[phthora]

Good Bass should be audible and felt. Also should be clear and accurate. And doesnt bleed into other frequencies. No?

To me, Se846 bass sounds muddy and doesnt as much impact as the z1r.
Describing se846 bass as, accurate and has extension was what made me curious as what that person had compared the 846 against with.

Edit: we are debating on pure bass reproduction based on accuracy extension and impact. And not on the subject of whether a bigger sized driver could produce better base.

 
If we are considering impact, it is reasonable to include driver size in our consideration. Perhaps more important is the driver type. A large dynamic driver is going to move more air and have more impact than a tiny balanced armature, if the two are relatively close in quality. I think that is what some of the other people were getting at. The Shure will definitely lag behind a headphone like the Z1R. More slam, impact, weight in the latter. Different tips, insertion depth, and the seal will also affect the bass impact, of course.
 
Regarding the Shure's bass extension, that's seems objectively evidenced by the measurements posted above. They ARE extended.
 
Measured distortion levels for bass also seem very good, comparing well against the planar LCD-X's, for example: http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/AudezeLCDXSample3.pdf Nothing wrong in that regard.
 
So as far as accuracy and bass-bleed, I'm afraid we're down to subjective opinions. What you think sounds natural and suitable distinct from the mids, others may disagree with. Frankly, I disagree with calling these Shures muddy or inaccurate, but everyone has his own opinion.

 

[Imperfectionist]

If we are considering impact, it is reasonable to include driver size in our consideration. Perhaps more important is the driver type. A large dynamic driver is going to move more air and have more impact than a tiny balanced armature, if the two are relatively close in quality. I think that is what some of the other people were getting at. The Shure will definitely lag behind a headphone like the Z1R. More slam, impact, weight in the latter. Different tips, insertion depth, and the seal will also affect the bass impact, of course.

Regarding the Shure's bass extension, that's seems objectively evidenced by the measurements posted above. They ARE extended.

Measured distortion levels for bass also seem very good, comparing well against the planar LCD-X's, for example: http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/AudezeLCDXSample3.pdf Nothing wrong in that regard.

So as far as accuracy and bass-bleed, I'm afraid we're down to subjective opinions. What you think sounds natural and suitable distinct from the mids, others may disagree with. Frankly, I disagree with calling these Shures muddy or inaccurate, but everyone has his own opinion.

Firstly, i think we should examine a certain thread in headfi itself if driver size relates to more bass: http://www.head-fi.org/t/592974/does-bigger-driver-mean-better-sound/0_30

Looks like a divided opinion as there are also large drivers producing less bass.

Secondly, i agree with driver type. But material used, design of the housing, position of drivers etc all contributes to the final sound signature.
Therefore, we have ruled out driver size playing a factor to the final signature with lesser bass than a smaller driver, due​ to inconclusive evidence.
Lastly, i agree that we all have different hearing range. Some could hear more, some lesser especially due to age. It is with regret that in this hobby, the only reliable benchmarking tool will be our own pair of ears. We ourselves knows what we like.

 

[Whazzzup]

What 846 does well is offer bass dimension, a subtle width that includes sub bass as well. It may not be the baddest bass in the iem field, certainly encore offers a bigger bass wall but it's not as subtly extended. The veil I didn't get till I tried encore, mids is where the magic happens. I'm not kicking 846 just a heads up on what's out there.

 

[ubs28]

I think i meant the sub bass extension isn't that deep. And i have excellent seal. Thank you.
Se846 has Shure forward mids signature and it's well known.
Are you trying to imply mine and beowulf ears are having problems?
I certainly hope not

I am not hearing it, the mids of the Shure SE846 is quite neutral according to my ears.

I'm not sure what you mean by the bass not being that deep because you can see in the measurements that the bass of the Shure SE846 goes all the way down.

To me this is almost like saying that the HD 800 lacks treble even when the measurements show that it doesn't.

 

[phthora]

I am not hearing it, the mids of the Shure SE846 is quite neutral according to my ears.

I'm not sure what you mean by the bass not being that deep because you can see in the measurements that the bass of the Shure SE846 goes all the way down.

To me this is almost like saying that the HD 800 lacks treble even when the measurements show that it doesn't.

 
This is why I gave up with him. The extension is measured. It matches or exceeds the Z1R in that regard. The distortion is measured. It matches or betters the LCD-X in that regard. I'm really not even sure what he's claiming anymore. Impact?
 
He just doesn't like the bass on them, which puts him in very small minority.

 

[truckdriver]

A subwoofer speaker can measure very well for frequency response in a test environment. It might sound poorly in the wrong enclosure, with the wrong source/amplification, and room conditions. The 846 was marketed by Shure specifically for delivering subwoofer-like sound via a unique bandpass filter. As far as I can tell, the company did not lie.

That being said, it is a 9 Ohm IEM. I don't think the 846 sounds right with the normal 0 line level of any player, I've used. At least for me, I have to lower the sensitivity to keep from overdriving the bass and getting that kind of one note sub-bass sound.

The 846 (to me) produces the best and deepest bass I have heard so far on any earphone or headphone, but not under plug-n-play circumstances. I had to tinker around with tips, sources, software players, etc., to get there.

 

[ubs28]

   
This is why I gave up with him. The extension is measured. It matches or exceeds the Z1R in that regard. The distortion is measured. It matches or betters the LCD-X in that regard. I'm really not even sure what he's claiming anymore. Impact?
 
He just doesn't like the bass on them, which puts him in very small minority.

If he was saying impact, than I would have agreed. Even the Focal Utopia has more bass impact than the Shure SE846 despite the Focal Utopia's having a neutral reference bass. 

 

[bluesnote]

for evaluating se846, take note that a lot of factors come into difference in perception, like cables, probably burn in time, DAP source, file type, and of course the ears of the "trained" listener/evaluator.

 

[Imperfectionist]

I will be brutally honest. The z1r sound signature agrees more with my ears than 846 quad ba drivers.

Everything that the 846 could do, the z1r does it better. No piercing sounds to my ear drums. No "in your face" vocals. No muddy bass.

Female vocals like May'n is especially bad for me. Her voice is powerful and could drag her voice long and high enough for me to turn the volume down with my ears hurting when using the 846.
Bass sounds muddy and lacks impact on Arise by Cornelius. The bass just sounds and feels better on the z1r.
Rolled off highs. Enough said.

I guess my ears cannot take the sound from ba drivers. But, I'm glad it worked for other people.

 

[truckdriver]

This thread has been consistently popular over the years for a reason. That reason simply is that the 846 is a very good IEM. There are no magical speakers out there. Don't fall for the hype of people coming on this thread to promote some other product. Like a stereo system you have to tinker, tweak, and experiment to get the best of whatever you have. I have owned or have heard more expensive IEMs and cheaper ones being bragged about on this forum. There is no magical better. You have to identify your preferences in sound signature and enjoy your music.

 

[thesundancekid]

I will be brutally honest. The z1r sound signature agrees more with my ears than 846 quad ba drivers.

I have the Sony MDR-1A's and while they don't have the ultra-high-end pedigree of the Z1R's, still they have Sony sound signature, and I do love it and them, and will keep them as my portable headphones. So you can be brutally honest all you want and feel good about it. 
 
But I am getting rid of all my other headphones because the SE846's are just that much better than everything else for me. When I got them I put them in/on (which did take a bit of wire-fiddling), plugged them into my Lyr 2, turned on Grover Washington Jr. and said out loud, even though I couldn't hear myself because the isolation is crazy, "You have got to be f...ing kidding me." 

 

[Quadfather]

I have the Sony MDR-1A's and while they don't have the ultra-high-end pedigree of the Z1R's, still they have Sony sound signature, and I do love it and them, and will keep them as my portable headphones. So you can be brutally honest all you want and feel good about it. 

But I am getting rid of all my other headphones because the SE846's are just that much better than everything else for me. When I got them I put them in/on (which did take a bit of wire-fiddling), plugged them into my Lyr 2, turned on Grover Washington Jr. and said out loud, even though I couldn't hear myself because the isolation is crazy, "You have got to be f...ing kidding me." 

Paired with my Questyle QP1R, the SE846s are a dream. My over the ears are Audio-Technica ATH-MSR7GMs, and I have Shure SRH1540s on the way. I love all three sets. I love having a bright and darker headphone setup, along with the ubiquitous Shure SE846 IEMs.

 

[Quadfather]

false

 

[Imperfectionist]

I have the Sony MDR-1A's and while they don't have the ultra-high-end pedigree of the Z1R's, still they have Sony sound signature, and I do love it and them, and will keep them as my portable headphones. So you can be brutally honest all you want and feel good about it. 

But I am getting rid of all my other headphones because the SE846's are just that much better than everything else for me. When I got them I put them in/on (which did take a bit of wire-fiddling), plugged them into my Lyr 2, turned on Grover Washington Jr. and said out loud, even though I couldn't hear myself because the isolation is crazy, "You have got to be f...ing kidding me." 

Isolation? The qc35 does a better job at drowning ambient noises with the exception of loud shrill voices. Read: kids

Or should the 846 make me feel like i am in a vacuum tube once its worn? Coz that's your description. Lol

 

[Roen]

Isolation? The qc35 does a better job at drowning ambient noises with the exception of loud shrill voices. Read: kids

Or should the 846 make me feel like i am in a vacuum tube once its worn? Coz that's your description. Lol

Some people fare better with QC than Shure. Some people are the other way.