wow, thats some range of different IEMs and sound signatures you got there!!!
well
IE8
no comment, havent spent any time with them other than a quick listen to a friends pair. big bass, big soundstage, somewhat peaky highs with the wrong tips, terrible isolation with stock tips if talking IEMs, which IMO these arent, they're earbuds
W3
treble:
nice and I didnt get any sibilance (due in part to my custom tips) god extension and detail. with reasonable air
mids:
with stock foams (comply) these are just a touch recessed, but still good detail and texture. mids come forward and the whole SQ becomes more balanced with custom tips, which leads me to beleive that most issues with this IEWM are tip dependent. very efficient, but still gains some finesse with amping
Bass:
taught huge bass, with good bass texture and tonality, no midbass hump with UM56 or modded triflange and even with stock tips I didnt mind it as I listen to quite a bit of electronic music. these IEMs are awesome for electronica IMO.
Soundstage:
not massive, but not tiny either, think 2 rows back at the concert. layering is very good with the right tip and not congested. warning, black olives on W3 = congested boomy mess.
comfort, like all westone IEMs is awesome and without peer IMO
UE TF10
big soundstage, extended, but somewhat peaky/sibilant highs, deep bass, but quantity leaves a little to be desired IMO. sucked out mids add to the illusion of a deep and wide soundstage, but thats all it was to me an illusion and distant.
fit was just all wrong on the frankenstine earplugs for me. stock cable sucked and I ended up returning these for RMA and got SE530
responds nicely to amping though, but still not my cup of tea
SE530
highs:
I actually found that with UM56 and decent amping (I used pico when I had it and now use either Lisa III or D10) they have considerably more energy in the highs, with more power to burn. IMO anyone who says these dont improve with amping because they are such low impedance; either has hearing problems or there is something else amiss, like crap amping, source or interconnects. there is good detail in the highs, but it just takes a little bit of a back seat to the awesome mids
mids:
WOW!! articulate, thick, textured yet silky smooth, one of the best mids I have heard in an IEM and its pretty legendary for that. perhaps a little forward of natural, but i'm not complaining. great for rock and electronica.
Bass:
this is another area the SE530 improve considerably with amping and custom tips. good extension, not as good extension as TF10, IE8 or W3, but still respectable. Bass detail and quantity is good, with a fair amount of slam
soundstage:
a bit behind W3 and TF10, but still respectable. well defined; just maybe not as deep as those 2.
comfort:
very good. only just behind the westone IEMs for met
UM3X
My current favorite in all areas, not much to complain about at all really. I havent had them for long; only a week or so, but so far has eclipsed all other IEMs I have owned to date; taking the best aspects of all of them and combining them into a very attractive and comfortable package. Definitely the most Natural sounding and balanced IEM I have heard to date
Highs:
Razor sharp, but not at all peaky or fatiguing. I had them in for the majority of today and not once did I feel any sort of fatigue or discomfort. great air and sparkly detail; not forward or overemphasized, but certainly a team player. natural sounding
Mids:
while these are a tiny bit forward/warm of neutral, I do not find them overly so. I'm still not sure which mids I prefer out of these and SE530; in this area these 2 IEMs are quite similar, but I do not find them similar overall. great texture, musicality and natural tone. as I said in the UM3X thread, natural is a word that keeps on coming to mind when describing these IEMs; as is effortless
Bass:
Extended, tight, and accurate bass; but with good quantity and slam as well. best bass I have heard in an IEM so far. Not so much that it overwhelms the rest of the FR, but still quite present all the same. with a quarter turn of the Lisa III bass knob i'm in heaven. these IEMs respond to EQ very well, but I only call on the bass lord for some tunes that KICK.
Soundstage:
more intimate than the others I guess (as you would expect of a monitor), but not congested in the least. no one feature dominates these babies. I dont find it lacking in this area, maybe actually a little larger than SE530, but behind the other 2. The feeling of air and room for the performers more than makes up for it. what soundstage there is is incredibly well defined and consistent.
these are pretty unforgiving though; which is a key area that they differ from SE530, which is probably the most forgiving of the lot.
disclaimer:
all this is IMO, but I wil finish this by reminding you that I havent had the UM3X long yet and could be victim of my own personal FOTM. all the same these babies have impressed me enough in such a short period of time, that my JH13 are going to have some big shoes to fill. my feeling is that these are going to grow on me even more as well. my intention was to sell them when I got my ES3X, but now i've changed my mind to get JH13 (due to issues I wont go into here) I think i'll keep them as my universal for times I dont want or need my customs.
comfort is just like all westone IEMs; fantastic IMO
i've heard the ER4S, but was pretty underwhelmed, just not my thing I guess.
well there ya go; thats all the ones i've heard and I have owned all those I listed bar IE8. hope that was some help. not sure if this thread will be lost in the annals of HF history, but I gave it a shot., there really isnt a way to give a definitive grade to all those IEMs as we all have different ears; so if thats what you are after you are out of luck; chances are someone will come along in a second and give a differnt op9nion on something to what i've said.
good luck with that
