Hi,

I want to get a pair of earbuds (not IEMs) to use when volunteering at philharmonic rehearsal/or hanging with friends/family, as I need to be able to hear the surrounding environment(why my future SE530s or any IEMs won't exactly cut it, and the PTH mic unit with the Shures is too bulky for daily use). Cannot have isolation, since need to communicate with people around me occasionally when listening to music, so earbuds are probably the way to go (no clip-ons or portable headphones like ES7, still not portable enough). They need to be portable, reasonably attractive (no weird Koss stuff), and let's say, budget under $50 (less the better!). I don't have much experience in earbuds, but I have heard that Yuin PK3s are good? (They are rather bland-looking, but SQ takes prevalence over looks)

I listen to:
Mainstream Pop/Korean Pop (Natasha Bedingfield/Ashley Tisdale/Rihanna/Hyori Lee...uptempo songs with good energy and beat, all female vocals)
Alternative/Pop punk rock (Offspring/Blink 182/All-American Rejects)
Orchestral film/game soundtracks (i.e. Dark Knight/Transformers..epic sounding, large-scale stuff)
Classical (Instrumental) (i.e. violin concertos/string quartets/symphonies),

So a lot of acoustic/instrumental as well as pre-produced mixing (pop music) and some female/male vocals...NO Rap/Hip-Hop...but some Trance

Thanks for pointers!

P.S. Source is either iPhone 3GS or Samsung P3 pmp, unamped for portability)

Yuin? Apple?

Apple??? I'm temporarily using Samsung earbuds....Apple is probably worse..

There's also the Sennheiser MX760. I find the soundstage is great with Classical and orchestrated soundtracks. They can be found on eBay for under $20. The short cable/extension modular cable can be annoying at times, but the sound easily makes up for it.

if you can get a chance the Sansa Buds that came with the clip sound great! Most folks keep them wrapped and collecting dust in a drawer..

EDIT: (3-PACK) Original Sandisk Sansa Earbuds Ear Phones $9 on ebay

Definitely Yuin PK3's, trust me. Don't judge by the looks, the sound will blow your mind for $39.

Hmmm...so it's probably Yuin PK3 vs Sennheiser MX760 atm...the sennheisers do look much nicer...which one would sound better?

No Sansa buds for me...the ones that came with my previous Sansa were pretty bad IMO (Clips' probably better...but no thanks, I don't like Sansa build quality in general)

The Sansa buds are awful (I have 3 sets, both styles. from diff't players). The PK3's annihilate them in every possible way.

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Get the sennheiser mx760, in my opinion they sound better than the pk3's, although the pk3's are great buds. mx760 = $20, pk3 = $40, no brainer.

The extension is annoying but the senns do bring a good shirt clip, which helps.

The bland look is the best part, man! Hand them to someone and blow their mind. Definitely the Yuins.

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MX760 sounds better than PK3. There is legit MX760 on eBay that is around $20, and that is a steal even compared to PK3.

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So far it's (yuin) 2 vs 3 (senn)

Is the general consensus that ebay mx760 legit?? Anyone ever get screwed?

And what about the extension being annoying??

I didn't get mine from eBay, but from kjk1281 (but he got his from eBay, so that is pretty much the same thing). So far it seems everyone who got his/her from the same seller (which has a good reputation) are fine. I doubt it is fake since the SQ is pretty much on par with my genuine Senn. MX90vc (which is another Senn flagship earbud). Also, I can find brand new MX760 from local Senn dealer for $30, so the ebay price makes sense for opened box items.

I find the extension to be fine, and I didn't even bother to use shirt clip.

If you're interested, I can part with my PK3's for 30 bucks.

Otherwise, I have heard great things about both the mx760 and the PK3s. I don't like my PK3s because they never fit my left ear though, so beware.