[118900]

Here's the reply from Shure, I'm sure they won't mind me sharing:

"Thanks for contacting Shure.

Our SE846s have been removed for consumer use due to new regulations. However you are still able to purchase them through our website:

https://www.shure.com/en-GB/products/earphones/se846cl

Please be aware that they are for professional use due to a new consumer law.

If you need any additional assistance, please let me know."


At £879 for the SE846-CL that's a little too rich for me but can be ordered from website.

The SE846's are £599 but can only be purchased from stores and they're in Airports around me so not much chance of that happening.

Think I'll settle with the Aonic 5 for the moment and see if they update the SE846/Aonic 8? before the end ofnthe year.

I just followed the link and saw the “for professional use only” disclaimer. Very very odd.

especially considering that the Italian site still has them at €699 and makes no mention of any “professional use only” claptrap.

I wonder whether this is somehow tied in to brexit?

Shure Italy

 

[544592]

https://www.shure.com/en-GB/products/earphones/se846

Uk site still sells these... Not sure what the difference is between them and the link Shure sent me? They did send a link to Scan for the one's linked at £599, although Scan want £699...?

 

[plakat]

I just followed the link and saw the “for professional use only” disclaimer. Very very odd.

especially considering that the Italian site still has them at €699 and makes no mention of any “professional use only” claptrap.

I wonder whether this is somehow tied in to brexit?

Shure Italy

I just came across the same "for professional use only" on the SHA900 product page in German language... interesting. But this seems to defend against those consumer protection regulations that these products somehow don't fulfill I guess.

 

[musicday]

Plenty used on eBay but how to tell if they genuine?

 

[Chupi383]

Yeah I'm thinking the low impedance is the problem, that and possibly the noise floor with sub-optimal amplifiers driving them

I find this the most believable - maybe if you plug them into a truly garbage amplifier, the noise floor could be loud enough to damage your hearing. That would be an amazingly bad amp though.

SE846's (not the-CL's)

CL=clear. I thought the clear ones were the canonical SE846 since that's what all the review sites have.

I don't like too much mid bass if that makes sense, the IE300's are excessive for me that I find it quite unbearable at times. I prefer BA bass anyway, for me it generally sounds tighter/quicker, more mechanical/visceral rather than just shifting air so to speak. I like to know it's there but not to be elevated above the rest of the spectrum.

Looking at the FR graphs the Aonic 5's are quite similar to my favourite chifi's, the Fiio FA1's, just with the Shure treble drop off at 9k ish... So I've ordered my Aonic 5's for delivery tomorrow. (Wallet will thank me too).

If you like *flat* bass and don't mind the characteristic sound of BA bass, Aonic 5 is probably your best choice. SE846 bass sounds to me closest to subwoofer bass though without the pressure in my ears that a DD or hybrid IEM makes. It's elevated above flat, but returns to flat at a low enough frequency it doesn't color the mids.

So I got to the bottom of my sound cutting out from 1 ear bud. As I was cleaning them I noticed the dodgy one, the gold connector In the ear bud had collapsed partially, so the pin from the cable would not always have contact.

Ouch. There's supposed to be 2 little prongs sticking up in the middle to go around the little pin on the cable. They're supposed to stick up and touch each other at the corners, leaving a little gap in between for the pin to slide into. You might be able to stand them back up like this. Otherwise you'd have to obtain a new MMCX female connector, pry open the case, desolder the old one and solder in the new one. Then I'd recommend 2-part epoxy to glue it back together after scraping off the remnants of the old glue. Super glue is tempting but offgasses as it dries which doesn't sound wise so close to precision transducers.

 

[WyattEarp]

So I got to the bottom of my sound cutting out from 1 ear bud. As I was cleaning them I noticed the dodgy one, the gold connector In the ear bud had collapsed partially, so the pin from the cable would not always have contact.

on investigation I made it even worse. Is this repairable?

You should check with Shure.

 

[fablestruck]

I don't like too much mid bass if that makes sense, the IE300's are excessive for me that I find it quite unbearable at times. I prefer BA bass anyway, for me it generally sounds tighter/quicker, more mechanical/visceral rather than just shifting air so to speak. I like to know it's there but not to be elevated above the rest of the spectrum.


I wouldn't like to drop so much on a refurb set to be honest. At £599 it sounds like a good deal. Can get them next day delivery in blue only, which I'm not terribly fond of.

Looking at the FR graphs the Aonic 5's are quite similar to my favourite chifi's, the Fiio FA1's, just with the Shure treble drop off at 9k ish... So I've ordered my Aonic 5's for delivery tomorrow. (Wallet will thank me too).

Please share with us your impressions of the Aonic 5

 

[davidcotton]

Plenty used on eBay but how to tell if they genuine?

Think I’d rather buy from amazon and get shure to check the serial number.

 

[544592]

The Aonic 5's arrived this morning. I'm at work so haven't had the greatest chance to suss them out however I'm loving them! They're addictive and I don't want to take them out.

First impressions are like I expected in that they are a more refined Fiio FA1 which is fantastic as I loved the FR/presentation from the FA1.

----

Bass: Just what I wanted, a nice non-elevated bass with texture and speed (fast decay). Enough to know it's there but not be intrusive but it can be physical, like a jackhammer rather than a bloomy brute force DD type blow.

Bat for Lashes - Trophy: Electric! The bass moves along the forward plane/perspective as it does in my 2.1 setup. Love it!

Hans Zimmer - Why So Serious: It's there for me (without the excessive pressure from DD's)

----

Mids: Definitely strong here but not out of place. A fair portion of IEM's tend to have recessed mids I find due to their V-shaped nature so it's fantastic to have mids where they should be, not shouty, but not forgotten.

REM - Low: Stipe's voice is fantastically raspy and airy unlike I've heard before.

Leonard Cohen - You Want it Darker: Again, the timbre and crispness to male voices is great.

----

Treble: Haven't tried enough tracks to make a strong opinion. No issues so far. I will have to play with tips and filters to see what suits best.

Momus - I Want You, But I Don't Need You: This is my go-to song for checking sibilance and I can gladly say we're safe! Hallelujah!

Atoms For Peace - AMOK: The effects are just lush, everything is there, and in its right place.

REM - Me In Honey: The tambourine decay/reverb is evident amongst all the rest of the music, so are the subtle piano notes.

----

Soundstage etc: Just amazing IMO, the headspace is fantastic. Wide, deep, tall. There's layering to instruments and levels to the music I can't explain. Everything seems to have its own 3D space and they're easily distinguishable/easy to pinpoint.

Leftield - A Final Hit - The start of this song is physical, it throws you around left/right then clicks you into place.

Overall super low distortion and really coherent like I wasn't expecting from a multi-driver IEM (probably helps that they're all BA and not a Hybrid). Flat FR with no unwanted peaks that I've discovered so far. Very revealing IEM, not even the slightest background hiss on tracks can be hidden. Instruments have lovely sense of realism.

I'm using these with a Creative SXFI Amp which has a mute noise floor and sounds great IMO but I think these Aonic 5's will scale very nicely. My IEM experience is limited and these are my most expensive set so far to take that into account.

In word word: Electric!

 

[fablestruck]

The Aonic 5's arrived this morning. I'm at work so haven't had the greatest chance to suss them out however I'm loving them! They're addictive and I don't want to take them out.

First impressions are like I expected in that they are a more refined Fiio FA1 which is fantastic as I loved the FR/presentation from the FA1.

----

Bass: Just what I wanted, a nice non-elevated bass with texture and speed (fast decay). Enough to know it's there but not be intrusive but it can be physical, like a jackhammer rather than a bloomy brute force DD type blow.

Bat for Lashes - Trophy: Electric! The bass moves along the forward plane/perspective as it does in my 2.1 setup. Love it!

Hans Zimmer - Why So Serious: It's there for me (without the excessive pressure from DD's)

----

Mids: Definitely strong here but not out of place. A fair portion of IEM's tend to have recessed mids I find due to their V-shaped nature so it's fantastic to have mids where they should be, not shouty, but not forgotten.

REM - Low: Stipe's voice is fantastically raspy and airy unlike I've heard before.

Leonard Cohen - You Want it Darker: Again, the timbre and crispness to male voices is great.

----

Treble: Haven't tried enough tracks to make a strong opinion. No issues so far. I will have to play with tips and filters to see what suits best.

Momus - I Want You, But I Don't Need You: This is my go-to song for checking sibilance and I can gladly say we're safe! Hallelujah!

Atoms For Peace - AMOK: The effects are just lush, everything is there, and in its right place.

REM - Me In Honey: The tambourine decay/reverb is evident amongst all the rest of the music, so are the subtle piano notes.

----

Soundstage etc: Just amazing IMO, the headspace is fantastic. Wide, deep, tall. There's layering to instruments and levels to the music I can't explain. Everything seems to have its own 3D space and they're easily distinguishable/easy to pinpoint.

Leftield - A Final Hit - The start of this song is physical, it throws you around left/right then clicks you into place.

Overall super low distortion and really coherent like I wasn't expecting from a multi-driver IEM (probably helps that they're all BA and not a Hybrid). Flat FR with no unwanted peaks that I've discovered so far. Very revealing IEM, not even the slightest background hiss on tracks can be hidden.

I'm using these with a Creative SXFI Amp which has a mute noise floor and sounds great IMO but I think these Aonic 5's will scale very nicely. My IEM experience is limited and these are my most expensive set so far to take that into account.

In word word: Electric!

Nice.
Are you a previous se535 owner.
Any comparison with those?
I used to own the se535 ltd which sounded too mids- forward and congested for my tastes.

 

[544592]

Sorry no, these are my first Shures but I'm now a convert. These really are to my taste but can't compare to the SE535's.

I would not consider the mids to be congested at all though. As I say everything has its own 3D position both in space and tonality. Not too forward either IMO.

 

[118900]

The Aonic 5's arrived this morning. I'm at work so haven't had the greatest chance to suss them out however I'm loving them! They're addictive and I don't want to take them out.

First impressions are like I expected in that they are a more refined Fiio FA1 which is fantastic as I loved the FR/presentation from the FA1.

----

Bass: Just what I wanted, a nice non-elevated bass with texture and speed (fast decay). Enough to know it's there but not be intrusive but it can be physical, like a jackhammer rather than a bloomy brute force DD type blow.

Bat for Lashes - Trophy: Electric! The bass moves along the forward plane/perspective as it does in my 2.1 setup. Love it!

Hans Zimmer - Why So Serious: It's there for me (without the excessive pressure from DD's)

----

Mids: Definitely strong here but not out of place. A fair portion of IEM's tend to have recessed mids I find due to their V-shaped nature so it's fantastic to have mids where they should be, not shouty, but not forgotten.

REM - Low: Stipe's voice is fantastically raspy and airy unlike I've heard before.

Leonard Cohen - You Want it Darker: Again, the timbre and crispness to male voices is great.

----

Treble: Haven't tried enough tracks to make a strong opinion. No issues so far. I will have to play with tips and filters to see what suits best.

Momus - I Want You, But I Don't Need You: This is my go-to song for checking sibilance and I can gladly say we're safe! Hallelujah!

Atoms For Peace - AMOK: The effects are just lush, everything is there, and in its right place.

REM - Me In Honey: The tambourine decay/reverb is evident amongst all the rest of the music, so are the subtle piano notes.

----

Soundstage etc: Just amazing IMO, the headspace is fantastic. Wide, deep, tall. There's layering to instruments and levels to the music I can't explain. Everything seems to have its own 3D space and they're easily distinguishable/easy to pinpoint.

Leftield - A Final Hit - The start of this song is physical, it throws you around left/right then clicks you into place.

Overall super low distortion and really coherent like I wasn't expecting from a multi-driver IEM (probably helps that they're all BA and not a Hybrid). Flat FR with no unwanted peaks that I've discovered so far. Very revealing IEM, not even the slightest background hiss on tracks can be hidden.

I'm using these with a Creative SXFI Amp which has a mute noise floor and sounds great IMO but I think these Aonic 5's will scale very nicely. My IEM experience is limited and these are my most expensive set so far to take that into account.

In word word: Electric!

Very chuffed you are happy with them and that's a nice summary of them. If there is an ionic 5 thread you should add it there too so that people looking to read about them can see your review and make informed decisions.

I never heard the 535s but from what I have read the actual technical specifications between the two are identical (including the impedance) except for the interchangeable filters which probably does a lot to bring them closer to the 846s from the original 535s.

This is cut and paste from Shure's own website:

The SE535 and AONIC 5 both use three balanced armature drivers (two low-frequency driver and a single high frequency driver) for a premium, detailed sound signature. The SE535 is geared toward on-stage monitoring, where the triple balanced armature design provides the nuance, clarity, and separation between instruments that professional musicians and monitoring engineers need.

The AONIC 5 provides some additional features that music and technology enthusiasts will appreciate. They are available in three colors which employ a two-tone design, which is stylish on the outside half and clear on the inside half (which means you can still look at the precision engineering packed inside). Three interchangeable nozzles allow listeners to customize the sound signature for a balanced, bright, or warm sound – a feature we initially introduced in the legendary SE846 earphone and now brought into the AONIC 5.

The above sounds a lot like Shure saying they are the same but the Aonic 5s have more/updated features. As I have already posted before on here, if it Ain's broke, don't fix it!

My brother uses the 535s and he swears by them so frankly I think you made a great investment with them.

 

[118900]

Think I’d rather buy from amazon and get shure to check the serial number.

agreed, someone had already posted not so long ago about receiving an apparent fake from Amazon so I wouldn't mess around buying from less than 100% reliable sources or with money back service.

 

[544592]

They really do pull you into the music, I've been lost in a few tracks already! That's all I can ask for. The micro-details and layering of voices/instruments is blowing me away. I can only imagine what the SE846's are like but worry the bass may have been too much for my taste.

 

[118900]

They really do pull you into the music, I've been lost in a few tracks already! That's all I can ask for.

That’s all anyone can ask for, it’s the very essence of what I look for myself, when you literally forget where you are and what you’re doing and immerse yourself in the music.