ares347I bought these in the recent drop, I am not a headphone or sound-quality expert and relatively new to higher end headphones.
I was initially very dissapointed and almost returned them after a week, but I have warmed up to them a lot since. They seem to have gotten a lot better with use.
Personal observations:
Good:
• Clarity is wonderful, instrument separation is excellent.
• I use these mostly on Bart (really), with a good seal they isolate quite well and I enjoy them more than my Bose QC25 because they are so clear, the Bose are still better noise cancellers but the sound....
• I never use the slider to let outside noise in.
• Batteries last a long time (don't ask for time-measurement please).
• My ears do not get tired after using these for a few hours.
Bad:
• Bass is lacking, I need to use equalization to get bass.
• The cable is quite stiff and can be annoying.
• I find myself fiddling and re-seating often to get that "perfect seal".
My "goto set" these days are a pair of Audeze iSine 10, reasonably priced for what you get, and the separation/stage in these is better and to me sounds more like a live event. The SC1000s sound closer to the head but not really more intimate.
My usage:
When using the SC1000 they are almost always plugged into an iPhone with Apple's lightning converter using Onkyo HF Player with lossless with 16/24 bit up to 96KHz. I sometimes use them with my iFi Nano or directlywith my MacBook Pro - they seem to nicer with the latter combinations. I'm not sure the quality is helped using the Apple lightning dongle...
When I use the iSine 10 I am splitting equally using the supplied iPhone enhanced cable and an iFi Nano BL (which I like better but it is less portable), usually using Onkyo HF Player with lossless with 16/24 bit up to 96KHz and about a quarter of my listening time using iTunes AAC.
Would I buy them again? Yes most likely.
jeroenhmgusing them exclusively with my iFi Nano BL now and my Bart rides are wonderful - when i get that seal, and there are some tricks that help get that seal: wet the rubbers a little or use a tiny bit of vaso or similar before inserting