[davidhunternyc]

Thank you so much for that review. I just got interested in portable audio a couple of months ago and I quickly decided that I wanted to get a 160GB iPod Classic, the iQube, and SE530's. After reading other reviews of IEM's, I was persuaded by the Triple Fi 10's. It is fantastic and a coincidence to read that everything you talked about is in my short list of what I want in a portable rig. It seems by your review, that with this system at least, you preferred the SE530's. Now I am reconsidering going back to them. Unfortunately, I could only afford to buy one pair of IEM's. Is there any more feedback you can share with me about how those two IEM's in this system? I would be very grateful. Thank you.

 

[Swelled Head]

Quote:

Originally Posted by davidhunternyc /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thank you so much for that review. I just got interested in portable audio a couple of months ago and I quickly decided that I wanted to get a 160GB iPod Classic, the iQube, and SE530's. After reading other reviews of IEM's, I was persuaded by the Triple Fi 10's. It is fantastic and a coincidence to read that everything you talked about is in my short list of what I want in a portable rig. It seems by your review, that with this system at least, you preferred the SE530's. Now I am reconsidering going back to them. Unfortunately, I go only afford to buy one pair of IEM's. Is there any more feedback you can share with me about how those two IEM's in this system? I would be very grateful. Thank you.

I have to say that I continue to prefer the Sure SE530s to the Ultimate Ear Triple.fi units. There are albums that sound better on one or the other, but on average, the SE530s seem more natural and flattering. In particular, the UE units seem excessively warm in the lower midrange/upper bass region. The SE530s strike my ears as more neutral. There are, as I wrote in my review, some pop albums with too much sizzle for the SE530s, and after listening to a fair amount of Vivaldi, Jazz, and other sources, I have to say the very high frequencies on the SE530s are a bit too hot. So it's not like one is perfect and the other is imperfect. Perhaps because I'm older and the hearing in my left ear is degraded by a childhood illness, I'm partial to a slightly brighter headphone. I do like the highest frequencies on the UE units better. I wish I could blend them. As for low, low bass, they both go very low, but the SE530s have the edge on the lowest frequences, whereas the UEs are a bit boosted in the midbass. As for comfort, which is not an insignificant consideration, the UE's are a bit larger, I think, so I use them with the smallest soft covers I could find. The stock soft covers that came with the SE530s are OK for me. However, my ears are not identical in shape, so it's a little like I could use something different in each ear. Perhaps I should have gone for the UE Ultimate earphones for around a grand, plus. They are reputed to be the best, but I've already got $2,500 sunk in this little carry-around music playback system. Just can't justify to myself going that high. My advice: If you like it warm, get the UEs, but if you like it cool and perhaps icely natural, go for the Shures.

Good Luck,
Curt Raney

 

[Swelled Head]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tha_dude /img/forum/go_quote.gif What did you think of opening the case?

The I-Qube ran out of juice (came installed with alkaline batteries) at 2:00 AM when I grabbed the amp/iPod combo for a listen. Disgusted with its bad timing, I got up, went over to my computer, brought up the info on how to open the darned thing, and proceeded to nearly give myself arthritis in the thumbs trying to open it. I got the one side open, with the single catch, but I couldn't get the other side open until I gave up pretending to be Arnold S., and tucked a putty knife in the opening at the end, and pried while I held down the open side. Bang, it popped open easily. Nevertheless, I would have ordered it with NiMH batts installed, had that option been available, and had I known how hard it would be to open it. But as they say, what doesn't kill you....., so perhaps in quickly learning what's required to open it, I'm better prepared for the eventual demise of the set of rechargeable batts. For a long time, I've advocated an engineering award for the year's worst case ergonomics. Who, in their right mind, was content to ship a product so difficult to open? Nevertheless, I love the amp, and wouldn't hesitate to purchase it again, if need be. But still...., you gotta wonder. Perhaps the Nederlanders will put the engineer in a gilded cage and parade him about for all to sneer at. Such bad design for such an otherwise well designed product!

Curt Raney

 

[davidhunternyc]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Swelled Head /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have to say that I continue to prefer the Sure SE530s to the Ultimate Ear Triple.fi units. There are albums that sound better on one or the other, but on average, the SE530s seem more natural and flattering. In particular, the UE units seem excessively warm in the lower midrange/upper bass region. The SE530s strike my ears as more neutral. There are, as I wrote in my review, some pop albums with too much sizzle for the SE530s, and after listening to a fair amount of Vivaldi, Jazz, and other sources, I have to say the very high frequencies on the SE530s are a bit too hot. So it's not like one is perfect and the other is imperfect. Perhaps because I'm older and the hearing in my left ear is degraded by a childhood illness, I'm partial to a slightly brighter headphone. I do like the highest frequencies on the UE units better. I wish I could blend them. As for low, low bass, they both go very low, but the SE530s have the edge on the lowest frequences, whereas the UEs are a bit boosted in the midbass. As for comfort, which is not an insignificant consideration, the UE's are a bit larger, I think, so I use them with the smallest soft covers I could find. The stock soft covers that came with the SE530s are OK for me. However, my ears are not identical in shape, so it's a little like I could use something different in each ear. Perhaps I should have gone for the UE Ultimate earphones for around a grand, plus. They are reputed to be the best, but I've already got $2,500 sunk in this little carry-around music playback system. Just can't justify to myself going that high. My advice: If you like it warm, get the UEs, but if you like it cool and perhaps icely natural, go for the Shures. Good Luck, Curt Raney

Thanks for your help. I think it is so strange that everything I am considering is what you have reviewed in your opening post. Reading your latest comments, I was swayed back to the SE530's. I have small ears and the thought of IEM's being too large scares me a bit. But then at the very end you said if I liked things colored to the the warm side, to get the Triple Fi's. I do like sound to be on the warmer side and it is why I like tube amplifiers. I have always been in the camp that all electronic reproduction of music is colored. There isn't such a sound as clear and transparent. I go to all these high-end audio shows and these $150,000 systems sound brilliant. Do they sound like actual music being played? Not even close. So I have to pick and choose my preferences. I would rather reproduced music sound warm than cold. "Neutral" is a tricky word for me. So now I am back at square one. If I could only hear both on the iQube, it would be easier to choose.

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

Very good first review/post!

I agree with the SE530 vs Triple.fi thoughts. Sometimes the SE530 can have a little sibilance, but their transparency outweighs that flaw. In my case, I did sell the triple.fi, and I converted the SE530 into a hard shell custom molded earphone which I still use (don't ask, they don't want to do any more of these jobs

).

 

[davidhunternyc]

Thanks. Now I am back in the SE530 camp. I guess for comfort, the olives are a nice fit too. At least that is what I have read.

 

[BigTony]

Hummm,

I'm getting close to caving in and going for the IQube and Shure 530. I liked my old shures, great sound, but a tad uncomfy to wear, but I guess its all about working with it, and maybe better tips.

BT

 

[slowfreight]

Nice review!! My wheels are turning and I'm wondering if the IQube is worthy as a stand alone amp to replace my MK V? With rechargeable batteries of course...

 

[Swelled Head]

Since writing all this stuff up about the i-Qube and the earphones, I purchased an iPod Classic 160GB model (6th generation) from amazon.com. I should have been better prepared for considerable differences between iPod models. My experience with the i-Qube and earphones prior to the Classic were with a 16GB iPod Touch. The Classic has much, much better sound at its headphone output than the Touch. There's nothing cold or clinical about the SE530s played solo on the Classic. I haven't listened to the Triple.fi units on the Classic yet. Moreover, I suspect that the i-Qube is cooler with the Classic using the output from the Classic's DAC than the Touch's DAC. I would need to compare them more rigorously to be sure. My next move will be to try the i-Qube with my Sennheiser 650s, which I suspect will be a good match. For now, though, I'm NOT going to carry the i-Qube about with the Classic. I'm happiest with the SE530s straight out of the Classic's headphone jack. They're warm and spacious. Go figure. Too bad Apple hasn't paid closer attention to the quality of sound these different units emit. I guess they were never intended for high end listening.

Curt Raney

 

[davidhunternyc]

^^^ Are you saying you prefer the SE530's straight from the headphone out in the iPod Classic? You prefer this set-up to using the iPod with the iQube? Well, it certainly would save a lot of money and space to not buy an iQube. But this is the first time I heard such a thing. From what I've heard, the iPod Classic's amplifier is mediocre at best. I would love it if you could elaborate about the sound quality with the iQube and without the iQube.

 

[Swelled Head]

Quote:

Originally Posted by davidhunternyc /img/forum/go_quote.gif ^^^ Are you saying you prefer the SE530's straight from the headphone out in the iPod Classic? You prefer this set-up to using the iPod with the iQube? Well, it certainly would save a lot of money and space to not buy an iQube. But this is the first time I heard such a thing. From what I've heard, the iPod Classic's amplifier is mediocre at best. I would love it if you could elaborate about the sound quality with the iQube and without the iQube.

Yes, for now, with only a couple of albums under my belt with the Classic/Shure combo, sans i-Qube. One thing to remember is that IEMs are easy to drive. The i-Qube may be essential for driving standard, over-the-ear headphones like the Sennheiser 650s, given the relatively high impedance of the iPod headphone amp circuits and the considerably lower sensitivity of the Sennheisers. They're much higher in impedance than the IEMs, but I haven't seen a graph of their impedance by frequency.

Since these iPods sound so different from each other, a blanket recommendation may not be in the offing. I will be listening to the Classic/Shure combo at some length over the next three days while on vacation. When I've come to a more certain opinion based on many albums of various types, I'll report back. I feel guilty about launching into an extensive review of the i-Qube before testing it with various combinations, but I stand behind what I wrote because I mentioned I was using an iPod Touch. A professional reviewer, which I'm not, would probably have forewarned readers to keep that in mind. I've certainly learned my lesson about overly simple test situations. I'm not used to such wide variation in sources and amps from past experience with home system gear. Usually the differences are more subtle than the differences between the Touch and the Classic. And to be even more careful, remember I'm talking about the 16GB Touch and the 160GB Classic that's labeled the 6th generation. I've also read that Apple has issued some software upgrades in recent times aimed at, among other things, fixing the sound of some of the iPods. I don't recall which were involved. My quick estimation that the Classic sounds warm on the Shures is based on two albums I listened to last night with which I am very familiar. This is admittedly a limited comparison, but not naive, and I usually find that first reactions are true, although not always well understood as to their cause. Don't be dismayed. The audio journey has its ups and downs, as with life in general. Whatever you do, you shouldn't rely on any one user/reviewer. I didn't, when I purchased both the Shure and UE IEMs. I did the unusual thing by purchasing the Shures after the UEs, having read another set of reviews by an apparently knowledgeable source. I wish I'd bought the Shures first, but that's for now. Who knows? In the future I may be glad to have the UEs.

By the way, there's a store on ebay selling the Shure SE530s for $279. The model with the by-pass switch/microphone is a little more. That's cheaper than I paid for the UE Triple.fi 10 pros.

Happy Hunting,

Curt Raney

 

[hatethatgiraffe]

curt
The iqube sounds great with both the classic and the touch so no worries there!
Also sounds good withiphone 3g but not used that combo as comprehensively as others!
Were you using the lineout on touch during review?

 

[davidhunternyc]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hatethatgiraffe /img/forum/go_quote.gif curt The iqube sounds great with both the classic and the touch so no worries there! Also sounds good withiphone 3g but not used that combo as comprehensively as others! Were you using the lineout on touch during review?

Yes, thanks again Curt. But, hatethatgiraffe, you said the iQube sounds great with the Classic. That seems to not be in doubt. But running the SE530's directly from the headphone out of the iPod doesn't seem to be that much difference in sound quality according to Curt. If this simple combination is great, why not save the money and extra bulk, and not purchase the iQube for portable use? The iQube would have to be a significant improvement in sound quality to justify its cost and added bulk.

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

He is right about the iPod Classic 160gb headphone out being better than the Touch headphone out. The line out dock of the Touch is better than the headphone out.

I didn't realize you were using the headphone out to feed the iQube. I always say "garbage in, garbage out" - so always use your best source. There is also such a thing as synergy, and some surces and amps work better together than others, and it's possible one combo can amply flaws instead.

 

[hatethatgiraffe]

true the shure could be driven from the headphone out but the iqube just adds that little bit extra!
Midrange has more depth and everything just has that little bit extra!
Particularly on lossless!
You could drive a Ferrari slowly and be happy but put your foot down to see what it can do and you will really smile!