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Custom IEM's: $300-$400 Range?

post #1 of 17
8/17/10 at 11:17am
Thread Starter 

I'm debating between the following:

SA CT6

Fidelity Triples

JH5 Pros

Livewire Trips

 

I have a few questions in particular as well.

 

I listen to 60% Hip-hop (I dance) and 20% Indie Rock and 20% Rock.  Which IEM's would give me a nice but not overpowering bass?

 

Which company is known for the best moldings/fit?

 

Do the number of dedicated drives make a difference in sound clarity?  I know that the Sleeks are single drivers.  Will those pale in comparison to the other similarly priced triple driver IEM's?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

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Gear mentioned in this thread:

JH Audio JH5 Pro Custom In-Ear Monitors
post #2 of 17
8/17/10 at 12:42pm

Any specific reason you want to get a entry level custom over a High Tier Universal IEM?

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post #3 of 17
8/17/10 at 12:46pm
Thread Starter 

Well I dance and I'm college so most of my time is spent between headphones be it while I dance or while I study.  I experience some ear fatigue (I dunno if that's what it's called) and I've read that with the right fitting, custom IEM's alleviate this fatigue very well.  Also, I've never spent more than $20 on headphones and thought it might be a good investment.

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post #4 of 17
8/17/10 at 12:54pm

+1 on custom IEM's alleviating fatigue (my primary reason for remolding my TF10s).  as far as fit goes, I would imagine that the audiologist you visit to get your ear molds done would probably play a bigger role in that.  

 

I can't comment any further since I went the remold route to get my customs, but just wanted to say: great investment---you'll be able to study just about anywhere w/o noise being an issue! :)

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post #5 of 17
8/17/10 at 1:06pm
Thread Starter 

I'm just stuck because while they're all similarly priced, they all have different numbers of drivers lol

 

I've been talking to someone on head-fi and he says a single driver gives more coherency while multiple drivers give a broader range.

 

i dont know what i want....

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post #6 of 17
8/17/10 at 1:21pm

I think you would better off getting a custom ear piece like the UM56 and using that with a Universal IEMs because the lower entry IEMs Aren't really that much better for their price and according to some a side step down from other top tier Universals. Also With universals getting foam tips like the olives and comply help with the fatiguing :D

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post #7 of 17
8/17/10 at 2:54pm
Thread Starter 

I don't really wanna risk mix-n-matching parts of different IEM's.  I've never really been one to fiddle with things like that.  I'm more of the type to buy something and stick with it through thick and thin (preferable more of the latter than the former). 

 

I think I've narrowed it down to Fidelity Triples or JH5 Pros.

SACT6's have a single driver, and that's kind of a turnoff for 300 bucks.

Livewire has horrendous customer service (or so I've read) and the turnaround time is long.

 

Anyone wanna try and convince me to get either the fidelities or the jh5's?

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post #8 of 17
8/17/10 at 11:42pm



 

Quote:
Originally Posted by krnxbboi90 View Post

I don't really wanna risk mix-n-matching parts of different IEM's.  I've never really been one to fiddle with things like that.  I'm more of the type to buy something and stick with it through thick and thin (preferable more of the latter than the former). 

 

I think I've narrowed it down to Fidelity Triples or JH5 Pros.

SACT6's have a single driver, and that's kind of a turnoff for 300 bucks.

Livewire has horrendous customer service (or so I've read) and the turnaround time is long.

 

Anyone wanna try and convince me to get either the fidelities or the jh5's?


You should ask around about the customer service for the fidelity's. JH has received generally good to very good reports about its CS.
 

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post #9 of 17
8/17/10 at 11:55pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by MKang25 View Post

Any specific reason you want to get a entry level custom over a High Tier Universal IEM?


Having not really followed customs to any great extent take my comment with a massive grain of salt.

 

Wouldn't it be a better price to performance ratio getting a top tier universal rather than lower end customs?

My reasoning behind this is you are paying for the molding process as well as impressions as well as the drivers with customs.

With universals you don't pay so much for the process of making them, and more money can go into better drivers, etc.

 

That aside I'd go with the JH5. Jerry Harvey has a great reputation here, great customer service as well as he knows custom IEMs inside out. Not only that, he also makes some of the best top tier customs on the market to date.


Edited by Hero Kid - 8/17/10 at 11:56pm
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post #10 of 17
8/18/10 at 5:32am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hero Kid View Post




Having not really followed customs to any great extent take my comment with a massive grain of salt.

 

Wouldn't it be a better price to performance ratio getting a top tier universal rather than lower end customs?

My reasoning behind this is you are paying for the molding process as well as impressions as well as the drivers with customs.

With universals you don't pay so much for the process of making them, and more money can go into better drivers, etc.

 

That aside I'd go with the JH5. Jerry Harvey has a great reputation here, great customer service as well as he knows custom IEMs inside out. Not only that, he also makes some of the best top tier customs on the market to date.

 

Could you list some top-tier universals in the price range of 300-400 bucks?  the UE Triple Fi 10 comes to mind but I don't know if the SQ would be better on those than a custom IEM of the same price.
 

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post #11 of 17
8/18/10 at 5:52am
Quote:
Originally Posted by MKang25 View Post

I think you would better off getting a custom ear piece like the UM56 and using that with a Universal IEMs because the lower entry IEMs Aren't really that much better for their price and according to some a side step down from other top tier Universals. Also With universals getting foam tips like the olives and comply help with the fatiguing :D


Where did you get that info from

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post #12 of 17
8/18/10 at 5:57am

Having just received my Livewires TRIPS yesterday after having ordered them in the beginning of June, I can confirm that, yes, indeed, the turnaround time is ridiculous and the customer service completely sucks.  It took me a week just to get someone to answer the phone when I tried to call and check in during July.  That having been said, they sound absolutely knock your socks off fantastic for the money.

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post #13 of 17
8/18/10 at 6:07am

Actually that's not that long a wait compared to some who have waited around 4 months or so :P

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post #14 of 17
8/18/10 at 7:17am
Thread Starter 

JHAudio ships your order 5 days after they receive your impressions at the lab O.o...that's amazing...

 

and @Dev Avidon, have you tried any other custom IEM's to compare the sound to?

 

Edit:  What does everyone think about Alien Ears?  I'm deciding between C3's and JH5 Pros'


Edited by krnxbboi90 - 8/18/10 at 9:45am
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post #15 of 17
8/18/10 at 2:41pm

     Quote:

Originally Posted by krnxbboi90 View Post

Could you list some top-tier universals in the price range of 300-400 bucks?  the UE Triple Fi 10 comes to mind but I don't know if the SQ would be better on those than a custom IEM of the same price.

 

There's tonnes and as always a tonne of mixed opinions on them. This thread is a brilliant place to start.

http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/476315/top-tier-universal-iem-comparison-chart-frequency-response-charts-discussion
 

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Gear mentioned in this thread:

JH Audio JH5 Pro Custom In-Ear Monitors
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