[maguire]

Thanks for your thoughts, you really are a crazy Frenchman........with great taste.........

 

[ace8888]

Like I said above more preference than performance. The se5 kills everybody in natural sound. The orchestra is in your ear, the 1plus2 kills everyone in bass and dynamics, the.Miracles kills everyone in airiness. The se5 does have impressive extension both ways. The 1plus2 do have crazy clarity...the Miracles do have great bass tightness. Some may perform better than others, but it is more a matter of mood and synergy. I will say more after I lived with them for a while.
I would not let any of them go.now.

To me the SE5 has amazing clarity but do to the laid back sound signature one gets to think that it's not detailed... But this is not the case.

 

[Mimouille]

Of course anyone is free to not like the se5 as they are not perfect, and have a signature. In terms of customer service, Grzegorz was among the best I had. Good communication, honesty, respect of delays, and great quality on 3 pairs.
In terms of cans, it is for many reasons that I just like iems. First of all, I like miniaturized stuff. Them I like iem isolation and clarity. I just do not really care for cans.

 

[lin0003]

Of course anyone is free to not like the se5 as they are not perfect, and have a signature. In terms of customer service, Grzegorz was among the best I had. Good communication, honesty, respect of delays, and great quality on 3 pairs.
In terms of cans, it is for many reasons that I just like iems. First of all, I like miniaturized stuff. Them I like iem isolation and clarity. I just do not really care for cans.

That's what I thought. I don't really like headphones either even though then have better SQ.

 

[EveTan]

Quote:

Of course anyone is free to not like the se5 as they are not perfect, and have a signature. In terms of customer service, Grzegorz was among the best I had. Good communication, honesty, respect of delays, and great quality on 3 pairs.
In terms of cans, it is for many reasons that I just like iems. First of all, I like miniaturized stuff. Them I like iem isolation and clarity. I just do not really care for cans.

Cans are a pain if you have long hair. So IEM/CIEM is the way for me.

 

[nk77]

Quote:

That's what I thought. I don't really like headphones either even though then have better SQ.

 
Keep in mind IEM/CIEM can provide you isolation, and if a high quality one you could easily best most closed cans and even opens. Just depends on the IEM and headphone you are comparing to. 

 

[lin0003]

Quote:

 
Keep in mind IEM/CIEM can provide you isolation, and if a high quality one you could easily best most closed cans and even opens. Just depends on the IEM and headphone you are comparing to. 

That's why I went for a high end UM Miracle along with a nice upgrade cable. I'm on the go a lot too so customs are great for me. 

 

[goodvibes]

Quote:

Thanks Mags

Ace, I have not had them as long as you but I can hear the details perfectly, even if they are not pushed forward.
No I can say safely that the people on the se5 thread who said it is too dark, congested, with many peaks, etc. Either have : mental illness, an agenda, ear issues or a combination

 
 
There have been comments on variability with some pairs sounding darker than others.

 

[goodvibes]

http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/totl-madness-24-top-line-custom-ear-monitors-reviewed

 

[maguire]

Well that can be the case, as I have found When comparing First the comments and then the Graphs with Poetics exact pairs of UM Merlin & Miracle
With Mine. His Merlin more treble & slight less bass than mine  ....His Miracle has around same bass but less treble than mine....So go figure?
Is it ear shape? I don't know?

 

[Sweden]

It's apparently exceedingly hard measuring CIEM correctly.

 

[nk77]

Quote:

 
 
There have been comments on variability with some pairs sounding darker than others.

 
I would guess this has to do with the fact that it is a CIEM, therefore a custom shell suited to a certain ear shape that must be tuned to manufacturer's preferences. That's probably where the nuances lie. On top of that people prefer different tips which can alter how the IEM sits in the ears, how far it is inserted depending on ear. I'm sure studies have been made somewhere...Nevertheless it will be pretty hard to please everybody. However, that is the essence of head-fi and well frankly, the fun part of this hobby.
 
Maybe the drivers are made in batches and one batch had a slight flaw. We could do this all day........Unfortunately, we then get told to trust our ears even though they can lie sometimes. This may be difficult for some as they cannot always try before they buy. So next best thing is to trust the ears of prominent reviewers out there before purchasing the item. Then you have to wonder why didn't give it 5 stars. If they have an agenda etc etc...What if they don't match my source equipment in terms of synergy? Is accuracy really that important? What defines 'best'? Whoops I am probably getting a little off topic..

 

[goodvibes]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nk77 /img/forum/go_quote.gif

 
I would guess this has to do with the fact that it is a CIEM, therefore a custom shell suited to a certain ear shape that must be tuned to manufacturer's preferences. That's probably where the nuances lie. On top of that people prefer different tips which can alter how the IEM sits in the ears, how far it is inserted depending on ear. I'm sure studies have been made somewhere...Nevertheless it will be pretty hard to please everybody. However, that is the essence of head-fi and well frankly, the fun part of this hobby.
 
Maybe the drivers are made in batches and one batch had a slight flaw. We could do this all day........Unfortunately, we then get told to trust our ears even though they can lie sometimes. This may be difficult for some as they cannot always try before they buy. So next best thing is to trust the ears of prominent reviewers out there before purchasing the item. Then you have to wonder why didn't give it 5 stars. If they have an agenda etc etc...What if they don't match my source equipment in terms of synergy? Is accuracy really that important? What defines 'best'? Whoops I am probably getting a little off topic..

 
Our ears is all we've got. A reviewer also commented on this as did a well known member who had 2 sets. It may all be sorted now and I have no comment on their sound. Just a point as to why there 'may' be differences of perceived sig beyong fit.
 
Which prominent reviewer? I would have bought jh16s, Miracles, C4s or 8As and not been nearly as happy as I am with my JH13s depending on which prominent reviewer. I supplied the link because it's the most professional, unbiased aggregate take that I've seen. You'll notice that all their different ears had very similar comments on the various CIEMs tested.

 

[nk77]

Quote:

Our ears is all we've got. A reviewer also commented on this as did a well known member who had 2 sets. It may all be sorted now and I have no comment on their sound. Just a point as to why there 'may' be differences of perceived sig beyong fit.
 
Which prominent reviewer? I would have bought jh16s, Miracles, C4s or 8As and not been nearly as happy as I am with my JH13s depending on which prominent reviewer. I supplied the link because it's the most professional, unbiased aggregate take that I've seen. You'll notice that all their different ears had very similar comments on the various CIEMs tested.

 
Perhaps my post is confusing...? I am just speaking in hypotheticals and what possibly could be the reason behind these different perceptions of sound signature given what is supposedly meant to be the same (C)IEM. Just a philosophy of ideals and subjective beliefs. Trying to start a discussion about what is 'best' and how 'best' for one can be seen as 'worst' for another since it isn't always as simple as: 'the one with the best SQ'. Trying to look at a subjective topic objectively.
 
I am not accusing any prominent reviewer just that some people when deciding on IEM only read what they want to read in the reviews if they are set in their ways and want a particular IEM. That is why I said hypothetical. I am probably over analysing things and talking rubbish (let me know) but I just wanted to say these things are possible - yes a discussion. And I was trying to add to your quote here:
 
 
 

There have been comments on variability with some pairs sounding darker than others.

 
I didn't even see the link you posted until you mentioned this in the previous post. If the IEM makes you happy then that should be the final clincher. That is all that matters. 

 

[toears]

no mention of 1964 ?