expensive high end canalphones vs expensive high end headphones.which do you prefer?

what is considered expensive?

The latter. Better price to performance ratio in most (not all) cases.

I don't like canalphones.

Lindrone did a ranking of personal preference, which was as follows:
- Sony CD3000
- HD650
- Shure E5c
- Grado HP1000
- Audio Technica W2002
- Audio Technica A900
- HD600
- HD580
- Shure E3c
- Grado SR225
- Ety ER-4
- HD590
[credits: lindrone]

Not sure how that list may have been altered as time went on.

Note to lindrone: If you would like me to remove your list, please let me know, I will do so immediately -- just thought it was a fairly thorough personal preference comparison.

I'd say my hd650/zu is about equal to my sensaphonics. The hd650/zu does soundstage and texture a little better. The sensaphonics do dynamics, impact and clarity a little better.

The sensaphonics would win overall because they are portable, isolate sound, and I can lay on my side with them (a big plus).

They are both very amazing headphones.

canalphones.

i am sucker for small things that do amazing things - the sensaphonics sound incredible and they fit in my ears...sweet.

on a technical level - the isolation really gives canalphones a leg up on headphones, especially open cans. there's something really nice about being able to hear just your music and nothing else in between, not to mention you can do this in even the noisiest environments. headphones don't give you that silent backdrop to enjoy your music.

I just decided on this myself and picked canal phones -- just came back from a meeting with the audiologist to get a pair Sensaphonics 2X-s.

Two reasons why. First, canal phones are more comfortable to me for extended listening sessions. No vise grip on the head, weight on the head, abrasive pads, etc to worry about. Now, some people may find the reverse is true. But for me, I enjoy long listening sessions with the Shure E3c than Grado SR-225 (sound wise, the SR-225 destroys the E3C in terms of highs and detail). Second, canal phones are hard to beat when it comes to sound isolation and portability. I travel quite a bit and have to listen to different rooms in the house to escape from all kinds of extraneous noises.

Just my two cents.

Since Grado are used for Rock music, I want to point out that another area the 2x-s does better than the hd650. They are more aggresive and have more impact making rock music much more enjoyable.

I also do not like canalphones. All my listening is done at home, so portability and isolation is not an issue with me. For their sound quality, I'll take headphones any day.

For now I would say expensive high end cans and that's only because I haven't purchased a set of high end canalphones as of yet. If they are as comfortable as most canalphones owners say they are then I might have to rethink my answer.

I prefer expensive headphones. I only use canalphones when i'm moving around, and when i'm moving I get external noise, cord noise, foot thumping noise, etc, etc, which means you can't ear the details even if you've got the best canal phones in the world.

Once I got my molds fixed for perfect fit and got past the one week break in period of learning how insert and remove, they are so comfortable you don't realize you have them on.

In a perfect world, I'd prefer the headphones -- namely my 225s, as I haven't heard anything better (in my opinion) as of yet.

Of course, in a perfect world, I'm sitting in a comfortable chair, it's dead quiet, and nobody is bothering me. And the world is rarely perfect.

Hmm.. time to revise the list? In order of preference, best on top, going to the lowest...

- Sensaphonic ProPhonic 2X-S
- Sony CD3000
- Grado HP1000
- Audio Technica W2002
- Audio Technica A900
- HD650
- Shure E5c
- Ultimate Ears UE-10 Pro
- HD600
- HD580
- HD25
- Sony F1
- Grado SR225
- Shure E3c
- Ety ER-4
- HD590
- Shure E2c
- Sony V6
- HD280

Keep in mind this is a list of preferences, not necessarily technical superiority. There are sound signatures that I would take over technical superiority, such as Shure E5c being ranked higher than UE-10 Pro.

Shure E3c moved down the food chain a bit, just didn't like it as much as when I first had them... I guess it's just that higher end IEM's spoiled me. UE-10 Pro doesn't rank high on that list either, just don't like its sound all that much. HD650 moved down similarly for the same reason.

Anyway, if I was to pick between having only an expensive high-end IEM or high-end headphone, I think I would pick the IEM. IEM can be hi-fi and portable, I can't take any of the high-end headphone with me on my daily commute or to work. Also you have to throw in the cost of a headphone amp as well... where most high-end headphone sound pretty pedestrian without a good amp, IEM can sound awesome even without one.

Of course, these days, what I would consider "expensive" are the custom IEM's... I'm going to be getting an UE5c soon, so we'll see if it makes that "expensive" list or get closer towards the E5c's relatively "affordable" list.. hehehe.. Sounds a little funny, "expensive" should be determined by price, not the relative class of performance.. uh.. anyway.