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My UM1s!; A photography and sound check
Topic Started: 20 Dec 2006, 12:09 AM (1,298 Views)
puffpoopy
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A LITTLE BACKGROUND
I'm no audiophile, and neither do I have pitch perfect ears. But when my HJE50 died on me on the left channel, I decided I had enough with sub-$100 earphones that last me just 1 or 2yrs and the build quality starts to manifest itself in the form of sticky wires and dying earphones. So decided to walk the higher-end thread and get something that's good, value-for-money with excellent sound reproduction and sealing THAT LASTS! U pay for what you get.

AUDITIONING
I called up Uncle Wilson of Jaben a day earlier and came in the next day to give the Shure E2c as well as the Westone UM1 a go. Having earlier heard the E2c from my colleague's earpiece, I was initially disappointed at the extremely thin sound but realised later it was the sealing that played a huge factor.

1st Run: Westone UM1 (To my ears)
I admit, I wasn't impressed on the first run. In fact when I was going thru my tracks, I was thinking, "Am I going to pay well over $150 for this set of earpiece?!" The bass sounded a little disappointing and wasn't what I'd expected, the highs sounded too high and the mids were well... I can't notice them. Everything sounded so airy!!! Feeling a little disappointed, I hoped the E2c is going to make my day.

2nd Run: Shure E2c (To my ears)
Excitedly put on the E2c and hit the first track in my iPod. Well what do you know? Bass was very, very punchy and had the impact as I went on and on, I can't help but feel more and more impressed UNTIL I ended up the entire test by letting it run thru a Symphonic piece - The Main Theme of Superman, where the triangle and xylophone dings are buried amongst the booms of the Timpani, Cellos and Double Bass. Extremely tricky, but if u can't hear the dings amidst the booms, it can only mean 1 thing.

I listened to the piece twice thru and to my horror, the dings of the triangle and xylophones were all nearly extinct to my ears, the flute sounded kinda muddy to my ears.

Sorry Shure E2c, u may have passed pop/rock songs but u can't seem to cut it for symphonic pieces! :(

3rd Run: OVC-TC20
After hearing 2 higher-end IEMs, one of the guys in his army uniform suggested I try a canalphone - the OVC-TC20, a value for money earpiece. I popped it in and found the sound signature pretty familiar. In fact it sounded pretty close to my pair of Panasonic HJE50. But I did not seriously go through this canalphone since my target for the day was something else.

4th Run: Westone UM2
This is madness. But I swore I just wanted to try them! Bass is pretty pronounced as the mids and highs were pretty evenly distributed. Probably due to the dual-drivers sitting in that shell. I'm expecting no less from a set of earpieces that costs $400 buckaroos. :D

Last Chance: Westone UM1
I decided to give the UM1 a final chance and put it thru its paces again. Surprisingly, the bass, whilst slightly lacking, the mids and highs were slightly more defined compared to the first time I gave it a go. And the set of songs in my playlists that I've been going thru them did not sound as 'airy' as it was when I tried the UM1s.

Final Decision?
Westone UM1.

I noticed that the UM1s, when plugged into an amp like a PA2V2, gives it a slightly deeper tone (that compensates for its lack of bass) whilst when plugged directly into my iPod, gives a more detailed sound. I haven't tried other amps yet since I do not own them.

And of cos, it did sounded better when I changed to another tip instead of the comply tips. The one that looks like a mushroom head, silicon. Not the triflanges, those poke into my ears as if I'm digging them. :doh:
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puffpoopy
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Some pictures I'd took.

Posted Image


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Opening Ceremony!


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Everything's laid out


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Ok, those are UM1s, not UM2s.
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Fongalv
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What member?
Welcome to the family!

Now its time to enjoy some decent music with the "new" rig!

btw, nice pics there too...would have been better if you took more of the rest of your setup rather than the box :lol: ...

Music, without life is lame...Life, without music is crippled...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rigs(outdated image):
32Gb S9 →SMicroIV → e500C → me
2200mAh H140(RB) → Grover S → SMacro3v6/Diablo → e500C → me
Philips CD850(circa '90s!) → 1694A → DA7.2x(TCXO) → Grover UR8 → SP MPX3 SLAM → '03 DT880 / DBE V3 → me
Bushguy @ Head-fi
 

Fongalv can have my firstborn in trade for his pair(of Darths)...

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ahdui
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aux!
Hope you enjoyed your um1 and of cos, im looking forward to the day you purchase a UM2 :)

not forgetting that you need custom moulds for your ultra big canals.
Transportable: iRiver h120(2300mAh)→Sysconcept Optical Cable→AOS Electornics Co. Piccolo DAC→ahdui's CryoFreeze™ TCu IC→ahdui's Enfo PA-1→Custom Shure SE530
Backup: AMB y-1 DAC (MisterX Mod)


Cycling: Sansa Clip 4GB→Philips SHS3200 Earhooks
Portable: Rio Karma→UltimateEars Super.Fi 5eb
Backup Rig: RedWineAudio 40GB iPod Photo→ahdui's CryoFreeze™ RBT IC→iBasso P3 Heron(ahdui Mod) →Custom Shure SE530
Home: "Upgrading In Progress"→Alessandro MS Pro/JVC HP-DX1000
Desktop: PC→Belden 1505F→CityPulse DAC 7.2x II→Belden 89207→KRK Rokit Powered 5



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puffpoopy
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ahdui
Dec 20 2006, 12:31 AM
Hope you enjoyed your um1 and of cos, im looking forward to the day you purchase a UM2 :)

not forgetting that you need custom moulds for your ultra big canals.

UM2? Beyond my budget, till my UM1 dies completely on me that is. For stuff like earphones, I usually use them till the wires goo up or one side of the channel dies out completely.

Unless u can find me a way to quickly destroy my UM1s so that I can find an excuse to get the UM2s. :D

BTW, not sure who's the nice chap earlier on, but if not for his help, I swore I'm going to take 1hr to get that UM1 into my ears. Thnx! :thumbup:
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ahdui
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aux!
Its the shop helper aka Gabriel.
im the guy in maroon Polo-tee who chats a lot. (sitting just beside you lol)
Transportable: iRiver h120(2300mAh)→Sysconcept Optical Cable→AOS Electornics Co. Piccolo DAC→ahdui's CryoFreeze™ TCu IC→ahdui's Enfo PA-1→Custom Shure SE530
Backup: AMB y-1 DAC (MisterX Mod)


Cycling: Sansa Clip 4GB→Philips SHS3200 Earhooks
Portable: Rio Karma→UltimateEars Super.Fi 5eb
Backup Rig: RedWineAudio 40GB iPod Photo→ahdui's CryoFreeze™ RBT IC→iBasso P3 Heron(ahdui Mod) →Custom Shure SE530
Home: "Upgrading In Progress"→Alessandro MS Pro/JVC HP-DX1000
Desktop: PC→Belden 1505F→CityPulse DAC 7.2x II→Belden 89207→KRK Rokit Powered 5



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puffpoopy
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ahdui
Dec 20 2006, 12:48 AM
Its the shop helper aka Gabriel.
im the guy in maroon Polo-tee who chats a lot. (sitting just beside you lol)

Ah! So u are the one who told me to test the UM2s! :P

But really, if the UM1s are no match for UM2s. Kinda like having just 2 people finding matching messed up cards and re-arranging them in order vs having 4 people doing the job.

But really, where value-for-money is concerned, the UM1s would be unbeatable!
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ahdui
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aux!
indeed for armature drivers.

but for dynamic drivers... the OVC TC20 is indeed a killer.
but HOLD YOUR GUNS man! more stuff coming in to make your wallet empty!
Transportable: iRiver h120(2300mAh)→Sysconcept Optical Cable→AOS Electornics Co. Piccolo DAC→ahdui's CryoFreeze™ TCu IC→ahdui's Enfo PA-1→Custom Shure SE530
Backup: AMB y-1 DAC (MisterX Mod)


Cycling: Sansa Clip 4GB→Philips SHS3200 Earhooks
Portable: Rio Karma→UltimateEars Super.Fi 5eb
Backup Rig: RedWineAudio 40GB iPod Photo→ahdui's CryoFreeze™ RBT IC→iBasso P3 Heron(ahdui Mod) →Custom Shure SE530
Home: "Upgrading In Progress"→Alessandro MS Pro/JVC HP-DX1000
Desktop: PC→Belden 1505F→CityPulse DAC 7.2x II→Belden 89207→KRK Rokit Powered 5



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fallraen
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ask me!
congrats on your decision. i'm the poor army fellow here lol, anyways hope you enjoy them as they were my first pair of iems too :) haha its going to take a long time for you to break them. mine were stolen before i could do some serious damage to them. :S

enjoy and have fun!
[size=1]
-J.M-
We don’t necessarily discriminate. We simply exclude certain types of people.[/size]
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puffpoopy
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fallraen
Dec 20 2006, 04:15 AM
congrats on your decision. i'm the poor army fellow here lol, anyways hope you enjoy them as they were my first pair of iems too :) haha its going to take a long time for you to break them. mine were stolen before i could do some serious damage to them. :S

enjoy and have fun!

Stolen?! Gosh. Some people really read up on such stuff and do know what are the good things to take, don't they? A 5.56 thru their butt would do the trick. :bruce:

Hmm... Just wanna know how long u guys had ur UM1s for before they die completely on u?
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chaych
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"Batman"
puffpoopy
Dec 20 2006, 09:38 AM
fallraen
Today, 04:15 AM
congrats on your decision. i'm the poor army fellow here lol, anyways hope you enjoy them as they were my first pair of iems too :) haha its going to take a long time for you to break them. mine were stolen before i could do some serious damage to them. :S

enjoy and have fun!

Stolen?! Gosh. Some people really read up on such stuff and do know what are the good things to take, don't they? A 5.56 thru their butt would do the trick. :bruce:

Hmm... Just wanna know how long u guys had ur UM1s for before they die completely on u?

congrats on your purchase!

OT: 5.56 enough meh? what about a .50 round? :P
Home:
- HD 590
- MS2i

Portable:
- UM1(for sale!)
- UM2
- OVC TC20
- CrossRoads MylarOne
- MX500
- XTRA X-1
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aaron-xp
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Boy
Enjoy the UM1s. They do happen to get stolen rather easily. Other than that, try them with triflanges on the train. The difference is incredible, if you have used normal canalphones on trains.
team Lover, You Should've Come Over
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norseman
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Dismember
Cut off the smallest tip on the triflanges if they are too long for you. Many people like them that way. I can't stand the soft-flex tips myself.
Funny how you think the um1s are airy with lots of treble. That's kinda opposite of what it sounds like to me...
Axim x51v | re-recabled K81DJ | UM1 | Super.fi 3 Studio | KSC75 | MylarOne | Mylar3 | Pk3
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That dude
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50000+ Member
Congrats on your UM1 purchase!!!
I was wondering if you tried ultimate ears..., I think they would suit you as you thought the UM1 was slightly bass light. But, the UM1 is really an incredible IEM, a good buy, hope you charish it.... so that you can sell it off when upgradesitis strikes... lol!!
Wait, What?
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Nu_Omega
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Congrats on your purchase puffpoopy, i've not try the OVCs but i find the UM1 and UE-SF3 to be among my favs given their price range.

So what amps are you using it to drive those babies?

Cheers
Mala steamboat on a cold and wet night = ?

That's it people.....
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solo2
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Great, now you've got your first set of IEMs :lol: Hope you'd stay content with them :P
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puffpoopy
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Nu_Omega
Dec 20 2006, 09:22 PM
Congrats on your purchase puffpoopy, i've not try the OVCs but i find the UM1 and UE-SF3 to be among my favs given their price range.

So what amps are you using it to drive those babies?

Cheers

Using a PA2V2 to drive 'em.

For amps of other kinds, well, probably won't be looking at those for the time being. Most probably will wait for a while.

Kinda wondering if different tips will produce different sounds? I noticed that using the silicon tip (not the triflanges, the one that looks like a mushroom head) gives a slight boost to the mids & highs whilst another set of tips (yellow foam, Uncle Wilson mentioned its for Shures) gave me some depth on the sound.

Haven't went about the comply tips yet. Triflanges... I guess I'll give it a skip. :(
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puffpoopy
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solo2
Dec 20 2006, 11:05 PM
Great, now you've got your first set of IEMs :lol: Hope you'd stay content with them :P

STAY CONTENT WITH THEM?

That sounds pretty dangerous. :D But I'm not so much an audio man. So till my UM1s breaks or gets stolen, I guess I'm sticking to them just like all other earphones I had.
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JLM
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It's hard to stay content with audio stuffs. Esp for guys, we tend to buy more and more stuffs. It is always time to upgrade. :D Wait till your UM1 is spoilt then go for UE10pro?
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puffpoopy
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JLM
Today, 11:42 AM
It's hard to stay content with audio stuffs. Esp for guys, we tend to buy more and more stuffs. It is always time to upgrade.  :D Wait till your UM1 is spoilt then go for UE10pro?

A thousand bucks for a set of earphones! :moneyfly: :moneyfly: :moneyfly:

I'll probably get it when I quit photography altogether. :D But its pretty hard to quit photography for now. I still haven't shot that Magnum Opus yet. :(
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rapier84
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:HD600smile: Now all you need is a nice big set of headphones to complement the UM1s :P
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