[Spider fan]

I like how the ba200 isolates vocals better than the XBA-3. It feels as if the performer is centerstage and it's just right. Soundstage is about the same in width and height. the ba200 is much more comfortable over the ears, but it fails when it comes to bass quantity, quality and impact. Don't get me wrong, bass is still there, but it's not enough for hip-hop or some rock.

Thanks for the reply ended up getting some Westone 4s from someone in the for sale section. Hope I made a good choice.

 

[pokpokgei]

how do the xba 3 compare to xba 30?

most impt question: is the metallic sound still there in the xba30? cause that will be the deal breaker for a new pair of  earphone that averages 200 dollar with the best deals you can find online excluding random seasonal discounts that pop up out of nowhere due to product phase out and random scenarios

 

[luisdent]

Quote:

Thanks for the reply ended up getting some Westone 4s from someone in the for sale section. Hope I made a good choice.

 
They aren't as bright or bassy, but they are definitely more "neutral" and pro sounding in my opinion.  Make sure you try all of the tips.  And let the tips break in for a day or two.  Mine actually got brighter as the silicon became slightly more flexible.  Just slightly, but I think they mold in the ear a little better after a day of being stiffer.
 
For the record, I use the pfe 232 tips, which you can buy three sets of the same size for $14.  They have a larger opening in the tip and very noticeably improve the extension of the treble.  The only thing they lacked when I got the was treble.  They sounded a little dull, but not bad.  With the 232 tips they are perfect.  They aren't bassy, but they have great quality bass and they eq extremely well.  I also recommend using accudio if you have an ipod.  The hi-fi flat setting really does pretty well making them more reference eq-wise...

 

[Spider fan]

They aren't as bright or bassy, but they are definitely more "neutral" and pro sounding in my opinion.  Make sure you try all of the tips.  And let the tips break in for a day or two.  Mine actually got brighter as the silicon became slightly more flexible.  Just slightly, but I think they mold in the ear a little better after a day of being stiffer.

For the record, I use the pfe 232 tips, which you can buy three sets of the same size for $14.  They have a larger opening in the tip and very noticeably improve the extension of the treble.  The only thing they lacked when I got the was treble.  They sounded a little dull, but not bad.  With the 232 tips they are perfect.  They aren't bassy, but they have great quality bass and they eq extremely well.  I also recommend using accudio if you have an ipod.  The hi-fi flat setting really does pretty well making them more reference eq-wise...

Thanks for the advice. I just read through your thread where you were deciding lol

 

[luisdent]

Quote:

Thanks for the advice. I just read through your thread where you were deciding lol

 
Oh yeah?  That discombobulated mess? haha.  I am very happy with the 4R.  I was happy with the pfe, but they had a few issues with my ears and a little too v-shaped.  But similar "quality" to the 4R.  I prefer the flatter 4R and they work with no messing around in my ears.  They come with a better case and tips.  They are cheaper too!  And a few other reasons.

 

[meepmeep]

I had to create an account just to clarify things for lurkers and onlookers on this thread.
 
Firstly it's funny tbh, this thread talks up something which is "overlooked" but due to so much discussion on said IEMs, it now isn't.
 
I received mine today, I am no expert, but my klipsch image s4 5hit all over them without a doubt, I kid you not, LITERALLY 5hit ALL OVER THEM, especially after burn in period.
 
I am sure many will disagree with my statement here in this thread, obviously (as it is a xba fanboy thread no?), but for those of you who have excess dosh, or has the image s4 and can compare them to these, you will get where I coming from.
 
For my s4, straight out of the box, music I listened to literally felt like it was played inside my brain, I've had many songs made me feel like I was there and the band was playing just for me.(they have now died after 2 years of wear and tear, I even dropped them into a cup of water by accident :/).
 
Now for the xba3, I was hoping since this cost $30 dollars more (I bought the image s4 when they came out at roughly $100, now its dirt cheap) I assumed I would get that feeling, sad to say far, very far from it.  Maybe I will grow to like them in time, but definitely atm, I feel like crap following the hype from this thread.
 
Sure I can hear my instrument/sound separation better, and MAYBE clearer vocals (nothing too astronomical when compared), BUT and emphasis on this please, I am missing that hard to explain "goosebumps", "chills", the actual feel and emotion that one gets when the music truely shins through to you, these are far from reaching that point.
 
I will try different buds, but I am definitely hoping for a miracle.
 
Sad to say I had fallen for the hype for them due to this thread and the price it was being on sale for.
 
 
PLEASE FUTURE PURCHASERS OF THE XBA3, DEFINITELY TRY THEM BEFORE YOU BUY.
 
I am not here to start arguments, I just urge future potential buyers to try before they buy, no question and also compare them to klipsch image s4s.

 

[pokpokgei]

Quote:

I had to create an account just to clarify things for lurkers and onlookers on this thread.
 
Firstly it's funny tbh, this thread talks up something which is "overlooked" but due to so much discussion on said IEMs, it now isn't.
 
I received mine today, I am no expert, but my klipsch image s4 5hit all over them without a doubt, I kid you not, LITERALLY 5hit ALL OVER THEM, especially after burn in period.
 
I am sure many will disagree with my statement here in this thread, obviously (as it is a xba fanboy thread no?), but for those of you who have excess dosh, or has the image s4 and can compare them to these, you will get where I coming from.
 
For my s4, straight out of the box, music I listened to literally felt like it was played inside my brain, I've had many songs made me feel like I was there and the band was playing just for me.(they have now died after 2 years of wear and tear, I even dropped them into a cup of water by accident :/).
 
Now for the xba3, I was hoping since this cost $30 dollars more (I bought the image s4 when they came out at roughly $100, now its dirt cheap) I assumed I would get that feeling, sad to say far, very far from it.  Maybe I will grow to like them in time, but definitely atm, I feel like crap following the hype from this thread.
 
Sure I can hear my instrument/sound separation better, and MAYBE clearer vocals (nothing too astronomical when compared), BUT and emphasis on this please, I am missing that hard to explain "goosebumps", "chills", the actual feel and emotion that one gets when the music truely shins through to you, these are far from reaching that point.
 
I will try different buds, but I am definitely hoping for a miracle.
 
Sad to say I had fallen for the hype for them due to this thread and the price it was being on sale for.
 
 
PLEASE FUTURE PURCHASERS OF THE XBA3, DEFINITELY TRY THEM BEFORE YOU BUY.
 
I am not here to start arguments, I just urge future potential buyers to try before they buy, no question and also compare them to klipsch image s4s.

 
thank you. i think most people appreciate honest and helpful comments. if not they will learn to appreciate with the passing of time.

 

[daveyostrow]

im not a huge fan of the xba3, but they are not only in another league to the s4, but they are a very different sound. 
one thing to say you like the s4 more for your preference, but in no way 5hit all over them. quite the apposite. 

 

[meepmeep]

^ heya buddy Let me put it this way, if the xba was priced the same as the image s4 (it is hard as one already knows the pricing is different), would you consider them to be in another league?, maybe for clarity, but for the actual "feel" and immersion into songs, I think the s4 wins easily (you just have to try for yourself). I sure love the clarity in my music from the xba though, but I just don't feel as if I am there, if that makes sense. Sorry for my lack of words to describe the feeling I am searching for, the actual sound stage presence. I am just trying to help potential purchasers out there who would definitely stumble upon this thread. Definitely try them first, it won't hurt, don't do what I did and rely on others praise and hype over them. EDIT: while listening to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xpd71eFOSnA I am appreciating the xba, but I am still on the fence for sure, only with time I guess? ^also this song, it is weird, this is probably a noob question, but can anyone else explain why I hear the male vocals louder on the right side, even though he is on the left when I use the xbas. I will try those comply foam tips when I get the chance, let's hope it works otherwise ye.....

 

[daveyostrow]

you may just prefer the intimate sound... i myself enjoy teh xb90 very much for that reason (amazing bass, upfront mids), but to claim one stops all over the other is making a subjective claim when objectively there is no contest. i have briefly heard the s4 once, and they are not bad. the fischer eterna is a great example of a phone that can make music sound great, but there is much to be desired in detail and clarity. you can refer to ljokerl who has reviewed both and is very good at what he does.
 
and i agree with you that it is best to hear them before buying, that is true with most things. separation and 3d is most impressive on the xba3, they excel with certain kinds of music and are very source dependent - a laptop will not do them justice. i am still waiting to hear if the xba30 has improved the tinny nature of the tweeters. 

 

[jltaser]

Quote:

I had to create an account just to clarify things for lurkers and onlookers on this thread.
 
Firstly it's funny tbh, this thread talks up something which is "overlooked" but due to so much discussion on said IEMs, it now isn't.
 
I received mine today, I am no expert, but my klipsch image s4 5hit all over them without a doubt, I kid you not, LITERALLY 5hit ALL OVER THEM, especially after burn in period.
 
I am sure many will disagree with my statement here in this thread, obviously (as it is a xba fanboy thread no?), but for those of you who have excess dosh, or has the image s4 and can compare them to these, you will get where I coming from.
 
For my s4, straight out of the box, music I listened to literally felt like it was played inside my brain, I've had many songs made me feel like I was there and the band was playing just for me.(they have now died after 2 years of wear and tear, I even dropped them into a cup of water by accident :/).
 
Now for the xba3, I was hoping since this cost $30 dollars more (I bought the image s4 when they came out at roughly $100, now its dirt cheap) I assumed I would get that feeling, sad to say far, very far from it.  Maybe I will grow to like them in time, but definitely atm, I feel like crap following the hype from this thread.
 
Sure I can hear my instrument/sound separation better, and MAYBE clearer vocals (nothing too astronomical when compared), BUT and emphasis on this please, I am missing that hard to explain "goosebumps", "chills", the actual feel and emotion that one gets when the music truely shins through to you, these are far from reaching that point.
 
I will try different buds, but I am definitely hoping for a miracle.
 
Sad to say I had fallen for the hype for them due to this thread and the price it was being on sale for.
 
 
PLEASE FUTURE PURCHASERS OF THE XBA3, DEFINITELY TRY THEM BEFORE YOU BUY.
 
I am not here to start arguments, I just urge future potential buyers to try before they buy, no question and also compare them to klipsch image s4s.

 
What source are you listening with? 
I would probably be closer to your boat if i hadn't tried them on the Sony Walkman Z.  The XBA-3 didn't sound all that great with anything else I had, but it sounds pretty damn good on the Walkman Z, which is what the OP was using and raving about.

 

[d marc0]

This ^. To date, I use the sony ericsson experia ray

 

[andrewlgm]

I had to create an account just to clarify things for lurkers and onlookers on this thread.

Firstly it's funny tbh, this thread talks up something which is "overlooked" but due to so much discussion on said IEMs, it now isn't.

I received mine today, I am no expert, but my klipsch image s4 5hit all over them without a doubt, I kid you not, LITERALLY 5hit ALL OVER THEM, especially after burn in period.

I am sure many will disagree with my statement here in this thread, obviously (as it is a xba fanboy thread no?), but for those of you who have excess dosh, or has the image s4 and can compare them to these, you will get where I coming from.

For my s4, straight out of the box, music I listened to literally felt like it was played inside my brain, I've had many songs made me feel like I was there and the band was playing just for me.(they have now died after 2 years of wear and tear, I even dropped them into a cup of water by accident :/).

Now for the xba3, I was hoping since this cost $30 dollars more (I bought the image s4 when they came out at roughly $100, now its dirt cheap) I assumed I would get that feeling, sad to say far, very far from it.  Maybe I will grow to like them in time, but definitely atm, I feel like crap following the hype from this thread.

Sure I can hear my instrument/sound separation better, and MAYBE clearer vocals (nothing too astronomical when compared), BUT and emphasis on this please, I am missing that hard to explain "goosebumps", "chills", the actual feel and emotion that one gets when the music truely shins through to you, these are far from reaching that point.

I will try different buds, but I am definitely hoping for a miracle.

Sad to say I had fallen for the hype for them due to this thread and the price it was being on sale for.


PLEASE FUTURE PURCHASERS OF THE XBA3, DEFINITELY TRY THEM BEFORE YOU BUY.

I am not here to start arguments, I just urge future potential buyers to try before they buy, no question and also compare them to klipsch image s4s.

Have to disagree completely. The klipsch image s4s are a pair of cheap dynamic earphones going for about $40 - used to be $80. To put into perspective, jbuds' J5 dynamic earphones are 3 times better than the klipsch s4s and they retail for $19 directly from amazon. I use both for running (precisely because they're cheap), and because their slanted bass response is all I need when I'm running. The beats increase performance . Both produce bass-heavy sound with midrange bleed. The XBA-3 is at a HUGE discount right now for $150. They retail for about $280 (though IMO they were never worth over $200+). Is this your first balanced armature set? Your response is the generalized response from most people who never used a balanced armature set before. Sound is thin and bass is missing to most people. But once you hear music the way it's meant to be heard, then dynamic earphones full of heavy bass lose their attractiveness. At least for me. The XBA-3 has a wide soundstage - that out of your head feel - instead of the inyourhead-compressed feeling you get with the klipsch. Imaging is outstanding and instruments gain life. Listening to classical pieces, sometimes I got the impression of air in the string instruments. Absolutely insane. I get none of that out of my dynamic pairs or even over the ear cans. My XBA-3 broke and I'm after another pair of balanced sets, but i might end up settling for another pair of XBAs.

 

[tquickbrownfox]

Quote:

I had to create an account just to clarify things for lurkers and onlookers on this thread.
 
Firstly it's funny tbh, this thread talks up something which is "overlooked" but due to so much discussion on said IEMs, it now isn't.
 
I received mine today, I am no expert, but my klipsch image s4 5hit all over them without a doubt, I kid you not, LITERALLY 5hit ALL OVER THEM, especially after burn in period.
 
I am sure many will disagree with my statement here in this thread, obviously (as it is a xba fanboy thread no?), but for those of you who have excess dosh, or has the image s4 and can compare them to these, you will get where I coming from.
 
For my s4, straight out of the box, music I listened to literally felt like it was played inside my brain, I've had many songs made me feel like I was there and the band was playing just for me.(they have now died after 2 years of wear and tear, I even dropped them into a cup of water by accident :/).
 
Now for the xba3, I was hoping since this cost $30 dollars more (I bought the image s4 when they came out at roughly $100, now its dirt cheap) I assumed I would get that feeling, sad to say far, very far from it.  Maybe I will grow to like them in time, but definitely atm, I feel like crap following the hype from this thread.
 
Sure I can hear my instrument/sound separation better, and MAYBE clearer vocals (nothing too astronomical when compared), BUT and emphasis on this please, I am missing that hard to explain "goosebumps", "chills", the actual feel and emotion that one gets when the music truely shins through to you, these are far from reaching that point.
 
I will try different buds, but I am definitely hoping for a miracle.
 
Sad to say I had fallen for the hype for them due to this thread and the price it was being on sale for.
 
 
PLEASE FUTURE PURCHASERS OF THE XBA3, DEFINITELY TRY THEM BEFORE YOU BUY.
 
I am not here to start arguments, I just urge future potential buyers to try before they buy, no question and also compare them to klipsch image s4s.

 
Okay, where do I start. Firstly. You may have been disappointed by the XBA3s, but that is no reason to call this a 'hype' thread. This thread is a discussion about the xba3's strengths and flaws. Please don't go around calling people 'fanboys'. Saying that the Klipsch S4s 5hit all over the xba3 is a pathetic thing to say. Please develop a more refined way to present your opinion. 
 
The S4's presentation and sound signature do make it seem as more "intimate" as described my daveyostrow above, and you seem to like that. Good for you. Guess what? Many of us value a detailed and kinda balanced sound. And where you said that the vocals are "maybe" clearer - they are in fact astronomically clearer. 
 
The only thing that someone may find better in the s4 than the xba 3 would be the sound signature, but that's about it. And that is a question of preference. In terms of quality of sound, the xba3 is quite better. I mean, even if you are into the other sound signature, and even if you dislike xba3's balanced sound, there are better options than the Klipsch s4. In sheer refinement of sound, the xba3's are better.
 
I'm also guessing that these are your first BA iems. They were my first BA iems too, and I did notice the lack of bass and the thinness too, but I thought that it was a worthwhile tradeoff for the detailed sound and the imaging. Now, I dislike a bass-oriented heavily colored sound. Moreover, a balanced sound signature is better for the genres of music I listen to. I don't know what music you listen to, so I cannot comment on what type of sound you'll like.
 
And where you say "Definitely try them before you buy", I cannot agree more. It is a truth for any audio equipment. It is a much safer bet to listen to a sound and then shell out 100s of dollars. But it is as true for any other iem/headphone as it is for the xba3. 
 
Sigh, but I guess that resentment is just in your part. You were disappointed by what you got. In my opinion, just give it a shot, see if you'll grow to like these. Otherwise, get some good dynamic driver iem. The Yamaha EPH100 is often recommended over here, although I haven't tried it, I have a feeling you'll like it. Also, how much did you buy your xba3s for?
 
But please don't throw around words like "hype" or "fanboys". 

 

[Dsnuts]

Quote:

Have to disagree completely. The klipsch image s4s are a pair of cheap dynamic earphones going for about $40 - used to be $80. To put into perspective, jbuds' J5 dynamic earphones are 3 times better than the klipsch s4s and they retail for $19 directly from amazon. I use both for running (precisely because they're cheap), and because their slanted bass response is all I need when I'm running. The beats increase performance

. Both produce bass-heavy sound with midrange bleed. The XBA-3 is at a HUGE discount right now for $150. They retail for about $280 (though IMO they were never worth over $200+). Is this your first balanced armature set? Your response is the generalized response from most people who never used a balanced armature set before. Sound is thin and bass is missing to most people. But once you hear music the way it's meant to be heard, then dynamic earphones full of heavy bass lose their attractiveness. At least for me. The XBA-3 has a wide soundstage - that out of your head feel - instead of the inyourhead-compressed feeling you get with the klipsch. Imaging is outstanding and instruments gain life. Listening to classical pieces, sometimes I got the impression of air in the string instruments. Absolutely insane. I get none of that out of my dynamic pairs or even over the ear cans. My XBA-3 broke and I'm after another pair of balanced sets, but i might end up settling for another pair of XBAs.

I am reading the XBA-30s improved the sound on the XBA-3. Thicker sound with more control in the highs. That is good news. I will have to get one soon myself.