Yamaha EPH-100 - Page 12

Just tracked my order and it says "Out for Delivery".

Glad you all appreciate these baby-IEMs for what they are: fun and detailed.

 

I had some PMs expressing doubts and some deception, but I think some people are just expecting too much.

These are not top-tier IEMs, but I honestly think you get 95% of top-tier IEMs for half the price, so it's not like people are going to waste 300$ by trying these...

 

I will repeat something important to me because we're reaching too many pages for people to read the whole thread:

 

EPH-100 are NOT laid-back overall nor do they sound completely natural.

They provide great bass with quite some impact, forward mids with excellent clarity, laid-back treble (not recessed, just not forward).

Overall they provide great instrument separation, good clarity, and an average soundstage but with a good 3D spatialization.

 

But as I discovered when I tested UM3X, EPH-100 can sound very slightly aggressive with some instrument like cymbals, drums and guitar. Some will appreciate this since it makes music like rock / progressive / metal really lively, those who prefer more natural / laid-back sounding IEMs will be in for a surprise (I got this reaction from some GR07 lovers).

For classical music / jazz, I tend to prefer the UM3X for example.

So I guess it will sound fine for pop, hip-hop and rap?

 

Pop certainly, but I'm not a hip-hop/rap fan at all, so no idea for these.

 

Looking forward to it since you have the two most popular dynamic IEMs in this price range (GR07/FXT90). It seems much closer to the FXT90's sound. 

+1

 

For myself they give me everything i could want.

 

With any phone you always sacrifice something, these yamahas give me virtually everything i could want in a universal.

 

Ok so i have more detailed iem's, but they can be dry sounding and lack any real synergy.

 

Not to mention i can be fussy about fit after being spoilt with my customs.

 

I just love how i can just plug in and forget where i am, these aren't about picking out fine detail.

 

For me they are all about character, and they certainly have bags of that.
 

 

Edited by Huxley - 1/20/12 at 1:47pm

Tried comply ts-500 today (a friend ordered some for senn ie6), I managed to get them on without too much of a fight, but they definitely take away from the details, especially in the highs, sounds are muted/muffled, possibly because the front is too soft and is folding over the driver once inserted in ear. They may be more comfortable (for some), and isolate a bit better, but in the long run not worth it. Just for reference I use the stock medium tips, so for people that use larger these will definitely not work, as theyre about the same size when "expanded", and comply doesn't offer anything other than M in the TS series (as far as I know). I've gotten used to the stock tips and find them quite comfortable (worn over the ear), but was just curious if anyone was successful with other tips which were beneficial in fit and isolation?

very first impression - 

drums sound really weird on these.  Cymbals sound very unrealistic and boosted...

Does this change with more burn-in? 

Also it's still a bit of a struggle to fit them in even with the smallest tips

Cymbals sound boosted? To me they sound in the background. Any particuar song I could listen to?

 

Also if these are hard to fit even with the smallest tips, you're doing something wrong. These things are TINY. Just remember you don't necessarily need to fully insert them, just create a firm seal.
 

 

for example,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAtGfJ5ZoDM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOLiEu7275E

Skrillex - Kyoto ft. Sirah

Klaypex - Lights  (I listened to the FLAC ones of these two)

 

Especially in the first one, they sound quite boosted, bright, and unrealistic to me. This makes the EPH-100 sound bright to me, not warm as all of the reviews here seem to suggest.  I think that the trebles sound somewhat bright and a bit gritty.  

The bass reaches very low, but I actually feel that it's a bit lacking in terms of quantity.  I seem to be getting the opposite impression of most people in this thread. Is this because I'm coming from the ATH-CKS50?  

The isolation is very good.  The soundstage definitely feels wider than my ATH-CKS50, and more immersive.

 

I have pretty small ear canals, I needed to shove and twist a bit to even get a seal.  This is a common problem I've had with other IEMs too, though.

 

As I said in my review, same results as you, Comply just don't cut it with these, you lose bass, detail, everything which makes these IEMs fun-sounding...

See there for alternative (large) tips from MEElectronics (M11+ extra-large mushrooms + medium mushrooms inserted inside the previous in reverse position).

http://www.head-fi.org/t/577712/yamaha-eph-100/75#post_8034998

Huge step up for comfort, isolation similar to stock tips.

 

The small tips are only 7mm wide, I'm surprised you can't fit those. Even the LL size is barely wide enough for me.

You don't have to go deep with the EPH-100, stock tips are not conical triple flange, these straight double flanges are not supposed to go beyond the first turn of the ear canals.

 

Concerning cymbals, these are amongst the most difficult instrument to reproduce soundwise. You'll get extreme variations from one IEM to another...

From what I've tried in the past, I'd say cymbals are extremely well rendered with FX700, nearly as natural with UM3X, slightly more harsh with EPH-100 (but not to the point of being unrealistic, you still get the nice decay).

Extreme case was with Pana HJE-900 (dry sounding, borderline aggressive) and JVC HA-FX300 (dry with very short decay, this was unrealistic).

 

If cymbals shock you on the EPH-100, you probably come from IEMs with more laid-back treble. Same for guitar and drums if you come from IEMs with less forward mids.

I can see why people listening IEMs like IE8 or GR07 would find EPH-100 signature really different for drums or cymbals, they're more colored but still non fatiguing.

First YouTube link sounded fine to me, second I could definitely hear the cymbals to be a bit much, but I would like to point out that this is YouTube and who knows what rip and at what quality this was uploaded, second, especially in the 2nd link, I believe that it's the way the track was mastered, and the yamahas are just portraying exactly that. For me I found that they are much more comfortable worn over the ear, this way the strain relief does not get in the way, and when inserting, try not to go straight in but rather 45 degrees (towards your face), the natural path of the ear canal. When you insert you should feel a bit of back pressure, and you should feel the seal vs going straight in.
Sorry if I am not helping, or am not clear, just posting from personal experience with these, going between med, large then small and finally settling on med after figuring out the fit.

Hmm thanks for the advice about the fit.  I'll keep experimenting!

I think most of my complaints are due to my coming from the ATH-CKS50, which is known to be quite bass-heavy.  I'll give these a few more days of burn-in and listening and see what happens.

Same here, I can wear them both ways, but they go slightly deeper when worn over-the-ear because the strain relief is not in the way anymore.

It's really a matter of personal preference / ear shape.

 

 

Hopefully I will get mines next week and will be able to A/B them with the GR-07's (review of the GR-07's on my sig).