[hockey_magnet]

Please reply only if you have actual listening experience with both these IEM's. Thanks. I recently bought UM2's, previously Shure E3c, E4c, Sony MDREX90LP - I was also considering 500's or 530's - the price difference isn't all that much. Anyway, I really enjoy the UM2's SQ but as usual, I'm always second guessing myself and the Shure's seem to get a lot of good comments. Is the difference between these huge? Which do you prefer and why? Positives and Negatives for both?

I have pretty eclectic taste in music except no classical or hip hop - mostly Rock, R&B, Pop, Jazz. Most of my listening is ipods unamped so I'm most interested in your impressions unamped

 

[jinx20001]

no real contest, the sound is similar, both have held back highs, but the shures excell with cleaner bass (although the um2 sounds more powerful) and the shure mids are a little more forward and smoother...as i mentioned the highs are very similar.

if you love the um2 tho then you will find a better sound with the shures but may be dissapointed that it isnt a massive jump up

 

[gtp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jinx20001 /img/forum/go_quote.gif no real contest, the sound is similar, both have held back highs, but the shures excell with cleaner bass (although the um2 sounds more powerful) and the shure mids are a little more forward and smoother...as i mentioned the highs are very similar. if you love the um2 tho then you will find a better sound with the shures but may be dissapointed that it isnt a massive jump up

I agree with Jinx (except I think it is a reasonable contest between the two). They are both very good and have similar sound signatures overall, but the E500 is just more focused and detailed. The UM2 seems to have bigger overall bass because the bass is looser and more smeared. The E500 has tighter and more focused bass and so it seems to have slightly less overall bass. This also lends to the feeling that the E500 is more punchy. It all depends on what you prefer: smoother or punchier.

 

[jinx20001]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gtp /img/forum/go_quote.gif I agree with Jinx (except I think it is a reasonable contest between the two). They are both very good and have similar sound signatures overall, but the E500 is just more focused and detailed. The UM2 seems to have bigger overall bass because the bass is looser and more smeared. The E500 has tighter and more focused bass and so it seems to have slightly less overall bass. This also lends to the feeling that the E500 is more punchy. It all depends on what you prefer: smoother or punchier.

thanks for agreeing

i see what you mean by its a reasonable contest, and it is, what i meant is maybe they are in different catagories, like dual drivers and triple drivers should be compared with other dual driver and triple driver phones

.

anyway i think in general dual driver phones always come across as more powerful but not as well defined

 

[audiomagnate]

I'm one day into a UM2/E500 swap. I've owned UM2s for about 3 years. The 500s have more slam in the bass, but I greatly prefer the mids of the UM2s. They sound more airy to me while the midrange of the 500s sounds "hooded" to me. The highs of both sound a little rolled off to me. BTW, I use UM56 custom tip (see my avatar)for both. As far as comfort goes, no contest, the UM2s win hands down. At this point I would have a hard time choosing between the two, even at the same price.

 

[hockey_magnet]

Thanks for the responses - good to hear from knowledgable people who have used both - I may see if I can find 500's/530's to try but as far as buying goes, I'll likely wait until the Westone 3's (if ever) or the new Klipsch are out as well - no doubt Shure will also have something new out then too - I'm not hung up on a particular brand -Very happy with the UM2's but I'm always looking. I've also noticed over the last couple of years that new models of IEM's seem to be released far more frequently than they used to be so it just gets more complicated/interesting. Agree on the comfort of the UM2's - they're excellent -Best i've had so far but my older Shures were pretty good too.

Chris

 

[slattikarma]

Is the level of bass between the two a subtle difference, or quite distinct?

I've been tossing up between the Um2 and SE530 for months, and I'm about to pull the trigger on the SE530 but still a bit concerned about level of bass (I'm a DT770 lover).

I have an E2C, and I'm always ruing the lack of power it has in the lowend.

Despite reading hundreds of posts, there seems to be so much disagreement about the bass of the se530.

 

[fhuang]

i really really don't like um2 with jazz. both iem has somewhat roll off highs but the um2 forward mids really make it sound like the instruments aren't playing at the same place. um2 doesn't have detail like er4 and not as smooth as se530. i say no if you mostly/only listen to jazz

 

[aphexii]

Well i currently own both and while I much prefer the cable on the UM2, I think the E500 is just slighly more refined. The bass on the UM2 is bigger no doubt, but its more accurate on the E500. The E500 is still very bassy, just not as bloated about it.

Overall - E500 for me.