[Kunlun]

Quote:

 
You ordered from them recently? Mine had no bubble though.

No, I read the UM threads. One person's experience wouldn't be indicative of a drop in quality, nor does your experience (unless you are many people all posting under the same name) mean that the quality has remained. Quite a few people had issues, which is why I say that the quality has dropped.

 

[Girls Generation]

My first fit's quality was on the bad side. My current ones: my left side's fit is a bit looser, and I can see they did a worse job than my right. The vinyl tip on the left side is yellowish, but my right is clear... I wonder if different engineers do it, or if they used old material for my left piece...

 

[uelover]

Quote:

No, I read the UM threads. One person's experience wouldn't be indicative of a drop in quality, nor does your experience (unless you are many people all posting under the same name) mean that the quality has remained. Quite a few people had issues, which is why I say that the quality has dropped.

 
Not saying my experience alone nor a few other people's experience will represent the majority.
 
It is often those who had problems that posted, while the majority of those who had no problem would not have posted. So on the surface, a small problem would have easily been magnified.

 

[Kunlun]

Quote:

 
Not saying my experience alone nor a few other people's experience will represent the majority.
 
It is often those who had problems that posted, while the majority of those who had no problem would not have posted. So on the surface, a small problem would have easily been magnified.

Yes, that's a possibility and a fair point. Still, we didn't hear these kinds of issues earlier.
 
I think Westone (returning to topic) actually has been much more steady in terms of occasional issues followed up with mostly excellent customer service responses.

 

[bmiamihk]

Maybe now more people around the world are starting to buy more custom earphones and so there will be many complaints. I bet even if all fits well many will have issues dealing with a custom which might be their first experience with them.
Quote:

Yes, that's a possibility and a fair point. Still, we didn't hear these kinds of issues earlier.
 
I think Westone (returning to topic) actually has been much more steady in terms of occasional issues followed up with mostly excellent customer service responses.

 

[cooperpwc]

FWIW I have no bubbles at all. I must say though, the cosmetics of my second ES5 iteration (first refit), was not perfect; it was "okay". My first iteration was very good (just lousy ear moulds from the HK audiologist)) and my final is simply beautiful.
 
I do believe, probably like any IEM company, that which technician you get matters. So, in terms of 'beauty', there is an element of luck. Overall though, satisfaction with the ES5 cosmetics does seem to be quite high.

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

My ES5 are perfect cosmetically, and with 2 custom IEM and 2 UM56 custom tips I've never needed a refit from Westone either.  In contrast, my Livewires (2 pair), Freq Show, Alien Ears C3, UE11Pro and JH13Pro all had to go back for refits.

 

[Fhoxh]

Here are some things that I've learned through the process of getting my ES5s that may help others in the future.
 
Rush orders:
 
* A rush order is extremely expensive (USD $212) but extremely fast. A rush order itself costs USD $150, base shipping is USD $12, next day shipping is an additional USD $25 per direction. Depending on a few factors (making carrier cutoffs, proper package marking, incoming mail load, etc.), if you ship it out on a Monday, you can expect to receieve it on either that Wednesday or Thursday.
 
* According to my Audiologist -- and very important to know -- is that if you place a rush order, in order for Westone to get it out the same day, the manufacture of the ear-pieces needs to be parallelized, meaning two techs are assigned, one ear-piece per tech. This can possibly lead to issues if one of the techs is more experienced or more attentive to detail than the other.
 
* If you do a rush order, the package MUST have "RUSH" prominently written on it on all sides otherwise the rush may be delayed. They receieve hundreds to thousands of packages per day, so if a rush order doesn't visually stand out it can easily not be seen as soon as it arrives.
 
* A rush order only entitles you to a rush for the initial manufacture. If you have to send it back for a refit or a remould, it will not be processed as a rush.
 
Having ear impression taken:
 
* The best placement for the bite-block can be found during 3:59 - 4:54 of the video on this page: http://www.engadget.com/2011/08/09/westone-lab-tour-how-in-ear-monitors-are-made-from-impressions/
 
* There are different materials for the material used when taking ear impressions (some of which are significantly more expensive for the Audiologist to purchase than others). Depending on the material, some are softer versus harsher, some cure faster versus slower, some produce better moulds, etc.

 
Fit issues:
 
* A poor fitting ear-piece can cause an ear infection. While my right ear-piece was perfect, the left ear-piece was very problematic and caused nausea, pain, and pressure issues, lasting for days after taking a break from them, necessitating a visit to a (non-ER) urgent care facility, a visit to an ENT specialist, and having to take a course of prescription ear drops.
 
Misc:
 
* Westone wants ALL communication to go through your Audiologist. If you try to call them they may talk to you, reluctantly, but will stress that you're supposed to be going through your Audiologist. This can be an issue if/when you really need to speak directly to them and not through a "middleman".
 
* According to Westone, Audiologists are NOT themselves supposed to make ANY adjustments whatsoever to the ear-pieces, even if they have the equipment to do so. All adjustments, no matter how minor, are supposed to be made directly by Westone.
 
* Also, According to Westone, a return of the ES5s -- while extraordinarily rare -- is, apparently, technically possible, but only after exausting all other options in terms of refits and remoulds.
 
Due to the fitting issues with the left ear-piece I haven't yet had a lot of time with them, but of the time I have spent with them so far I absolutely love and adore them and can't wait to be able to enjoy them full time.

 

[zeitfliesst]

Quote:

Here are some things that I've learned through the process of getting my ES5s that may help others in the future.
 
Rush orders:
 
* A rush order is extremely expensive (USD $212) but extremely fast. A rush order itself costs USD $150, base shipping is USD $12, next day shipping is an additional USD $25 per direction. Depending on a few factors (making carrier cutoffs, proper package marking, incoming mail load, etc.), if you ship it out on a Monday, you can expect to receieve it on either that Wednesday or Thursday.
 
* According to my Audiologist -- and very important to know -- is that if you place a rush order, in order for Westone to get it out the same day, the manufacture of the ear-pieces needs to be parallelized, meaning two techs are assigned, one ear-piece per tech. This can possibly lead to issues if one of the techs is more experienced or more attentive to detail than the other.
 
* If you do a rush order, the package MUST have "RUSH" prominently written on it on all sides otherwise the rush may be delayed. They receieve hundreds to thousands of packages per day, so if a rush order doesn't visually stand out it can easily not be seen as soon as it arrives.
 
* A rush order only entitles you to a rush for the initial manufacture. If you have to send it back for a refit or a remould, it will not be processed as a rush.
 
Having ear impression taken:
 
* The best placement for the bite-block can be found during 3:59 - 4:54 of the video on this page: http://www.engadget.com/2011/08/09/westone-lab-tour-how-in-ear-monitors-are-made-from-impressions/
 
* There are different materials for the material used when taking ear impressions (some of which are significantly more expensive for the Audiologist to purchase than others). Depending on the material, some are softer versus harsher, some cure faster versus slower, some produce better moulds, etc.

 
Fit issues:
 
* A poor fitting ear-piece can cause an ear infection. While my right ear-piece was perfect, the left ear-piece was very problematic and caused nausea, pain, and pressure issues, lasting for days after taking a break from them, necessitating a visit to a (non-ER) urgent care facility, a visit to an ENT specialist, and having to take a course of prescription ear drops.
 
Misc:
 
* Westone wants ALL communication to go through your Audiologist. If you try to call them they may talk to you, reluctantly, but will stress that you're supposed to be going through your Audiologist. This can be an issue if/when you really need to speak directly to them and not through a "middleman".
 
* According to Westone, Audiologists are NOT themselves supposed to make ANY adjustments whatsoever to the ear-pieces, even if they have the equipment to do so. All adjustments, no matter how minor, are supposed to be made directly by Westone.
 
* Also, According to Westone, a return of the ES5s -- while extraordinarily rare -- is, apparently, technically possible, but only after exausting all other options in terms of refits and remoulds.
 
Due to the fitting issues with the left ear-piece I haven't yet had a lot of time with them, but of the time I have spent with them so far I absolutely love and adore them and can't wait to be able to enjoy them full time.

Wow, that's quite a first post there. This needs to be stickied or something lol. I actually watched that video for the first time and it was quite interesting. Didn't know they would have that many technicians just for CIEM's.

 

[slwiser]

My Audiologist sent in my impressions and order today for the ES5...looking forward to getting them after some time..maybe a month.

 

[Tronz]

There's one thing I hate about the ES5. And that is, it makes it hard to listen to lower-end headphones or IEM's. 

 

[zeitfliesst]

lol that's quite a happy dilemma if you ask me. My ES5 is arriving sometime next week. Can't wait.
 
Quote:

There's one thing I hate about the ES5. And that is, it makes it hard to listen to lower-end headphones or IEM's. 

 

[kaikai1805]

Quote:

There's one thing I hate about the ES5. And that is, it makes it hard to listen to lower-end headphones or IEM's. 

 cant help but agree.

 

[zeitfliesst]

I just got the ES5 and what can I say...the fit is amazing and the sound is amazing. There are some air bubbles but it's hardly worth a complaint. Here's a pic of my merlot ES5's.
 

 

[YoengJyh]

Quote:

I just got the ES5 and what can I say...the fit is amazing and the sound is amazing. There are some air bubbles but it's hardly worth a complaint. Here's a pic of my merlot ES5's.
 

 
How long you wait to receive this ciem upon your approval of ear impressions?