Ultimate Ears Super.fi 5 Earphones | Exclusive Review

Having recently been acquired by reputable peripheral maker Logitech, Ultimate Ears (UE) continues to add high quality, innovative products to the company’s existing range of in-ear monitors. In its attempt to appeal to a larger consumer market, UE has added several models of fashion-conscious, high quality IEMs to the popular Super.fi series. With comfort, style, and high sound quality in mind, the most recent innovation from UE is the Super.fi 5 noise-isolating earphone monitors.


Design and Build Quality (8.5/10)

Unlike the dual-speaker design on the Super.fi 5 Pro, the Super.fi 5 utilizes a single micro “Top Fire” driver, allowing the earphones to be cased in a much smaller housing with a much lower profile. The look of the Super.fi 5 was also redesigned from the ground up, gearing towards a more casual form factor. However, rest assured that the liquid silver earpieces will without doubt bring about a strong fashion statement.


Like most IEMs, the Super.fi 5 is constructed mainly out of plastic. Although difficult to tell, the inner parts of the left and right earpieces are distinguished by their colors, black and red, respectively. The cable was designed to an ultimate thickness; thin enough to flex, but thick enough not to tangle.

One of the highlights of the Super.fi 5 is the way(s) it can be worn. For a casual look, these earphones can be plugged straight into your ears with cable hanging in the front, just like traditional earbuds. If you don’t mind the whole hassle of “not” having wires, then they can be looped around the ear and hung at the back for a more active look. Either way, the Super.fi 5 feels comfortable and light-weight.



There are a few shortfalls in the design. For the cable jack, practicality was sacrificed for fashion. From our perspective, the jack is way too small, making it more difficult to plug and pull. Another flaw would be attributed to the microphonic quality of the cable. This phenomenon is usually seen in vacuum tubes, in which mechanical movement would lead to disturbance in sound signal. When the Super.fi 5 was plugged in, a slight tap on the wire itself would produce a thump in the sound. This was evident even with music playing. Nevertheless, it is important to clarify that this problem is not limited to the Super.fi 5, but is indeed widespread among most consumer IEMs on the market. Finally, although the profile is already much smaller than its predecessors', the Super.fi 5 could still be smaller (sticking out less to be precise). Currently, Westone’s UM1 is still undefeated in having the lowest profile among IEMs.




Accessories (7.5/10)

The Super.fi 5 comes with a standard fit kit. Included are 1 pair of small white silicon tips, 2 pairs of medium, 1 pair of large and 2 pairs of Comply foam tips. The foam tips were our ultimate choice, providing the best fit and sound quality. For the case, we feel that UE should have included something better than a purely plastic enclosure. In all, the accessories that come with the Super.fi 5 are pretty standard.


Super.fi 5 Case (left) Super.fi 5 Pro Case (right)

The Sound - always in price to sound ratio - (8.5/10)
Tested with EMU0404 Headphone Out [D/A: AK4396]

If I were to write off this whole section in one word, it would have to be… “spectacular.” The sound coming out of these little earphones is extraordinarily pleasing and balanced, making them truly suitable for all genres of music.

There is simply so much to talk about, where do I start? Ah yes, how about the bass? Ordinarily, single-driver IEMs often lack the lower end, and those that don’t often carry an over-emphasized quantity that muddles the rest of the sound. This is not the case with the Super.fi 5. These little earphones have plenty of bass. The low notes are powerful while providing solid impact. However, comparing to the similarly priced SE210 from Shure, the bass on the Super.fi is not as well extended. Even though the bass carries kick and punch, we feel that the low end on the SE210 has better decay and refinement. Overall, the bass on the Super.fi is evident, sufficient, but not overwhelming.

The Super.fi 5 has something that the SE210 lacked - mids. Both upper and lower mids are evident, but the lower-mids are particularly good. Male vocals sound natural and weighty. Due to the solid mids and a slight push from the lower end, vocals sound warm, affectionate, and emotional.

Treble is mostly on par with rest of the frequency response. Strings and cymbals are depicted with shimmers. The highs are a bit recessed, however, making them a tad dull. The high notes also lacked that delicate crystal quality found only in audiophile-class headphones. Nonetheless, reiterating what I’ve always stated about IEMs, sibilant is not a character I’d like to hear in a pair of in-ear monitors. An overly bright signature in canal phones will easily contribute to hearing fatigue.

The Super.fi 5 has astonishing details and a strikingly spacious soundstage. The earphones’ details and lush mid-range were brought out by Eric Clapton’s Tears in Heaven; you can clearly distinguish each pick of his guitar strings. The expansive soundstage was also portrayed in Pink Floyd’s When the Tigers Broke Free. The sound was so rich, so powerful, and so immersible that I completely forgot the music was, in fact, coming from two single micro drivers no larger than the size of a pea.

The overall sound can be characterized as chocolaty – rich, full, and smooth. Despite some exceptions, the sound spectrum is very balanced. The small hump on the upper bass slightly colors the overall sound, giving the earphones a warmer signature. Although the bass on the Super.fi is not as extended in comparison to the SE210, it is, nonetheless, able to go very deep. Don’t believe me? Just try a track on the Boston Acoustics Bass Test CD and you won’t know whether it’s your chair or your bottom that’s shaking.

Score Breakdown

Treble: 8
Mids: 8.5
Bass: 8
Details: 8.5
Soundstage: 9


Conclusion ( 8.5 /10)



Ultimate Ears has certainly kept their reputation as the provider of one of the highest quality IEMs in the industry. The Super.fi 5 has achieved what most single-driver earphones failed to achieve – a balanced, but not boring, sound. While some IEMs have a treble/mids-oriented character with deficiency in the lower-end, some embody vice versa quality. Rarely do you find a pair of single-driver earphones that can do it all. Make no mistake, however, the sound of the Super.fi 5 is in no way neutral. Its warm signature and expansive soundstage are excellent at reproducing most types of music, including games and movies. Just make sure to use a good source and some well recorded music to match the Super.fi in order to get the most out of them. Considering its price at $169.99 MSRP, I would not hesitate to say that the Super.fi 5 is one of the best single-driver IEMs on the consumer market today. Editors’ Award well deserved.




We'd like to thank Lauren K for making this review possible.

This article was written by Cecil Lau on August 21, 2008. All rights reserved.