[kova4a]

  Alright, thanks for the quick reply!
 
I think I'm gonna cross the A161Ps off my list of potential list then. What about the Shure 215? I know they're warmer and bassier, but would their highs/mids be any better than the AM800? 
Yeah, I think I like the sparkle and the v shape signature  I get with the AM800, so would you think I should avoid the 215s then?
 
The JVC FD80 that joker recommended do look great but I think I'll have to rule them out if they're liely to not fit well.
 
Looking at the guide sorted by sound signature, the only other recommended V shaped IEMs are the Thinksound MS01 and the JVC HA-FXT90, both of which are more than I'd like to spend, but I'm happy getting them if they're gonna be worth it.

Well, I guess you can alwso consider something slightly less v-shaped like the VSD1 or you might go look and ask around The discovery thread as most people there seem to prefer V-shaped and bassy sound and they do buy and try a lot of stuff that joker hasn't reviewed and heard - I know that they were praising the Zero Audio Carbo Basso few months ago and some other iems in your price range.

 

[quartertone]

The AM-800 is only mildly v-shaped. I hardly hear it that way, really.

 

[ljokerl]

  Thanks joker!
 
I noticed fidelio doesn't appear on your Multi-IEM Review Table yet. Any idea when you might review it and add it there?
BTW if I can make a suggestion the table would greatly benefit from another column which describes sound signature. No point in looking at similar scores for sound if they sound very different. I hope you know what I mean.
 
Anyway, I look at that table filtering by price up to $120 and sorting by sound score. R-50M comes first even in front of RE-400 (it's 20% more expensive in fairness though). You described HF2 the way that put's me off for some reason. MA750i looks interesting and it scored better than A161P as well. Do you think S1 will beat them in terms of sound quality? All 4 of them R50M, MA750i, A161P and S1 have similar sound signatures, don't they?
 
I'm wasting your time splitting hairs?

 
Yeah I've been slacking off on adding stuff I've already reviewed over at InnerFidelity. That review of the S1/S2 is here: http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/philips-fidelio-s1-and-s2-ear-headphones . I did also put the S1 in my Buyer's Guide here: http://theheadphonelist.com/articles/earphone-buyers-guide/ 
 
Adding a way to filter by sound signature is on my to-do list. I've tried doing it in the past but always stop when I run into the issue of blurred lines between sound signatures. Do I just leave that column blank when I'm not sure how to classify something? For example the LG Quadbeat is somewhere between "flat" and "v-shaped". I couldn't add it to my current Buyer's Guide because I couldn't figure out where to put it 

 
Anyway, signature-wise the sets you are looking at are all somewhat different. The R-50 is the most "analytical", followed by the A161P which has less treble (including extension) but a little bit more bass punch and a more forward sound. Then comes the S1 which has nice, deep dynamic-driver bass but not still not something I would consider "bassy". It has a more laid-back/spacious presentation than the A161P. The MA750 is the warmest and bassiest of these, I would not classify it as "neutral" in any context, unlike these others. 
 
P.S. the R-50M is a little more expensive than the regular R-50. 
 

  OK, whew, good to hear. I appreciate the response. So, I was perusing the CustomArt's forum post and apparently they're releasing a "Music Two" this month which is actually a dual BA design! Ostensibly, it seems to be all upgrades from the Music Ones.
 
Concerning sweat: OK, right. My ears don't really sweat, but I'll send an email to CustomArt and see if they have any thoughts about it.
 
Haha, OK, right. Universal fit used to be my game, but I might as well get customs if I can fit them in my price range (and on such a good set of IEMs, anyways!). Thank you for your help!

 
The Music Two seems very promising from everything I've been told.
 

  Well, there are a lot of factors that can affect the bass aside from the source's signature. Most phones have high output impedance, which will cause a bass roll off in something like the 16ohm am800. Also phones are made with low-power sound chips, so the output power is usually pretty low, especially android phones as most of them have a lot less power in that department than an iphone for instance and this can also affect the bass, in particular its control and impact. And yeah, while the a161p has pretty good bass for a single BA iem, the am800 has more. It's also good to mention that the a161p is more of a mid-forward iem unlike the V-shaped am800, which has emphasis on the bass and the treble, so with a161p you might also not like the soundstage size and the treble, which rolls off a bit early and is low on sparkle.

 
This is my reservation in recommending the A161P in this case as well. It's just a different sound, and it will likely be even more sensitive to source than the dynamic AM-800 if that's currently a factor. 
 

  Alright, thanks for the quick reply!
 
I think I'm gonna cross the A161Ps off my list of potential list then. What about the Shure 215? I know they're warmer and bassier, but would their highs/mids be any better than the AM800? 
Yeah, I think I like the sparkle and the v shape signature  I get with the AM800, so would you think I should avoid the 215s then?
 
The JVC FD80 that joker recommended do look great but I think I'll have to rule them out if they're liely to not fit well.
 
Looking at the guide sorted by sound signature, the only other recommended V shaped IEMs are the Thinksound MS01 and the JVC HA-FXT90, both of which are more than I'd like to spend, but I'm happy getting them if they're gonna be worth it.

 
The fit of the JVCs is not that bad - certainly better than many other microdriver earphones even if you have small ear canals. There's a long FXD80/FXD70/FXD60 thread somewhere that you might want to look through to see how many people actually had any issues.
 

  The AM-800 is only mildly v-shaped. I hardly hear it that way, really.

 
Yep, mostly the treble energy that does it in this case rather than bass boost. Still a different sound from the A161P.

 

[AgentJ]

What about the Beyerdynamic DTX101? Where do they fit in the scale of things?
If those JVC FDX aren't that bad, then I have even more options :/
What about the MS01 or FXT90?
The VSDS1 looks pretty nice as well :/
(from you last post I've almost completely ruled out the A161p, although I might try to see if i can try a pair to see how they sound. And after a bit more listening to my AM800 I think it is the sparkle/treble that I like, along with a nice but not overpowering bass (boss on ears + bass booster is a bit boomy )

 

[Solarium]

It turns out that I don't have narrow canals, and the Comply P-series slim tips I was using with the W3 was too "slim" for my ears. I used the regular sized tips that came with the W3 and they worked perfectly for noise isolation, but they expanded too much and made my ears feel like there's too much pressure trapped inside. I bought some Comply P regular sized tips and holy mother of God they are AMAZING. I never loved another IEM so much as the W3 with these tips, I would rank the noise isolation as 5/5 and comfort 5/5, and it has the most enjoyable SQ out of my other 3 IEM's that I bought (GR07-BE, X10, MA750), build quality 5/5 and accessories 5/5. It complements my HD650 perfectly as the W3 is very energetic, speedy and has elevated shimmery treble, making my EDM's sound the best I've ever heard. Man I'm freakin in LOVE with the W3!

 

[Chude Mleko]

   
Yeah I've been slacking off on adding stuff I've already reviewed over at InnerFidelity. That review of the S1/S2 is here: http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/philips-fidelio-s1-and-s2-ear-headphones . I did also put the S1 in my Buyer's Guide here: http://theheadphonelist.com/articles/earphone-buyers-guide/ 
 
Adding a way to filter by sound signature is on my to-do list. I've tried doing it in the past but always stop when I run into the issue of blurred lines between sound signatures. Do I just leave that column blank when I'm not sure how to classify something? For example the LG Quadbeat is somewhere between "flat" and "v-shaped". I couldn't add it to my current Buyer's Guide because I couldn't figure out where to put it 

 
Anyway, signature-wise the sets you are looking at are all somewhat different. The R-50 is the most "analytical", followed by the A161P which has less treble (including extension) but a little bit more bass punch and a more forward sound. Then comes the S1 which has nice, deep dynamic-driver bass but not still not something I would consider "bassy". It has a more laid-back/spacious presentation than the A161P. The MA750 is the warmest and bassiest of these, I would not classify it as "neutral" in any context, unlike these others. 
 

Thank you joker, you are always great help.
Regarding sound signature column I would probably try to add all key-words if one doesn't fit. maybe not strictly sound signature related but few components that make the set belong to some group or make it unique. Then in extended search people could choose key words they are interested in like clarity, enhanced bass, wide stage, etc. You could allow to make negative choices as well, like show me all but bassy and siblant. 

 

[Sauntere]

  Thank you joker, you are always great help.
Regarding sound signature column I would probably try to add all key-words if one doesn't fit. maybe not strictly sound signature related but few components that make the set belong to some group or make it unique. Then in extended search people could choose key words they are interested in like clarity, enhanced bass, wide stage, etc. You could allow to make negative choices as well, like show me all but bassy and siblant. 

Or you could just use a symbol like V, U, - as appropriate... 

 

[MoonYeol]

 

  Thank you joker, you are always great help.
Regarding sound signature column I would probably try to add all key-words if one doesn't fit. maybe not strictly sound signature related but few components that make the set belong to some group or make it unique. Then in extended search people could choose key words they are interested in like clarity, enhanced bass, wide stage, etc. You could allow to make negative choices as well, like show me all but bassy and siblant. 

Or you could just use a symbol like V, U, - as appropriate... 

 
And combinations of properties would indicate that it's somewhere between. V + F would be somewhere between V-shaped and Flat. Easy as pie... OR? Whatever you come up with I'm sure that it will be awesome. Just like this thread and the interactive guide.

 

[heliuscc]

Ljokerl, have you tried the Fischer Audio FA4-E XB, in comparison to SD2 & 3. I felt SD3 was too much, but fun, and SD2 too little, and boring in comparison. Hunting for the middle ground really.

 

[Gilly87]

Expensive and discontinued as far as I know.

That's a shame.

The bass of the Reference is less enhanced compared to the SM2/SM3/SM64.

I assumed as much. I found a good deal on a pair of TF10s, I'll stick with them for now and maybe get a reshell/driver upgrade from IM when I get sick of them. Thanks for helping me sift through yet again

 

[TR3v]

Does anyone have any recommendations for a highly durable headphone in the 30-100 dollar range. Pretty much every iem i have owned has broken in 6 months of daily use. My solution to this problem seems to be to recable my headphones and use stronger cabling. Perhaps not the best or most time efficient solution. This question has been asked before and I have never seen a good answer to it. 

 

[Sinocelt]

  Does anyone have any recommendations for a highly durable headphone in the 30-100 dollar range. Pretty much every iem i have owned has broken in 6 months of daily use. My solution to this problem seems to be to recable my headphones and use stronger cabling. Perhaps not the best or most time efficient solution. This question has been asked before and I have never seen a good answer to it. 

 
The Rocket?
 
Quote:

Problem 1 //. It broke... again

ROCKETS aren't just designed in the USA - they're made in USA... in fact, we make pretty much everything ourselves, in-house at our production facility in Nashville, TN, using space-age manufacturing technologies.  These babies are mil-spec durable and are built to take the use (and abuse) of daily wear (and the occasional accident).

• Titanium shells - Super strong, super light, super sound.
• Kevlar tri-weave military grade cables are able to withstand the abuse of  daily use.
• Cables are anchored by Kevlar at 3 points to the shell which prevents broken connections.
• ROCKETS are waterproof to IP65 which means sweat, rain and water not a problem; you can run, bike, and lift in the rain with these!

We're fanatical about the quality and design of our products, and even more nutty about our quality control. Products that successfully leave the building have gone through stringent QC checks. All Aurisonics products are proudly Made in USA.

 

[ljokerl]

What about the Beyerdynamic DTX101? Where do they fit in the scale of things?
If those JVC FDX aren't that bad, then I have even more options :/
What about the MS01 or FXT90?
The VSDS1 looks pretty nice as well :/
(from you last post I've almost completely ruled out the A161p, although I might try to see if i can try a pair to see how they sound. And after a bit more listening to my AM800 I think it is the sparkle/treble that I like, along with a nice but not overpowering bass (boss on ears + bass booster is a bit boomy )

 
The DXT101 is honestly a bit of a downgrade from your AM-800. Bass is boomier and the treble is not as clean and clear. The MS01 is also not much of an upgrade from the AM-800, more of a sidestep. It has more bass but a little less clarity. The VSD1 is better but has its own downsides (a little sibilant compared to AM-800 and bass not quite as tight). The FXT90 is very nice but a little large for small ears and has more mid-bass than AM-800 and a more forward and aggressive sound in general. I still like it but the FXD80 is a better match for the AM-800's sound signature. 
 

  It turns out that I don't have narrow canals, and the Comply P-series slim tips I was using with the W3 was too "slim" for my ears. I used the regular sized tips that came with the W3 and they worked perfectly for noise isolation, but they expanded too much and made my ears feel like there's too much pressure trapped inside. I bought some Comply P regular sized tips and holy mother of God they are AMAZING. I never loved another IEM so much as the W3 with these tips, I would rank the noise isolation as 5/5 and comfort 5/5, and it has the most enjoyable SQ out of my other 3 IEM's that I bought (GR07-BE, X10, MA750), build quality 5/5 and accessories 5/5. It complements my HD650 perfectly as the W3 is very energetic, speedy and has elevated shimmery treble, making my EDM's sound the best I've ever heard. Man I'm freakin in LOVE with the W3!

 
Glad you found what you were looking for!
 

  Thank you joker, you are always great help.
Regarding sound signature column I would probably try to add all key-words if one doesn't fit. maybe not strictly sound signature related but few components that make the set belong to some group or make it unique. Then in extended search people could choose key words they are interested in like clarity, enhanced bass, wide stage, etc. You could allow to make negative choices as well, like show me all but bassy and siblant. 

 
Yep, see my reply to MoonYeol below. Allowing filtering by different combinations of sound signatures would be a whole another challenge but if it leads to better results it'll be worth it.
 
Good idea on allowing certain specific ones to be excluded!
 

   
And combinations of properties would indicate that it's somewhere between. V + F would be somewhere between V-shaped and Flat. Easy as pie... OR? Whatever you come up with I'm sure that it will be awesome. Just like this thread and the interactive guide.

 
This is what I was thinking. For things in-between "signatures" the one that applies best would go first and the secondary would go second. For example "V-Shaped/neutral" would be a slightly v-shaped earphone learning towards neutrality (e.g. LG Quadbeat), "Neutral/warm" would be a neutral earphone leaning towards warmth (e.g. StageDiver 2 or HiFiMan RE-600), "Bassy/v-shaped" would be an bass-heavy earphone with a v-shaped overall characteristic (e.g. JVC Xtreme Xplosives). Still needs more thought...
 

Ljokerl, have you tried the Fischer Audio FA4-E XB, in comparison to SD2 & 3. I felt SD3 was too much, but fun, and SD2 too little, and boring in comparison. Hunting for the middle ground really.

 
Sorry, haven't tried any Fischer Amps.
 

That's a shame.
I assumed as much. I found a good deal on a pair of TF10s, I'll stick with them for now and maybe get a reshell/driver upgrade from IM when I get sick of them. Thanks for helping me sift through yet again

 
I still like the sound of the TF10, personally. Just not the fit in stock form.
 

  Does anyone have any recommendations for a highly durable headphone in the 30-100 dollar range. Pretty much every iem i have owned has broken in 6 months of daily use. My solution to this problem seems to be to recable my headphones and use stronger cabling. Perhaps not the best or most time efficient solution. This question has been asked before and I have never seen a good answer to it. 

 
This: http://www.usa.philips.com/c/headphones/oneill-black-sho2205bk_28/prd/en/ 

 

[AgentJ]

Thanks again Joker!
 
So it's basically narrowed down to the Shure 215 and the FXD80 (not too bothered about the mic version as I'll probably get the Bluetooth adapter)
 
If the FXD80 is basically just a better version of the AM800 (as in similar V shapeness), how do the Shures fit in?
 
(also looking at some Jaybird BlueBuds, going on ebay atm for £80, which is out of budget but then again, they do look pretty cool)

 

[nehcrow]

  It turns out that I don't have narrow canals, and the Comply P-series slim tips I was using with the W3 was too "slim" for my ears. I used the regular sized tips that came with the W3 and they worked perfectly for noise isolation, but they expanded too much and made my ears feel like there's too much pressure trapped inside. I bought some Comply P regular sized tips and holy mother of God they are AMAZING. I never loved another IEM so much as the W3 with these tips, I would rank the noise isolation as 5/5 and comfort 5/5, and it has the most enjoyable SQ out of my other 3 IEM's that I bought (GR07-BE, X10, MA750), build quality 5/5 and accessories 5/5. It complements my HD650 perfectly as the W3 is very energetic, speedy and has elevated shimmery treble, making my EDM's sound the best I've ever heard. Man I'm freakin in LOVE with the W3!

Same!
Best IEM I've heard in that price range