grabs you. The woody tone of the strings, the energy in the violins, the alacrity and lightness in the guitars, and more than anything, they sound so real. Give it time, sit down and let it grow on you, and I guarantee that it won't disappoint! :)
 
May 3, 2014 at 9:27 PM Post #320 of 903
Universal Roxanne and SE846 owner. As well as several customs.. Hehe. 
 
May 4, 2014 at 12:43 AM Post #321 of 903
 
I agree, and only your own head and ear counts!
 
I love my se846 too, but i hope it will become better like having some other advantages of other iems/ciems!
rolleyes.gif

 
I think i do miss some treble and details in se846.
I find the mid in se846 is definitely rich, and my minimum requirement of mid is like hd600, a bit laid back but still rich.
And in bass, i am afraid i am just a basshead and my minimum requirement of bass is like hd600 too (where se846 is more exciting, and hd600 more clean and deep).
 
For example, i am really amazed by the details of miracle and dynamics of merlin, but i just want them all in one ciem!
atsmile.gif

 
What you are hearing is mid-bass vs sub-bass most likely as the HD-600 has a mid-bass boost while having a cut-off for sub-bass. 
 

 
edit: What details are you missing btw? 
 
May 4, 2014 at 9:05 AM Post #324 of 903
The graph is scaled to exaggerate the difference and not using the bright filter.
 
May 4, 2014 at 2:14 PM Post #326 of 903
  While we have the graphic here I must say, for an iem that costs 1k, that's an awful treble extension. How people even say SE846 is an high end iem. Because of it is price? Pff.

 
It's not awful, it prevents ear fatigue. And people say the Shure SE846 is a high end IEM because of what they hear with their ears, instead of what their eyes see on a graph.
 
I bet if someone makes a headphone that is completely flat (also in the treble region), nobody will listen to that headphone because it's too bright and very hard on the ears.
 
May 4, 2014 at 2:30 PM Post #327 of 903
   
What you are hearing is mid-bass vs sub-bass most likely as the HD-600 has a mid-bass boost while having a cut-off for sub-bass. 
 

 
edit: What details are you missing btw? 

I think it's about the timbre difference in hd600 and se846 which i like the presentation of bass in hd600 more.
 
It seems i shall go for a lesson to describe what i heard
floatsmile.png

 
I think the details i missed are those longer decay of treble (?)
 
May 4, 2014 at 3:04 PM Post #328 of 903
   
It's not awful, it prevents ear fatigue. And people say the Shure SE846 is a high end IEM because of what they hear with their ears, instead of what their eyes see on a graph.
 
I bet if someone makes a headphone that is completely flat (also in the treble region), nobody will listen to that headphone because it's too bright and very hard on the ears.


IMO, you can make great treble extension while keeping it relaxed, airy and polite, yet detailed. It can be smooth, not in your face or forward bright, without rolling of after 10khz.
 
May 4, 2014 at 3:50 PM Post #329 of 903
Bright filter might increase the treble but does it extend the treble response? Does it go up to 17 khz?

 
Do your ears? :p  
 
The new Olive-Welti compensation curve has treble from 3-20KHz dropping off to match in room response about -25dB at 20KHz.  Nearly -15dB of that is from 10-20KHz alone.  A flat line would be really unnatural.  That said my 846 goes to 15KHz, my ears go to 17KHz.
 
Here are yours...

 
May 4, 2014 at 4:22 PM Post #330 of 903
Well, since discussion about SE846 seem to be hot, I might as well post my own opinion.
I recently got the 846. So far, what I'm noticing is that there's no upper treble what so ever. I'm not calling this bad, because I enjoy the 846 a lot. When compared to UERM, it doesn't have the treble, but it still holds its grounds in terms of clarity and sound stage.
 

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