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Can buds be affected by the cold??

post #1 of 13
12/23/08 at 1:00am
Thread Starter 
Anyone know if the performance of IEM's are altered in extremeley cold weather. Or more importantly can it damage the earphones permanantly??
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post #2 of 13
12/23/08 at 1:40am
I'm guessing if your in sub-zero temp it could. And maybe if you left it alone (then it froze) plug it in, turn up the volume, I think it'd break

I'm just guessing
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post #3 of 13
12/23/08 at 2:33am
Sub zero temperature is the freezing point of... IEMs?

If you're worried about wearing them in the cold, I wouldn't, cause your body's temperature will keep them warm. I've worn my TF10s in freezing weather, and the only thing that happened is my MP3 player froze and shut off.
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post #4 of 13
12/23/08 at 2:40am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tony987 View Post
Anyone know if the performance of IEM's are altered in extremeley cold weather. Or more importantly can it damage the earphones permanantly??
On the mechanical level, and the subatomic level... YES.

Zaph|Audio


NK
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post #5 of 13
12/23/08 at 6:37am
I think the only problem would be cable, since it would be more exposed to the cold then the actual earphone. I never noticed any distortion, when wearing my ER6i in -20oC weather, up here in Canada.
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post #6 of 13
12/23/08 at 3:24pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Usama View Post
I think the only problem would be cable, since it would be more exposed to the cold then the actual earphone. I never noticed any distortion, when wearing my ER6i in -20oC weather, up here in Canada.
My ER6i's recently broke after 1.5 years I came to Canada and was using them in -10'c for the first time, after a week the left bud started to buzz whenever any bass was present, at first I put it down to wear and tear, now I'm wondering if the cold affected it?? Have a pair of NE-7's on the way and its -25'c right now and I hope this won't damage them.
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post #7 of 13
12/24/08 at 12:44am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tony987 View Post
My ER6i's recently broke after 1.5 years I came to Canada and was using them in -10'c for the first time, after a week the left bud started to buzz whenever any bass was present, at first I put it down to wear and tear, now I'm wondering if the cold affected it?? Have a pair of NE-7's on the way and its -25'c right now and I hope this won't damage them.
I was actually using the ER6 and not the ER6i so that may make a difference since the ER6 have 48ohm resistance, compared to the ER6i that has 16 ohm. But I never had problems with them while walking in the cold. Do you wear a toque or hat?
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post #8 of 13
12/24/08 at 1:40am
Thread Starter 
Yeah I do wear a hat... especially in -25'c... but would this offer enough protection? would be interesting to find out at what temp' would be a dangerous level to use buds at. I wouldn't normally be so concerned but snowboarding at -30'c it would be good to know in advance rather than find out the hard way.
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post #9 of 13
12/24/08 at 1:57am
I would think some of the pliable material used in the cords and vulnerable in the joints can possibly be damaged in very cold weather.
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post #10 of 13
12/24/08 at 2:47am
i had the er6i for a while in somewhat cold weather..its like around 30C or so here during the winter and never really had problems with it. The sound coming out of them was pretty much the same as if I was indoors. The only difference was the cord. It would get more stiff when I was outside for a while..other than thats its pretty much the same
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post #11 of 13
12/24/08 at 3:05am
It's cold up here, eh? ;-)

I've used Shure e2c's for a couple Toronto winters with no ill effects on the IEM itself. The cables tend to get VERY stiff - something I've noticed with my TF10s this year (apparently the new TF10 cable is a bit better). I wear mine out and they don't fit under my toque, so they get the full cold.
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post #12 of 13
12/27/08 at 12:20am
Update - My TF10's just fell apart!! On one earbud, the clear plastic soundport separated from the shiny blue body! I was walking around outside with them today, it was around 0 °C. Don't know if the cold had anything to do with it or not.
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post #13 of 13
12/27/08 at 12:40am
I haven't had a problem with a difference in sound in the cold... one thing to mention would be that i've never left my IEM's in sub -zero temperatures, they were always on or exposed to body heat -> in a pocket.
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