UPDATE:  I am glad you enjoy your 77X's.. I have the basic 77's and they need much more burn in.. The JVC HA-FXZ200's have cooked for four days at 24 hours per day.. I read one review where the author claimed it was peaky in the high frequencys.. He was right for the amount of burn in he gave them.. That I also heard on the third day but is now smoothed out.. I really like the 200's a lot.
 
This is the first IEM I own without a V shaped mid.. I really like the mid presence..  The treble still has just a tinny bit of harshness in the most upper registers.. I am hoping that more burn in will smooth that out. I can EQ it out but then there goes the detail.. BTW the JVC HA-FXZ200's respond really well to a good EQ making the IEM's adaptable to most any genera of music.. I feel the bass is is very well controlled and plentiful. but probably not enough for bass heads.
 
A bit of my backround if some of you wonder how I qualify.. I was University tested for sound hearing as part of a study among musicians in the state.. They placed me in the top 3% of the best hearing possible.. I also recorded a live 33rpm album with Doc Severencen many many moons ago.. I also helped voice the Zana Duex along with Craig of Eddie Current.. Been in many 3,4,& 5 piece bands.. So I often compare an IEM as to what I was use to hearing in a band or orchestra. But of course I know most all IEM's put you in front of the stage.. Thats OK.
 
I digress! Sorry, back to IEM's.  Right now my thinking is the JVC HA-FXZ200 will reign as one of the best IEM's out there. I concur with the findings of most reviewers on this and find no need to reiterate what has already been said.. This is not a thread for the 200's anyway.. But the ATH-CKS1000 has also cooked for about four days.. I still think they could use a bit more burn in though.. At first I really liked them as they come across as silky smooth and very pleasant.. Still is... However after listening to the JVC HA-FXZ200's, the CKS1000's pail in comparison and a bummer to review after the 200's.. The CKS1000's hold there own against the 200;s until you consider the recessed mids are lacking.. The mids are so forward and warm N pleasent on the 200's that they have spoiled my ears. I fact I like them more than my Westone 3's. But the 3's need much more burn in and diden't get it as I was distracted by the JVC HA-FXZ200's arrival so they both could equal out after more burn in. BTY the Westone 3's are down to around $159 now.
 
Don;t get me wrong here.. The ATH CKS1000's are a real delight to have and hear.. They are an upper tier IEM also. Just to bad that I am reviewing them with the JVC HA-FXZ200's.. The CKS1000's are simply outclassed a bit by the excellent FXZ200's.. But the CKS1000's  are totally worth the purchase, but honestly the JVC HA-FXZ200 is a must have first buy along with the Westone 3's @ Sonic/$159. And the 200's @ $179 its a no brainer..   Oh, about thoes CKS77's! 

I have not had the chance to hear any of the Sonic Fuel lineup and don't find the reviews and discription to suit my tasts. But thats me, you are different.. If ya like em, than so be it. I hope it works out for you in the end...

I've owned my ATH CKS77 for over a year now, but my taste in bass has changed and I prefer something tighter and less boomy. So I tried a small mod on my CKS77. There is a small bass port on the earphone near where the ear tip is. Covered the port with tape which effectively converts this to a sealed enclosure. I find the earphones to be MUCH less boomy now, and bass is more controlled/tighter.
 
Anyone else care to try this and let me know what you think?

Hi guys! Sorry for bad english. I want to know where the best sub bass? in ATH-CKS77 or CKS77X the new model? And how do they sound compared to brainwavz m2? Thanks!

I have sennheiser IE6 and wow!!! the cks77's soundstage is wow!!!!!!!

Hey guys,
Sorry for digging up this thread, but I can't really find the answers I need. I recently bought the Monoprice 9963 because of its reviews, but I was so disappointed I nearly tossed them. I never considered myself a basshead till recently, but ******* they sounded like squeaky mice and I desperately need my thumping bass. I'm from an audiophile, so I'll trust all the happy users here.
My questions:
Are the $55-60 ones on ebay and amazon trustworthy? Why are the prices either $60 or $100? What is that $40 difference? (is it because the cheaper ones have a Japanese manual and Japan-only warranty?? is the warranty something I should worry about?)?
 
How is durability? Has anyone broken theirs, like worn cable, accident, or just stop working?
 
And, still durability: Has anyone recabled one of these, out of need or just curiosity? Is it possible/has it been done?
I ask because my **** usually breaks at the cable first from bundling for storage and accidental tugging/yanking :/

Are these good for only specific genres

cylpol1 said:

Are these good for only specific genres

Click to expand...

It depends on how much you like your bass. These are bass canons and I enjoy them for all sorts of genres, but they aren't particularly great for rock/metal because the bass sort of gets in the way a bit. I assume it's the same for classical but I don't listen to that genre at all. If you like huge bass then I definitely recommend these because they are really fun, but they aren't a jack of all trades due to the big low end and warm signature.

Are the trebles recessed

cylpol1 said:

Are the trebles recessed

Click to expand...

I don't think the treble is recessed, it's not super sparkly though. My biggest problem with them is that the mids can sometimes sound too warm on certain tracks, and there is a lack of separation on complicated tracks.

cylpol1 said:

  Are these good for only specific genres

Click to expand...

Dsnuts has posted in another thread that there are now better options than the ATH-CKS77 at this price range.  I had my pair of these and the lows were great with very good deep and mid (punchy) bass, the mids were bassy to the point that they were muddy.  But, they were smooth and clear enough for them to be enjoyable.  The soundstage was very good.  The highs had a peak at the 3-5 kHz range that made them sound sharp/piercing and cheap.  In the end, the ATH-CKS77 were several steps ahead in the way to get a bass heavy IEM model, with clean mids and healthy highs, without getting you to that goal.  They were a very good buy and if I had them, I would still use them.  Now that I don't have them, I would go for other options in the search for that big and heavy bass that doesn't ruin the mids and highs. 

What would you recommend for me. I'm looking for slight bass increase and good treble under 100

cylpol1 said:

  Are the trebles recessed

Click to expand...

No. There is a good amount of treble on the ATH-CKS77.

Also, the 77x sounds better than the original 77. Everything is slightly more refined. Still very similar though.