[Ultrazino]

Quote:

.....still don't understand the pin hole bore purpose.
 
I think we would generally agree that UE900 is "lite" on the bass side (relative to other IEM's).  So you buy this pair of balanced armature IEM's....and whether you like it or not, or find the bass adequate or not adequate, over a few hundred hours the bass will inevitably get lighter sounding??...having nothing to really do with any burn-in effect?
 
 And the speed to which this phenommenan happens will vary from person to person on how dirty or clean the IEM's are kept?
 
That's idiotic (unless I missed some reasoning for this)! 

 
I have looked into my UE 900 a bit closer with a magnifier and my pin holes do not seem to be blocked. I cannot tell for sure because the hole gets too dark and it's impossible to see, but at least the hole looks very clean and blueish black. I received my pair in October and use them daily for several hours.
 
So unless you have dirty ears I don't think the ear wax issue has any validation. And even if you do, you can consider storing them in a drying box and I'm sure they will stay clean.

 

[jayaudio116]

I have looked into my UE 900 a bit closer with a magnifier and my pin holes do not seem to be blocked. I cannot tell for sure because the hole gets too dark and it's impossible to see, but at least the hole looks very clean and blueish black. I received my pair in October and use them daily for several hours.

So unless you have dirty ears I don't think the ear wax issue has any validation. And even if you do, you can consider storing them in a drying box and I'm sure they will stay clean.

if this is true then what causing the sound change

 

[jayaudio116]

I had volume issues and sent them back

I'm going to do the same or might even get my money back and try the heri audio 4ai this pin hole thing is causing to much confusion. One min I think it the hole the other I think it's something else the more I read about it. In the few month that I had them they went from not too impress to sounding amazing and finally less then desirable

 

[tinyman392]

if this is true then what causing the sound change

As I stated earlier, just because you don't physically see the block doesn't mean it is t there. Your ears secrete oils and other things as well... They too can clog that port. Surface tension will stop it from coming back out.

 

[tinyman392]

I'm going to do the same or might even get my money back and try the heri audio 4ai this pin hole thing is causing to much confusion. One min I think it the hole the other I think it's something else the more I read about it. In the few month that I had them they went from not too impress to sounding amazing and finally less then desirable

I've never told someone to keep a headphone they weren't thrilled about. If you don't like them, I do suggest sending them back and trying a different pair. The 4.Ai is still a great choice. Same SQ as this, but a different flavor. A bit more bass, warmer sound, more forgiving.

 

[tannerbnd]

Yeah, I'm was really upset with the quality control of the product

 

[ThatNzGuy]

So i claimed the warranty on the TF10's and purchased myself a pair of UE900's.
I would like to say that i now realise the tf10pro's were a legendary piece of work.
I don't know how much of a burn-in these need, or how much time my ears need adjusting, grains of salt are needed as my views might change. 
 
Rig: Z-series walkman (FLAC) > E17 > UE900.

First thing i noticed was the volume, on my E17, the tf10's were loud at 24, the ue900's needed a 28 to reach about the same loudness as the tf10's.

Bass, there is bass, a tad more than the tf10's, BUT i feel that the ue900's don't have quite as much control as the tf10's. The tf10's had more oomph, more punch, the ue900's have bass more than anything else, it has more extension than the tf10's, but there's just a lot of it. The ue900 has more sub-bass, the tf10 has more mid-bass, the tf10 has a round feel to the bass, the ue900 has a wall of bass.

Mids, they definitely fixed the recessed mids issue of the tf10's, vocals aren't drowned out by the rest of the spectrum, as with the v-shape of the tf10's. The ue900's has a sloped sound, bass the most, mids slightly more than the highs, highs being the least. Due to less highs, the mids have a bit more room to stretch at the upper half the spectrum, but feels a little cramped near the lower mids, where it fights with the lows for room.
 
Highs, this is where i'm irked, it's probably because i'm a treblehead, it definitely doesn't have a crispness on the cymbals, if you found the tf10's sibilant, these don't have that. I'm mostly an electronic music listener, so everything treble has some edginess to it. There's definitely a bit more micro-detail, but it lacks volume, so you have to listen out for the details. The tf10's has the trebles presented to you effortlessly but not as much extension as the ue900's
I feel there's about the same amount of high as the mids, mids having slightly more pronunciation.
 
There's a larger soundstage with the ue900's, everything seems a bit further away compared to the tf10's, perhaps this is where the problems with the treble lies, but it doesn't explain the bass. I can't hear any improvement in the instrument separation, seemingly the bass fill all the gaps. 

Shun me as you see fit, but there's too much bass, and not enough of everything else, perhaps i should try blocking the pinhole,
overall it really sounds like a fun iem, but...

I would really like to get my hands on a pair of ex1000's.

 

[tinyman392]

Quote:

So i claimed the warranty on the TF10's and purchased myself a pair of UE900's.
I would like to say that i now realise the tf10pro's were a legendary piece of work.
I don't know how much of a burn-in these need, or how much time my ears need adjusting, grains of salt are needed as my views might change. 
 
Rig: Z-series walkman (FLAC) > E17 > UE900.

First thing i noticed was the volume, on my E17, the tf10's were loud at 24, the ue900's needed a 28 to reach about the same loudness as the tf10's.

Bass, there is bass, a tad more than the tf10's, BUT i feel that the ue900's don't have quite as much control as the tf10's. The tf10's had more oomph, more punch, the ue900's have bass more than anything else, it has more extension than the tf10's, but there's just a lot of it. The ue900 has more sub-bass, the tf10 has more mid-bass, the tf10 has a round feel to the bass, the ue900 has a wall of bass.

Mids, they definitely fixed the recessed mids issue of the tf10's, vocals aren't drowned out by the rest of the spectrum, as with the v-shape of the tf10's. The ue900's has a sloped sound, bass the most, mids slightly more than the highs, highs being the least. Due to less highs, the mids have a bit more room to stretch at the upper half the spectrum, but feels a little cramped near the lower mids, where it fights with the lows for room.
 
Highs, this is where i'm irked, it's probably because i'm a treblehead, it definitely doesn't have a crispness on the cymbals, if you found the tf10's sibilant, these don't have that. I'm mostly an electronic music listener, so everything treble has some edginess to it. There's definitely a bit more micro-detail, but it lacks volume, so you have to listen out for the details. The tf10's has the trebles presented to you effortlessly but not as much extension as the ue900's
I feel there's about the same amount of high as the mids, mids having slightly more pronunciation.
 
There's a larger soundstage with the ue900's, everything seems a bit further away compared to the tf10's, perhaps this is where the problems with the treble lies, but it doesn't explain the bass. I can't hear any improvement in the instrument separation, seemingly the bass fill all the gaps. 

Shun me as you see fit, but there's too much bass, and not enough of everything else, perhaps i should try blocking the pinhole,
overall it really sounds like a fun iem, but...

I would really like to get my hands on a pair of ex1000's.

 
The sound does change, and the change really deals with the tiny pinhole bore.  You can either keep listening and wait for it to fill up on it's own.  The result will be gradual, but audible (it sounds and feels like burn in).  Or you can fill it yourself, some have tried tape (no clue how they got the tape to work properly ), others fill it with wax.  This will cause the bass levels to drop drastically if you fill the hole yourself, you've been warned (they drop to an almost neutral level with a small emphasis on the upper lows)  If you let it fill naturally, it will take a few weeks to fully complete (two may not even be enough for the full effect).  
 

​

Raw graph left, compensated graph right.  ​

 
 

 ​

The pinhole effect is actually quite large.  It's about a total of 5 dB down for the entire spectrum from 50 Hz on up.  This is really what creates the canopy over the rest of the range and makes these overly bass heavy.  We're still unsure if it was deliberately done like this.  
 
There obviously is a third option, and that would be to return the IEMs.  

 

[ThatNzGuy]

Quote:

 
The sound does change, and the change really deals with the tiny pinhole bore.  You can either keep listening and wait for it to fill up on it's own.  The result will be gradual, but audible (it sounds and feels like burn in).  Or you can fill it yourself, some have tried tape (no clue how they got the tape to work properly ), others fill it with wax.  This will cause the bass levels to drop drastically if you fill the hole yourself, you've been warned (they drop to an almost neutral level with a small emphasis on the upper lows)  If you let it fill naturally, it will take a few weeks to fully complete (two may not even be enough for the full effect).  
 

​

Raw graph left, compensated graph right.  ​

 
 

 ​

The pinhole effect is actually quite large.  It's about a total of 5 dB down for the entire spectrum from 50 Hz on up.  This is really what creates the canopy over the rest of the range and makes these overly bass heavy.  We're still unsure if it was deliberately done like this.  
 
There obviously is a third option, and that would be to return the IEMs.  

 
Thanks for the graphs.
Blu-tac seems to have done the job. My ears are dry most of the time because of a skin condition, lucky me. 

 
After filling the pinhole up, a slight increase in clarity, the vocals have more depth, less striving needed to search for detail. There was a huge decrease in bass, but is still a bit blaring (to me), EQing the bass down by 2db and the treble up by 2db suits my taste. I really had no idea these were that bass heavy. 
I like these iems that much more.
 
Sadly, the retailer i bought it from charges a minimum 20% restocking fee, and only gives out store credit :/ so no cigar for me. The fact that these are only a few hours old, hopefully they'll show me that they're truly worth their weight in gold.

 

[Stay808]

So I am in the middle of deciding to either get a decent amp with my UE900's or get some decent custom's with no amp.  What would be the ideal route to go? If possible, would you guys be able to list some con's and pro's of each route? Many Thanks!

 

[tinyman392]

Quote:

 
Thanks for the graphs.
Blu-tac seems to have done the job. My ears are dry most of the time because of a skin condition, lucky me. 

 
After filling the pinhole up, a slight increase in clarity, the vocals have more depth, less striving needed to search for detail. There was a huge decrease in bass, but is still a bit blaring (to me), EQing the bass down by 2db and the treble up by 2db suits my taste. I really had no idea these were that bass heavy. 
I like these iems that much more.
 
Sadly, the retailer i bought it from charges a minimum 20% restocking fee, and only gives out store credit :/ so no cigar for me. The fact that these are only a few hours old, hopefully they'll show me that they're truly worth their weight in gold.

 
That return policy is nasty, I'm so sorry  Glad I could help the sound be more bearable though  Blu-Tac is a great idea, should be able to cover the mini bore up pretty well.  Just make sure you don't cover the large bore, or you'll hate the upper end  Maybe try EQuing the 500 Hz down 2 dB and the 4-5k a few dB (to add more to the resonance peak) if you want a sound closer to neutral.  

 

[breadvan]

Quote:

 
... Maybe try EQuing the 500 Hz down 2 dB and the 4-5k a few dB (to add more to the resonance peak) if you want a sound closer to neutral.  

 
That is exactly what I am doing on my Neutron on Galaxy Note II, although I am not using any amp at the moment.  
 
[size=10pt]Surprisingly when I play the same song on my Opp 105 headphone out, all the lumpiness on the lower mid is gone, pretty much like EQing on the Note II, so it seems the player or the amp play a huge role.[/size]

 

[tinyman392]

That is exactly what I am doing on my Neutron on Galaxy Note II, although I am not using any amp at the moment.  

[SIZE=10pt]Surprisingly when I play the same song on my Opp 105 headphone out, all the lumpiness on the lower mid is gone, pretty much like EQing on the Note II, so it seems the player or the amp play a huge role.[/SIZE]

I want to say that the source is going to make a difference. The UE 900 have been known to improve with more resistance.

 

[breadvan]

Quote:

I want to say that the source is going to make a difference. The UE 900 have been known to improve with more resistance.

 
[size=10pt]Any experience which one of these would work well with the 900?  Apex Glacier / HRT HeadStreamer Mobile / iBasso D-Zero, these amongst others are known to work with [/size]the Galaxy II according to list put together heroically by DanBa.

 

[tinyman392]

Quote:

 
[size=10pt]Any experience which one of these would work well with the 900?  Apex Glacier / HRT HeadStreamer Mobile / iBasso D-Zero, these amongst others are known to work with [/size]the Galaxy II according to list put together heroically by DanBa.

 
Couldn't tell you unfortunately  I run everything out of my iPod Touch 5G (straight ).