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My thoughts exactly. At the moment, my gut feeling is that answer (for me) is B with a strong inclination towards C. The M11+ won't beat those 60-100 earphones you're thinking of but that's where its other strengths come in - namely warranty support, ease of use, and availability - all factors of great importance to Joe Consumer. Plus the M11+ has its build, comfort, accessory pack, etc going for it. The old M11 was good enough to sell for those reasons alone, albeit at a lower price point.
I also wouldn't say that its victory over the M6 is as clear-cut as you would think. The M11+ is the technically superior earphone but at the moment I wouldn't say that I outright prefer it to the M6. The M6 is lively and exciting. The M11+ takes itself more seriously.
The PLUS is just as lively as the m6, maybe even more. So i have mine burning in for about 10 hours already. So more thoughts:
Comfort:
Yes i would say theses are the most comfortable IEMs i ever had. Edges out the JVC Marshmellows and the M6. With the large range of tips( improved tips, by the way. Much softer, very comfy) and the super small size of the PLUS, i dont see anyone who wont be happy with the comfort of the PLUS.
Cables:
Yes the cables are different from the other Meelecs. If you guys play around with the cable slider on your earphones i think you would know what im talking about. It isnt very smooth on the other meelecs but on the PLUS its very smooth which is fantastic. The cable itself feels a lot more smoother. This is in comparison to my M9 M11 and M6.
Microphonics:
Coming from the overear M6 with nonexistent microphonics, i would say the PLUS does quite a good job. Nothing special. But the earphones are easily worn overear style so no problems here for me.
Sound Quality
The bass has tightened up quite nicely. Bass quantity does not seem to have decreased, maybe even increased though. These little things are crazy. never imagined that much bass to come out from them. If you guys have experience with bassy earphones such as the M9, JVC Marshmellow, CX300, Eternas etc. etc. having lots of bass means that the sound signature will be dark. But with the M11+, i would say that they are
BRIGHT.
Why must more bass = darker sound signature? it feels like they are trying to conceal the loss in clarity. IMO with a bright sound signature, it is much easier to pick out imperfections with a bright sound sig. than a dark sound sig. as with a dark sig, all the details are buried deep within the darkness. You really have to listen to really tell the difference. I remain impressed by the PLUS by being bright yet bassy at the same time.
And as i mentioned before, they still have the "sparkly sparkly". The bass actually extends quite low, and is much more prominent than the M6, maybe even more than the M9. Its tight, punchy and deep. Microdetail is also definitely more prominent. These earphones are definitely made for
FUN FUN FUN.
Yay for more bass and sparkly sparkly!
If the M6s makes me want to tap my feet, then these make me want to dance.
And as i mentioned before, the PLUS definitely has its emphasis on the low-end. And the vocals are more forward than the rest of the meelec range. Which is a very welcome addition. They seem to have become more forward after the 10 hours of burn in. Fantastic, for i do like the vocals.
COMPARISONS:
Definitely better in SQ than the M6. No question. Take the M6, improve it in every way possible. Remove a bit of the "sparkly sparkly" that made the M6 tiring. Retain the rest of the sparkly. Add bass and emphasis on low-end. Make the sound signature slightly less bright. And you have the PLUS
As for the Fischer Eternas ( version 1) i had very limited time with a pair of them(10 minutes pax). Didnt like them. The bass seemed to cover up everything else. Details were masked by the bass. I didnt really see why it got as much fanfare as it did. The earphones were huge. They didnt look very good. The vocals were rich and nice though. And this impression were a few months back. The only things i remembered about the Eternas were how bassy they were. it was kind of a "meh" moment for me. And as you guys might have noticed, im not exactly a fan of earphones with dark sound signatures. So i would say the PLUS are better earphones than them.
I also had some limited time with the Soundmagics PL21. I thought the M9 sounded better than them so... i dont think i need to say the outcome
Against the Playaz XEARS TD100. I rate the TD100 quite highly. It really punches above its price class but the horrid build quality kills it. Anyway the TD100 cannot handle bass as well as the PLUS, and has less quantity. The Vocals are smoother on the TD100s but lack the detail and intimateness of the PLUS (There is a very special quality to the vocals that the PLUS has which i quite like. Dont know how to describe it but makes the vocals sound more intimate) and lacks the sparkle of the PLUS. So the PLUS again are better.
HappyFi:
For your question HappyFi, i would go with either option A or B, with me leaning more towards A. The sound quality is a definite improvement and its quite a good improvement i might say. I am very happy with the PLUS.
For me, why am i considering option B? Its simple. Based on aesthethics, the PLUS are better lookers, but the M6 gets the 'WOW" kind of reaction. So thats one. Moving on to the next important aspect, microphonics. With the M6, its nonexistent. Cables guides make it easier to wear overears while with the PLUS you have to manually wear it over. I would say the M6 are better for exercise. Actually the M6 are one of THE BEST for exercise.
Why am i not considering option C? I think some of you guys might have noticed the earphones that i have compared to the PLUS are all... you got it... CHEAPER. The PLUS are the most expensive earphones i have. No wonder that it is the best. The only earphone that i can really compare it against is the Eterna and i didnt really have much time with them.
So i just cant say how they would compare against the rest. This is just based on sound quality. And again i mention my disdain for dark sound signatures. Looking around at head-fi, the other earphones mentioned all have dark signatures. If it were up to me, then i would not pick C.
If you were to consider build quality, warranty and service, accesories etc, the PLUS would win.
Any IMPROVEMENTS?:
Meelec could have included a cable guide for simpler overear wearing.
The PLUS is a identical twin to the M11 appearance-wise. They could have made the casings different to distinguish them.
I wish the 3.5mm jack would be similar to the M6 so it doesnt stick out so much.
L and R marking should not just be printed. The bands on the earphones should be of different colour to distinguish L and R ( The ring around the earphones, i hope you know what im talking about). Or even the strain reliefs leading to the earphones to be of different colours. Markings dont last forever.
Final Conclusion:
For me, the PLUS are definitely worth it over the M6. I dont own any high-end IEMS so you might have to take my words with a pinch of salt.
If i had to describe the PLUS, think of it as maybe a stylish handsome young man in a business suit. Sure they can be serious now, but they know how to party and have fun in style. And once again this earphones IMO are all about FUN.
Thanks for reading this short writeup