Ultimate Ears UE 900 Discussion and Impressions Thread
Feb 2, 2013 at 6:41 AM Post #1,456 of 4,383
It's disappointing to hear that some have had issues.  I am heartened however to hear that not everyone has had these problems.  I myself have not had any problems.  I hope that those who have had problems will receive satisfaction from UE.  I do know that these IEMs, when they aren't having any problems, produce some seriously excellent sound!  I'm listening to mine as I type this, and I am still blown away by the SQ, the PRaT is especially remarkable.
 
Feb 2, 2013 at 10:53 AM Post #1,457 of 4,383
After losing my RE 262s I will buy these next Wednesday. I currently own a Sansa clip zip, iPod Classic, and an E11 that was used to drive the 262 pair.
 
Looking at the specs I can assume these won't need the E11 at all to sound it's best?
 
Feb 2, 2013 at 3:35 PM Post #1,459 of 4,383
Bought these from an Apple store in late December. PID on the cables says 1243. I have experienced the right driver audio crackle/cutoff issue since day one, but it was intermittent and rare enough that I did nothing about it at first. It has worsened in the last week or so, so I just got them RMA'd. Of course, the phone process was a pain, because God forbid anything function smoothly in our New Reality TV World. The rep on the phone confirmed they have had this issue with this model.
 
Why is it that all my headphones that cost hundreds of dollars and are treated with kid gloves have chronic issues with bad cables and bad drivers and seem to last about 15 minutes, but all the cheap, crappy headphones take a beating and work forever?
 
Feb 2, 2013 at 4:06 PM Post #1,460 of 4,383
Quote:
After losing my RE 262s I will buy these next Wednesday. I currently own a Sansa clip zip, iPod Classic, and an E11 that was used to drive the 262 pair.
 
Looking at the specs I can assume these won't need the E11 at all to sound it's best?

 
These really don't need an amp to sound their best.  They do improve with resistance it seems (use the included airplane adapter eventually to test this :p).
 
Feb 2, 2013 at 4:29 PM Post #1,461 of 4,383
Quote:
 
These really don't need an amp to sound their best.  They do improve with resistance it seems (use the included airplane adapter eventually to test this :p).

Curious about this and your feeling on the airplane adapter. Tell me more. I will test too.
 
I do notice a big perceived improvement using my Fiio E17 as an amp over just using the iPhone 5. It definitely adds alot to the bottom end for me. I think its more about output impedance though.
 
Feb 2, 2013 at 4:42 PM Post #1,462 of 4,383
Quote:
Curious about this and your feeling on the airplane adapter. Tell me more. I will test too.
 
I do notice a big perceived improvement using my Fiio E17 as an amp over just using the iPhone 5. It definitely adds alot to the bottom end for me. I think its more about output impedance though.

 
More output impedance should actually make the UE 900 more neutral.  So it's more than just output impedance (this of course is just based off of data).
 
Feb 2, 2013 at 4:58 PM Post #1,463 of 4,383
Quote:
More output impedance should actually make the UE 900 more neutral.  So it's more than just output impedance (this of course is just based off of data).

 
My ears say something different. I noticed they sounded muffled-warmish (worse timbre) out of an iPad Mini compared to an iPad 2/iPhone 5+E17.
 
Feb 2, 2013 at 6:00 PM Post #1,464 of 4,383
Quote:
 
My ears say something different. I noticed they sounded muffled-warmish (worse timbre) out of an iPad Mini compared to an iPad 2/iPhone 5+E17.

 
I didn't say anything about an amp...  I just said with direct correlation with impedance, higher output impedance (or more resistance; they both have the same effects) will cause the IEMs to become more neutral.  A different source is going to be the main cause of what you're hearing.  The reason why I brought up output impedance was because what I quoted felt that the boost in bass was due to output impedance when it was probably due to the source or amp itself.  
 
So, what I'm basically saying is that your ears are right, but it's not based on output impedance (as awtryau89 thought).  
 
Feb 2, 2013 at 6:20 PM Post #1,465 of 4,383
Quote:
I just said with direct correlation with impedance, higher output impedance (or more resistance; they both have the same effects) will cause the IEMs to become more neutral. 

 
And I said my ears say something different. I haven't seen measurements of the iPad Mini, but I assume the output impedance is higher than with E17 - that's the reason I didn't pick one up.
 
It sounds more neutral through an E17 (very low output impedance) than a different source.
 
Feb 2, 2013 at 8:23 PM Post #1,466 of 4,383
While I bought a bad pair that had quality issue, for the brief time I heard them working properly, I preferred the UE900 over the W4 and most people around here know I am a big Westone fan.  I just thought the UE900 had superior midrange clarity which really made things sound bright and crisp but still very smooth.  Also with UE900 it is all about the soundstage where with W4 I hear instrument separation competing with a nice big soundstage.
 
And for what it's worth the Grado GR10 sounds uncannily close to what I hear in the UE900.  But for both priced at $400 I would certainly take the UE900 for the larger soundstage but there is a lot to be said for the simplistic form factor of the GR10.  Very nice IEM but should be $300 or under.
 
Feb 3, 2013 at 12:59 AM Post #1,467 of 4,383
Quote:
 
And I said my ears say something different. I haven't seen measurements of the iPad Mini, but I assume the output impedance is higher than with E17 - that's the reason I didn't pick one up.
 
It sounds more neutral through an E17 (very low output impedance) than a different source.

 
The differences between individual sources and amps goes further than output impedance my friend, a lot further.  I have a feeling those differences will be greater than just the pure output impedance alone.  
 
Feb 3, 2013 at 8:56 AM Post #1,469 of 4,383
Feb 4, 2013 at 7:59 PM Post #1,470 of 4,383
I want to throw this out there to you guys and see what kind of responses I get. I am aware that IEMs and full size cans are different so don't think I am naive. 
 
I am finding I like these UE900s a great deal The detail and realism is top notch. If I were to go out and buy a full sized closed back set of headphones, which ones would be most similar from a detail and sonic signature? Thanks for your input.
 

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