I bought these on...

Free Standard Shipping in the US on orders over $99

Showing 1 of 10 conversations about:

Best Mid Range IEM?

Apr 30, 2017

I bought these on massdrop ....the clear SE535 model in 2015. They came 2 days after the ship date and were in the factory sealed box. They were inside the brown shipping box, thus double boxed like they should be. Inside the Shure packaging was a cool dark grey.....almost black, colored aluminum box with an awesome design. Far better than what Apple or other companies provide with hi-tech devices and surprised no one talks about how cool the aluminum box they come in is. The aluminum box is great to sit around or keep long term. They came perfect with zero issues. The SE535s continue to perform wonderful with both my new iPhone 5SE (128GB) Microsoft 950XL (128GB). I would have an iPhone 7, but I think the lack of a real headphone jack is just plain stupid. When I plug the SE535s into the headphone output of my preamp at home......well it is unfair to compare, as any decent home audio preamp does wonders and makes an iPhone or any smartphone for that matter not worthy of these IEMs. I have tried the Shure 846 IEMs for about double the price (friend loaned them to me for a week) and two other IEMs that were over $1,000......and one quickly gets to a point of diminishing returns with most anything more expensive than the SE535. The newer Shure black foam IEM tips work as well as the Comply brand aftermarket ones, though people like the Comply......they are not really different than the Shure's. If you select IEM foam tips that fit slightly snug, you'll have great bass, but if you have loose fitting tips the bass will not be dramatic. Again, incredible bass if you select the proper fitting foam tips for your ear's opening size.

Apr 30, 2017

UpComing

Feb 19, 2019

OverTheTopI pretty much agree with you except...I got custom earmolds. I have the SE846's and I would not consider going backwards. I used the 535's with earmolds for several years and was very happy. Great range, balance, fast and resolving, and all day listenable. Eventually they met with an accident. I decided to go ahead and invest in the (at the time) new SE846's. The SE846's do extend further lower and higher and do improve on the already excellent 535's. The bass, in particular, of the 846's is outstanding. But quantifying how much can't really be done in a meaningfully objective way. What are the Units of audio improvement? Standard specs give only a hint and can be completely mis-directing. Based on my own use and habits it was a very worthwhile investment along with the earmolds which, to me, are extremely important both for long term comfort and isolation. I've listened to a few other mid range IEM's and given them a very fair shot. Relatively speaking they were all seriously deficient in two or more ways. So if the 535's are to be considered mid-range they should be at or near the top of the list, as I hear it.

Feb 19, 2019

Vote

View Full Discussion

Related Polls