Impressions on the Klipsch Image X10

[mosi]

After doing the plunge and picking up a new pair of Klipsch Image (X10) I wanted to share my thoughts on those little ones. I already have them for some months and they do still amaze me.
I went looking for new cans after I found my ER-6 to be way too bass shy for my tastes. In between I used a pair of Beyer DT990 @32Ohm that I still like but that's definitely too open for stuff like the occasional lan-party.
So as you might have guessed I'm sort of a basshead. Every building needs a good foundation and the same goes for music! If the bass is lacking there's something missing and that annoys the crap out of me.

Comfort:
I don't know what on earth they used for the flanges but the material is great! About half an hour after I inserted my Ety's the itching in my ears would start. I can wear the Klipsch for hours without irritations so they're really great.
They include three sizes of single-flange eartips and two sizes of bi-flange eartips. Coming from a perfect seal on my ER-6 with their bi-flanges I use the medium sized single flanges and have also had a good seal with the large bi-flanges from Klipsch.

Microphonics:
No complaints here. The cable is certainly well chosen and again compared to the ER-6 has WAY less microphonics. I'd still not recommend them for workout use unless you manage to wear the cable behind your ears. Also there was another user recently who had problems with the rubber part of the phones splitting apart. He used them for workouts so I'd probably rather not.

Sound Quality:
First of all, I've mostly listened to these directly from the headphone out of an Asus Xonar D2 set to about 10-20% Volume. Anything else gets too loud for my tastes. I normally use 256VBR encoded mp3's but to be honest can't really distinguish those from 128CBR. I just don't hear any difference, beats me why.
Genre-wise I've tried most of my stuff ranging from Enya, Kitaro, Madonna up to Dragonforce. Right now I'm listening to some Clannad as its pretty early and I can't sleep anymore.

from the Describing Headphones Glossary I'd say the following matches the Images best.

Con's:

tend to be sibilant

Pro's:

Bassy even in the Sub-Bass Range
Tight
very Detailed
good Low-Level Detail

My DT990 go a tiny wee deeper in bass but these here are awesome. The only thing I can hold against the Klipsch is that they tend to be sibilant at times. Mostly I hear it with stuff like Madonna singing but it's still ok for my taste.

Soundstage:
The soundstage is definitely between your ears but in that little empty space a nice minitature stage unfolds so I've got no complaints here.

Other stuff:
For the followers of the church of burn-in: my ears were burnt in on these for about 50-100 hours till now

Out of some reason the Headphone out of my Receiver at home (Marantz SR7500) produces audible noise with these here. I don't know why but neither my onboard soundcard nor my Xonar card do that. I don't use them much at home though so I don't really care about that.

Final thought: hell yeah!

[elnero]

If you're using single flange tips the large bi-flanges may help with sibilance but they'll also change the sonic signature a bit. I personally loved the bi-flanges but they made my ears itch.

[thechungster]

What kind of music would these headphones suit?

[mdork]

i listen to a wide range of music and the x10s sound good to me no matter what. of course the strength in bass will shine with electronic/house, rock, hip hop etc. im in the same boat as mosi, if the bass is lacking, i feel like im a spectator to the music instead of being immersed in it.

[thechungster]

Does anyone have both these and the SE530's? I would like to know which has better quality overall.

[Cool_Torpedo]

Originally Posted by thechungster

Does anyone have both these and the SE530's? I would like to know which has better quality overall.

Define what's "better" for you. For me the X10 hands down, but depending on your own definition of "better" it might be otherwise.

[thechungster]

Originally Posted by Cool_Torpedo

Define what's "better" for you. For me the X10 hands down, but depending on your own definition of "better" it might be otherwise.

Oh, umm. I would say, non fatiguing treble, crisp mid and balanced bass.

[cassper]

Originally Posted by thechungster

Does anyone have both these and the SE530's? I would like to know which has better quality overall.

I have both and for me it's se530. Definitely much more detailed mids and more present treble. But x10 are very good, 'happy earphones' (and are much cheaper)..

[thechungster]

Originally Posted by cassper

I have both and for me it's se530. Definitely much more detailed mids and more present treble. But x10 are very good, 'happy earphones' (and are much cheaper)..

Just wondering, which has better quality bass. I prefer bass that does not overwhelm the mids, but is still noticable.

[Bojamijams]

I just got my X10's and I love them.. with the single flange and unamped, they're definetly a little too boomy on the bass side which drowns out the mids .. the bi-flange tames it a bit but it needs to go in deeper for the same seal which don't like

Amped with a medium flange though is where they shine. Bass is no longer boomy, but crisp.

Unamped I found them very good for industrial music. Amped, I find them still good for it and other variety as well. Unamped, they're not very good for metal I found. Maybe after more burn-in.

But yes, very comfy. All in all, love mine.

[Feather225]

few months ago I had a battle between Image x10 and SE530, I chose image X10 and never regret!~
Certainly one of the most IEMs that truly reveals the characteristics of IEM...

Try Comply foam with them...works pretty good ^ ^

[Cool_Torpedo]

Originally Posted by thechungster

Oh, umm. I would say, non fatiguing treble, crisp mid and balanced bass.

OK then, I'm afraid you'd need to listen to both and compare for yourself. SE530's midrange is kind of crispier that X-10's but for my ears colored and unnatural. The timbral qualities of the X10 in the midrange are among the best I've heard on IEMs. However many people prefers 530's midrange.
In the treble the X10 are a bit rolled off, they're far from sibilant and fatiguing, however it largely depends on your own ear canals, the tips you use, and how deep you insert them into your ear canal. The deeper you insert the X10 the more prominent the bass will get, and the softer the treble will go. Get a quite external insertion with a good seal by using big tips, and you'll get a nice balance with decent treble, wonderful mids and a bass that while a bit prominent, has good kick, texture and depth.
The 530 are bigger and cannot be inserted very deep, so they don't change their sound as much as the X10 by playing with tips and insertion. I didn't manage to get them sounding right for my taste, there was always some coloration in the midrange and an overall dark character that I didn't find appealing.

Both are good IEMs and technically there are very few objective reasons to declare one better than the other. It's all a matter of your personal preferences, fit, comfort and which one suits your music and player better.

[mosi]

Originally Posted by elnero

If you're using single flange tips the large bi-flanges may help with sibilance but they'll also change the sonic signature a bit. I personally loved the bi-flanges but they made my ears itch.

Thanks for that hint! I tried over the past days and it really seems that those bi-flanges help with sibilance a bit. I think they sound more pleasant to me now.
Luckily they don't give me itching ears, even after hours of usage