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Replacement for Phonak PFEs

post #1 of 15
2/14/12 at 9:50am
Thread Starter 

I'm looking for a replacement for my Phonak Audéo PFE 121s ('Gold' version).

 

Firstly, what I like about the PFEs and thus what I would like:

  • The sound.  I'm not a basshead and I find the mids and treble of the PFE to be utterly wonderful.  The neutral nature of the PFEs is great as I don't like my music to be coloured.
  • The fit.  The PFEs fit very well.  They're not perfect (no laughing now), but they are very comfortable and the seal is good.
  • The price.

 

What I don't like:

  • The build quality.  Generally it is very good, but without the silicon guides the wire cover came loose.  This made them uncomfortable.
  • The filters.  I only use the neutral ones and prefer it that way, so that isn't a negative.  The problem I have is that they get clogged up quickly, even after cleaning the tips after each session.  Not only is replacing the filters annoying (though not difficult), they are also rather expensive.  Having to carry the whole case around is an annoyance as well.
  • The mic preventing the wire toggle from going all he way up.  I think this might have contributed to the wire cover wearing.

 

Anyway, I feel I have got rather sidetracked, so here's a quick summary of what I'm looking for:

 

  • Same sound.  If there is an IEM which is more neutral (e.g. if the PFE has a lack of bass) then it would be preferably.
  • No more expensive (the PFEs cost about £130).  I might be willing to go £20 higher, but ideally I want something cheaper.
  • Comfortable fit.  It doesn't have to be as good.
  • Better build quality, specifically the wires.
  • Preferably no replaceable filters; though if there are better ones I would consider them (not that I know of any).
  • Cable controls if available, but these aren't important.  If there are some, they would need to be better than the PFE one.

 

 

I understand there is a second revision of the PFEs.  Unless the build quality is better, then I'm not that interested and the filter issue will probably still be there.  For how much they cost, the PFEs were brilliant, so I would be willing to get some slightly worse IEMs.

 

 

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post #2 of 15
2/14/12 at 9:54am

Etymotic HF2's? The balance is neutral and it's 68 pounds on Amazon.co.uk.

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post #3 of 15
2/14/12 at 9:57am

+1 on the HF2s, once you get past the discomfort of shoving the triflanges in your ear, they are comfortable for long periods of time. The distance between the start of the tip and the filter is quite long so your filter clogging problem shouldn't be as bad...they are removable too.

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post #4 of 15
2/14/12 at 11:12am
Thread Starter 

Thanks.

 

There already seems to be a consensus (albeit of two)?!  At that price I'm not sure I can resist.  I could also handle them with a little less care.  As for the triflanges; I'm sticking something in my ear anyway, so it probably wouldn't be a problem.

 

Other than being neutral, do the Etymotic's have similar sound quality (excuse my terminology)?

 

The HF3s and HF5s are also in my price range.  Would either be worth getting?


Edited by Tams - 2/14/12 at 11:20am
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post #5 of 15
2/14/12 at 4:05pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tams View Post

Thanks.

 

There already seems to be a consensus (albeit of two)?!  At that price I'm not sure I can resist.  I could also handle them with a little less care.  As for the triflanges; I'm sticking something in my ear anyway, so it probably wouldn't be a problem.

 

Other than being neutral, do the Etymotic's have similar sound quality (excuse my terminology)?

 

The HF3s and HF5s are also in my price range.  Would either be worth getting?



Etymotic's are a lot brighter than the PFEs (with grey filters).  The Etymotics also have less bass than the PFEs (with grey filters).  Which filters are you using on your PFE?

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post #6 of 15
2/14/12 at 4:18pm

The HF5's and HF3's are both good deals, even at the MSRP, just that the HF2's were on sale (never happens here in the US) so I thought I'd point that out.
 

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tams View Post

Thanks.

 

There already seems to be a consensus (albeit of two)?!  At that price I'm not sure I can resist.  I could also handle them with a little less care.  As for the triflanges; I'm sticking something in my ear anyway, so it probably wouldn't be a problem.

 

Other than being neutral, do the Etymotic's have similar sound quality (excuse my terminology)?

 

The HF3s and HF5s are also in my price range.  Would either be worth getting?



 

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post #7 of 15
2/14/12 at 4:56pm



 

Quote:
Originally Posted by tinyman392 View Post



Etymotic's are a lot brighter than the PFEs (with grey filters).  The Etymotics also have less bass than the PFEs (with grey filters).  Which filters are you using on your PFE?



Not so much the HF like those discussed here. 4p definitely so but he also asked for comfort and ETs sound best with their triple flanges for that more neutral balance. Problem is that those are brain scratchers for some. If I were the OP, I'd lose the ear guides and use the slider on the cable to tension the cables enough to stay in place as designed. The wax fix is complys with wax guard. If using gray filters, you'll be fine with those sonically. It's also possible to clean filters. I've forgotten how but something like a hydrogen peroxide or alcohol soak with some compressed air to dry should work. Maybe a light brushing at some point in the process depending.


Edited by goodvibes - 2/14/12 at 5:00pm
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post #8 of 15
2/14/12 at 7:06pm
Thread Starter 

I'm using the grey filters (I call them neutral, but really they aren't).  I prefer them.  

 

 

If the PFEs had more bass with the greys, then with the blacks, or even more so with the greens they'd have even more.  I would say I noticed the bass with the greys and wouldn't like much more.  They had a 'kick' so to speak.  The main problems I had with the PFEs were build quality and the filters.  Especially the filters.  New ones would last maybe two weeks and then one of them would usually rapidly go, becoming useless (only a very, very faint murmur).  I would get more PFEs as I loved the sound, but really those reasons really put me off.  I'm therefore mainly looking for something as similar as possible, but with less hassle.

 

 

The HF2s are tempting at the £66 price and with a headset.  The RRPs fro the HF2s, HF3s and HF5s all seem to be similar.  Is there much difference between them?  Or rather is there £30 difference?  If not then the HF2s it will be.

 

 

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post #9 of 15
2/14/12 at 7:57pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tams View Post

I'm using the grey filters (I call them neutral, but really they aren't).  I prefer them.  

 

 

If the PFEs had more bass with the greys, then with the blacks, or even more so with the greens they'd have even more.  I would say I noticed the bass with the greys and wouldn't like much more.  They had a 'kick' so to speak.  The main problems I had with the PFEs were build quality and the filters.  Especially the filters.  New ones would last maybe two weeks and then one of them would usually rapidly go, becoming useless (only a very, very faint murmur).  I would get more PFEs as I loved the sound, but really those reasons really put me off.  I'm therefore mainly looking for something as similar as possible, but with less hassle.

 

 

The HF2s are tempting at the £66 price and with a headset.  The RRPs fro the HF2s, HF3s and HF5s all seem to be similar.  Is there much difference between them?  Or rather is there £30 difference?  If not then the HF2s it will be.

 

 



There is a problem with your description of the filters...  The greens have the most bass, followed by the blacks, then the greys...

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post #10 of 15
2/15/12 at 5:22am
Thread Starter 

 

Quote:
Originally Posted by tinyman392 View Post



There is a problem with your description of the filters...  The greens have the most bass, followed by the blacks, then the greys...



No, it was just a poorly constructed sentence.  It was supposed to imply the PFEs with greys have more bass than the Etymonics (I don't know if they do or not, that's why I was asking) and that after that it is the blacks and finally the greens* (I've done it again blink.gif).  Sorry about the confusion.


Edited by Tams - 2/15/12 at 4:24pm
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post #11 of 15
2/15/12 at 7:31am

HF2, 3 and 5 are the same sonically but to get their best those triple flanges need to be worn for a while to know whether you'll find the comfort acceptable. If comfort is a big issue, I'd continue on with the Phonak and make them work with some minor use and wearing adjustments. HF's may be fine for you and are of about equal overall performance but the fit is nothing like the Phonak.

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post #12 of 15
2/15/12 at 8:07am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tams View Post

 



No, it was just a poorly constructed sentence.  It was supposed to imply the PFEs with greys have more bass than the Etymonics (I don't know if they do or not, that's why I was asking) and that after that it is the blacks and finally the greys.  Sorry about the confusion.



Oh, OK, I was going to say, having greens with less bass than grey is a bit of a problem.  The PFEs do have more bass than the Etymotics with grey filters.

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post #13 of 15
2/15/12 at 4:58pm
Thread Starter 

 

Quote:
Originally Posted by goodvibes View Post

HF2, 3 and 5 are the same sonically but to get their best those triple flanges need to be worn for a while to know whether you'll find the comfort acceptable. If comfort is a big issue, I'd continue on with the Phonak and make them work with some minor use and wearing adjustments. HF's may be fine for you and are of about equal overall performance but the fit is nothing like the Phonak.



So, just to make it clear, the higher numbers in the HF range don't mean a different/better sound?  They have different years of manufacture and different features (well, just the remote/lack of).  Are those the only differences?

 

By the fit being nothing like the PFEs do you mean the PFEs are better (in your opinion) or do you mean they are just very different?

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post #14 of 15
2/15/12 at 7:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tams View Post

 



So, just to make it clear, the higher numbers in the HF range don't mean a different/better sound?  They have different years of manufacture and different features (well, just the remote/lack of).  Are those the only differences?

 

By the fit being nothing like the PFEs do you mean the PFEs are better (in your opinion) or do you mean they are just very different?



Larger range in frequency response doesn't necessarily mean better sound.  It really depends on how it's tuned.

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post #15 of 15
2/19/12 at 6:05am

They're all the same with just the Iphone controls as differences. HF3 is later version of HF2. PFE's are a shallower fit with less ear pressure and more comfort. ETs have better isolation with the preferred Triples and smaller.


Edited by goodvibes - 2/19/12 at 6:10am
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