Etymotic ER2SE

Disclaimer:

• I bought this unit from the 2nd hand marketplace. Rest assured that this review will be free from any bias/es as much as possible.
• The following remarks and observations shall be made and owned only by me.
• No monetary compensation is/was involved before, during, and after the period of creation of this review.
• Your mileage may (and always, will) vary.

Burn-in time: 5-10 hours per day, 5 days.

Source/s used:

• Hidizs AP80
• Hiby R3 Pro Saber
• VE MEGATRON USB DAC
• Tempotec Sonata HD V
• Cyberdrive Feather DAC
• Non-HiFi smartphone (realme 5i, Samsung Galaxy On7)
• Local Files via Foobar and Roon, YouTube Music, Deezer, and Qobuz with UAPP.

IEM/Earbud/Setup configuration: Stock preinstalled tri-flange eartips, stock cable, any form of EQ or MSEB off, 40-60% volume, both high and low gain, with and without extra amplification.

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Sound signature:

• Etymotic IEMs need no introduction. The Etymotic ER2SE follows the Etymotic’s Diffuse Field (DF) Target. As a result, the sound will be flat, uncolored, and unforgiving. This also reflects to the technical performance as well.

Lows:

• The lows here are linear, tight, clean, fast, and punchy. The subbass will only show itself when the track needs it. This will never be the basshead’s dream and maybe the ER3XR/2XR fits the title better if we’re talking about a “bassy” Etymotic IEM.

Mids:

• The mids here are still, neutral, uncolored, and clean. Everything has an “accurate” note weight and articulate. No instances of peaks or harshness are present here in nature unless the track itself is poorly recorded, mastered, or sibilant prone.

Highs:

• The treble here is also linear and has that usual accurate extension from an Etymotic IEM. Some people may find it lacking, unenergetic, or dry, especially for those people who loves elevated presence. Detail retrieval here is excellent in its class and can pick up nuances with ease.

Soundstage, Imaging, and separation:

• Etymotic IEMs are more on the realists side - which means they stick to their principle that the soundstage perceived will depend on how your mind or ear perceives it, and depends if the track is recorded widely, narrow, or compressed. Separation and imaging here is precise but again, depends on the track itself.

Pros:

• The most accurate-sounding IEM (according to them)
• Uncolored, true neutral, flat sound signature.
• Speedy,clean attack and decay for a dynamic driver.
• Excellent clarity and resolution.
• Top-class isolation in the UIEM form factor.
• Non-fatiguing sound.
• Excellent technical performance in its class.
• Excellent fit and comfort (when fitted properly).
• Has better value than the ER3SE.

Cons:

• Fit will not be for everybody.
• Cable microphonics is present when the chin slider and shirt clip are unused.
• Subbass might be lacking for some (but not me though, get the ER2XR/3XR for a bass boost)
• This needs an extra amount of power when compared to the ER3SE to fully shine.
• Semi-proprietary MMCX connection.
• Unforgiving and will slap you with the reality that a soundstage in an iem is all made up inside your head.
• A cable winder and a hard case would be a treat for everybody (nitpick).

The ER2SE is now my top recommendation when looking for an Etymotic IEM, particularly under the 100 USD category. It has better value than the ER3SE because it sounds 90% the same, without the BA timbre due to it using a speedy, dynamic driver. As long as you have a fairly powerful source, the Etymotic will sound good and may even replace your kilobuck IEMs.


Pairing recommendation/s:

• Source: The ER2SE needs a decent amount of power to shine the most. A powerful dongle would be a must for me to unleash its full potential.
• Eartips: Etymotic has given you sets of eartips to test and fit according to your comfort. The triple flange preinstalled eartips worked for me well, but may not on your ears.

Thank you for reading!

Additional Photos here:

Previously I wrote a review on the Moondrop quarks, long story short I said they were all you will ever need.
That there isn't really an upgrade worth spending more on.

I was wrong, the etymotic er2se is worth upgrading to, er2xr if you need bass boost, Moondrop blessing 2 if you
want nothing to do with deep insertion.

The er2se are perfectly tuned to simulate high definition speakers in a room, and they do that better than
any other headphone, even Etymotic's other IEMs.

The deep insertion is something you can get used to.

The Moondrop blessing 2 and er2xr are basically the basshead version, theyre a fun listen but the bass masks the mids.
bass drops veil mids during a song.

Until someone makes a deep insertion IEM that follows the diffuse field target perfectly, these are
the best you can get.

Easy 5 stars.

A very nice sounding IEM. Totally recommendable (unless you are a bass-head, need a strong V-shape, or can't tolerate a deep fit construction). The good reputation/hype well deserved. Balanced, clean, euphonic sound.

Simple Man’s review – Etymotic ER2SE (~129 USD)
This is called simple man’s review because they are based on the sound of these earphones directly from my mobile phone (HTC 10), using 320 Kbps mp3 tracks. No expensive gears nor lossless tracks,no EQ, and all that hi-fi stuff.



Product Specs :
Driver: Single, high performance, moving coil driver
Impedance: 15 Ohms; Sensitivity: 96dB@1kHz; Rated FR 20Hz - 16kHz
Cable: 4 foot MMCX detachable cable (with the Etymotic tab to lock the cables in place)
Shell: Metal anodized housings
Nozzle: ~3mm
Preferred eartips: Shure Soft Flex (EASFX1-10M)
Release year: Feb 2019

Build – 5/5
Housings of dark blue colour are nice to behold, and the anodized coating reflect some light. There are some serial numbers in the bottom of the housings (mine are 2620 and 2621). They don’t spoil the aesthetics but it might have been better without them.
Cables are of good thickness, not flimsy. The also feel good and behave, not jumpy or inflexible like some of those ATH wires. Detachable cables with MMCX connectors, but they have this little notch in the connector that is designed to sit in the tab present in the housing, just like the ER4XR, which helps to keep the wire from rotating. So, for after market MMCX to work, you might have to chip away some plastic at near the connectors. The ER4XR/SR cables can be used here and vice versa.
Y-splitter looks good, matches the colour of the housing and is not too long. They have “ETYMŌTIC” written on them so people will know we mean business. Strain reliefs are deployed all around, and we also see a nice little neck cinch to hold the wires in place.
L-Shaped jack is solid and sturdy.



Accessories – 5/5
The unboxing experience is simple and practical. Nothing showy or grand here. Aesthetically pleasing.
A small soft leather pouch is provided which looks good and is of decent size. It also has a little netted pocked within that can be fastened with velcro.
Tips. We get 1 pair of large silicon tri-flange and 1 pair of foam tips. The small tri-flange is included in the earpieces.
We also get a filter removal tool, and a set of spare filters as well, which is pretty cool.
A huge shirt clip is also provided

The ER4XR, in contrast, provides one extra pair of silicon tri-flage, one extra foam tips, one extra set of spare filters, and a 1/4 inch stereo adapter. We also get a humongous hard case as opposed tot he small pouch here. We also get a little Certificate of Performance slip with the official measurements, which is not provided with the ER2SE.



Fit – 4/5
Fit is very good. I tucked away the tri-flanges and installed my Shure tips. Deep insertion is not my thing, i’m perfectly happy with regular insertion.

Isolation and leakage – 5/5
With deep insertion you’re as good as deaf. But even with my relatively shallow insertion, we get very good isolation. And there is no leakage.

Microphonics – 4/5
Definitely better than the ER4XR, but is still present when we wear it straight down. Over the ear minimises the problem to a considerable extent.

Drivability – Not the easiest. I’m around 60-70% volume in my HTC 10. Similar to ER4XR plus 1 notch volume.

Please note that the following impressions are based on using them with the Shure eartips with insertion of a normal depth – somewhere between deep and shallow. I get a really tight seal and as a result get adequate bass. So, i don’t think i’m missing anything significant due to this.

Sound –
These are Etymotics and they sound like it. However, the dynamic drivers have a rather strong character and differs quite a bit from the BA delivery of the ER4s. I will compare them to my ER4XR in depth in due time.


Bass: It is really tight, and the sub bass impact is on the softer side. The sub-bass is touched as opposed to punched/hit. But it does reach deep, and we hear the rumble adequately. The rumbles stay low at the foundation and are perceived as song details instead of adding to the fun factor. They still sound very natural, and carry enough warmth to save them from sounding bright.

Mids: The ER2SEs are neutral and detailed with just enough warmth in the mids. Voices are perfect, and carry the right amount of warmth and detail. The notes also have enough body to them and do not sound thin. They sound very true and correct. There is a tint of organic quality to them that is missing in the BA models

Highs: Pleasant to the ears, and super clear. The highs are smooth and detailed, and they never touch sibilance. Detail retrieval is not BA level, but the dynamic drivers squeeze every bit they can. Cymbal hits carry some weight to their notes and sound well rounded.

Timbre: The dynamic drivers retain the natural and organic character of the percussion instruments. The timbre is on point and perfect. It’s a pleasure to listen to them. In this aspect, i think they sound a bit more natural than the ER4XR. Violins and guitars sound clean and have the perfect amount of bite and brightness to them. They are also very cohesive, and have a certain fluidity in them which makes them lean toward musical than monitoresque. This is a very special earphone tuned in the right signature.

Soundstage:
The soundstage has decent width and a bit of height. Not very wide but i wouldn’t say they are overly constricted. Although similar in dimensions to the ER4XR, the ER2SEs don’t suffer from a very monitoresque presentation. They sound a bit more cohesive.

Let’s jump into some comparisons to know more about the ER2SE

Comparisons



Round 1 – Vs Sonicast Dirac + MK2 (~51 USD)
These are a Korean Single Dynamic earphone that are tuned to be very neutral close to the Harman target response. This earphone has a bump in the sub-bass below 100 Hz, otherwise super neutral.

Going back and for the between the two, i find that the ER2SE’s mids are much better. The Dirac driver’s lower mids are slightly pulled back which sucks out some of that important warmth from the midrage. As a result the Dirac comes across as brighter. The male vocals in the ER2SE has more body and depth to the voice. Voices are dry in the Dirac and the overall presentation is on the thinner side. ER2SE on the other had sounds more cohesive and i would even call it a more musical IEM in comparison. Detail retrieval is also clearly better in the treble region. The only thing going for the Diracs in this competition is that they produce a better kick drum thump. And when the deepest sub-bass in invoked they deliver a much satisfying impact.

For less than 50% of the price, the Dirac is a worthy audiophile/monitor recommendation. That said, the ER2SE sings on another level.

Round 2 – Vs Sennheiser IE 40 Pro (~99 USD)
The IE 40 Pro, released end of last year, is a great monitoring IEM that has seen a lot of unanimous praise in these circles. Designed for stage monitoring use, they impressed me with very good clarity and usability for the price.

The Senns really bump that bass. ER2SE has bass setting at 0, and here we come to a level 6 or so. AS a result the IE40 Pro are warmer, and sound thicker. The mids/vocals are also pulled back slightly in the mix. We can feel some restraint in the singers. The treble details are impressive and saves the IEM from sounding overly warm.

Moving to the ER2SE, i see a great drain in bass as if a tap was suddenly open. It takes a couple of seconds to adjust to the missing bass thumps. As a result, the bass and midrange clarity increases tremendously. Voices come up front, and more vocal details pop up front. We see a lot of hidden details come to light.

The IE 40 Pro is saved partly because of their wider soundstage and lateral arrangement. If not for this we would have seen a lot more masking and bleed from bass to mids. The ER2SEs play in a (slightly) narrower stage, and yet have similar or even more breathing space between the details. Of course the ER2SE paid the price of bass-impact. And if your playlist reaches low frequently you will miss some juice with the ER2SE.

The IE 40 Pro driver also comes across as a slower compared to the quicker ER2SE. It appears like each drum beat and thump take their own sweet time in delivering the meaty-impact before moving to the next beat. ER2SEs hit and move faster ignoring any need for impact.

I favour the ER2SE mainly because i don’t miss the sub-bass for most of the songs in my playlist. If you’re in a more fun mood, you would pick the IE 40 Pro, which will also deliver great treble details with a wider soundstage. ER2SE also excels in timbre and sheer detail retrieval, and are able to carry enough warmth with lesser bass quantity.

Round 3 – Vs ER4XR (~400 USD)
Finally, the most important comparison. Against the ER4XR. I believe the dynamic bass of Studio Edition would be closer to the BA bass of 4XR, which is why i chose to buy this instead of the 2XR.

The shells are the exact same size:

Y-splitter:


Measurements comparison:

From ER4XR to ER2SE – To get similar output i had to push the ER2SE’s volume one notch higher in my HTC10. The 2SE appears brighter in comparison – also in line with the reduced bass quantity. Yet, they are smooth and do not offend the ears. The voices still get the necessary warmth and timbre is perfect. The treble crashes, strings, etc, have slightly more body, but seem to be missing some micro definition. The mix is also more cohesive and kind of plays together rather than the more precisely separated presentation of 4XR.

Switching from ER2SE to ER4XR. The bass impact is actually better as the XR promises. The BA driver is significantly faster and there is a certain effortlessness in the 4XR model that makes everything sound sublime. The speed really helps to extract a lot more details and that in the best resolution. Of course, the mids and treble details are a touch thinner and lack that little body that make the dynamic drivers sound a little more natural and organic. Retrieving so much information in the treble makes the edges a little sharp, a teeny bit harsh. The ER2SE in this aspect is quite inoffensive and smooth.

Clearly, the 4XR is superior and we can actually see how sheer speed helps in bringing out all the micro details. However, i still think i would reach for the ER2SE more than the 4XR, as the 2SE is also greatly detailed, and they do have the dynamic character which add some body and depth to the sound. In this aspect, the cheaper dynamic Etymotic will score a point against the big daddy ER4s. When i’m listening to my favourite blues or jazz albums i miss absolutely nothing with the 2SE. For this reason i think any owner of ER4s or ER3s should still consider buying the ER2s.

For my own tastes, i thought the ER2XR might just add a little too much bass. I would have preferred if they kept the bass completely linear as opposed to downward slope of the SE and the upward tilt in the XR series. I really hope they put out another iteration with dynamic drivers trying to further increase the speed, etc.

Overall Sound rating of Etymotic ER2SE: 9.2 / 10
Vocals 5/5
Soundstage 4/5
Instrument Separation 4/5
Positioning/localisation 4/5
Details 4.5/5
Timbre 5/5



Conclusion –
Tuned in the same neutral house signature, the dynamic drivers in ER2SE give us a little peek into the character and nature of the moving coil dynamic driver. Even though they lose out on sheer detail extraction and speed to the more expensive ER4XR model, the ER2SE does take the middle path and impresses with its natural timbre and cohesive delivery. It reassures the Dynamic-driver believer that there is indeed some magic to the output of the driver itself that cannot be replaced by the Balanced armature technology.