Most “audiophile” gear is designed to be loved at dwelling. Image a crushed leather-based chair, a pitcher of aged scotch, and a library lined with many leather-based certain books and smelling of wealthy mahogany. That’s partly why Shure’s KSE1500 earbuds are so distinctive, designed as a transportable setup that brings that wealthy mahogany feeling with you, wherever you might roam–now for $900 off retail value.
I auditioned these transformative earbuds years in the past, and nonetheless keep in mind the expertise as a visceral sonic imprint. They’re not solely the primary electrostat drivers I’d reviewed, but additionally the primary I’d seen in a pair of earbuds. Utilizing a skinny, oscillating membrane suspended between twin metallic plates with reverse expenses, electrostatic drivers are identified for his or her vivid readability and element, and a fabulously nimble transient response. The KSE1500 lean into this for fabulous constancy and expansive stereo imaging, offering a number of the finest instrumental separation and definition I’ve heard to today. Much more intriguing, due to the design of their acoustic chambers, the KSE1500’s sound can be remarkably wealthy and easy for electrostat audio system–an sudden “comfortable accident”, in keeping with Shure reps.
To get all that sound right into a pair of tiny in-ear displays is not any small feat, and it’s why Shure expenses a bundle for these buds. They embody a particular amplifier and DAC (digital-to-analog converter), in order that they’re not as moveable as your common in-ears. However the sound they create is price it. Audio manufacturers discuss loads about “being within the studio” however the Shure KSE1500 are one of many few pairs I’ve tried that again up that declare. Prepare for an intimate reintroduction to your favourite music in methods you by no means anticipated. Is that well worth the large price, even at a severe low cost? Solely you possibly can reply that. However when you’ve got the scratch, sure. Sure, it’s.
