[Anaxilus]

Quote:

 I wish they were better with more genres, Godsmack and Avenged Sevenfold sound congested and pop and electronic are missing the extremes (highs and bass).  

I knew there was something I almost liked about you.  ;P  If you haven't seen Mike Portnoy w/ A7X yet, oh my.....

 

[JoeyRusso]

Quote:

Quote:

 I wish they were better with more genres, Godsmack and Avenged Sevenfold sound congested and pop and electronic are missing the extremes (highs and bass).  

I knew there was something I almost liked about you.  ;P  If you haven't seen Mike Portnoy w/ A7X yet, oh my.....

LOL, thanks.. sort of..  I'll definitely catch them at some point.  Portnoy is outstanding, and was one of Jimmy's (The Rev) idols, so that's a perfect fit.  What Dream Theater pulled was BS, if you ask me..  As much as I like Mike, I wouldn't mind seeing this drummer fill in from time to time 

 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78Ctki4S_hE&feature=related
 
 
We now return you to your regularly scheduled program....
 

 

[SillyHoney]

 
Quote:

 I wish they were better with more genres, Godsmack and Avenged Sevenfold sound congested and pop and electronic are missing the extremes (highs and bass).

 
I love A7X too
 
And while I haven't tried A7X on my SE535, I find Aerosmith sounds brilliant on them. Actually Aerosmith music sounds much better than some acoustic and Blues of Buddy Guys and Celine Dion I throw on them. I like the fullness sounding of mid-range. Joe Perry guitar riff and solo and Steven Tyler vocal sound magically. Both ends sound great too.
 
On acoustic and Celine Dion songs I wish the high extension is further and on Blues I wish bass extension is deeper, tho.
 
And this is my confusion: As much as I love the SE535 (supposedly one of the best sounding universal IEMs), it's very far from being in the same league with LCD-2 technically. Disclaimer: I know they are orange and apple, and my LCD-2 is having advantages of DacMagic and Schiit Asgard while my SE535 is plugged straightly into my iPhone 4 but my point here is:
 
How far can top of the line custom mold IEMs, say JH16 Pro, go ahead of top of the line universal IEMs such as the SE535? I doubt it can be very far. And if it's not very far I don't think JH16 Pro, if I actually buy one, can replace top tier full sizes for me.
 
The reason for the talk is I always want to get an idea on why people say they prefer their JH to HD800 or top of the line AT or STAX

 

[JoeyRusso]

Quote:

 
Quote:

 I wish they were better with more genres, Godsmack and Avenged Sevenfold sound congested and pop and electronic are missing the extremes (highs and bass).

 
I love A7X too
 
And while I haven't tried A7X on my SE535, I find Aerosmith sounds brilliant on them. Actually Aerosmith music sounds much better than some acoustic and Blues of Buddy Guys and Celine Dion I throw on them. I like the fullness sounding of mid-range. Joe Perry guitar riff and solo and Steven Tyler vocal sound magically. Both ends sound great too.
 
On acoustic and Celine Dion songs I wish the high extension is further and on Blues I wish bass extension is deeper, tho.
 
And this is my confusion: As much as I love the SE535 (supposedly one of the best sounding universal IEMs), it's very far from being in the same league with LCD-2 technically. Disclaimer: I know they are orange and apple, and my LCD-2 is having advantages of DacMagic and Schiit Asgard while my SE535 is plugged straightly into my iPhone 4 but my point here is:
 
How far can top of the line custom mold IEMs, say JH16 Pro, go ahead of top of the line universal IEMs such as the SE535? I doubt it can be very far. And if it's not very far I don't think JH16 Pro, if I actually buy one, can replace top tier full sizes for me.
 
The reason for the talk is I always want to get an idea on why people say they prefer their JH to HD800 or top of the line AT or STAX

 Well, I've tried to like the 535's, but they just aren't doing anything for me.. They'll be heading to the FS Forum shortly.  They just can't compete with my W3's for head time.  While the mids are more forward, they're not better for me than my Westones.  The W3's actually have more bite/crunch with guitars and sound more natural and are less fatiguing to me.  The Shure's mellow highs and generally flat bass do nothing to move me.  They are just too polite for most of my library and EQ cannot replace what is missing for my ears.
 
 Now, while I love, love, love my W3's, they can't compete with my HD600's (I haven't heard the 800 or any better quality can - Yet).  Not only are the 600's better in every way, they are also a completely different sound signature.  The W3 is all fun, all the time. The 600's are balanced and more detailed across the board  (and still manage to be fun).  No IEM I've heard to date can compete with the HD600 for overall presentation, detail retrieval or soundstage.
 
I don't doubt for a second that customs are a step or a leap forward from a universal. Given the benefit of a perfect seal/fit alone, we should hear a marked improvement over a universal.  I can't recall reading a post where someone stepped back from customs to a universal for better sound/presentation.  It may have happened, but I haven't read it yet.  I think the custom companies engineers may be willing to be more aggressive with their tuning (since they don't have to appeal to the masses) and that may result in a better, balanced presentation.
 
 I'm not sure if a custom can match the HD600 (or a better can) for me, but I don't doubt that they'll sound much closer than a universal fit IEM, just based on what I've read.  I might have to take the plunge shortly.
 
 I don't expect a universal or custom to replace my cans, I'd just like a similar presentation for portability, which is what they're all about. 

 

[Mariusz22]

My W3s have been collecting dust since the 535s arrived.  If you A/B the two, going from the 535 the W3 just sounds muffled and the mids sound so veiled and thin.  The bass is definitely "fun", but to me the bass of the 535 is like my HD800s... it's just right. 

 

[Young Spade]

My W3s have been collecting dust since the 535s arrived.  If you A/B the two, going from the 535 the W3 just sounds muffled and the mids sound so veiled and thin.  The bass is definitely "fun", but to me the bass of the 535 is like my HD800s... it's just right. 

Glad to see that you like them. Great sound with a flat EQ but when I want to listen to something exciting and eq the phones a bit, they change nicely and give me a totally different sound.

 

[JoeyRusso]

Quote:

My W3s have been collecting dust since the 535s arrived.  If you A/B the two, going from the 535 the W3 just sounds muffled and the mids sound so veiled and thin.  The bass is definitely "fun", but to me the bass of the 535 is like my HD800s... it's just right. 

I have A/B'd them extensively for the past week and I don't hear them that way.  They just don't work for me or my ears.  That's the beauty of having different choices out there, you can always find what works best with your ears.  
 
Not to de-rail the thread... But, if the HD800's bass is close to the 535, then I can look elsewhere for my top tier can.  The HD600's bass has better extension, depth and detail than the 535 and I'd never want any less than what they offer.  Thanks for the tip

 

[Mariusz22]

Quote:

Not to de-rail the thread... But, if the HD800's bass is close to the 535, then I can look elsewhere for my top tier can.  The HD600's bass has better extension, depth and detail than the 535 and I'd never want any less than what they offer.  Thanks for the tip

I probably should have chosen my words better. Some have complained that the HD800s lack the bass quantity and impact that they desire, but I think most will agree that the extension/depth/detail of bass is really excellent.  It's just "right".  That's sort of how I feel about the 535s, but I am in no way trying to compare the actual bass extension of the HD800 to the 535, because the HD800 does it leagues better (more depth/impact/quality/etc).  Sorry for the confusion.

 

[JoeyRusso]

Quote:

Quote:

Not to de-rail the thread... But, if the HD800's bass is close to the 535, then I can look elsewhere for my top tier can.  The HD600's bass has better extension, depth and detail than the 535 and I'd never want any less than what they offer.  Thanks for the tip

I probably should have chosen my words better. Some have complained that the HD800s lack the bass quantity and impact that they desire, but I think most will agree that the extension/depth/detail of bass is really excellent.  It's just "right".  That's sort of how I feel about the 535s, but I am in no way trying to compare the actual bass extension of the HD800 to the 535, because the HD800 does it leagues better (more depth/impact/quality/etc).  Sorry for the confusion.

Whew.. Ok, that's a relief.. LOL That's the way I feel about the 600's.. I wouldn't want any more then they offer.  I prefer my cans more neutral and detailed for critical listening. My IEM's are for motivation, inspiration and stress relief. (but they still need detail) 

 

[MacedonianHero]

Quote:

My W3s have been collecting dust since the 535s arrived.  If you A/B the two, going from the 535 the W3 just sounds muffled and the mids sound so veiled and thin.  The bass is definitely "fun", but to me the bass of the 535 is like my HD800s... it's just right. 

My experiences mirror yours exactly...my W3s were collecting so much dust that I ended up selling them.

 

[Anaxilus]

Quote:

 
Quote:

 I wish they were better with more genres, Godsmack and Avenged Sevenfold sound congested and pop and electronic are missing the extremes (highs and bass).

 
I love A7X too
 
And while I haven't tried A7X on my SE535, I find Aerosmith sounds brilliant on them. Actually Aerosmith music sounds much better than some acoustic and Blues of Buddy Guys and Celine Dion I throw on them. I like the fullness sounding of mid-range. Joe Perry guitar riff and solo and Steven Tyler vocal sound magically. Both ends sound great too.
 
On acoustic and Celine Dion songs I wish the high extension is further and on Blues I wish bass extension is deeper, tho.
 
And this is my confusion: As much as I love the SE535 (supposedly one of the best sounding universal IEMs), it's very far from being in the same league with LCD-2 technically. Disclaimer: I know they are orange and apple, and my LCD-2 is having advantages of DacMagic and Schiit Asgard while my SE535 is plugged straightly into my iPhone 4 but my point here is:
 
How far can top of the line custom mold IEMs, say JH16 Pro, go ahead of top of the line universal IEMs such as the SE535? I doubt it can be very far. And if it's not very far I don't think JH16 Pro, if I actually buy one, can replace top tier full sizes for me.
 
The reason for the talk is I always want to get an idea on why people say they prefer their JH to HD800 or top of the line AT or STAX

Well I know HPA prefers his ES5 to some of the top tier headphones.  If you stress the presentation of a headphone over other technicalities compared to an IEM your point makes a lot of sense.  However, I think there are a multitude technical aspects where an IEM can equal or perhaps surpass a given headphone.  In the end it seems it all comes down to how you hear if you want to make any sort of judgement. 

 

[Xstream]

I used my SE535's with the Cowon iAudio 9 mp3 player. This sounded really great.
But i lost the player in the airplane (argh) when going on holiday. And because i needed a new player and Cowon was not available there i bought the new Apple Nano. Men, that sucks so bad im kind of speechless. It's more expensive and the sound is just plain terrible in my opinion. I'm selling the Nano and buy a iAudio again. 
 
Some people tried these headphones and aren't pleased, maybe they used an Apple player too?
Is it just me or does anyone else think the Apple sound sucks? Because in reviews it's never mentioned as an issue and is even praised for it's dynamic sound. I'm not hearing it. 
 
Also i already have an issue with the Shure SE535's. Looks like a cable cracked or something. My right IEM sometimes stops working. 
Just have them 6 weeks, will send them back. 
 
The fit issues i had before seem to be better now in combination with the M olives. Allthough they aren't totally irritation free like my previous headphones (Sennheiser CX400 Precision II).

 

[Mariusz22]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xstream /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Also i already have an issue with the Shure SE535's. Looks like a cable cracked or something. My right IEM sometimes stops working. 
Just have them 6 weeks, will send them back. 

Really?  That's surprising.  The cable seems pretty indestructible to me. 

 

[Kunlun]

Could people make some more comparisons and detailed comments about the bass quantity and quality as compared to other earphones that you have?
 
Thanks

 

[MacedonianHero]

Quote:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xstream /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Also i already have an issue with the Shure SE535's. Looks like a cable cracked or something. My right IEM sometimes stops working. 
Just have them 6 weeks, will send them back. 

Really?  That's surprising.  The cable seems pretty indestructible to me. 

I've had mine since May and I sometimes use the cables to lock my bike down.

And they are still pristine. Not to mention, the cables are user replaceable.