[Methos1979]

Nice to see how long this thread has stayed afloat - allow me to do my part.

I've been searching for some great IEM's since buying my latest Creative player, the new ZEN (16GB model). I don't consider myself an audiophile, which is to say I'm not the type to spend thousands on headphones - though it does sound like a lot of fun! No, I'm just looking for a great set of IEMs that are better than the buds that come with most players. That said, I am a musician with a lot of recording experience so I know good sound when I hear it. I also understand that everyone's ears and hearing are different.

A quick personal rundown as I think it's important to factor in where the reviewer is coming from: I'm a 46-year-old male, into all types music but mostly Rock, Pop, Folk and Alternative. I have about a thousand CD collection and am now using Napster-to-go and having a ball finding all kinds of new music. I have a signifcant case of tinnitus in both ears from a military blast in my face and a mid-range hearing loss from childhood.

I went through a bunch of IEM's and headphones all purchased locally and most returned in the under $150 range including the Shure SE110 and 210's, Creative ZEN Aurvana's, all three variations of the BOSE TriPorts, and a bunch of lesser models including the Denon AH-C351's.

I was all set to pull the trigger on a set of SE530's on ebay for around $300 - more than I wanted to spend but I couldn't find anything locally. I also considered several of the Super.fi's based on reviews here, as well as Westone's and other lauded IEM's. I was checking here one more time and saw this very long thread on the AH-C700's and was intrigued. I didn't read the whole thing but several of Soosique's highlighted ones - enough to send me to Amazon where I was pleasantly surprised to find them on sale for $99 - right in my price-point sweetspot. I made the purchase with free shipping. Got them today. (Shipping was great - they weren't supposed to get here for another 5 days - kudo's to Amazon.)

Now these are far from burned in or tested long enough for a good, thorough review, but I wanted to post my initial thoughts after listening for most of the day. First of all I have nothing new to add on the physical build - nice metal construction and a great cord material. They are also very, very, very comfortable. I didn't do well with deeper isoloation type IEM's - they bother my ears no matter what tips I used, even the Shure foamies.

I really like a lot of bass, so I was very happy to read that these are very bassy - and they definately are. I've been using a set of Philips SH9500 Turbo Bass buds ($30 at Target) while I looked for a better IEM. Don't laugh, for $30 those buds sounded better than IEM's I tested that cost much more. The bass on the Denon's is in fact very much like the Philips ones. But the highs are much clearer and more pronounced, or at least significantly so. The mids are somewhat recessed but some of that is no doubt the previously mentioned mid-range hearing loss I'm sure.

The bass on these might be too much for some people. If you like to turn up your music loud it tends to get a little flabby or muddy and drown out the mids almost completely and the highs to a lesser degree. I'm hoping that after some burn-in time they mellow out. A lot depends upon the type of music you're listening to also - if it's very bass-heavy to begin with then you might find these too much. But with songs with less or 'normal' levels of bass, especially older rock it's great. They tend to sound better in lower to mid levels.

Over all these are great IEM's at the price-point of $100. I think any more would be too much. Factor in the build quality, the great cord (man, I sure hope Denon patented this material) and the extreme comfort and I think these are winners. The closest in sound quality I tested was the Aurvana's which had an even more in-your-face high and mid with much less bass and much less comfort. For these to be even more perfect they would need just a tad less bass and a bit more mids. But these are easily the best IEM's I've tried to date.

I'd love to try some SE530's, Triple.fi's, Westone UM3's (when they come out) but don't think that will happen. I love music but let's face it, this is an mp3 player, playing 192 bit digital songs with no amp. As far I'm concerned, anything over $100 for a pair of IEM's for work and carrying around is just not in my budget. I've got two more children to put through college. Maybe if I win the lottery.

In summary, if you like a lot bass, don't need/want/like a ton of isolation, these are some great IEM's for the price.

M.