[jnorris]

  Hi there, I am looking for some buying advice.
 
Look at that, I almost forgot I created an account here altogether, it's been a while
 
I am currently a (rather) happy owner of the SE215's but am looking for an upgrade after about 4 years of use, 1 new cable and 1 near earpiece after I closed my car door on one of them when it was dark.
I'd say clarity and soundstage are 2 very important factors for me. I am debating between the SE425 and the SE535 and just find it very hard to decide. Where I'm from there is a pretty big price difference (almost twice) between the two, but I'm OK with that depending on the how much extra quality you get.
 
The main complaints I hear about the SE425 is that they have "rolled-off highs" and here and there I saw complaints about the bass (this is all from Internet research, I do not know anyone firsthand).
I can only picture these 2 claims, unfortunately I cannot actually try either of these headphones prior to purchasing.
 
I listen to a wide variety of genres - from rock and metal, to jazz, electronic, indie, punk, hardcore and more. I do enjoy being able to pick up on all the details when there are multiple instruments playing, and also being "sucked in" into the music (I think a good soundstage can help with that).
 
Yes - I've seen a few threads about SE535 vs SE425, but most of them are dormant, so I thought I'd post here.
Any advice will be appreciated!
 
Edit: my source files are mostly 320/288 AAC files, playing mostly from a PC or an iPhone 6S, and occasionally from an iPod Nano (7th Gen).

As one who owns both the SE425 and the SE535, my advice would be to go with the 535.  I do not hear a high frequency roll off on either, but the main difference between the two is upper bass / lower midrange where the the 535 is fuller and more dynamic.  I owned the 425 for about a year and eventually became dissatisfied with the rather thin overall presentation - I even experimented with stuffing material in the holes in the eartips.  I finally decided to try the 535 and have been very satisfied.  

 

[Mmet]

SE535 is better than SE425 in terms of soundstage and bass

 

[s1rrah]

 
I listen to a wide variety of genres - from rock and metal, to jazz, electronic, indie, punk, hardcore and more. I do enjoy being able to pick up on all the details when there are multiple instruments playing, and also being "sucked in" into the music (I think a good soundstage can help with that).
 s
Yes - I've seen a few threads about SE535 vs SE425, but most of them are dormant, so I thought I'd post here.
Any advice will be appreciated!
 
Edit: my source files are mostly 320/288 AAC files, playing mostly from a PC or an iPhone 6S, and occasionally from an iPod Nano (7th Gen).

 
Coming from the 215's?  You will be super pleased with either the 425 *or* the 535.  I've owned both and currently own the 535's.  Compared to the 215's? They are both leaps ahead in clarity and resolution.  That said, both the 425 and the 535 have what could be called "rolled off highs". This is not a problem, though and after a few songs you forget all about it and realize that Shure has tuned the IEM's to work with *everything* ... every music type, every recording environment ... it's a pretty fantastic bit of tuning when you realize just how good they are with everything you could possibly listen too.  And that comes from a guy whose main full size headphones are Grado PS1000's which, compared to the Shures are what could be called uber "colored" ... having many times more sparkle in the highs and also way way more bass presence.  And as sonically opposed as the Shures and Grados are? I enjoy both equally and immensely.
 
Personally? I've used the 530's and 535's for almost 10 years now.  I always EQ them and have found them hugely responsive to this.  I basically use my J3's eq settings to approximate what the much more expensive Shure SE846 sound like (nice shiny highs and excellent bass/sub bass) ... the default, super flat voicing of the SE535 is also really nice but I prefer to use an EQ to emphasize the output a bit.  I had the SE846's for a while and they are simply MAGIC ... but in the end, I returned them as I can get 90% of their performance out of the SE535's when using the J3's EQ ...
 
SE535's are a bit more detailed/spatious than the 425's and to me, sounded a bit more neutral ... but either one is excellent.  I think the 535's are the obviously more capable/mature IEM simply due to the difference in drivers but I'd be happy with either.
 
Good luck!

 

[freitz]

  Hi there, I am looking for some buying advice.
 
Look at that, I almost forgot I created an account here altogether, it's been a while
 
I am currently a (rather) happy owner of the SE215's but am looking for an upgrade after about 4 years of use, 1 new cable and 1 near earpiece after I closed my car door on one of them when it was dark.
I'd say clarity and soundstage are 2 very important factors for me. I am debating between the SE425 and the SE535 and just find it very hard to decide. Where I'm from there is a pretty big price difference (almost twice) between the two, but I'm OK with that depending on the how much extra quality you get.
 
The main complaints I hear about the SE425 is that they have "rolled-off highs" and here and there I saw complaints about the bass (this is all from Internet research, I do not know anyone firsthand).
I can only picture these 2 claims, unfortunately I cannot actually try either of these headphones prior to purchasing.
 
I listen to a wide variety of genres - from rock and metal, to jazz, electronic, indie, punk, hardcore and more. I do enjoy being able to pick up on all the details when there are multiple instruments playing, and also being "sucked in" into the music (I think a good soundstage can help with that).
 
Yes - I've seen a few threads about SE535 vs SE425, but most of them are dormant, so I thought I'd post here.
Any advice will be appreciated!
 
Edit: my source files are mostly 320/288 AAC files, playing mostly from a PC or an iPhone 6S, and occasionally from an iPod Nano (7th Gen).

I had a really long post to write but Ill make it simple.
 
Get the 535 LTD in Red you won't regret it.

 

[Biswajit]

Initially, I also wanted to get the 535 Ltd ones. But going for the 846 i think i saved money, as after getting the 535's i would have craved for getting the 846s, so i asked for extra bucks from a friend and bought the big brother. If you are on a tight budget then go for the normal 535 those are much better the 425, and if you can go a bit higher try the Ltd ones(these resemble closely the sound signature to the while filter 846s ) and if you can extend it much higher then go for the 846 and man these are jewels !! . Enjoying every bit... 

 

[s1rrah]

f you can extend it much higher then go for the 846 and man these are jewels !! . Enjoying every bit... 

 
x2
 
The SE846 is a monstrosity of sonic love.  Just too spendy for me ...

 

[freitz]

   
x2
 
The SE846 is a monstrosity of sonic love.  Just too spendy for me ...

the 535 LTD are a sweet spot in price and performance.

 

[s1rrah]

  the 535 LTD are a sweet spot in price and performance.

 
I've heard them and they are a lovely variation on the "vanilla" SE535's ... but it's just a filter trick ... the SE846 is another animal entirely ...

 

[freitz]

   
I've heard them and they are a lovely variation on the "vanilla" SE535's ... but it's just a filter trick ... the SE846 is another animal entirely ...

Right but not worth 2x more.

 

[Caruryn]

Depends.The se535 sound congested  and flat in comparison to se846 when driven by a capable source.i found that the new shure olive tips with the white net make the sound more sparkly and everything sounds more distinct and engaging vs the stock olives that 535 came with.Really musical and detailed with the white knowles filter.Bass is also more detailed,you hear bass notes more clear and decay is faster.The 535 still deliver the goods in the mid segment with the right combination.

 

[Krutsch]

  Depends.The se535 sound congested  and flat in comparison to se846 when driven by a capable source.i found that the new shure olive tips with the white net make the sound more sparkly and everything sounds more distinct and engaging vs the stock olives that 535 came with.Really musical and detailed with the white knowles filter.Bass is also more detailed,you hear bass notes more clear and decay is faster.The 535 still deliver the goods in the mid segment with the right combination.

 
Interesting... I never knew those screens/filters were for sound; I assumed they were to keep debris out of the tubes. I purchased the LDT edition, because it's what the retailer had on-hand.
 
Looks like I got lucky!

 

[Caruryn]

   
Interesting... I never knew those screens/filters were for sound; I assumed they were to keep debris out of the tubes. I purchased the LDT edition, because it's what the retailer had on-hand.
 
Looks like I got lucky!

That's what i assumed but the sound is more lively with them.I changed back and forth 3 times to make note of the differences.I prefer them to westone star tips now.
Btw,although a bit old i just found this review yesterday,just for all the se535 owners to feel good about their iem(and themselves for buying it 

)
 
https://www.audigo.sk/Tema/Recenze-sluchatek/Hledame-nejlepsi-in-ear-sluchatka-do-20-000-Kc-131

 

[castleofargh]

the filters are acoustic dampers. you have several filters of different impedances where the mesh let more or less air to flow through as a way to attenuate some frequencies. so depending on the mesh, you get a different signature. it's a very common way to tune IEMs, and why after some years, the sound is bound to change from the filter getting dirty.
to my knowledge, the special edition of 535 is the same IEM that uses a lower impedance filter. but I never got one in hand to verify.
 
 
tips will change the sound too(and a great deal sometimes), but as we all have our own ears with different ear canal shapes and lengths, it's tricky to say that some tips will give a better result for everybody. IMO the only reasonable option is to try.

 

[Krutsch]

  the filters are acoustic dampers. you have several filters of different impedances where the mesh let more or less air to flow through as a way to attenuate some frequencies. so depending on the mesh, you get a different signature. it's a very common way to tune IEMs, and why after some years, the sound is bound to change from the filter getting dirty.
to my knowledge, the special edition of 535 is the same IEM that uses a lower impedance filter. but I never got one in hand to verify.
 
tips will change the sound too(and a great deal sometimes), but as we all have our own ears with different ear canal shapes and lengths, it's tricky to say that some tips will give a better result for everybody. IMO the only reasonable option is to try.

 
Interesting and thanks for the explanation.
 
I only noticed this when I combined some leftover olive tips from my previous SE420 - I noticed the screen on the 535 versions. But it never occurred to me that the LTD version actually changes the sound with different filter screens.
 
One thing I noticed between the 420 and 535LTD olives is that the medium size doesn't seal as well; a touch too small for my ear canals. But the large size is too big and hurts to leave in my ears for too long... so, I went to SE420 version medium tips, without the screen and, you are correct: different sound.
 
So, I am back to the 535LTD medium olive tips and I think these IEMs are fantastic.

 

[castleofargh]

to make sure there is no confusion, I realize that me talking about mesh mixed it all together unintentionally. sorry about that. I was talking about stuff like this when I mentioned acoustic dampers being different in the LTD version:

about  the protecting mesh on the tip itself for the olives, while I believe they also have an impact on frequency, I couldn't tell how much and if it's significant/audible. being clogged by wax not included.