[seanmo]

still quite underwhelmed by the sound quality of these.  burned them in for 48 hours and slight improvement but I have to EQ the crap out of them on my clip+ or iphone4 to get any high end on them.  Its a bit of a surprise to me, I always thought treble was not that important to me, but when its lacking I get a little bit of the 'listening through a can or tunnel' sound, but kind of in reverse if that makes sense.the lack of high end is really driving me a little nutty.   The bass and soundstage are quite nice though and I do like the build, especially the swiveling housings which make getting them fitted and dealing with the memory wire much easier.  I did a comparision with my turbines and found the turbines to have a much more pleasing sound sig to me, more balanced and more high end, not quite as much soundstage and bass is a tad flabbier.  My m6p compares favorably but not the same quality of bass and sounds a little thinner...mide are more recessed and not as good as the shures

    

 

[Tal71]

I've just ordered the SE215 today off of http://www.superfi.co.uk
 
I got the last pair. I really struggled to find a pair in stock in the UK.
 
Apart from the store above, all the other shops I tried were out of stock of the black, but they had the clear in stock, but I don't like the clear. They will be here tomorrow between 9-5.
 
It will be interesting to see how they compare to my Shure E4C sound quality wise.
 
I have a few question that I was wondering if some of you could answer for me please:
 
I have read a bit on hear about burning in, so I downloaded some burn in files off of someones signature on this topic.
 
What is the best way to burn in. Is it just a case of playing the burn in files on repeat overnight for say 3 nights.
 
Or is is best to burn in with the music that I will be listening to.
 
Also, what volume level is advised when burning in.

 
Thanks.

 

[bcasey25raptor]

Quote:

I've just ordered the SE215 today off of http://www.superfi.co.uk
 
I got the last pair. I really struggled to find a pair in stock in the UK.
 
Apart from the store above, all the other shops I tried were out of stock of the black, but they had the clear in stock, but I don't like the clear. They will be here tomorrow between 9-5.
 
It will be interesting to see how they compare to my Shure E4C sound quality wise.
 
I have a few question that I was wondering if some of you could answer for me please:
 
I have read a bit on hear about burning in, so I downloaded some burn in files off of someones signature on this topic.
 
What is the best way to burn in. Is it just a case of playing the burn in files on repeat overnight for say 3 nights.
 
Or is is best to burn in with the music that I will be listening to.
 
Also, what volume level is advised when burning in.

 
Thanks.

burn in is a myth, it hasn't been proven. i haven't noticed any difference over time on my shure srh840. so i think you should just listen to your music when you get them. burn in is brain in imo. just give yourself time to adjust to the new sound signature.
 

 

[Zephyron]

Different types of burn-in/conditioning exist.

Earphones/headphones will carry an inherent sound sig pre/post initial burn in, and while some changes can be heard quite distinctly (usually dynamic drivers or crossover heavy BA based IEMs), other changes may range from minute or no changes at all (smaller dynamic drivers and single BA drivers). This is the process of burning-in/conditioning the earphones.

The other's a mental conditioning of your own mind/ears to the sound sig of the earphone.

That said, using comparison notes, I haven't noted much of a change on the SE215 pre-post burn-in periods, save for maybe a less grainy upper midrange. Not sure if its placebo or otherwise, but Eric's opinion and mine matched when it comes to the inherent sound properties of the SE215.

 

[Tal71]

Thanks for the advice Zephyron and bcasey25raptor, its much appreciated.
 
I'll add my opinion about the SE215, at some point during the week, and I'll make a point of mentioning how I find them compared to my Shure E4C. They should be here tomorrow between 9-5 so I'll have a try out of them tomorrow night to see which buds I find work best for me, then I'll listen to some music
 
I'll also give them a test on Thursday when I go to the gym and hear how the noise isolation works in there and also how well they stay in place while exercising.

 

[AngryBaconGod]

Thanks for the advice Zephyron and bcasey25raptor, its much appreciated.
 
I'll add my opinion about the SE215, at some point during the week, and I'll make a point of mentioning how I find them compared to my Shure E4C. .

I have the E4C (with a disintegrating cable) as well as the se215 (with a replaceable cable!).

I won't try to compare the mids/treble from memory, but I will say that that se215 is an all-round more enjoyable IEM. The entire bass and half of the mid-bass region seems to be missing on the E4C's.

And the cable with the se215 is far less microphonic, though still annoyingly thick.

 

[TopspinTEC]

The memory part of this cable is so annoying. . .  I guess it's probably because I have glasses.  Glad I'm switching to contacts soon
 
On another note I had to move the left plug into the right earphone and vice versa to get the Shure logo on the Y-split to face outwards. . .

 

[Fyro]

Quote:

Quote:

what are your sound preferences?
   

Punchy bass with really fast decay, not warm, not too bright, soundstage, sparkling highs, (slightly) v-shaped, great timbre. Preferences already sorted.

Of all the 'phones I've heard the PRO 750 comes closest but lacks the great timbre. The K701 would be also of my taste if it had more bass and slightly recessed mids.

Edit: Wow, this forum really is not iPhone friendly!

As I am a bit of a 'noob' in describing sound quality, I'm not overly Shure (haha) on what you mean by 'timbre', and the fast decay of bass.. do you mean punchy, rather than soft bass?
 
I have to agree with what you say for bass. I do love the SE215's, but they lack that little bit of bass which made some songs worth listening to. My old Sony IEM's had great bass, which played songs like, well, anything fron Young Jeezy (as an example) with brain shaking bass. While the Shure's seem to play it with less of a mind blowing sound.
 
So far, these are probably the best for SQ of what I own. Hard to compare it to my Turtle Beach X41's, as I don't listen to music so often on them, and they are a set of $250 gaming cans, but play good music. But these are way better for the midrange and the highs compared to my Sony's.

 

[bcasey25raptor]

how loud do these get. i am asking because i don't want iems that get to loud. because iems are to easy to blow your eardrums with.

 

[dweaver]

The SE215 is pretty efficient so they can get loud, I suggest simply not using them that way .
 
Having said that I find myself turning these up a bit louder than I normaly like to get better sound out of them but I also have no fatigue issues with them. I stillthink they are pretty darn good bang for the buck.

 

[Sylverant]

Back when the Klipsch Image S4 came out CNET said they sounded on par with the SE310 which costed 2/3 times as much. Now that the SE215 are the top Shure dynamic iem's how do they compare to the S4 now?
 
One of the things I like about the S4 is that while instrument separation is so-so, they never conjest just as CNET said. They have big bass body, good mids and edgy undetailed treble. Overall, their quite fun. Does the updated driver technology from Shure make the SE215 better?
 
Edit: I searched the thread and found answers, thanks!

 

[Tal71]

Thanks for the advice Zephyron and bcasey25raptor, its much appreciated.
 
I'll add my opinion about the SE215, at some point during the week, and I'll make a point of mentioning how I find them compared to my Shure E4C. .

I have the E4C (with a disintegrating cable) as well as the se215 (with a replaceable cable!).

I won't try to compare the mids/treble from memory, but I will say that that se215 is an all-round more enjoyable IEM. The entire bass and half of the mid-bass region seems to be missing on the E4C's.

And the cable with the se215 is far less microphonic, though still annoyingly thick.

Thanks for the opinion, really appreciate it as you were a former E4C owner. I have got to admit that I always found the E4C really good, decent bass (not head thumping, but I don't like bass like that) and mid range and treble that was detailed enough for my ears/preference.

Interesting to hear that you find the SE215 an all-round more enjoyable IEM and that the bass and half the mid-bass region seems to be missing on the E4C's. So from the sounds of that I should notice an increase in bass with the SE215. I just hope I can get the detail in the mids and treble end that I get in my E4C, if it do, then I will be well happy .

Thanks again everyone for the help/opinions it's much appreciated.

 

[marko93101]

YUSSSSS Mine arrived in the post today all the way from America! Absolutly delighted! They seem great so far, only problem imo is hmm what should i call it, cable noise? Like if it brushes off my face i can hear it, if i touch the cable i can hear it, it's kinda irritating, other than that they're better than my SE210s and IMO a 100 quid well spent!
Will happily give more impression as the week goes on.

 

[AngryBaconGod]

Thanks for the advice Zephyron and bcasey25raptor, its much appreciated.
 
I'll add my opinion about the SE215, at some point during the week, and I'll make a point of mentioning how I find them compared to my Shure E4C. .

I have the E4C (with a disintegrating cable) as well as the se215 (with a replaceable cable!).

I won't try to compare the mids/treble from memory, but I will say that that se215 is an all-round more enjoyable IEM. The entire bass and half of the mid-bass region seems to be missing on the E4C's.

And the cable with the se215 is far less microphonic, though still annoyingly thick.

Thanks for the opinion, really appreciate it as you were a former E4C owner. I have got to admit that I always found the E4C really good, decent bass (not head thumping, but I don't like bass like that) and mid range and treble that was detailed enough for my ears/preference.

Interesting to hear that you find the SE215 an all-round more enjoyable IEM and that the bass and half the mid-bass region seems to be missing on the E4C's. So from the sounds of that I should notice an increase in bass with the SE215. I just hope I can get the detail in the mids and treble end that I get in my E4C, if it do, then I will be well happy .

Thanks again everyone for the help/opinions it's much appreciated.

For what it's worth, I never missed the bass on the E4C (and I'm talking about quantity and extension) until I got other 'phones and realized what I was missing. I might also have not done enough messing with tips to find the perfect fit.

Regardless, I think you will find the SE215 to be a bit of a shock! Hopefully a good shock, of course. As others have said, there's a bit of an emphasis on bass with the se215, but it's not over the top (IMHO - I have IE8's so I know what over the top sounds like heh). I want to say that the mids are just as good and you might find the treble a bit lacking, and that the E4C was probably a faster 'phone, but that's based on very poor memories... I think you'll find that the se215 is a different beast with some pros and some cons versus what you're used to.

Let us know what you think. I'm very curious.

 

[Tal71]

After spending a good couple of hours experimenting with different tips and sizes, and trying some various music on my iPod, I think I finally have the tip type and size that works best for me, here are my impressions.
 
Wow. I am seriously impressed with the SE215, the bass is so much better than the E4C. I hear what you mean angrybacongod when you say:
 
Quote:

I never missed the bass on the E4C (and I'm talking about quantity and extension) until I got other 'phones and realized what I was missing

 
 
I totally agree with you on this.
 
I tried the E4C and the SE215 right after each other with the same music and it was clear to hear the bass was far stronger (without been overpowering) with the SE215, the mids and the treble to my ears were on par with the E4C (if they were less with the SE215, then I wasn't unable to tell).
 
I must admit that the fitting into the ears with the SE215 is not as easy as to what I have been used to with the E4C, I think this is because the E4C are a different shape and go into the ear at a more deeper angle than the S215. But I suppose I'll get used to the fitting into the ears and I expect in a few weeks it will become second nature.
 
I decided in the end that the best type and size of sleeves are the rubber flex in the small size. I found the medium black foam (it had 2 dots on it) to be OK but it was just a bit of a hassle compressing it and then having to quickly pop it into the ear before it expanded. From experience of using the yellow foam pads that I got with my E4C, I found that they soon needed to be replaced and werent has durable as the rubber flex sleeves.
 
I find the isolation with the SE215 to be as good if not better than the E4C. I'll be able to tell better when I use the SE215 in the gym (which can be a bit noisey).
 
Overall, I am seriously impressed with the SE215, for £99 they are well worth the money.