Quote: Originally Posted by tstarn06 Interesting research. Not sure who claimed they offered "the entire sound stage in its full dynamic range" (CNET?), but most of the S4 fans hereabouts just think they are a very good value phone that benefit from burn-in. But your point is pretty...

My personal opinion after auditioning 3 different pairs of properly "burned-in" S4s over a period of 2 months is that sibilance remained and overall sound was good only at moderate volume levels. I never felt as though I was hearing the entire sound stage in its full dynamic range as reported in...

I prefer a warm, bassy sound. The Beats provide amazing bass such as I've never heard in any other IEMs, but I'm still new to the world of IEMs. The bass in the Beats does come at the noticeable cost of clarity and detail in the upper range, so to compensate, I've found that on an iPod, the...

Thanks all. As I've mentioned before, I've long been an audio enthusiast - I say "audio enthusiast" since I know I'm in the company of people far more knowledgeable than I am in the world of IEMs and audio components in general. So, I defer humbly to the members here. I've received some great...

Beats by Dr. Dre Monster vs. REO? I have long been seeking a pair of in-ear phones which would produce amazing bass without distortion. Yes, I am a bass-head indeed; however, I still wanted to be able to reasonably hear the upper range. After trying the Klipsch S4s, Bose In-Ears, Creative...

Quote: Originally Posted by 408mike I cannot compare to monster turbines- the S4 is OK in my book. Not great by any means. They sounded more impressive when I first bought them, but over time of listening I have really began tuning into all of the little details that they leave out. One...

Are REOs a good option for consideration since I'm seeking good bass response an overall good dynamic range? If so, which model? Thanks!

Quote: Originally Posted by james444 If you have the budget for SE530 then read the Ortofon e-Q7 threads before you buy. Thanks! Will do.

I've just returned a pair of Klipsch Image S4s due to high sibilance and easily distorted bass. My attention has now turned to the Shure SE530s. I prefer a warm, bass-responsive IEM, but also wish to hear the higher frequencies without fatiguing sibilance. Any suggestions? Thanks!

Quote: Originally Posted by Judge Buff ^^ I must not have any of that music, or the particular freqs are dulled/dead in my auditory awareness (Naval aviation support background). Sibilance is just not an issue with mine since the second week or so of owning them. I do know that...

Quote: Originally Posted by pfloyd Heh SeaBreezer, I feel your pain. I too succumbed to the hype and purchased the s4s and have been sorely disappointed. Your description of their performance matches mine exactly, except I used large shure olives which always provided a good seal, and I...

Quote: Originally Posted by yipcanjo Certainly "your mileage may vary" applies here. I agree that the mids dominate -- at least with what I'm hearing right now. I am *not*, however, hearing an abundance of either bass or sibilance. I'm also not finding the canal seal to be particularly...

I've "burned in" my S4s now for at least 70 hours. My conclusion regarding the SQ (properly seated using the large tips) of the S4s is the following: -Sibilance was piercing out of the box and is piercing now. -The bass is very "temperamental" and is subject to being completely lost (due...

Quote: Originally Posted by K_19 Honestly, even at the Noise cancelling headphones category, they are bettered on Price/performance ratio by few offerings, like the Audio Technica Quietpoint ANC7 and the Denon NC732, latter of which I personally owned for few months and enjoyed a lot...

Thanks so much to all who have posted helpful information. I really appreciate it and I think it's beneficial for everyone in the community. I've posted quite a bit on this topic because the Klipsch S4s are my first experience with "above-stock" in-ear headphones. I know quite a bit about other...