NR76
New Head-Fier
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- May 22, 2010
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Some of this is probably obvious to the more experienced folks here, but I would like to share my impressions anyhow for anyone who is relative novice like me.
I am working with limited budget and am currently in the process of selecting betwen Klipsch S4 and Ety MC5 (awaiting arrival). And, while I was at it, I decided to order Fiio E5 to find out myself if I could hear any difference with the inexpensive amp. My only experience with good earphones prior to this is with er6i that I had for three years until a few weeks back and hearing two tracks on Shure SE530.
So, here are my findings so far. You will notice that I have nothing for MC5 yet, but I hope to get them tomorrow and will post my impressions then.
1. Klipsch S4 vs. er6i- I have had S4 for about a week now. Burnt in for 100+ hours. I had er6i for three years, but they broke a few weeks back.
SQ:
ER6i: Great clarity of sound. Never felt overwhelmed by the lows, mids or the highs. The lows were lacking sometimes - there were some tracks that demanded bass quantity and they didn't sound that great without the bass.
S4:Initially, the sound on S4 seemed muddy enough to me for me to contemplate returning right after listening in the parking lot. The bass seemed too overwhelming on a few tracks. Also, more than my ety er6i, they really seemed to bring out the weaknesses in some of my poorly recorded / older tracks. However, after a week of listening, they sound much better to me now. I do not have my er6i to compare, but I do not miss the clear highs as much now as I was missing the first day. I cannot tell if they have grown on me or if the sound quality has improved with burn in. In terms of bass, the quantity is way more than ety er6i and I was amazed at what I was missing on some tracks that really demanded good bass presentation. Also, the sound stage on S4 seems wider / better to me than er6i.
Score: S4 = er6i, so far for me. Might be different if I could do A/B between S4 and er6i. From my memory, loved the clarity of er6i; like the bass and sound stage of S4.
Comfort: I am using the medium tips that come with S4 now. They are a lot more comfortable than the tri flange or any other tips I used with my ety er6i. With the tri flange in er6i, my ears always felt sore after long hours of listening on flights.
Score: S4 > er6i
Isolation: I used tri flange with er6i and they take isolate way better than S4 with any tip. With er6i, it used to be close to silence even when I was not playing any music. I loved them especially on long flights. S4 seem a tad better than normal earbuds but not as good as er6i.
I did realize, though, that the isolation from S4 may be enough too. I was listening music on S4 when my house burglar alarm system went off, and I did not hear anything until the music stopped. And even then, it took me a while to realize that the soft intermittent sound I was hearing was the blaring burglar alarm! I would love to try these on a long flight to see if they work out well enough or not.
Score: er6i > S4
2. S4 vs. S4 amped with FiiO e5:
I cannot tell the difference. It there is any, I am still missing it after testing for a day. Maybe my impressions will change after some more listening, but right now, I would say that getting FiiO E5 is a waste of money for a non trained ear like mine. E5 is actually very small - almost like iPod shuffle - but I don't think it is worth carrying aroudn with the extra wiring, charging etc. for a sound difference that is almost impreceptible.
Thanks.
I am working with limited budget and am currently in the process of selecting betwen Klipsch S4 and Ety MC5 (awaiting arrival). And, while I was at it, I decided to order Fiio E5 to find out myself if I could hear any difference with the inexpensive amp. My only experience with good earphones prior to this is with er6i that I had for three years until a few weeks back and hearing two tracks on Shure SE530.
So, here are my findings so far. You will notice that I have nothing for MC5 yet, but I hope to get them tomorrow and will post my impressions then.
1. Klipsch S4 vs. er6i- I have had S4 for about a week now. Burnt in for 100+ hours. I had er6i for three years, but they broke a few weeks back.
SQ:
ER6i: Great clarity of sound. Never felt overwhelmed by the lows, mids or the highs. The lows were lacking sometimes - there were some tracks that demanded bass quantity and they didn't sound that great without the bass.
S4:Initially, the sound on S4 seemed muddy enough to me for me to contemplate returning right after listening in the parking lot. The bass seemed too overwhelming on a few tracks. Also, more than my ety er6i, they really seemed to bring out the weaknesses in some of my poorly recorded / older tracks. However, after a week of listening, they sound much better to me now. I do not have my er6i to compare, but I do not miss the clear highs as much now as I was missing the first day. I cannot tell if they have grown on me or if the sound quality has improved with burn in. In terms of bass, the quantity is way more than ety er6i and I was amazed at what I was missing on some tracks that really demanded good bass presentation. Also, the sound stage on S4 seems wider / better to me than er6i.
Score: S4 = er6i, so far for me. Might be different if I could do A/B between S4 and er6i. From my memory, loved the clarity of er6i; like the bass and sound stage of S4.
Comfort: I am using the medium tips that come with S4 now. They are a lot more comfortable than the tri flange or any other tips I used with my ety er6i. With the tri flange in er6i, my ears always felt sore after long hours of listening on flights.
Score: S4 > er6i
Isolation: I used tri flange with er6i and they take isolate way better than S4 with any tip. With er6i, it used to be close to silence even when I was not playing any music. I loved them especially on long flights. S4 seem a tad better than normal earbuds but not as good as er6i.
I did realize, though, that the isolation from S4 may be enough too. I was listening music on S4 when my house burglar alarm system went off, and I did not hear anything until the music stopped. And even then, it took me a while to realize that the soft intermittent sound I was hearing was the blaring burglar alarm! I would love to try these on a long flight to see if they work out well enough or not.
Score: er6i > S4
2. S4 vs. S4 amped with FiiO e5:
I cannot tell the difference. It there is any, I am still missing it after testing for a day. Maybe my impressions will change after some more listening, but right now, I would say that getting FiiO E5 is a waste of money for a non trained ear like mine. E5 is actually very small - almost like iPod shuffle - but I don't think it is worth carrying aroudn with the extra wiring, charging etc. for a sound difference that is almost impreceptible.
Thanks.
