[woodcans]

Quote:

I don't want Ferrari to stop making red cars because I cannot afford an F430 (maybe I can get an old 308GT4)

 
Well said. Bring on some more impressions. And less financial analysis.

 

[Saraguie]

LOL and still they complain....thinking of canceling my pre-oreder so I can unsubscribe.

 

[roy_jones]

Quote:

$1k for universals? Consider me not only not interested, but downright pissed off. I don't want the headphone hobby to start looking like the speaker hobby, i.e. an uber-expensive, esoteric niche and status symbol only attainable to the few. However, it is heading - or rather charging full steam - in that direction. And this is coming from SHURE??

 
 
I'm with you.  I understand the point of the Ferrari folk, but I'm not at all convinced that the prices we're seeing for universals have any correlation with underlying economics.
 
I don't begrudge Shure for where they've set their MSRP if that's what they think the market will pay.  It's when someone argues that it's not purely a market phenomenon that I smell BS. 

 

[vwinter]

I don't want Ferrari to stop making red cars because I cannot afford an F430 (maybe I can get an old 308GT4)

As somewhat of a car guy, I hope you don't mind this:

Unless you like the styling more, you probably want the 458 Italia over the F430.

Your analogy isn't the best one because Ferarri only makes very high priced models. I think it's closer to "I don't want Audi/Lexus to stop making the R8/LFA because I can't afford it." It was similarly a shock to people when Lexus announced that the LFA was going to be around $370,000, more than triple anything else it had previously released.

 

[truckdriver]

I guess it's hard to not follow a thread when I'm hoping to find out about a definite release date. Jude said in the video that it'd in the summer. Summer starts on June 21, 2013. Usually, I'm in no hurry for the midsouth's heat, but c'mon summer.
 
Lexus is a Toyota company. I don't think Lexus will force a higher price for a Toyota Camry. People speculated that Amazon and Google (with $199 tablets) would force lower prices for tablets and phones but that hasn't happened either.
 
Shure will not redefine the IEM market with this offering. They just introduced one new model. People are reading too much into it. There were cheap and expensive IEMs (and CIEMs) before Shure made this announcement and that will continue to be the case.
 
As I wrote earlier, Shure has reduced its brick-n-mortar presence. It was once in more retail stores than today. That's not a result of increased sales. They (apparently) are re-focusing on just the audiophile niche with this particular model. The lower level market is saturated with competition and they maintain a presence there as well..
 
 

 

[eke2k6]

Quote:

I don't want Ferrari to stop making red cars because I cannot afford an F430 (maybe I can get an old 308GT4)

 
Wow. You simply don't get it.

 

[woodcans]

Spoiler: More%20OT.

I think a somewhat more relevant analogy is the recent dCS article in The Absolute Sound. I have read the article and the accompanying description of the factory tour. I discarded the mag before discovering this thread, unfortunately, so I can't cite specific pages and/or dates. Having said that, I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the state of the art(or more than) digital playback even thought the dCS system is something I will never be able to afford. Just as I enjoy reading about state or the art(or possibly more than) universal IEMs (such as these) that I might be able to afford someday.

 

[TheGame21x]

Quote:

All that's left to say is this:

"First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win." ~Gandhi

I'm afraid there's just no denying that quite a few of us here will eventually pick these up, sooner or later.

I won't be, unless I come into some massive amount of money. But in that case I'll have an HD 800, a JH16 Pro, an LCD 3...

 

[Ivabign]

Quote:

As somewhat of a car guy, I hope you don't mind this:

Unless you like the styling more, you probably want the 458 Italia over the F430.

Your analogy isn't the best one because Ferarri only makes very high priced models. I think it's closer to "I don't want Audi/Lexus to stop making the R8/LFA because I can't afford it." It was similarly a shock to people when Lexus announced that the LFA was going to be around $370,000, more than triple anything else it had previously released.

You are right about the Ferrari analogy - and Audi is a better fit for the point I was making. The Lexus, though, is a wonderful example of insane pricing - and I think the price was nearly as offensive as the styling - two strikes against it in the marketplace. (I used F430 because I couldn't remember the new model and I wasn't up to researching it to just make a point in this thread - lol)

 

[ZenErik]

Veeerrry interested in these. My SE535 is fantastic. But quite the price jump. I think I'll wait a bit. These will likely be in my future though probably not right at launch.

 

[arnaud]

I can plaid guilty of sometimes condamning a new product on sole basis of price jump so I can't really say much here but it'd be nice to drop it until you get to hear it. It's indeed making the little bit of objective data available in this thread quite hard to find...

In regards to the nozzle size, that was one my first questions and I was told standard olives and other foam tips fit just fine so the nozzle must the same or only slightly larger if any. At least, I can say it wasn't an issue for me and I have really narrow ear canal compared to the average people.

Same for the housing size, I have small outer hear but it fit just fine even though the size is indeed larger than 535.

The one grip I have is with the cable. It is however very sturdy, in typical sure tradition, I am yet to snap with se315 cable after several years, can't say the same of many other iems / ciems I've owned .

Anyhow, for better or worse, this is driving a new market for iem after cables so soon enough you'll have 299USD silver plated cable for your 846 .

 

[roy_jones]

I definitely think there are high end items that have high end value, and I'd argue that the LCD 2 and some of the custom IEM offerings meet that criteria.  It's when you start to see the major manufacturers blurring the lines by trying to piece off some of that market with products that don't really meet the traditional criteria for that price bracket that I think it's safe to say that the market is changing. 
 

 

[truckdriver]

I wonder if the LCD-3 sounds 1000 dollars better than the LCD-2? I also wonder what motivates people to cast insinuations about a product they've never heard?

 

[Saraguie]

Quote:

I wonder if the LCD-3 sounds 1000 dollars better than the LCD-2? I also wonder what motivates people to cast insinuations about a product they've never heard?

Almost everyone who has extensively listened to both say the 3 sounds better than the 2. I say almost just is case there is someone who does not. I do not remember reading there is.
 
I bought the LCD3s knowing full well that they did NOT sound $1,000 dollars or twice as good as the LCD2.  However, knowing that they do (according to most everyone fan or not) in fact sound at lest 25% better, I am happy. I can afford it and wanted the best Audeze I could get.
 
I have the SE535......they are unfortunately setting idle.  The UM Miracles and the (GASP OF BREATH) FT!334s are better IMO.  
 
This is good........the more I write and read here the more I am questioning spending the $899......Thanks to hard work I can afford it, its not that....but it would be a shame for them to sit in the drawer unused.

 

[truckdriver]

Quote:

Almost everyone who has extensively listened to both say the 3 sounds better than the 2. I say almost just is case there is someone who does not. I do not remember reading there is.
 
I bought the LCD3s knowing full well that they did NOT sound $1,000 dollars or twice as good as the LCD2.  However, knowing that they do (according to most everyone fan or not) in fact sound at lest 25% better, I am happy. I can afford it and wanted the best Audeze I could get.
 
I have the SE535......they are unfortunately setting idle.  The UM Miracles and the (GASP OF BREATH) FT!334s are better IMO.  
 
This is good........the more I write and read here the more I am questioning spending the $899......Thanks to hard work I can afford it, its not that....but it would be a shame for them to sit in the drawer unused.

I didn't really wonder about the LCD-3 to 2 price difference. I was being facetious towards the previous post and the evidence-free implication that the new Shure was not worth the asking price. The LCD-3 is worth it if you think that it is and that is good enough for me.
 
If you have the Miracle and the TG!334, I don't blame you for skipping the new Shure. More and more (it seems) people have more than one $1K IEM. Which do you reach for more often?
 
I call BS on the notion that people are legitimately concerned about the “future of the IEM market” based solely on this one new upcoming Shure IEM.
 
Jude has heard the SE846 and says it belongs in the $1K decision in terms of competing with other $1K IEMs soundwise. He came back and said it is not a new 535. It is an upgrade new model. I do wonder if the pre-release attacks are based on stockholders of competitors.