"HearYourself.com" in-ear review

[ODEKK]

A while back I tried unsuccessfully to get some feedback in here for In-Ear monitors from "HearYourself.com" Well, I went ahead and bought them...this is what I thought.

About the "Hear Yourself" monitors:

I ordered these over six months ago. I really wanted a clear cord and clear silicone material, but they did not offer a clear cord. So....I went to Ultimate Ears (just dont the street from my house) and BOUGHT a clear cord from them. After sending it to the manufacturer, and waiting 4 or 5 days, I had my monitors. They looked great. Really great. (I love that clear on clear look)

Before talking about the sound, let me first say that I believe they are the "Challenger" brand of headphones, rebranded. They are made by PRECISION LABORATORIES (http://www.precisionweb.com) and are sold under many different names by several different online retailers. I was dissapointed to find that out. Its not even their high end offering. I just think you should know this before you go purchase anything.

THAT BEING SAID...

The sound is good. The isolation is good. The fit of course is great (they are custom) and the build quality is average. Precision responded well I suppose, given that I threw them a totally foreign cord from Ultimate Ears and they accomodated me very well. The guy i dealt with when I started dealing with Precision directly is a REALLY nice guy and responded to every phone call I made. They have good low end extension..in fact all frequencies are fairly evenly represented with no standout notes or dropped ones either. They just sound a bit....dull. Not dead by any means....just...dull. I have a bit of experience with high end audio....and you should not expect the kind of clarity or "Oh my gosh I've never hear THAT instrument before" kind of experience. Stereo separation is not great either, but no in-ear is ever really. The sound is NEVER glaringly bad, in fact its always good. Just not GREAT.

I LOVE them for working out. The stay put. Precision even kept the wire "over the ear" section from the Ultimate Ears cord, making it fit perfectly over my ear everytime. ( there is thin wire that follows the first 2 inches or so of cord, making it mold to the shape of your ear. Love that. ) They did however have to cut off the quick connect....so they are hardwired, not replacable.

To conclude, I would recommend these for stage work (house monitors suck FAR worse than these) or for recreational mp3 listening. I like them for airplane rides. I love them for the gym. i would not recommend them for any kind of critical listening. Don't expect to mix with these... I wouldn't even record with these. (Though I can't see why anyone would do EITHER one of those with an in-ear) Bottom line: I look like I spent ALOT... but the sound is just a bit dull.

Feel free to ask any questions.

THANKS!

[Dunbar]

I'm more interested in the "C1000 Single Acrylic Driver" because I've never heard a review. But I'm suspicious of it being a hard shell version of the C1. I owned the same phones you have a few years back (Challenger I). I bought them directly from precisionweb. I honestly think they are too dull for music, especially in comparison to the universal fit monitors available at that price. They play sound and are custom fit, that's about all I can say about them. Mine lacked strain relief where the cable left the mold and the copper eventually failed at that point. I do agree that they are very comfortable and ideal for working out.

[joeshambro]

Could you post some pictures? I'm curious how the custom cable arrangement worked out.

[solvexyz]

Hi,

very interesting indeed. I am just wondering what are the reasons that you pick the custom IEM from them and not from UE, Westone or Sensaphonics.

Also, the warrantee provided by them is only 6 months.

[adrummer1]

I responded to another post.
My C1000's and C2's sound great!
My C2's have smooth mids/highs and plenty of low end...sound a million times better the the E3's.
My guitarist had the C1's and I think thier silicone products are built by someone else?

[adrummer1]

Thought I would put in my two cents here!
It looks to me like your review thier cheapest silicone model and trying to compare them to Ultimate ears!
This is NOT a fair review..... you should check out and review thier C2's for that.I think they are putting out a triple driver too.
My C2's rock! The isolation is fantastic (a must for stage) ... plenty of low end and smooth mid/highs. I would never use them for studio monitoring (who would?) thats not what they are designed for.
I play 5 nights a week and love them.

Originally Posted by ODEKK

A while back I tried unsuccessfully to get some feedback in here for In-Ear monitors from "HearYourself.com" Well, I went ahead and bought them...this is what I thought.

About the "Hear Yourself" monitors:

I ordered these over six months ago. I really wanted a clear cord and clear silicone material, but they did not offer a clear cord. So....I went to Ultimate Ears (just dont the street from my house) and BOUGHT a clear cord from them. After sending it to the manufacturer, and waiting 4 or 5 days, I had my monitors. They looked great. Really great. (I love that clear on clear look)

Before talking about the sound, let me first say that I believe they are the "Challenger" brand of headphones, rebranded. They are made by PRECISION LABORATORIES (http://www.precisionweb.com) and are sold under many different names by several different online retailers. I was dissapointed to find that out. Its not even their high end offering. I just think you should know this before you go purchase anything.

THAT BEING SAID...

The sound is good. The isolation is good. The fit of course is great (they are custom) and the build quality is average. Precision responded well I suppose, given that I threw them a totally foreign cord from Ultimate Ears and they accomodated me very well. The guy i dealt with when I started dealing with Precision directly is a REALLY nice guy and responded to every phone call I made. They have good low end extension..in fact all frequencies are fairly evenly represented with no standout notes or dropped ones either. They just sound a bit....dull. Not dead by any means....just...dull. I have a bit of experience with high end audio....and you should not expect the kind of clarity or "Oh my gosh I've never hear THAT instrument before" kind of experience. Stereo separation is not great either, but no in-ear is ever really. The sound is NEVER glaringly bad, in fact its always good. Just not GREAT.

I LOVE them for working out. The stay put. Precision even kept the wire "over the ear" section from the Ultimate Ears cord, making it fit perfectly over my ear everytime. ( there is thin wire that follows the first 2 inches or so of cord, making it mold to the shape of your ear. Love that. ) They did however have to cut off the quick connect....so they are hardwired, not replacable.

To conclude, I would recommend these for stage work (house monitors suck FAR worse than these) or for recreational mp3 listening. I like them for airplane rides. I love them for the gym. i would not recommend them for any kind of critical listening. Don't expect to mix with these... I wouldn't even record with these. (Though I can't see why anyone would do EITHER one of those with an in-ear) Bottom line: I look like I spent ALOT... but the sound is just a bit dull.

Feel free to ask any questions.

THANKS!