[Pianist]

Quote:

That analysis is fundamentally flawed as it implies that a lofty bottom end is synonymous with an unnatural sound. I have never heard the SE535;s so most of what I state is conceptual but I can paint a pretty decent picture of its sound sig based on the reviews in this thread. 
 
For the sake of argument I will reluctantly agree that synths are 'unnatural' sounds. I will also assume any sound that requires electrical input as unnatural too. That being said, take a musical piece consisting of just a glockenspiel and double bassoon, two 'natural' instruments. I can safely state that while the SE535 may easily reproduce the glockenspiel it would no doubt struggle to reproduce the double bassoon in its lowest octaves. I say this because even the TF10 can't do it. It just is not able to dig deep enough with enough power to accurately manufacture what is heard in real life. Though, I can safely say it would fare better than the SE535 at doing so.
 
Now, if you mean 'natural' to stipulate sounds bereft of deep bass then by all means I would imagine the SE535 are as natural as they come but I actually do like listenning to orchestras were deep, powerful, sometimes chilling bass is present and I can assure you there will be many others too. So in essence, if most of your music, 'natural' or not, is geared towards mid and higher freqs or you just don't like deep bass then, of course, earphones like the 535 will be your cup of tea and dare I say, sound 'balanced'. If the SE535 had similar bass to, at the very least an UM3X, I would have bought it in a heartbeat as not many iems I have heard get close to pullingl off orchestras with deep bass instruments. Usually why I mostly use headphones with that type of music. 

Ok, I understand that my argument may be flawed in a way, because most of the real instruments I listen to do not contain low sub bass content. Fair enough. But how can you say SE535 can't reproduce low bass if you haven't hear it yourself? You can't analyze sound seriously just based on reviews - you also absolutely need to hear it for yourself IMO. Because everyone hears headphones and especially IEM differently for many reasons.

 

[Pianist]

Quote:

For me, the SE530 would need to have a higher impedance, just to expand your soundstage and improve the ambience of music. Nothing as big as Etymotic P to S adapter, which makes the sound like we're in a cave, but an increase of about 30 ohms would already be more than enough to bring another life into this headphone.
 
Ultimately, for me, this low impedance is the price to pay for the selection of Shure, to make it suitable for use in portable devices.

Well, like I said, I didn't hear any compressed soundstage and lack of clarity or anything like that when I got what I assume to be the right, or at least a very good fit with my SE530. So that can mean that either I am not experienced enough to judge these aspects of sound quality properly or that SE530 indeed doesn't lack those things, provided that the fit is good enough. I don't think I lack the experience, since I heard many reference headphones like HD650, DT880, K701, HD800 and others and I know what good clarity and good soundstage is. So, I believe that the latter is the case then, namely that SE530 does indeed possess the great sound that I am describing, but most people cannot hear it due to inadequate fit.

 

[robm321]

There's no lack of clarity with these. They have a very open and detailed mid range. The highs do roll off, so that might be what is being perceived as lacking detail/clarity. 
 

 

[Pianist]

Quote:

There's no lack of clarity with these. They have a very open and detailed mid range. The highs do roll off, so that might be what is being perceived as lacking detail/clarity. 
 

Exactly, but clarity, detail, presence and extension are different things.

 

[communic]

Quote:

Quote:

That analysis is fundamentally flawed as it implies that a lofty bottom end is synonymous with an unnatural sound. I have never heard the SE535;s so most of what I state is conceptual but I can paint a pretty decent picture of its sound sig based on the reviews in this thread. 
 
For the sake of argument I will reluctantly agree that synths are 'unnatural' sounds. I will also assume any sound that requires electrical input as unnatural too. That being said, take a musical piece consisting of just a glockenspiel and double bassoon, two 'natural' instruments. I can safely state that while the SE535 may easily reproduce the glockenspiel it would no doubt struggle to reproduce the double bassoon in its lowest octaves. I say this because even the TF10 can't do it. It just is not able to dig deep enough with enough power to accurately manufacture what is heard in real life. Though, I can safely say it would fare better than the SE535 at doing so.
 
Now, if you mean 'natural' to stipulate sounds bereft of deep bass then by all means I would imagine the SE535 are as natural as they come but I actually do like listenning to orchestras were deep, powerful, sometimes chilling bass is present and I can assure you there will be many others too. So in essence, if most of your music, 'natural' or not, is geared towards mid and higher freqs or you just don't like deep bass then, of course, earphones like the 535 will be your cup of tea and dare I say, sound 'balanced'. If the SE535 had similar bass to, at the very least an UM3X, I would have bought it in a heartbeat as not many iems I have heard get close to pullingl off orchestras with deep bass instruments. Usually why I mostly use headphones with that type of music. 

Ok, I understand that my argument may be flawed in a way, because most of the real instruments I listen to do not contain low sub bass content. Fair enough. But how can you say SE535 can't reproduce low bass if you haven't hear it yourself? You can't analyze sound seriously just based on reviews - you also absolutely need to hear it for yourself IMO. Because everyone hears headphones and especially IEM differently for many reasons.

 
Very true. If it wasn't for its audacious price in the UK I would have pulled the trigger already; I got very close about two or so months back as along with the yet to be released Sleek SA7, it is the only iem I have any interest in purchasing currently. However, I do feel I can trust some of the reviews/musings in this thread to know that they most likely won't deliver on the deep bottom end. Coupled with my own experience that generally in iems, extension but moreso power is crucial to portray deep bass and thus far not many have been able to deliver in that respect. One of the two key reasons I prefer headphones; the other being soundstage.
 
When I'm feeling a little more reckless I am very likely to buy the 535's to hear what they bring to the table but it won't be until I've purchased the SA7 (unless I find one for around £200)!

 

 

[marquimsp]

I got mine today, was surprised by the mids, maybe a little too forward? Maybe I was used to my RE0 (with more discrete mids). The bass was a pleasant surprise!! The highs aren't as airy as the RE0 but they do show up when required. My theory is that the SE535 was definitely made for musicians, because the vocals and guitars appear beautifully, the bass is controlled so as not to muddy up everything and the highs are tamed (a little!!) so there's no fatigue.
They sound like near-field monitors to me!
I'm enjoying their analytical sound (I'm a musician), but they're only "fun" in my opinion if you Eq them a little (to which they respond REALLY well, since they have a vast reserve of range and volume. You have to be careful not to blow your ears up if you inadvertently switch on your mp3 player (or whatever you're using as a source) at a too high level!!
Had to leave them in the freezer to remove the tips... LOL
 
Just my opinion!
 
 

 

[MaxwellDemon]

Quote:

I got mine today, was surprised by the mids, maybe a little too forward? Maybe I was used to my RE0 (with more discrete mids). The bass was a pleasant surprise!! The highs aren't as airy as the RE0 but they do show up when required. My theory is that the SE535 was definitely made for musicians, because the vocals and guitars appear beautifully, the bass is controlled so as not to muddy up everything and the highs are tamed (a little!!) so there's no fatigue.
They sound like near-field monitors to me!
I'm enjoying their analytical sound (I'm a musician), but they're only "fun" in my opinion if you Eq them a little (to which they respond REALLY well, since they have a vast reserve of range and volume. You have to be careful not to blow your ears up if you inadvertently switch on your mp3 player (or whatever you're using as a source) at a too high level!!
Had to leave them in the freezer to remove the tips... LOL
 
Just my opinion!
 
 

Wait till you try Ety's ER4 series.

 

[MacedonianHero]

Quote:

Quote:

I got mine today, was surprised by the mids, maybe a little too forward? Maybe I was used to my RE0 (with more discrete mids). The bass was a pleasant surprise!! The highs aren't as airy as the RE0 but they do show up when required. My theory is that the SE535 was definitely made for musicians, because the vocals and guitars appear beautifully, the bass is controlled so as not to muddy up everything and the highs are tamed (a little!!) so there's no fatigue.
They sound like near-field monitors to me!
I'm enjoying their analytical sound (I'm a musician), but they're only "fun" in my opinion if you Eq them a little (to which they respond REALLY well, since they have a vast reserve of range and volume. You have to be careful not to blow your ears up if you inadvertently switch on your mp3 player (or whatever you're using as a source) at a too high level!!
Had to leave them in the freezer to remove the tips... LOL
 
Just my opinion!
 
 

Wait till you try Ety's ER4 series.

Why? I really disliked both the ER-4P/S when I owned them. Way too bass-lite for my ears to be considered balanced and the treble was tripped up too much to give the illusion that they were analytical and detailed. My opinion of course...YMMV.
 
I MUCH prefer the SE530/SE535s to the Etys.

 

[aangen]

I MUCH prefer the SE530/SE535s to the Etys.

+1

 

[robm321]

I prefer PFEs to Etys. They are like Etys but musical not clinical. Neither can match Shure's midrange.

 

[marquimsp]

I'd love to give them all a try but all we have here is shure (and sony, koss, akg), no ety, no ue, no westone, nothing!
 

 

[MaxwellDemon]

Oh, I was just making a remark because he said SE535 has an analytical sound, and I do believe the ER4 is most definitely one of, if not THE, most analytical phones. At least to my ear it was. Too fatiguing to really enjoy them, but they were clinical and detailed for real.
 
I'll be giving a SE535 a shot this weekend, hopefully I'll be impressed.

 

[Young Spade]

Oh, I was just making a remark because he said SE535 has an analytical sound, and I do believe the ER4 is most definitely one of, if not THE, most analytical phones. At least to my ear it was. Too fatiguing to really enjoy them, but they were clinical and detailed for real.


 


I'll be giving a SE535 a shot this weekend, hopefully I'll be impressed.

I got the ER4P/Ss right after I got rid of the UM3Xs; the Westones blow them t of the water on EVERY level, including detail and imaging. Granted they're double the price, but the ETys really aren't what they used to be.

 

[MaxwellDemon]

I got the ER4P/Ss right after I got rid of the UM3Xs; the Westones blow them t of the water on EVERY level, including detail and imaging. Granted they're double the price, but the ETys really aren't what they used to be.

That makes me want to try the UM3X now.

Anyway, sorry for bringing this topic off rail with the mention of the ER4. Currently I find that I wish the 425 has a bit more clarity in the upper spectrum. So, here is to hoping that the 535 is better at that to my ears.

 

[marquimsp]

Just a quick update: I've been listening to uncompressed 24-bit audio (coming out of Propellerhead's Reason) and NOTHING is missing, nothing is too much. The SE535 are my new on-the-road near-field monitors haha!