[soullinker20]

no thread yet for the UE Live?

 

[Koolpep]

UE18+pro universal at massdrop inclusive of super bax and bluetooth cable for $1,199. Claims to be 3rd generation..... not bad....

 

[bvng3540]

UE18+pro universal at massdrop inclusive of super bax and bluetooth cable for $1,199. Claims to be 3rd generation..... not bad....

Not claimed but it the fact as it has the newest ipx connector and only the 3rd gen has those type of connector

 

[Koolpep]

Yeah. Didn’t want to make it sound like they claim but it isn’t true, it can also be a claim that is true.
Am still loving my UE11Pro to bits.

 

[Vunz]

has anyone tried the new UE IPX bluetooth module with their UE iems? The price seems very reasonable.

Thanks,
Vincent

 

[Natronious]

has anyone tried the new UE IPX bluetooth module with their UE iems? The price seems very reasonable.

Thanks,
Vincent

Yes, I've been using my new bluetooth modules for the past week (UERR's). Previously, both my wife and I have been using these with the MMCX connectors which worked well for the most part, but we did experience issues with intermittent sound (sound cutting out to one channel). Mostly, this could be corrected with contact cleaner (Caig's DeOxit). But not always. I even had an issue with one of the connectors breaking apart from the bluetooth cable itself! It was this incident which initiated having my monitors fitted with the new connectors. The new IPX connectors supposedly will not suffer from intermittent sound, and they will also better tolerate repeated disconnections. They come out a little easier too, which is nice. I think that the new connectors are great. Mostly I use the bluetooth modules for non music purposes (podcasts, audiobooks, etc.).

I will say though, that while it is great that these can work for using with phone calls, they are not ideal for this. The mic on them is not great, so that people on the other end struggle to hear me well. Such that even a cheap $20 bluetooth earbud outperforms these for this purpose, so that is somewhat disappointing.

 

[Vunz]

Thanks for your reply, nbarnard36! Apart from the mic, how is the sound quality for music listening?

 

[moedawg140]

Hi all,

As some may be aware that the UE LIVE is available right now, here is a bit more information with regards to the product:

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/ultimate-ears-live-impressions-thread.879935/

 

[Natronious]

Thanks for your reply, nbarnard36! Apart from the mic, how is the sound quality for music listening?

I would say that listening to music through the bluetooth module is pretty good, certainly not bad. I just listened to some music now through bluetooth, and I find that the sound quality is surprisingly good! I rarely listen to music this way, as I take it for granted that the monitors will sound better 'wired', but the sound is very enjoyable. Perhaps the difference between wired and bluetooth will be smaller from a non music specific device, for instance with a phone. Switching back to the Super bax cable and the sound easily betters the sound through bluetooth.

I will say that I'm not convinced that I prefer the Super Bax cable over the standard silver plated copper cable that originally came with my UERR's, however. It's not an option to AB at this point, and I think that the sound through this new cable is very good; it's hard to determine conclusively at this point. Ideally, the original cable will be made available with the IPX connectors, or at least there may be other cables with these connectors available elsewhere to compare. It's good to have options...

 

[Vunz]

Thank you so much for sharing your impressions, nbarnard36! This is really helpful.

 

[rantng]

My new UE18+PRO with the TT drivers, Superbax and IPX connector is just in!
Sorry for the bad quality pics

Any possibility of some impressions, even just a few quick words? I have the previous gen UE 18+ (1st gen I think, w/True Tone drivers) and there is only 1 day left on the Massdrop drop for the 3rd gen.

 

[jeffreyw311]

With regards to the universal version of the 18+ Pro, where would be the best place to get a custom reshell?

 

[malvinviriya]

Well, right now IMO it's AAW for reshelling

Their service has a very fair cost, and their shells are really well-made. It ended up being one of the prettiest IEMs I've ever seen. Attached is the reshell of my UE7.

Other than that, I know a guy who can commission some bespoke designs, but I don't know if he's accepting orders right now (Example is on the 2nd pic)

EDIT: Is the attachment showing?

EDIT 2: Photos are here. I can't internet sorry (https://imgur.com/a/fDMTpje)

 

[jeffreyw311]

No, your attachment isn't showing. I'll link the photos for the rest of the thread to see:

Spoiler

I suspect that a proper CIEM manufacturer like AAW can do a good driver/crossover/whatever transplant but how much would it impact the sound? I can't imagine the impact (ignoring better fit/seal) to be too much...I can't see a big difference between the universal 18+ Pro and the custom 18+ Pro internally but companies have done stranger things before.

 

[malvinviriya]

Well shoot, sorry about that. I've uploaded the pics on Imgur now (https://imgur.com/a/fDMTpje). Hope you can check it out

I think AAW did a decent job transplanting the UE7 into a new shell. But it comes from an older CIEM shell, then moved to a new shell with seemingly shallower fir than what UE usually does. I don't think the sound is impacted that much. The sound is still quite similar to the UE7 demo units. That being said, allegedly UE made several silent revisions of the UE7, as there's some variance to the units from mine, a demo, and a far older unit

EDIT: the photos are showing. Jesus it's huge lol