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I've received my Shanling ME600 a week ago and I would like to give some impressions. While everybody is talking about the new kid on the block I seem to be stuck in the past somehow haha. First was Shanling MG800 released years ago and now the ME600 released last year in 2024. But I believe these iems are still very relevant nowadays.
Bought them from Shenzhenaudio during the Chinese New Year for $249 which is a great price considering they were $320 at launch.
Now this is not my first encounter with ME600, in fact last year I was eyeing this iem, especially after I saw this post by Jazzzy:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the-discovery-thread.586909/post-18260667
And
@ToneDeafMonk video about ME600 that seal the deal for me after watching it 100 times... Too bad I bought it later than I was should have. Truth is I kind of brush it off last year. I was upset with my H60 because it didn't fit well with my small ears. In retrospectation I realize I made a huge mistake not buying the ME600 then because If I think about how much money I've wasted to get to this just now... "Wait, what about your precious MG800, was that also a mistake?" you'll ask me, to which I say yes and no. I'll get to that later.
Anyways, the iem themselves look very premium to my eyes and surprinsingly they fit well with every eartip I've tried. About comfort I'm still in the process of trying different eartips to see which is better but I've settled on Softears UC for now. I'll say that the comfort is better than MG800, even though ME600 are bigger. But I guess they have a slightly longer nozzle and at a good angle for my ears. They weigh 6.25 g per shell and the nozzle diameter is 5.8mm, just how I like it.
ME600 vs MG800 size comparison:
The cable it's a very good silver plated copper with interchangeables plugs. You get 2.5mm, 3.5mm and 4.4mm and its very easy to change the connectors. Cable is MMCX but has very good quality and you don't need to bother changing it with this set.
The sound
Oh, boy! These are your wet dream if you listen to rock, heavy metal and EDM, they slam so hard. I've also listen to pop music and no complaints for me. They seem to do a good job with every genre.
This come with 3 interchangeable nozzles offering you a slightly different sound signature. I'm using the white "Clear" nozzle because I feel this give you enough uppermids and lower treble to balance the bass. With the "balanced" nozzle it was too chill and laidback for me so I needed slightly more to balance it out. I like iems with more subdued treble but I can assure you the "Clear" nozzle don't make the treble bright at all, it just adds a little bit of sparkle to the uppermids and it still sounds warm and laidback, basically a Dynaquatro that fits better and it's easier to drive.
Bass
Simply extraordinary, both the sub-bass rumble and the mid-bass punch. How Shanling managed to tune these two 6mm DDs is magical and they don't overpower the rest of the frequencies at all! I've been listening to Oasis, The Verve, Ride and they sound sublime. Nothing negative to say about the bass. Well done Shanling!
Mids
Very clear, smooth, just like
@ToneDeafMonk said. I was afraid they could be recessed but not all. Both male and female vocals sound so good, they are not too laidback or too forward in the mix. They sit just perfectly in the centre.
Also he said in his ME600 video that you could listen to this at any volume and I can confirm he's on the money. This is also another good thing that I apreciate about this set. You can listen at any volume and still being able to hear everything clearly.
Treble
Laidback with all nozzles and not the star of the show, even with the "Clear" nozzle that has the most treble it's still a little laidback and smooth just how I like it. I absolutely recommend this for treble sensible folks.
Soundstage it's above average with good witdh, depth and Instrument separation is very good as well.
I'm using it with my KA17 with D.Mode ON, a very good pairing since KA17 it's neutral with tinge of brightness and ME600 is a warm laidback, perfect synergy!
Timbre is very natural, you would not believe this is a hybrid. There's absolutely not BA timbre or sibilance on this set. Once again, well done Shanling!
Some comparison with other iems like Dynaquatro, H60 and MG800 (I don't own DQ and H60 anymore but I still have my notes and memory)
With Dynaquatro from memory the bass is equally as good as the ME600. The lower mids on DQ were a little recessed to my ears and uppermids were a little forward but with ME600 both lower mids and upper mids are more balanced.
The treble on both is subdued and smooth so no complain for me.
The soundstage I think is done better on ME600.
Between both I think ME600 is the better option since it's easier to drive and more comfortable to wear. DQ is indeed cheaper at $220 vs ME600 at $276 (if you buy from Shenzhenaudio) but still the price difference isn't that big and you could get ME600 on sale at a better price like I did.
H60
There is no surprise that H60 was my dream iem. I still think about it even now. Reading jazzzy's comparison post above I have to agree the difference between them isn't that big. However excluding the bass and treble because they are equally good, the biggest difference is in the mids. H60 mids are purely sweet, creamy, they have that Penon/ISN magic that you can't ever forget, I certainly can't. The value for money is on the ME600 side vs $350 on H60. Also the comfort it's better with ME600 because of the 5.8mm nozzle vs 6.9mm nozzle on H60 and both are easier to drive. I'll say pick whatever you like cause both are worth the money.
MG800
Here we are now comparing my beloved MG800 against ME600.
Before getting on to the sound comparison I must say that I'm having fit issues with MG800. Yea, my ears are cursed or something.
When I first got my MG800 I swear I didn't have any issues with the fit but I do now. To be precise 2 months ago when I went on my first trip with them after an hour or so of listening I felt a slight discomfort in my ears and my heart sank. I thought I'll just change tips and the problem will go away and it didn't sadly. The new eartips that I receive a while ago from Rosetechnics SC liquid silicone seemed to help a little but the discomfort was still there after sometime. The discomfort wasn't as bad as with H60 because MG800 doesn't have that bulkier nozzle at 6.9mm that caused me pain but still the discomfort with MG800 was enough to not let me focus on the music for long sessions.
Why I didn't noticed this at first when I got my MG800? I guess the only logical explanation is that I was so overjoyed with the sound that I didn't want to notice, maybe cognitive dissonance or something I don't know. That's why I said I should've bought ME600 last year before buying MG800 and other iems that left my wallet empty.
I got over it now. I realize this is an expensive hobby and I made mistakes on my iem journey. Also I hate my ears, so there's that.
Anyways, let's get on with the sound comparison.
ME600 and MG800 share the same house sound, the same DNA if you will, with different tunnings. ME600 is warm laidback while MG800 is more mid-centric focused with a better treble depending on the nozzle you use.
For me the "Clear" nozzle on ME600 with the "Balanced" nozzle on MG800 came close to each other but there are differences as you would expect.
The bass
MG800 has more sub-bass focus with a very good rumble that you will feel it when listening. It's a very nice sensation that no other single DD gave me before. Mid-bass is more anemic but I feel Shanling made this decision to let the mids shine more.
ME600 on the other hand has a fairly good sub-bass rumble but not as noticeable as with MG800. Also the mid-bass punch is a lot better and pleasant on ME600.
The mids
While ME600 has a very good clean and smooth mids, the MG800 takes the cake entirely here. It has a very spacious midrange with better vocals on both male and female and instruments, they simply sound better with more clarity and air.
The treble
The ME600 with all its 3 nozzles pretty much has the same treble as the "Balanced" nozzle on MG800, very smooth and non fatigue. The only noticeable difference is with the "Clear" nozzle on MG800 which has more treble extension and might by a little fatigue in the long run.
The Soundstage
I'll give it to the MG800, it's slightly holographic than ME600, but all in all is not really a big difference for me since they both do a good job.
Timbre is very natural on both and instrument separation is also equally good.
Value for money considering MG800 is $800, but you could get it on sale at $620. Even so the value is on the ME600 side to be honest. Yes, MG800 it's an upgrade over ME600 but diminishing returns hit hard I believe.
What you get by buying MG800 is more refinement, like better sub-bass, you get better mids with better vocal clarity and more treble extension if you choose to use the "Clear" nozzle. The improvement is there but it is worth spending more money for MG800 when ME600 does a very good job as well? Eh, I believe not really and I love my MG800, it sounds fantastic. Easily end game in single DD department. It's up to you if you like to spend more money but ME600 will also not dissappoint you at all. It's very sad that shanling iems get under the radar because they give you great value for the price like great cables, great selection of eartips and very good sound.
Initially I wanted to get Softears Volume S but after watching
@ToneDeafMonk video on Softears comparing it with ME600, I know I made the right choice. There's also a new review on youtube by BangsAudioReviews praising ME600 so it's clear as day that Shanling made something special.
Thank you for reading this far!
(and write it off as a charity donation)
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