[Replicant187]

those looking for a secure fit on the go, i recommend this. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B010N63E30/
been using these for awhile, these fit great and improve stability drastically.

 

[rovopio]

   
Replied to your PM, but in short:
- FX1100: more emphasis on lower midrange
- FX850: more emphasis on upper midrange

 
Hi James, I'm sorry I didn't reply to your PM in a timely manner back then. I think I was in the middle of replying to you when my internet suddenly got cut and the next day I totally forgot that I didn't reply until ~3-4 days ago when I check out my PM box.
 
So I ended up getting the fx850. For a $300 IEM (or headphone for that matter), this is the *best* presentation of vocals I've heard so far from things I owned or extensively auditioned. However I dislike midbass (and I severely underestimate how much midbass I thought I'm about to get from this. This is, to my personal taste, a really big midbass hump. So in conclusion I simultaneously hate and love this IEM, love the female vocals presentation in this, and hate the *to my own taste* a very big midbass hump.
 
I tried your back mod, failed spectacularly to insert the straws in because apparently straws >5mm is already larger than the vent even pre-stretching. Bought a  4mm straw, which was apparently too small for the vent, and when I tried stretching them to fit the vent it's almost always a smidge too small to fit the vent so inserting them was really difficult and I again, failed spectacularly. On the other spectrum of that stretching, stretching the straws too far resulting in it becoming too stretchy and/or break.
 
I knew that I had to find that delicate balance between 90% of the straws being too small and 10% being too stretchy and break. So after what seems like the 50th or so try, I tried to stretch a little, took it off, put it on top of the vent, rinse-repeat just with that 1 particular straw. At that point I was finally successful on getting the right stretch size and managed to insert the straws to the vent pretty easily. However, somehow the straws insert just stuck halfway and couldn't go all the way.
 
Cut another straw and repeat the above method of stretch-check-adjust-stretch and managed to getting the right stretch size again, managed to insert the straws again easily as well. Same thing happened, the straws just stuck halfway and didn't go all the way.
 
-----
Then I tried them again, it worked, somewhat. The midbass decreased, but nothing major. *I really think it's because the vent mod was stuck halfway. I love the subbass so I may not do the front mod. I did try it with a Samsung silicone, but that silicone is so flexible, unlike Sony Hybrid, that I didn't feel there was any difference between front modded and unmodded (unlike the back mod that was somewhat hearable).
 
I'm now using them stock and EQ the 150hz down the maximum my DAP allow which is 6db . On a lighter note, the vocal presentation on this is so very good, and the subbass helps gives that nice feeling when listening to them. Now if only the midbass is *way, way less* than this, this'd be a great IEM.

 

[Love Music]

   
Replied to your PM, but in short:
- FX1100: more emphasis on lower midrange
- FX850: more emphasis on upper midrange

I would like to know too. Same preferences as  rovopio 

 

[james444]

   
Hi James, I'm sorry I didn't reply to your PM in a timely manner back then. I think I was in the middle of replying to you when my internet suddenly got cut and the next day I totally forgot that I didn't reply until ~3-4 days ago when I check out my PM box.
 
So I ended up getting the fx850. For a $300 IEM (or headphone for that matter), this is the *best* presentation of vocals I've heard so far from things I owned or extensively auditioned. However I dislike midbass (and I severely underestimate how much midbass I thought I'm about to get from this. This is, to my personal taste, a really big midbass hump. So in conclusion I simultaneously hate and love this IEM, love the female vocals presentation in this, and hate the *to my own taste* a very big midbass hump.
 
I tried your back mod, failed spectacularly to insert the straws in because apparently straws >5mm is already larger than the vent even pre-stretching. Bought a  4mm straw, which was apparently too small for the vent, and when I tried stretching them to fit the vent it's almost always a smidge too small to fit the vent so inserting them was really difficult and I again, failed spectacularly. On the other spectrum of that stretching, stretching the straws too far resulting in it becoming too stretchy and/or break.
 
I knew that I had to find that delicate balance between 90% of the straws being too small and 10% being too stretchy and break. So after what seems like the 50th or so try, I tried to stretch a little, took it off, put it on top of the vent, rinse-repeat just with that 1 particular straw. At that point I was finally successful on getting the right stretch size and managed to insert the straws to the vent pretty easily. However, somehow the straws insert just stuck halfway and couldn't go all the way.
 
Cut another straw and repeat the above method of stretch-check-adjust-stretch and managed to getting the right stretch size again, managed to insert the straws again easily as well. Same thing happened, the straws just stuck halfway and didn't go all the way.
 
-----
Then I tried them again, it worked, somewhat. The midbass decreased, but nothing major. *I really think it's because the vent mod was stuck halfway. I love the subbass so I may not do the front mod. I did try it with a Samsung silicone, but that silicone is so flexible, unlike Sony Hybrid, that I didn't feel there was any difference between front modded and unmodded (unlike the back mod that was somewhat hearable).
 
I'm now using them stock and EQ the 150hz down the maximum my DAP allow which is 6db . On a lighter note, the vocal presentation on this is so very good, and the subbass helps gives that nice feeling when listening to them. Now if only the midbass is *way, way less* than this, this'd be a great IEM.

 
Sounds like you were trying to outdo Sisyphus.

  No idea about straw quality in your neck of the woods, but the ones I have experience with are not that easy to break.
 
To make it clear, the JVCs remain still bassy after the mod, just a lot less compared to stock. They're nowhere near flat though, just saying...
 
I'd still suggest you try the front vent mod, since it not only attenuates bass but also equalizes air pressure in the ear canal. Figuratively speaking, it acts like a relief valve for the hefty stock bass, so its pounding against the ear drum becomes significantly less obtrusive. Recently, I found an even easier way to create a front vent using just a paper napkin, so you might wanna try that. The instructions are for the IE8/80, but I've tried it on the FX850 and it works equally well.
 

  I would like to know too. Same preferences as  rovopio 

 
My PM to him wasn't much longer than my post. I just said that the FX850 have more forward upper mids and treble, so female vocals stand out a little more. And the FX1100 are more forward in the lower mids and a tad warmer, but slightly more laid-back in the female vocal range.
 
FWIW, another head-fier asked me to rate the FX750 vs. FX850 vs. FX1100, bass, mids, treble, unmodded and modded. Here's my reply:
 

Off the top of my head...
(note that I'm no basshead and favor a balanced sound signature)
 
Unmodded:
FX750: b8 m7 t8
FX850: b7 m8 t7
FX1100: b6 m8 t9
 
Modded:
FX750: b9 m8 t8
FX850: b9 m9 t8
FX1100: b10 m9 t9
 
Soundstage is above average imo and pretty much the same on all three.
 
Thing is, the unmodded FX1100 have something congested about their upper-bass that I intensely dislike (hence the low rating). The mod resolves that.
The FX750 are best bang/buck imo, with a bit smaller housings than the others, and you don't have to worry about mmcx connectors.

 

[rovopio]

^
 
I think I might try that! Yeah my issue is with the punch of the bass. I like the subbass and the unique tone the subbass contributes to the general sound, but since my natural preference is more of a Grado / bright IEM... the fx850 midbass punch is overwhelming to me.
 
I found that Fiio's equalizer band doesn't work as well as I would like. Then I tried plugging in the fx850 to my android with poweramp software. Tweaking the EQ here and there and it sounds sort of amazing now. Still bassy and punchy but at least I don't feel like I'm being punched repeatedly by a boxer. I think I really should do the front mod. Since the description for the front mod is that it alleviates pressure, I assume it would attenuates the boxer punch feel?
 
I'm really loving 2/3rd of the sound coming from the fx850 stock, and really hate the 1/3rd of the sound of the stock. Poweramp alleviates the effect significantly, I think I'm going to get some random silicones soon and do the front mod (or a napkin).
 
-----
1) I have a question for you James, the straw back mod, as mentioned I eventually managed to insert the straw piece to the vent, but only halfway in (of a 3mm length straw). Do you have any guess as to why I can only put it halfway in? Is it user-error?
 
2) Also, how can I tell if I insert the straw piece too deep and block all the vents? Is the dynamic lost from inserting the straw piece too deep significantly hearable?

 

[james444]

  Since the description for the front mod is that it alleviates pressure, I assume it would attenuates the boxer punch feel?

 
Exactly. To me, it's not only obtrusive, but mildly painful after prolonged listening. The front vent makes bass feel much easier on the ears, even though there's still plenty of it left.
 

  1) I have a question for you James, the straw back mod, as mentioned I eventually managed to insert the straw piece to the vent, but only halfway in (of a 3mm length straw). Do you have any guess as to why I can only put it halfway in? Is it user-error?
 
2) Also, how can I tell if I insert the straw piece too deep and block all the vents? Is the dynamic lost from inserting the straw piece too deep significantly hearable?

 
1) Take another look at my pictures, it's not supposed to go all the way in. The vent is shaped like a funnel towards the inside, just make sure the straw stays perpendicular to the axis in order to achieve the desired effect (red = straw):
 

 
2) As you stretch the straw, the plastic thins out in some spots and its edge becomes a tad irregular. This irregularity makes sure the vent doesn't get completely sealed and a small amount of airflow is retained. A complete seal is easy to hear, since all dynamics is lost and the IEMs sound muffled. The opposite would be an incomplete insertion, leaving too much airflow and resulting in little to no damping effect on bass.

 

[rovopio]

^
 
Thanks for the additional pointers!! I'm going to hunt for extra silicone on the weekend perhaps. The samsung silicone is so thin, it didn't work as a wedge. I'm looking forward to hear the fx850 post front-mod!

 

[quartertone]

The front mod makes a major difference, transforming them from bass cannons into great all-rounders. The only disadvantage is that the seal is looser (and hence the isolation is even weaker). 

 

[rovopio]

I happen to be completely alright with lesser isolation. That said, I still don't have additional silicones to do the front mod yet. I do know what partially caused my sickness when using the fx850 for prolonged period. The M spiral dot sealed my ears but somehow it made me feels congested and that feeling plus bass cannon equals me feeling that my ears are being constricted, hence the sickness.
 
Changed the tips to the provided foam ones and now I'm completely fine in regards to the congestion feeling. Still bass heavy, but at least I don't feel dizzy and constricted when I'm using them. Will totally try doing the front mod + any other silicone tips that is not the spiral dots. The S while feels a lot nicer, is a little small to my ears, while the M maybe a tad too big.

 

[Lorspeaker]

 
fx850 thermal underwear

 

[gunnerwholelife]

What are the best tips for these ?
I am using small foam tips and the SS is kinda bloomy. 

 

[punit]

Best Tips is subjective, depending on shape of your ears + your preferred sound sign. After rolling through quite a few tips I have settled on these :
 
http://www.meeaudio.com/meelectronics-double-flange-balanced-sound-eartips-3-pairs-gray-ts3-df-50-gy/

 

[neosoul]

So I read a post where someone compared the sound signature of the fx850 as similar to the tf10’s. Can someone else who has both of these chime in as to whether the both of these has a similar sound signature. Would like to know because I own the tf10

 

[james444]

So I read a post where someone compared the sound signature of the fx850 as similar to the tf10’s. Can someone else who has both of these chime in as to whether the both of these has a similar sound signature. Would like to know because I own the tf10

 
Going by memory and the measurements I've seen, I'd agree that their sound signatures have similarities. However, one being BA-based and the other DD, they still sound distinctly different in my book.

 

[neosoul]

james444, would you say the fx850 are an improvement over the tf10s