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The right earbuds to pleasure my ears

post #1 of 20
11/21/09 at 5:00am
Thread Starter 
Hi guys,
*Disclaimer I'm new here so sorry if what I'm talking about has been covered (I've searched and couldn't find that much)

I have had a pair of Sony MDR-V6's for about 2 years, and I am in desperate need of a new pair. My Sony's never had enough bass, and they are on the verge of breaking. Having the big over the ears is a bit of a hassle for me, so I'm going with earbuds. The biggest problems I have with earbuds, though, are how uncomfortable some of them are. I'm looking for a very comfortable pair that won't fall out of my ears.

I listen to bass-heavy music (When I say bass-heavy, I mean that there is a prominent bassline in the song), but it is not hip hop/rap. I listen to a lot of math rock (Battles, Tera Melos, Don Caballero), prog rock (The Mars Volta, King Crimson, Omar Rodriguez Lopez), jazz (Miles Davis, Return to Forever, Herbie Hancock) and others (Early John Frusciante, The Beatles, Radiohead, Nick Drake, No Age, Pixies, and Pink Floyd to name a few).

A majority of the play count on my iTunes is the Mars Volta, which usually has a lot of things going on at once. I would love to be able to hear the keyboard, vocals, bass, guitar, saxophones, drums, etc., all clearly at once!

I'm looking into the Monster Turbine Pro's (but they are a bit expensive), the Klipsch S4's, and the Etymotic HF5's. I'm also open to other suggestions, but please keep it on the cheaper side.

I was thinking of the Dr. Dre Tours, but I see some pretty bad reviews out there. Some friends have the Beats, and I think they are a little too bass heavy, and I want the treble to shine, too. Are the Tours the same?

I use an iPhone, but mic and control features aren't a must for me, it would be cool to have, but it is not a strong selling point IMO.

Thanks for your time!

-Pinnipeds
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post #2 of 20
11/21/09 at 5:54pm
Thread Starter 
bump :/
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post #3 of 20
11/21/09 at 6:13pm
I'm kind of in the same boat as you, and am also looking at the HF5s. I'll be keeping an eye out in here. What's your price range?
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post #4 of 20
11/21/09 at 6:16pm
I'd say an Ultimate Ears Super.fi 4 or 5 depending on your price range, also comply foam tips are great for comfort.
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post #5 of 20
11/21/09 at 6:32pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Danls92 View Post
I'd say an Ultimate Ears Super.fi 4 or 5 depending on your price range, also comply foam tips are great for comfort.
Having owned the SF4, there is a problem that can make the canalphones really suck - namely the fit issue. Unless you have huge ear canals, the supplied tips aren't going to fit/stay in, and SQ won't be as good as a result.

[I haven't tried the 5, hopefully it's much better]
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post #6 of 20
11/21/09 at 6:43pm
Thread Starter 
My price range is probably about $230 and under
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post #7 of 20
11/21/09 at 7:04pm
Thread Starter 
Very interested in the super.fi 5's, but I saw the 5pro's and was wondering if that would be a better option for me because I listen to (taken from Ultimate Ears website), "Rock, rock derivatives"?
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post #8 of 20
11/21/09 at 8:02pm
No etys?
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post #9 of 20
11/21/09 at 9:12pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by DeusEx View Post
No etys?
Does that mean etymotic?

I'm looking at the HF5's but more specifically now the ER-4's

So many decisions!!
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post #10 of 20
11/21/09 at 9:30pm
Well, you could narrow it down a lot if you could specify what kind of sound you're looking for - there's a nice glossary here if you don't know how to describe it.
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post #11 of 20
11/21/09 at 9:42pm
Thread Starter 
Based on that glossary, I would say:

Aggressive and Bass

Here's an example of what I listen to, also:
YouTube - Cygnus... Vismund Cygnus-The Mars Volta
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post #12 of 20
11/21/09 at 9:53pm
I'd recommend UE, but this is based on my experience with the super.fi 4 only - if you have large ear canals, then it's definitely a good idea. Otherwise, I wouldn't know.
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post #13 of 20
11/21/09 at 10:03pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Halftrack View Post
I'd recommend UE, but this is based on my experience with the super.fi 4 only - if you have large ear canals, then it's definitely a good idea. Otherwise, I wouldn't know.
:/

Me= small ear canals
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post #14 of 20
11/21/09 at 10:04pm
If you have tiny ear canals, you might want to spring for the Klipsch Image X5/X10. I don't remember what people say they sound like, but you can find the relevant reviews through search.
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post #15 of 20
11/21/09 at 10:38pm
I have not used them, but you could try the non Pro Monster Turbines that are due for release with ControlTalk.

Earphone Solutions have them for pre-order ($169).

I had triple.fi10vi's for use with iphone and the cable developed a fault within first 2 months. I don't think I will bother with UE's again.

I have just gone back to using Senn IE8's which has the bass that you are looking for and I couldn't be happier (I also listen to your genre of music, Mars Volta, QOTSA, At The Drive In etc).

I will sacrifice the iphone mic function until Senn or a third party company release a mic cable (fingers crossed).

Does anyone know if there is a mic cable for the IE8 out already? I google searched and could not find anything.
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