Ultimate Ears SuperFi 5vi

Ultimate Ears is the elite range of earphones to hit the market from the design tables of Logitech, and the Ultimate Ears SuperFi 5vi is one of their range, with the ‘vi’ suffix letting you know that these are voice capable headphones that are aimed primarily at the iPhone or Blackberry users, as taking calls whilst on the move is just a touch of a button away. Logitech are pretty much the market leaders in earphone production at the moment, and this does mean they have popped hefty price tags on their kit, but they believe that the quality you will get is second to none and worth every single one of your hard earned dollars, and in the case of the Ultimate Ears SuperFi 5vi earphones, that is 190 of them – so can you justify that expense?

Ultimate Ears SuperFi 5vi

Ultimate Ears SuperFi 5vi

Design

The Ultimate Ears SuperFi 5vi earphones are identical to their non-voice capable twins – the Ultimate Ears SuperFi 5, but of course have the little black box of tricks on the wire that enables you to swap between your music listening pleasure, and at the touch of the button change to call making facilities so you can answer that call from work without having to scrabble to get the earphones out and the phone up to your ear. Looks wise, the ear bud part is a lovely soft round shape that has been designed to be worn either way up, with the wire hanging straight down if you aren’t moving around too much, or the other way up so that the wire comes up at the top and can be looped around your ear and back down behind it, acting as a sports clip should you be on the move, running or jogging for example – and it does work, thanks to the snug fit of the Ultimate Ears SuperFi 5vi earphones.

In the box is the standard elite range kit that is a complete set of small, medium and large silicone ear cushions and a set of four silicone ear tips so you can get the best combination to achieve the best fit, which in turn is what helps with the noise isolation. You also get the small tool to clean the earphones, and finally the hard plastic case that is a great size for the pocket or bag and offers the earphones an element of protection from the bumps and knocks, and hopefully helps reduce the amount of knots in the wires that seem so good at getting in when you leave them alone!

Logitech also use the color coding on their earphones range, with the right earphone having the red band to easily identify it and make sure you get the best playback performance at all times. The earphones have the standard 3.5mm jack which is used on most of the major devices, such as iPods, iPhones and Blackberries, as well as portable DVD players should the need arise for you.

Actual user review:
“To truly appreciate the sound quality of these earphones, they must be plugged into a device capable of providing premium sound. Plugged into an iPhone or Sony NWZ-436F digital music player, these earphones sound good, but it wasn’t until I plugged them into my desktop computer with the Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS sound card that I could hear how good music can sound through these earphones. The sound quality was impressive, and noticeably better than when plugged into the other devices. The sound was more clear and far more robust. Also, when I played the same music in those same devices using different earphones, the sound quality of these earphones was far superior. Although I don’t know the model number of the other earphones or the price I paid for them, the brand is Fuji Labs, and they cost less than $50. These earphones are also comfortable. I wore them for long periods using the foam tips with no discomfort. Lastly, the noise isolation works well. Ambient noise is greatly reduced with no music playing, and is completely eliminated when music is played at low to moderate volume levels.” – M.Howard (VA,USA)

 

Performance

Like the none voice capable set, the Ultimate Ears SuperFi 5vi showcases the unique top-fire armature design which is there to ensure you get a snug, noise-isolation fit ‘with extended high-frequency response and a full soundstage’, as claimed by the Logitech website. This really does seem to give their earphones something you don’t get with many other leading players in terms of noise isolation and performance on playback

The sound quality as we discovered with the twin set is second to none. We didn’t need the volume up loud to enjoy our favorite music, as there really was little noise interruption from the outside world, and the music was presented in a clear crisp way with no distortion, and as previously highlighted in the review of the Ultimate Ears SuperFi 5, these earphone have superb bass playback which is rare in earphones and something we really like. When we tested the voice element we were equally satisfied, and the caller reported being able to hear us clearly with no distortion, and wasn’t able to tell when we were using the earphones and when we were just picking up the phone to answer it, which again is pretty close to perfection.

Conclusion

The Ultimate Ears SuperFi 5vi earphones are a great choice if the voice capability is important to you and you need the versatility of having your music interrupted by an incoming call. These are top of the range and you are going to be able to find similar features on cheaper earphones; however, you will find a definite drop in performance quality.

Average User Rating:
Actual User Reviews:
• “I bought these to replace my Etymotic Research HF2′s which I accidentally left in a hotel room. The placement of the button on a separate place lower down on the cord is convenient, and the placement of the mic is nice. I’ve never had any complaints about call quality from people I’ve called using these, so I assume the mic is decent. As for the sound quality, it’s wonderful. It has a much fuller bass than the HF2′s did, and if there’s any loss on the high end, I’m not hearing it. I love them.” – D.Rosenbloom (PA,USA)

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• “About 6 months ago, I purchased the Ultimate Ears Super.fi 4vi and found them to be great for airplane travel and the morning commute. They block out noise pretty well and come with a variety of ear buds in different shapes so that I found a good fit. Fast forward to about a month ago – I lost sound in the right side of the headphones. I called UE customer support and had them sent in for repair since they were still under warranty. After about a a week or so they told me that they would ship me replacements and would let me know the tracking number for these. A week later and I still didn’t get my replacements or a tracking number. So I call up UE again to ask them what’s going on. Apparently they no longer make the 4vis and thus it is backordered. Without me asking or complaining about this, the customer service rep asked me if I would like to upgrade to the 5vi. Well, hell, of course I would! I got my 5vis recently and I have to say that they are a vast improvement on the 4vi. First off, they just look very cool and sleek compared to the 4vi. Next, they can be worn over-the-ear or regularly. Wearing them over-the-ear works very well, and you can still access the mic. Sound quality has improved slightly, the bass is deeper. Also, the new “memory foam” ear tips make a HUGE difference. These are what I primarily use now and they should solve any problems people have with the fit of this headset. If you’ve ever used those earplugs you can get at the drugstore, you know the concept of these already… just squeeze them and put them in your ear! The cons would still be the cable noise. This has not been fixed. However, I would have to say that the cable itself is greatly improved. I think the problem I had with the 4vi was that the cable was too flimsy and just felt cheap. The cable on the 5vi is a vast improvement in quality. It feels sturdier and is less likely to end up in a tangled mess just from sitting in your pocket. Overall – a fine product! And more importantly – great customer service.” – M.G.Navarro (USA)

 

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