[Kerouac]

I ordered early November before all the EE fanfare. Just really took my time to get the impressions to Grzegorz. They arrived January, and work was just finished for mine. This is followed by the longest FedEx delivery in history owing to the Chinese New Year holidays haha. I still haven't received them yet, but will update when I do.

Please don't lose your patience, they will be worth the waiting

 

[13candles]

I ordered early November before all the EE fanfare. Just really took my time to get the impressions to Grzegorz. They arrived January, and work was just finished for mine. This is followed by the longest FedEx delivery in history owing to the Chinese New Year holidays haha. I still haven't received them yet, but will update when I do.

Ah right..... i too encountered some serious delay with FedEx when i shipped over my impressions. Believe it or not, mine were stuck in Polish customs for a week! Other than that debacle, Grzegorz was uber fast. If not for that particular delay in customs, SE's turnaround time would prob rival that of UE.

Never going with FedEx anymore after this ...

Oh, and did i mention THAT bass???

 

[Blommen]

I ordered early November before all the EE fanfare. Just really took my time to get the impressions to Grzegorz. They arrived January, and work was just finished for mine. This is followed by the longest FedEx delivery in history owing to the Chinese New Year holidays haha. I still haven't received them yet, but will update when I do.

So ezekiel, now that you have them how do they compare to the Legend X?

 

[ezekiel77]

So ezekiel, now that you have them how do they compare to the Legend X?

Too different to compare really. X is basshead/fun, SE5U is neutral/natural. Being much closer to neutral SE5U is the better all-rounder. They do complement each other well though.

SE5U renders everything effortlessly, perhaps too much. Makes everything sound classy and refined, prim and proper. It's a bit snobbish in a sense, knowing it does everything well and proud of it.

X is for when I tire of all the black tie formality, let loose, swig a shot of whiskey and have some balls out fun. For engagement, excitement and playfulness, the X is unrivaled. Just that no one will take you seriously if you call it reference haha.

They are equally good in treble, resolution and coherence.

Basically bass, dynamics, vocals, fun factor and engagement goes to X. I use it to listen to anything with a beat.

Mids, timbre, texture, soundstage, layering, airiness and refinement goes to SE5U. I use this to listen to music my parents would love too.

 

[Blommen]

Too different to compare really. X is basshead/fun, SE5U is neutral/natural. Being much closer to neutral SE5U is the better all-rounder. They do complement each other well though.

SE5U renders everything effortlessly, perhaps too much. Makes everything sound classy and refined, prim and proper. It's a bit snobbish in a sense, knowing it does everything well and proud of it.

X is for when I tire of all the black tie formality, let loose, swig a shot of whiskey and have some balls out fun. For engagement, excitement and playfulness, the X is unrivaled. Just that no one will take you seriously if you call it reference haha.

They are equally good in treble, resolution and coherence.

Basically bass, dynamics, vocals, fun factor and engagement goes to X. I use it to listen to anything with a beat.

Mids, timbre, texture, soundstage, layering, airiness and refinement goes to SE5U. I use this to listen to music my parents would love too.

Thanks man, appreciate it!

I have been considering the SE5u for years but now that I have the EE Vantage I honestly don't feel like I miss anything. The thing drawing me the most in is the silicone aspect tbh, I want a silicone ciem. But maybe I should just get one of the cheaper CA offerings

 

[ezekiel77]

Thanks man, appreciate it!

I have been considering the SE5u for years but now that I have the EE Vantage I honestly don't feel like I miss anything. The thing drawing me the most in is the silicone aspect tbh, I want a silicone ciem. But maybe I should just get one of the cheaper CA offerings

I forgot I covered X vs SE5U in the review. It's basically what I said earlier but with more words.

Have you heard about SE6? Latest news is it just received a nearly 50% discount! Smiles all round lol.

I don't miss anything except my full wallet.

 

[Blommen]

I forgot I covered X vs SE5U in the review. It's basically what I said earlier but with more words.

Have you heard about SE6? Latest news is it just received a nearly 50% discount! Smiles all round lol.

I don't miss anything except my full wallet.

Yes of course! Haha, yeah not touching that. I think a lot of of people here just want the best so I am sure someone will jump on it. I listen to bands that like to get high and record music, don't need the most resolving iems for that lol

 

[Rollk2]

Too different to compare really. X is basshead/fun, SE5U is neutral/natural. Being much closer to neutral SE5U is the better all-rounder. They do complement each other well though.

SE5U renders everything effortlessly, perhaps too much. Makes everything sound classy and refined, prim and proper. It's a bit snobbish in a sense, knowing it does everything well and proud of it.

X is for when I tire of all the black tie formality, let loose, swig a shot of whiskey and have some balls out fun. For engagement, excitement and playfulness, the X is unrivaled. Just that no one will take you seriously if you call it reference haha.

They are equally good in treble, resolution and coherence.

Basically bass, dynamics, vocals, fun factor and engagement goes to X. I use it to listen to anything with a beat.

Mids, timbre, texture, soundstage, layering, airiness and refinement goes to SE5U. I use this to listen to music my parents would love too.

The same goes for the Phantom, but sound signature are finally not so far. I was looking for something not so far from SE5U technical performance, but with much more fun it. The Phantom does that very well

 

[proedros]

Too different to compare really. X is basshead/fun, SE5U is neutral/natural. Being much closer to neutral SE5U is the better all-rounder. They do complement each other well though.

SE5U renders everything effortlessly, perhaps too much. Makes everything sound classy and refined, prim and proper. It's a bit snobbish in a sense, knowing it does everything well and proud of it.

X is for when I tire of all the black tie formality, let loose, swig a shot of whiskey and have some balls out fun. For engagement, excitement and playfulness, the X is unrivaled. Just that no one will take you seriously if you call it reference haha.

They are equally good in treble, resolution and coherence.

Basically bass, dynamics, vocals, fun factor and engagement goes to X. I use it to listen to anything with a beat.

Mids, timbre, texture, soundstage, layering, airiness and refinement goes to SE5U. I use this to listen to music my parents would love too.

sgreat impressions and i like the bold part a lot - curious if these sound like my Zeus XR....

se5u seems almost like a bargain - at 2000 euros - now that TOTL CIEM prices have skyrocketed.....

 

[DeepGroove]

Sharing a tip with fellow-cable swappers.

With the SE-5 Ultimate, I notice a difference in sound with cables.

Unfortunately, most aftermarket cables mess up with the sound signature of the SE5U, notably with bass control and soundstage coherence. Some cables also have a lose fit because their pins are too short, which led me to already lose one earpiece while travelling. I therefore much prefer - and recommend - Spiral's Ear stock cables. The two models, standard and "high res", are made by Plastics One (website).

Spiral Ear is reselling them for $120 and $220, but you can buy them for a fourth of the price on Custom's Art website. (Edit: Spiral Ears say their Plastic Ones cables are customized.)

Curious to hear about your experience. Cheers.

 

[proedros]

Spiral Ear is reselling them for $120 and $220, but you can buy them for a fourth of the price on Custom's Art website.

that just about tells you how cool Piotr from CA is and how not cool whoever runs SE is

then again, we knew both aspects some time now

 

[propellerhead]

Sharing a tip with fellow-cable swappers.

With the SE-5 Ultimate, I notice a difference in sound with cables.

Unfortunately, most aftermarket cables mess up with the sound signature of the SE5U, notably with bass control and soundstage coherence. Some cables also have a lose fit because their pins are too short, which led me to already lose one earpiece while travelling. I therefore much prefer - and recommend - Spiral's Ear stock cables. The two models, standard and "high res", are made by Plastics One (website).

Spiral Ear is reselling them for $120 and $220, but you can buy them for a fourth of the price on Custom's Art website.

Curious to hear about your experience. Cheers.

My cable swapping experience is very limited, nevertheless, I've tried a few cables with my SE6 and it's very much related for me what you have described, even though it's a 5-way Ref thread and I haven't heard these CIEM's.

SE6 perform much better with their default cables and, from the ones I've tried, the ones that come close will be Plussound X6/X8. Default cables are much more coherent both in bass, but also in highs and overall resolution.
If anyone could share some other cable options for SE6 and perhaps SE5 that'd be appreciated. I've heard some Onso cables perform well with SE monitors, but I couldn't audition these yet.

A while ago I've asked SE about aftermarket cables and whether they could supply it with different terminations and got this response:

"We supply cables only with 3.5mm termination. Replacement cables will come with the following prices: https://spiralear.com/more-info/ (for cable cost please refer to: "Remould/Service"). They can also be re-terminated by aftermarket cable companies into various configurations.
We don't offer a 4.4mm option with any of our monitors at the time being; only standard- 3.5mm.
Our cables are supplied from the pioneers of the industry- Plastics One, who had set industry standard specifications for IEM cables and connectors decades ago.
Apart from the industry-standard pin diameter and length, we order our cables from Plastics One with custom specifications and different parameters from the stock ones (both in material used as well as specific cable lengths), which is quite costly.

Regarding cables, any industry standard and quality, aftermarket ones will be fine (they obviously differ in design and ergonomics too, so it’d also depend on your needs). As long as a cable is transparent and doesn’t act as a filter by having various impedance, it won’t affect the sound signature of the monitors. It’s just a myth being repeated by ‘audiophiles’.

Please note that only industry/standard 0.78mm pin diameter cables can be used with our monitors (with a similar, lightweight plug housing, exactly the same pin diameter and pin length: 3.43mm): https://spiralear.com/more-info/ (please refer to "Aftermarket cable compatibility").

Our warranty does not cover any damage caused by using non-compatible aftermarket cables.

Cheers."

 

[DeepGroove]

@propellerhead This is interesting - SE orders customized cables from Plastics One. This can explain the price difference, though I am unable to hear a difference between the standard Plastics One cable and the SE-customized one.

One word of caution with re-termination: the soldiering material can alter the sound - slightly. I had my original SE stock cable re-terminated, using a tin/silver wire, and it made the bass lose and boomy (a similar result as with many SPC aftermarket cables.)

EDIT: after several months swapping cables, I now hear a difference between the stock and the SE cables. The SE cables are clearly superior to me.

 

[propellerhead]

@propellerhead This is interesting - SE orders customized cables from Plastics One. This can explain the price difference, though I am unable to hear a difference between the standard Plastics One cable and the SE-customized one.

One word of caution with re-termination: the soldiering material can alter the sound - slightly. I had my original SE stock cable re-terminated, using a tin/silver wire, and it made the bass lose and boomy (a similar result as with many SPC aftermarket cables.)

Great to know and thanks for the tip. Have you had your cable re-terminated by some company or was it a DIY project?
It's always good to know some other available options.

 

[flvtch]

Sharing a tip with fellow-cable swappers.

With the SE-5 Ultimate, I notice a difference in sound with cables.

Unfortunately, most aftermarket cables mess up with the sound signature of the SE5U, notably with bass control and soundstage coherence. Some cables also have a lose fit because their pins are too short, which led me to already lose one earpiece while travelling. I therefore much prefer - and recommend - Spiral's Ear stock cables. The two models, standard and "high res", are made by Plastics One (website).

Spiral Ear is reselling them for $120 and $220, but you can buy them for a fourth of the price on Custom's Art website. (Edit: Spiral Ears say their Plastic Ones cables are customized.)

Curious to hear about your experience. Cheers.

Hey @DeepGroove I don't suppose you know the name of the cable Custom Art are stocking for 1/th the price of Spiral ears? My stock SE5U is starting to show its age after 4 years of daily use and I want to rebuy the stock cable, and save a bit of money if I can.

Thanks,