It's official, I suppose I have joined the club today!
I am currently looking for a good replacement to my Shure SE530's. I've written about that here:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/sen...d-newer-models-vs-sennheiser-ie-800-s.902546/
As a temporary alternative, I picked up the Tin T2 Pro's so I have
something when the Shure SE530 cable dies. They are quite nice for the price, although I have to EQ them like crazy to be happy with the sound. In my opinion, out of the box they have too much treble and not enough base. They are a lot more satisfying when you EQ them though. For roughly $80 at the time, they are worth it for an interim alternative.
Currently, I am eyeing the Sennhesier IE 500 Pro's and waiting for reviews on those. However, as of current, those have not been released just yet despite my understanding they are to be out anytime in March; any day now. The IE 40 Pro is out. The IE 500 Pro's once release may be my ultimate replacements to the Shure SE530's for the money and if they excel beyond the IE 800 S?
As I've enjoyed my Shure SE530's over the many years, I'm really disappointed that Shure has not come out with newer IEM's and have instead sat on the fence with continuing to innovate aside from the Shure KSE1500 which go for $3000 (ouch) and are really not that portable. Paying $1000 for maybe the Shure SE846 that has been around for many years now just doesn't seem all that reasonable to me now. Others say the cheaper IEM's today sound even better for far less the price. Huge disapointment that I don't have any other options from Shure around or under the $1000 while realizing the IEM field has become crowded too. For this reason, I've given the Shure SE535's and Shure SE846 a pass on to give other IEM's a try. I'm still looking at alternatives. I think I'm at the right place here to explore with everyone else!
The ultimate reason I'm moving away from my Shure SE530's is not because I don't enjoy them,
I do, but the cable on my right IEM is intermittent now. I sort of have no choice to have something on hand and the SE530's are by now quite old. The upgrade for those are the Shure SE535's as they have the MMCX connector that would alow me to replace the cable. However, I don't want to spend $450 to buy the Shure SE535's simply to replace something I already have at the same sound signature! Too boring! Plus some say the Shure SE535's are a bit boring by todays standard. I won't know unless I try a few others. That's what I'm trying to do here and there.
In my quest for new IEM's, I wrote about them here:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/replacing-discontinued-shure-se530-iems.901276/
My right cable has gotten worse to where my Shure SE530's are no longer really usable. I've read through the forums the last few weeks and it seems that the Kanas Pro seems to sound at least as good as the Shure SE846. From the reviews, I like that the Kanas Pro is a bit more neutral out of the box unlike the Tin T2 Pro's that I really have to fiddle around with too much to fully enjoy. I can't always have an EQ on them either when in use.
Considering that I need something right now to use as my Shure SE530 cable is about dead now as of today, I just ordered the
Kanas Pro to give them a try for fun. At $180, why not based on all the good reviews. It'll hopefully hold me over until maybe I can find something a bit under the $1000 range for something I'd eventually settle on. Plus it will give me time to look further at the IE 500 Pro's once they come out. And then once they are finally out, it would probably take me time to get my hands on them too since they are so new. It's good to have something in the interim. Seems like the Kanas Pro will fit that bill just fine.
For another story and thread for the future, I still don't know if Sennheiser see's the IE 500 Pro as something that is meant to excel much beyond the IE 800 S that seems to be their current flagship at $1000. For example, why is the model # lower: 800 vs 500? It's a question of if I should even bother waiting on them? Or, seek for something beyond that. We already know what everyone thinks of the IE 800 S. There are plenty of reviews on them. If the IE 500 Pro's sound worse then the IE 800 S, then I'd probably want to pass. Apparently the IE 500 Pro is supposed to be using newer technology. We'll see!
In the meantime, at least I'll have the Kanas Pro to kick around a bit. For all I know, maybe I'd really like them?
Now I wait and just enjoy the pro's and con's of the Kanas Pro that people post here.
I was also eyeing the Tanchjim Oxygen, but after recent reviews, I decided against it due to the short stem. Considering I may use the IEM's for exercise too, I don't need the IEM's to pop out of my ears. From all I have read, the Kanas Pro's seem on par with the Tanchjim Oxygen. Plus, the Kanas Pro's are cheaper. I like the look of both of them. The Kanas Pro's just seem like a Gem: can even polish them now and then for fun
.
I also considered the BGVP DM6, but passed on those too as they seem to be a bit of a hit or miss.
As the Kanas Pro's seem a bit more balanced, I jumped on them. Thanks for everyone helping to make that decision: for better or worse.
