Sound:
As usual for my Shure in-ears, I am using the largest grey silicone tips that came included.
Tonality:
The SE215m+SPE presents a very strong, powerful bass, which doesn't overshadow the midrange by too much and does not get fuzzy to a large extent, but still has a good dose of (moderate) warmth. The treble is on the inoffensive, dark side and the level rolls off towards the upper treble without the sound drifting too much into the dull direction. Fans of a rolled-off, inoffensive treble will definitely get their money's worth here.
At about 700 Hz, the level begins to rise slowly and reaches its zenith at about 60 Hz, which is maintained practically down to 20 Hz without a roll-off. The strongest emphasis here is about 11 dB compared to an in-ear like the Etymotic ER-4S/SR which is diffuse-field neutral in the bass.
Since the upper bass is already not really all that much less emphasised, however, it gives the in-ear a powerful, punchy upper bass character.
Even though the bass of the SE215m+SPE is undoubtedly quite prominent, the it doesn't tend to bloom and the sound isn't too bass-heavy (in the price range around 100€, where the Shure fits in, there are definitely in-ears with an even stronger bass emphasis).
The bass radiates into the fundamental and lower midrange, but leaves the central midrange untouched and doesn't mask voices. This implementation can therefore be described as (very) well done, since the in-ear receives a moderately warm impact of the bass and the upper fundamental range, without appearing too warm or even unpleasantly woolly.
Voices are on the somewhat warmer and slightly darker side. On the other hand, the midrange doesn't lack presence and assertiveness against the bass, which is due to the neutral presence range of the SE215m+SPE - many manufacturers like to implement a sink here to generate a more relaxed midrange.
Above 3 kHz, the level is slightly in the background, but at 5 kHz it forms a peak that doesn't exceed the baseline or, if it does, only just barely crosses it, so it's not annoying or conspicuous while listening to music. Nevertheless, it ensures that cymbals achieve a minimal metallic impact, even though the level above 5 kHz is in the background and inoffensive, which also applies to hi-hats that are softened.
Thus the treble is innocent as well as soft and never sounds sharp. However, the SE215m+SPE's treble doesn't really appear muffled, so fortunately the in-ear doesn't make the same mistake as the Brainwavz M100, which sounds dull, chopped-off, unharmonic and musty due to its lack of treble presence.
The only criticism one could have of the Shure's (quite intentional and fitting) tuning is that it lacks a bit of "gloss", which is a matter of taste though.
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So the sound of the Shure SE215m+SPE can be summed up as bassy, somewhat warm but not overwhelming or unpleasant, soft, rolled-off in the highs, and last but not least coherent.
Yes, the tuning is definitely coherent, fitting and harmonic. It is not surprising that the SE215 generally enjoys quite a high popularity in its price range, as its tuning is pleasant, even and well thought out.
Personally I would say that this tuning fits best to "modern" music, whereby there are no limits to the personal taste of course.
Resolution:
What the Shure delivers in terms of detail resolution is definitely worth the price for an in-ear with a dynamic driver per side - the sound quality is appropriate to the price and very decent to good.
You definitely shouldn't expect more than a price range performance from it though (technically I would rate the Titan 1, 3 and 5 models from DUNU as well as the Fidue A65 and Rose Technology Mini2 higher, for example - all of them, however, head tonally into a rather different direction than the Shure and only the Fidue would be most comparable to the Shure, at least regarding the tuning of the high frequencies).
The SE215m+SPE, like the regular SE215, is advertised with a tight bass, which is surprisingly true, because for a still relatively inexpensive in-ear that uses one dynamic driver per side for sound reproduction, the bass presentation of the SE215m+SPE is indeed quite fast, tight and well controlled.
Even if you can't expect the tightness and speed of the bass of the iBasso IT03, IT01, Fostex TE-02 or most in-ears with Balanced Armature woofers, the bass of the Shure doesn't turn out to be overchallenged in almost all situations and never becomes muddy. Only with very fast Metal the separation of single notes in the bass is brought to its limits and fast double basses seem a bit mushy, but bass notes still remain distinguishable from each other.
In the midrange, the resolution level is good, as is the speech intelligibility. The audibility and fine details of more expensive dynamic driver in-ears or single BA models, however, should not be expected here.
Even if voices are resolved well, they appear a bit grainy compared to better in-ears. On the other hand, voices remain relatively easy to differentiate from each other, even with quite fast and dense, complex music.
The same thing I already wrote about the midrange also applies to the treble, although to a lesser extent.
The Shure succeeds in separating individual notes quite well and cleanly - there is no reason for criticism here and the resolution level and control with faster and more complex pieces are good and fulfill the expectations of an in-ear in this price range.
Control and separation generally remain good even with fast music pieces and don't collapse.
Soundstage:
The stage of the SE215m+SPE is rather on the wide side, which might be a bit surprising if you are familiar with the Multi-BA In-Ears of the American manufacturer.
While the imaginary stage is quite on the wide side and reaches quite exactly from the left to the right ear without exceeding this base, at least talking about my personal impression, it doesn't offer much spatial depth and seems quite flat to minimally elliptical.
The separation of individual instruments is quite precise and doesn't degrade dramatically even with faster and more complex pieces.
Due to the almost non-existent spatial depth, one shouldn't expect much layering.
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In Comparison with other In-Ears:
ORIVETI BASIC:
The BASIC isolates somewhat less compared to the SE215m+SPE, but has the higher quality cable, albeit without remote control.
The ORIVETI's shells made of metal, while the Shure's are made of plastic. Both have their advantages and disadvantages, although I personally likethe look of the BASIC even a bit more.
The ORIVETI has a slightly more accentuated sub-bass, but emphasises the fundamental range and upper bass a little less than the Shure and therefore shines less into the lower midrange.
Voices sound a bit warmer on the Shure, but a bit darker on the ORIVETI, because the ORIVERI has got a bit less level in the presence range than the Shure.
In the treble, however, both in-ears are very similar and the BASIC plays only slightly brighter than the SE215m+SPE. The situation is different again in the super high frequencies above 10 kHz, where the ORIVETI is more present, making subtle sparkle and "air" more audible.
The bass range of the BASIC is somewhat softer and slower than that of the Shure, although no less controlled.
The detail resolution in the bass range and lower fundamental, on the other hand, is somewhat in favor of the ORIVETI.
In the mid and high frequencies the BASIC also resolves a bit better than the Shure.
The stage of the ORIVETI is a bit bigger (more depth, but also a bit wider) than that of the Shure. When it comes to instrument separation, both are about even, with a tiny advantage in favor of the BASIC.
ADVANCED Model 3 (wired Operation):
The two in-ears resemble each other very much in the shape of the housings and their internal layout.
With the Bluetooth module and regular cable, which is more flexible than that of the Shure, but with less strain relief (ironically not on the jack plug, which is clearly better reinforced and protected on the Model 3), the ADVANCED comes with more accessories.
The shells of both in-ears are closed - but the SE215m+SPE isolates slightly better, which I would attribute to its slightly better silicone tips.
The ADVANCED has an even stronger bass boost and also a somewhat more full-bodied fundamental range. Accordingly, it also radiates a bit more into the lower midrange than that of the Shure.
In the midrange, the Model 3 in-ear is brighter and consequently more balanced sounding due to a compensating boost of the upper midrange - bright voices are not toned down.
In the (upper) treble the ADVANCED is clearly brighter and doesn't dampen hi-hats.
The super treble range is about the same for both in-ears.
So while the Shure has a dark, roll-offed treble, the Model 3's is brighter, albeit only mildly accentuated around 10 kHz, and acts as a good counterweight to the strongly accentuated bass.
The bass of the Model 3 is slower and softer than that of the Shure and as a result appears muddier.
In the mid and high frequencies I would describe the Shure as a bit better resolving.
The stage of the ADVANCED is narrower, although with more depth.
Instruments are slightly better separated on the Shure.
Conclusion:
The Shure SE215m+SPE offers a very coherent, non-annoying overall package with a powerful, punchy bass, a bit of moderate warmth in the lower midrange and an inoffensive, smooth, rolled-off (upper) treble. Its technical performance also matches the price and for an in-ear with dynamic drivers, its bass is pleasantly firm and controlled without being on the same level as the very best dynamic in-ears yet.
That the SE215 is quite popular in its price range is therefore definitely not surprising.
Everything is rounded off by the closed shells, which offer the advantage of very good noise isolation.
In the "SE215m+SPE" version, the in-ear also offers a nice visual appearance with white housings and grey logos. However, its cable's strain relief is weak on the 3.5 mm plug and another thing that is also definitely in need of improvement is its integrated three-button remote control that could also have been smaller and with better strain relief (the cables bundled with my SE425 and SE846 are of higher quality and seem to be better reinforced and more durable than that of my SE215m+SPE).