Dinglehoser
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Feb 26, 2004
- Posts
- 115
- Likes
- 13
These SE535s are fantastic. However, they seem to require careful system matching, and react to sources rather differently than my old Etys did.
Straight out of my iPhone 4, the tonal balance is ever so slightly warm, with a slight lower treble peak and somewhat rolled off upper highs. The bass quantity and quality is really something to behold - beautifully textured, just the right amount relative to the rest. And the mids! Wow. Lush, detailed, smooth, and precise beyond words. They really give my living room speaker rig a run for the money. The ER4ps (and the HF2s, to my recollections) have better-extended and airier highs, but the overall sound is quite bright, thin, and uninvolving relative to the SE535s.
Moving on to the iPhone 4 through a LOD and into the headamp end of an iBasso D3, the tonal signature is similar, but the peakiness of the treble, previously mild, is now more noticeable. The bass quantity didn't change, but there's more texture. The mids sound more transparent, but in all cases, we're talking a matter of a few degrees. Comparatively, the Etys react much more to the addition of amplification. The ER4's mids and bass improve considerably, but in exchange that extended, airy upper register is lost altogether. They sound almost dull through this setup.
Using my Macbook Pro as a source through the iBasso D3's DAC portion, then through its integrated headamp, the SE535s sound almost unlistenably bright and almost nasally. Just awful. Not sure why this is, given the ER4s go the opposite direction - the bright DAC section makes up for the highs they lose because of the headamp section, and retains the improved midrange and bass clarity and authority. For what it's worth, my Grado SR225s react to the D3's DAC and amp the same way as the SE535s, while the HD650s react the same way as the ER4s. A very polarizing source, to say the least. From what I can tell, the iBasso D3 headamp is a much better match for higher impedance cans than for lower ones.
Through my Oritek-modded Zhaolu D2.5A with Ori's custom discrete headamp, the SE535's excellent balance returns. There are no faults, other than what I might call a slightly "thick" sound, possibly owing to a lack of outright treble extension. But the overall sound is neither bright nor warm. It's just *good*. The treble peakiness I mentioned is gone. This is music. Female voices are especially lovely. Meanwhile, the ER4ps gain some midrange body and a bit of bass authority, while the treble remains well-extended if a bit bright. No superlatives here, though - the SE535s just sound better to my ears.
Overall, I am really enjoying the SE535s, but caveat emptor - while they sound great straight out of a decent portable, but if you're going to amp them, be careful of what you drive them with. I think I'm going to put my D3 up on the sale block and find something different.
Straight out of my iPhone 4, the tonal balance is ever so slightly warm, with a slight lower treble peak and somewhat rolled off upper highs. The bass quantity and quality is really something to behold - beautifully textured, just the right amount relative to the rest. And the mids! Wow. Lush, detailed, smooth, and precise beyond words. They really give my living room speaker rig a run for the money. The ER4ps (and the HF2s, to my recollections) have better-extended and airier highs, but the overall sound is quite bright, thin, and uninvolving relative to the SE535s.
Moving on to the iPhone 4 through a LOD and into the headamp end of an iBasso D3, the tonal signature is similar, but the peakiness of the treble, previously mild, is now more noticeable. The bass quantity didn't change, but there's more texture. The mids sound more transparent, but in all cases, we're talking a matter of a few degrees. Comparatively, the Etys react much more to the addition of amplification. The ER4's mids and bass improve considerably, but in exchange that extended, airy upper register is lost altogether. They sound almost dull through this setup.
Using my Macbook Pro as a source through the iBasso D3's DAC portion, then through its integrated headamp, the SE535s sound almost unlistenably bright and almost nasally. Just awful. Not sure why this is, given the ER4s go the opposite direction - the bright DAC section makes up for the highs they lose because of the headamp section, and retains the improved midrange and bass clarity and authority. For what it's worth, my Grado SR225s react to the D3's DAC and amp the same way as the SE535s, while the HD650s react the same way as the ER4s. A very polarizing source, to say the least. From what I can tell, the iBasso D3 headamp is a much better match for higher impedance cans than for lower ones.
Through my Oritek-modded Zhaolu D2.5A with Ori's custom discrete headamp, the SE535's excellent balance returns. There are no faults, other than what I might call a slightly "thick" sound, possibly owing to a lack of outright treble extension. But the overall sound is neither bright nor warm. It's just *good*. The treble peakiness I mentioned is gone. This is music. Female voices are especially lovely. Meanwhile, the ER4ps gain some midrange body and a bit of bass authority, while the treble remains well-extended if a bit bright. No superlatives here, though - the SE535s just sound better to my ears.
Overall, I am really enjoying the SE535s, but caveat emptor - while they sound great straight out of a decent portable, but if you're going to amp them, be careful of what you drive them with. I think I'm going to put my D3 up on the sale block and find something different.
