Picture Sunday: Unique Melody ME1

Disclaimer: The stars in this weeks’ picture Sunday is the Unique Melody ME1. This post is a part of our Picture Sunday series.

Last week’s most interesting delivery at the HFN headquarters was the Unique Melody ME1. After the Audeze iSine IEMs, the UM ME1, is the next universal IEM using the planar magnetic technology, aka, Orthodynamic.

The ME1 likes the iSines is larger in size than most of the universal IEMs but that – for now – is something we’ll have to get used to with this . Compared to the Audeze unites however these are rather small, but when using them, the size and weight is no issue at all. The difference between the iSine and the ME1 design-wise is tht the ME1’s are in your ear a lot more than the iSines, which are more next to your ear. Like the iSines they’re kind of hard to use on the go because of their open character and sound leakage, but if you do use them people will look at you weird. The world doesn’t seem ready yet for larger sized out of your ear IEM designs.

When the Unique Melody ME1 arrived, I made a quick video unboxing it. In that video I already pointed out the ME1’s grills kind of look like the famous Audeze grills. While they of course aren’t identical, it’s hard not to recognize the Audeze design in the grills.

If you haven’t seen the video yet, you can do so right here:

Sound wise the UM ME1 also is very different from the Audeze iSine models. Where the iSines have a full bodied sound from bass to treble, the ME1 approach is “light” with a focus on upper mids and treble. You get a very airy and spacious sound with a very high level of separation. I have read some comments on our Instagram account of people saying these don’t need much amping, but I very much disagree with that. When you hook them up to a more powerful DAP or an external amp such as the Hugo 2, the bass and lower mids really come alive and you get an ever tighter, more detailed sound than before. I definitely recommend using these with an amplifier.

Amped or unamped, the ME1 has a unique and very specific sound signature. After burn in (which made a huge difference) your ears and brain will have to adjust to the ME1’s sound each time you start listening to it. After a few songs however you’ll be adjusted to its typical style and you’ll enjoy the detail, timbre and spaciousness these IEMs deliver.

I look forward to listening more to these and comparing them in detail to the Audeze iSine models, but they for sure are very very different. TBC…