[p0wderh0und23]

OK so with the coloring.... swirling the acrylics does not always come out right. Since these are literally hand-poured into the cast the color starts to blend when we attempt the swirl. There have been a few that look OK, but honestly most do not. The colors get all muddled where they meet and it can take away from the sharpness and level of visual quality everyone desires and we want to provide.

 

[cooperpwc]

Successful day in Hong Kong and my order is in. (Hopefully my ear impressions were good - I will find out in a few weeks when the ES5 arrive.)
 
Smoke shells, deep flex canal tips, black 64" cable. All very conservative.
 
Now I just have to be patient...

 

[Ypoknons]

... and such wonderful weather today here too! Any earlier and it would just have been rain, rain rain 

 So you approached the dealer directly?

 

[cooperpwc]

It was good weather (yesterday actually). I missed the rain.
 
I dealt directly with Westone's rep for Hong Kong, ThinkingGroup. A very good experience so far.

 

[ThEvil0nE]

Also in the waiting here... chardonnay + custom art

 

[cooperpwc]

Chardonnay... That is interesting. Westone are getting serious about these wine colours. I have seen Merlot, Pinot Noir and White Zinfandel.

 

[Anaxilus]

Quote:

Chardonnay... That is interesting. Westone are getting serious about these wine colours. I have seen Merlot, Pinot Noir and White Zinfandel.

I'll take mine in two-buck-Chuck.

 

[ThEvil0nE]

Quote:

Chardonnay... That is interesting.

I'm looking into letting my coy fish...
...swim on water effect, hence,  chardonnay  
 
kinda like a little fish bowl in my ear. I know it's a bit minute but lol  

 

[cooperpwc]

Post pics on splashdown!

 

[3X0]

I am surprised I did not hear about this sooner. Well, not really. I've been hugely content with my current setup and haven't been frequenting the forums nearly as much as before.
 
It's nice to know that Westone went 2:2:1 with the highs:mids:lows. They have always been exceptional from an engineering standpoint. I also think the price is very attractive -- it undercuts either of the premier JHA earpieces by a nice margin.
 
I find the comparisons between the ES5s and JH16s to be unsurprising. I owned the JH16s and, I must confess, was not really impressed with them. The ES5s vs. the JH13s are a far more interesting comparison since previously the latter unit was heralded as the king of IEM neutrality, but it seems now we have a new (very exciting) contender. The differences in voicing and sound make sense, but I'm interested in which of the two has a genuinely higher resolution.

 

[cooperpwc]

Right on topic, 3X0:  Here is an interesting review from the Motion Picture Editor's Guild comparing the Westone ES5, UE18, JH 13, JH 16, ASC T1 and Ear Inc Z5.

 

[KLS]

Thanks cooperpwc. Very interesting read indeed
 

 

[koonhua90]

Wow so there are people who already own the latest and newest...

 

[cooperpwc]

Quote:

Thanks cooperpwc. Very interesting read indeed
 

Isn't it though.

  I am feeling very good about my purchase. Waiting is the hard part...
 

 

[3X0]

Quote:

Right on topic, 3X0:  Here is an interesting review from the Motion Picture Editor's Guild comparing the Westone ES5, UE18, JH 13, JH 16, ASC T1 and Ear Inc Z5.

Interesting stuff. I find it particularly interesting that the JHAs got the best soundstage rating since a head-fier that owned the UE18s and JHAs commented that the staging of the UE18 was far larger/superior. Also surprised the UE18 got the best bass rating and the worst treble rating since I had perceived them to be more analytic than that based on the vibes I got reading around head-fi.
 
The read is interesting for the general idea and useful guidance, but I am also genuinely concerned if the detail ratings are based on actual rendered detail or the perceived detail. For example an emphasis on mids will demonstrate ostensibly superior midrange detail retrieval (i.e. SE530); a spike in the treble could make an IEM seem like detail monsters when actually there is a false exaggeration of the actual information (i.e. ER4); an emphasized low-end can blur the overall perception of resolution (you get the picture here).