[drummerdimitri]

Hello everyone, i have recently purchased an UE super.fi 3 studio, and for some reason it sounds way better than my shure e2c's and sounds just as good as my shure se530's if not better. This has gotten me confused, i know for sure that both of my shures are not defective because they've been replace a couple of times before and still sound the same, but man oh man do the UE super.fi 3 studios sound good. This doesn't make sense because it costs a bit more than the e2c's but 5 times less than the shure se530's so how on earth do they sound the same or even better? I sometimes think UE made a mistake and placed some higher end IEM' transducers in my earphones coz they really sound amazing for what i have payed? I haven't tried any higher end UE models to compare with, but the fact that they sound too good to be true is what i do not understand. Does anyone know what situation i am facing, because this is quite honestly a good and bad thing for me because sometimes i think why did i spend 500 dollars on the se530's if my 100 dollar UE sound just as good. Any comments or thoughts are welcome. And is there any way to know wether the company made a mistake in the production line? The earphones look like the normal super.fi 3's, but maybe what's in it differs immensely. Thanks!

 

[Libertad]

Oh my sweetheadphones and music goodness! Do you grasp what is about to happen!?

 

[Calexico]

You probably are in love with their sound signature, whatever it is. So you'll probably be absolutely blown away by the Triple.Fi. OR your hearing is bombed.

 

[mark2410]

my thoughts are you have found a pair of earphones that have a sound signature that you really really like.

think of the 530's as being the worlds best coffee and the s.fi 3's as being a cup of PG tips. not the best cup of tea in the world but maybe you just prefer tea

 

[Pianist]

I agree with the OP. I still have my good old Super.fi 3s and I also think that they are a mighty fine IEM indeed. No, they are not as good as SE530 technically, but I do prefer their sound signature to that of Shures. I also prefer Super.fi 3 to Super.fi 5 Pro, Triple.fi, and Head-Direct RE1 and RE2 as well. Sure, those more expensive IEMs beat Super.fi 3s in terms of separation (Head-Direct REs don't though), detail and soundstage, but Super.fi 3s just sound more balanced and enjoyable to my ears.

 

[Pianist]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mark2410 /img/forum/go_quote.gif my thoughts are you have found a pair of earphones that have a sound signature that you really really like. think of the 530's as being the worlds best coffee and the s.fi 3's as being a cup of PG tips. not the best cup of tea in the world but maybe you just prefer tea

++

 

[jant71]

My favorite and best sounding pair of earphones was a Westone recabled SF 3's with S-adapter(same from my ER4P->S). Easily bested ER4S and E500 and Triple.fi unamped and also improved the most amped. The only IEM that could match up with a decent full size can. I took them and improved them based on their signature and past experience with my first pair of them. They have potential to match or beat anything in most areas except in treble extension. I preferred the treble quality over the Triples and Ety. It might not have the most extended treble but that didn't mean it wasn't better quality.

With the new upgrade cables for $52 plus $28 for a Head-Direct 75Ohm cable and a maybe a FiiO E5 for another $25 brings the total to about $180. Way better option to improve it then spend $350-$400 on something else. Nothing for me yet has beaten them for soundstage, separation, detail, speed, resolving power, transparency(clearly beat Ety). They should be even better with the higher SQ cables offered on ebay now than what I heard with the ES cable. And this was before the Comply's were available for the UE's. Very tempting to buy again as they might be 10, 15, maybe even 20% better than what I heard with a better cable and tips.

Even a stock SF3 matched with the right amp becomes near flat with quite strong bass and super creamy smooth and addictive. This was the where I first got the idea to mod them. Never forgot what they blossomed into with some more juice. UE worked them and their 13ohm/115 sens. makes them a bit too mid-forward and harsh on the treble and lack bass in both amount and punch if you don't amp them. Lots of potential in them though and low risk since they are cheap and no crossover network that makes some multi-drivers more picky with sources/cables/amplification.

 

[Xena]

You are lucky to be able to be so satisfied with the SuperFi 3's. I found the high range very weak, the low range weak, and the midrange to be only fair. Not to mention that they are huge and uncomfortable. The SE530's simply exceed the UEs in every way.

Remember that your sound quality is only as good as your weakest component (music, player, speaker/earphone, and amp if you use one).

 

[Beyerfan70]

Absolutely nothing wrong with your ears,superfi 3 studio is a cracking iem and if you think its better than the others then it is!
It makes no difference if something costs £50 or £500 if it makes your music sound great then thats all that matters.
Although i wouldn't call the 530's the best coffee,unless it was mixed with mud.
And i'm a shure fan too,but i'd prefer the 3 studios any day.

 

[Headphile808]

I own a pair of UE super.fi 3 studios, and I love the sound signature.
Treble A Clean Airy Good Extension
Mids A+ Liquid Vocals Female Especially Amazing
Bass A- Tight Punchy Quality not Quantity Accurate Bass
Soundtage A Big Wide And Great Depth
Transparency A Very Musical Detailed Natural Presentation
Headphile808

 

[drummerdimitri]

Thanks for everybody's replies, i've never thought i would love the super.fi 3's more than my shure se530's, but that is the case right now. I just feel that there is much more depth in the music. It's like sitting in a large hall when the music is being played with a bit of reverb i guess. But now i'm not happy with my shure se530's because i am not enjoying them as much due to the very high price i payed for them. I am now confused with what to do. I can't and wont sell them, virgin just gave me a new piece yesterday because my cable broke which is'nt new news with shure earphones. The thing that i really want to hear is the triple.fi 10 pro because i am guessing since i love the super.fi 3's, i must like them even more. But virgin megastore won't let me try them, so i was wondering if it would be possible to get a triple.fi 10 pro instead of the shure se530's the next time the cable breaks which won't be very far from now i suppose. I hope that this will be possible because i feel ripped off in every way and the fact that i am not enjoying them as i wanted to makes it even worse. It's actually like the placebo effect, when you think they sound good just because you payed a bank for them but you actually know deep inside they sound bad to your ears.

 

[drummerdimitri]

So does anyone think i should get the triple.fi 10 pro's if i can? If i loved the super.fi 3 studio's will that mean i will automatically fall in love with it's big brother or what? I need some advice please.

 

[xz123]

Of course I can't tell if you would like them. But I did love them when I switched from sf3 to tf10. Plus with the tf10 the low bass "issue" I had with the sf3 disappeared. So I'd say: Try to find someplace to try them.

 

[jant71]

Quote:

Originally Posted by drummerdimitri /img/forum/go_quote.gif So does anyone think i should get the triple.fi 10 pro's if i can? If i loved the super.fi 3 studio's will that mean i will automatically fall in love with it's big brother or what? I need some advice please.

They are a bit of a different signature. I prefer the forward mids and more separation(Triple.fi keeps things blended a bit more closely together). It may not be automatic. I went through three(3/5 Pro/10) in a couple months and still missed some things from the 3 that were gone in the 5 Pro and also in the Triple.fi. They are all a bit different. They even started marketing them for different styles on the UE site. It may not be automatic but you may love them. Won't know till you try. Possibly buy from where you can return them. Or they would sell in the buy/sell forum most likely anyway. I sold my Triple.fi 10 LE's after about 21 days.

I ended up liking the modded 3's quite a bit more than the Triples but how would I know unless I tried. So, you really have to try just so you'll know. It can kind of eat at you if you don't.

I can also recommend the new SF 5(non-pro) as these are the closest thing to SF 3 but improved. Also brings a new much smaller more comfortable design as well.

 

[drummerdimitri]

Guys, the more i listen to my SF 3's the more i start loving them and hating the shure se530's. In my opinion they beat it in every way and for something that costs a fifth of the price, i cannot justify spending so much money on them and not enjoying them. It's killing me not to use the earphones i paid a fortune for. I really do not know what to do now? I need help and suggestions please! Thanks!