[Big D]

My soft UE-10 Pro started to cause me some mild itching a few weeks ago. There was no way of being certain that the UEs were definitely causing the problem, but given that others have had problems Mindy Harvey was happy to remake them in hard acrylic. Because I didn't want to be parted from my UE-10 Pro they sent me the new pair before I had to send them back the old pair. Great customer service!

When the new pair arrived there were clear sonic differences between the two pairs. One issue was that the cable connection was impinging on my right ear which was trying to pull it out. I was able to get a good seal only be pressing lightly on the earpieces. Also the new pair were significantly louder at the same volume on my iHP-140.

I had to send both pairs back so Jerry Harvey could analyse the problem. It seems that my new pair were made as UE-7 Pros, not UE-10 Pros! I guess I should post some brief impressions so here they are.

I had these for about a week and in that time I was using my old UE-10 Pro, plus my 2X-S for the last couple of days of the week.

The UE7 doesn't seem to have the forward vocals that the UE10 has. The bass response of the UE7 is relatively louder than the other frequencies compared to the UE10 and 2X-S. This is at the expense of some treble detail. Overall they aren't quite as detailed as the UE10 due to this slight drop-off in the high frequencies. To my ears these are as detailed as the 2X-S, except in the very high frequencies. I particularly notice the reduced clipping of high frequencies in compressed files using the UE7 and I suspect this is because of the roll off. This is very slight and probably undetectable without comparing to the UE10. The crispness of each individual note is there in the UE7 Pro and it does have most of the sound characteristics of the UE10 Pro, as you would expect given they share many components. I have attached the two frequency charts purely because this is what I actually hear with the roll-off listening to them. Note that the plain UE7 FR chart is the orange one.

My feeling is that for an extra $50 I would get the UE10 Pro and not consider the UE7 Pro. However there might be some people who want that little extra kick in the lower frequencies at the expense of the high frequencies. Remember that these are only brief impressions and I am writing this based on e-mails I sent to Jerry Harvey about the different sound characteristics and also what I remember of the sound.

[size=large]UE-7 Pro[/size]

[size=large]UE-10 Pro[/size]

 

[NightStalker]

did he describe how the swap had taken place? And was there a difference in the badging/labeling.. this seems a bit scary to think that the same mistake could be made when people were unable to do AB comparo's and may not have noticed the difference.

In the end proved to be a good lesson for you tho so whos complaining

cheers
-jake

 

[Big D]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NightStalker did he describe how the swap had taken place? And was there a difference in the badging/labeling.. this seems a bit scary to think that the same mistake could be made when people were unable to do AB comparo's and may not have noticed the difference. In the end proved to be a good lesson for you tho so whos complaining cheers -jake

These were newly made and from what Jerry said it sounds that the difference between the UE7 and UE10 is in the circuitry. The only difference in labeling should be that they are stamped with the product name on the inner ear side of the phones. I guess these mistakes happen with any product or company - not to worry!

I'm certainly not complaining as I would never have got to try the the UE7 Pro otherwise.

 

[random person]

Hi Big D!

Too bad they didn't send you the UE5c instead!

 

[Dan Millheim]

Qualfier: I am a "noob" so what do I know?

I purchased the UE7's for stage IEM monitors several years ago before the UE10 were available (I am a professional musician). I had the "soft" version and after a year they fell apart. I sent them back and got the "Hard" version for free along with the newer (at the time) tweak on the UE7's. They are in a fire engine red with black cables...very cool looking!

I have never heard the UE10's so take the following for what it's worth.

This month I sent my Red UE7's back to the shop to have my right IEM channel adjusted for a better custom fit. Again, the great folks of UE took care of me. I live in Texas, they got them on Monday and by Thursday of the SAME WEEK had them back to me!!!! Their customer service is worldclass, but we all know this,right?

Here is something I found VERY interesting in my recent experience with UE. Brad J at Ue (a sales and customer service rep) told me in an e-mail that he listens to his UE7's 90 percent of the time! Interesting since he has his pick of the entire line. Here is what he wrote me when I asked if I should consider purchasing the UE10's as well:

<<With regards to the differences between the 7’s and the 10’s, the 10’s are completely flat ! Absolutely nothing added. I have both pairs myself and I actually wear my 7’s 90% of the time. To me personally, they are just plain more enjoyable to listen too with the added low end bump. The 10’s are fine with listening to classical and such but that is a very small genre in my collection of music.>>

Just thought I would add this comment to the discussion. Not bashing the UE10's as I am sure they are wonderful.

Hey, check out this "noob's" little portable rig I put together from lurking and researching all your advice over the last 6 months. Thanks everyone for your expertise. Ya, ya I know all about Redwine (Vinnie is a great guy and someday I will try it out). FYI: The Dakiom fm203 is VERY cool and adds tons to my sound. If your into portaphile extremes you owe it to yourself to try this little know tweak:


5th gen video iPod (lossless)-> SR-71-> Turbo Dock IV->7.5 earcandy 90's with 3.5 switchcrafts-Dakiom Fm203-> UE7's for on the road. Senn.650's with 4' Black Dragon's 3.5 for the 'ol eazy chair. I also tweaked all connectors with Xtreme Audio Quick Silver ha.

 

[chef8489]

Thanks for your impressions. It will help out when I decide to go with a 3 driver IEM if I ever get bored with my ue-5c.