[ArrigoShred]

Hey man~

I've owned numerous IEMs from the more mainstream brands - Westone, UE, Shure, Sennheisers.

I started off with Shures - SE115 then went into UE - Triple fis then stumbled onto Westone with their W3s W4s Um3x and played around with the Senn IE8s for awhile and I own a pair of the SE 535s as well. 

If you were to compare SE535 with the Westone 4s I personally would say its down to preference since the Mids of the Shures are more forward and full whilst the W4s are more subtle and tamed.

 

[NeoDiNardo]

I'm hoping to not own that many! Perhaps I'll try one or two more tops. lol. Or perhaps I'll skip right to the best custom I can afford. I'm not sure yet.
 
I'm gathering that the Shure Olive tips are very nice for a seal though. Why else would others try to mod them onto other headphones?
 
Comfort and seal seems slightly more important to me than the absolute best in-ear sound. What's the point if you hate wearing them and can't maintain a good seal right?
 
Does anyone use in-ear headphones exclusively, or do you own a combo over the ear set for home and in-ear for on the go?

I'm sold for in-ear for on the go and at the gym, but I was thinking of a big can set for easy slip on slip off for movie watching and music at the house.
 
Or I can just concentrate all my money on one style, which would have to be the in-ear for flexibility. Go for the JH16 Pro say. Can those be re-shelled when my ears change shape?

 

[Yggdrassilious]

Well this is it for your wallet. You'll just drool over all those unfamiliar and exotic IEMs with glowing reviews until you've tried them all. And you'll lose sleep and be pacing the floor at night thinking about them.
 
Welcome to the forums. 

 

[NeoDiNardo]

Decided that if I try any other IEM at all, it will be the JH16 PRO. Go big or go home, since I already have the Shures. 
 
Not related to the main thread, but I decided on a home solution. Everywhere I read or called, the LCD-2 V2 Headphones was the single most talked about item. Ticks all the right boxes on my dream list. So I will go with those. I was going to go with CEntrance DACmini, but as good as the DAC part is, I read it's amp a bit too cold.
 
I also read the Headroom Desktop Amp, while not the best DAC, at $850 is a good amp with a slightly warm side. It was suggested that I even go with the Headroom Desktop Mini Amp instead plus the matching Headroom Mini DAC, a combo which totals $650. I read the Headrooms are a good value by design. However, it has also been suggested that there are better ones out there than Headroom for the money due to competition, but I have not seen this as yet. But my Amp research is not done, so these are just early options. I am set on the LCD-2s however. 

 

[NeoDiNardo]

Now I'm hankering for the JH16 Pros...

I posted up my Shures for sale on Hardforum (can't sell here yet, I'm too new), if they sell, I'm getting the JH16s. After reading about them, I really want to try custom now.

 

[MacedonianHero]

They're an excellent IEM. Relax and enjoy them.

Agreed...they are phenomenal IEMs.....did I mention I slightly prefer my Westone 4s though?

 

[Spyro]

It's never a mistake if it fits your preferred sound sig.  Personally, I find SE535 very accurate but it is too constrained where the presentation almost sounds a bit "compressed" relative to other IEM's.  It's hard to desribe.  The soundstage is decent but the overall sound just sounds too "closed in."

 

[NeoDiNardo]

I managed to sell the Shures for a decent price from what I paid, now I'm gunning for the Westone ES5s. I think after extensive research, these are the ones to get. I'm also going to get the LCD-2 for the home. Now I just have to choose an amp. DACmini or Grace M903...

 

[NeoDiNardo]

I decided to go for the Grace M903 after all, god help my wallet! But it fits better into my overall plan of using it in different ways later on, like as a preamp with a remote. And I decided that I like dual headphones for guests. 

 

[i2ehan]

Quote:

I managed to sell the Shures for a decent price from what I paid, now I'm gunning for the Westone ES5s. I think after extensive research, these are the ones to get. I'm also going to get the LCD-2 for the home. Now I just have to choose an amp. DACmini or Grace M903...

 Quite impressive. You're practically racing to audio heaven my friend!

 

[NeoDiNardo]

ahhh, who am I kidding, the Grace is too expensive. I think it's down to the DACmini and 160D. 

 

[kevroc]

I've had some time with both the W4 and Shure 535's and they're both really excellent.  I have several lower end headphones in the $100 range and they just don't compare at all, almost hard to listen to them now.  From a non audiophile perspective, the Shure's have some more bass and just seem punchier, the Westone's seem overall more balanced and smoother.  Things like cello's and violin's really come through on the Shures, it can almost make your head vibrate, it's awesome. Again, they both top tier.

 

[Burma Jones]

Quote:

I've had some time with both the W4 and Shure 535's and they're both really excellent.  I have several lower end headphones in the $100 range and they just don't compare at all, almost hard to listen to them now.  From a non audiophile perspective, the Shure's have some more bass and just seem punchier, the Westone's seem overall more balanced and smoother.  Things like cello's and violin's really come through on the Shures, it can almost make your head vibrate, it's awesome. Again, they both top tier.

Which of the two do you like better for classical music?
 
 

 

[kevroc]

Well I had sold my W4's and have been using the 535's, and really like them on classical.  It's funny because you can hear the musicians chairs creaking as they move and breathing and every little detail, maybe almost too much.
 
I repurchased the W4's and get them today.  Honestly one of the best things I like about the W4's are they are more portable and easy to work with.  The 535's feel like monsters with that thick cable and memory wire.  The W4's with the braided cable feels light weight and much easier to manage.  I'm going to give them another run on some classical tracks I have.
 
I did do this before however and decided to sell the W4's and keep the 535's, not even a month ago.  So I had come to the conclusion that I could get more detail out of the 535's, but there's something about the overall sound of the W4's that make them so likeable.