[parthabhatta]

If you have never worn a bud then wait to try the RY4S before buying more. You need to see if that shell type fits you. It is the same one that is used for Monks and many other. If it does not fit you, then you will need to try some other shapes.

Can you suggest some smaller enclosures or enclosures with different shapes because Monk + and other earphones using same shell (probably MX500) do not fitfit well and tend to fall out because my ear opening is smaller.

BTW, youyou h truly said that these forums are dangerous. A year back i accidentally came across a post here telling about Monk+. I was allured and bought one, got the addiction and now have at least 15 earphones and iem, 4 USB DACs, 2 Amps etc. And the most dangerous side is, once you discover some nuances in your favourite track while listening through these earphones, which you never heard before in your main midfi system, you start craving for a more capable Hifi system thereby draining more money. In fact this happened to me. Anyway, I am enjoying this hobby with a renewed zeal.

Regards
Partha

 

[purplesun]

BTW, youyou h truly said that these forums are dangerous. A year back i accidentally came across a post here telling about Monk+. I was allured and bought one, got the addiction and now have at least 15 earphones and iem, 4 USB DACs, 2 Amps etc.

The alternative would be standing in the shops looking at the blister-packed earbuds wondering if it's worth $70 for the "branded" earbud that claims 20hz-45khz, or the other "branded" $50 earbuds claiming only 20khz-25khz. While hoping that the better developed country of manufacture might give it an edge in sound quality. Good old days!

 

[voxdub]

Can you suggest some smaller enclosures or enclosures with different shapes because Monk + and other earphones using same shell (probably MX500) do not fitfit well and tend to fall out because my ear opening is smaller.

BTW, youyou h truly said that these forums are dangerous. A year back i accidentally came across a post here telling about Monk+. I was allured and bought one, got the addiction and now have at least 15 earphones and iem, 4 USB DACs, 2 Amps etc. And the most dangerous side is, once you discover some nuances in your favourite track while listening through these earphones, which you never heard before in your main midfi system, you start craving for a more capable Hifi system thereby draining more money. In fact this happened to me. Anyway, I am enjoying this hobby with a renewed zeal.

Regards
Partha

Have a look at the Qian39, it uses the same shell that they then used for the Monk Lite, really good for smaller ears.

 

[parthabhatta]

Have a look at the Qian39, it uses the same shell that they then used for the Monk Lite, really good for smaller ears.

I have Qian39. They are a bit smaller but doesn't fit snug in my ear groove.

 

[voxdub]

I have Qian39. They are a bit smaller but doesn't fit snug in my ear groove.

You tried any earbuds that use the PK2 housing?

 

[parthabhatta]

You tried any earbuds that use the PK2 housing?

No, not yet. Never heard of them actually. Are they smaller than Monk+? I will try them. Give a few model names please.
Regards

 

[purplesun]

I have Qian39. They are a bit smaller but doesn't fit snug in my ear groove.

My ears only fit S**y E808+ shell earbuds properly, whereas MX500 shaped shell either fall out or becomes painful if I jam it into my ear. Fortunately, E808+ has a decent V-shaped (almost L-shaped) sound signature, so it's not too bad to be stuck with it. Especially after replacing J-cable with silver-plated cables. Saved me lots of money not being able to collect MX500 shelled earbuds, that's what I tell myself

 

[mbwilson111]

Can you suggest some smaller enclosures or enclosures with different shapes

My smallest would be my recabled Sony MH300. I will get back to you on some other ideas but you might want to ask in the Earbuds Roundup thread as it is more active.

This is one of my two MH300s. Bought for 3 pound on ebay... cable from aliexpress. I have not yet photographed my seoond one... different cable.

My ears only fit S**y E808+ shell earbuds properly

Yes, excellent buds. Luckily my husband likes recabling (and building) buds. Here is mine. I also bought a grey E808+ but it fell apart during the recable... I wonder if it was a fake. Do they come in grey as well as black? Maybe we will put a different driver in it. It is such a comfortable shell. I wonder where I put it...

 

[mbwilson111]

Saved me lots of money not being able to collect MX500 shelled earbuds, that's what I tell myself

You really have saved a lot! Most of mine use the MX500 shell...there are so many excellent ones. I call it the Monk shell because the first bud I bought was a Monk+.

@parthabhatta

I wonder if you would like a bell shaped bud like the NiceHCK EB2 Excellent bud.

 

[purplesun]

Yes, excellent buds. Luckily my husband likes recabling (and building) buds. Here is mine. I also bought a grey E808+ but it fell apart during the recable... I wonder if it was a fake. Do they come in grey as well as black? Maybe we will put a different driver in it. It is such a comfortable shell. I wonder where I put it...

To be honest, I wouldn't strongly recommend E808+ as I've bought many of them with swapped out inferior drivers and cables. My plan was to build stock of over 2 dozens to be shared with my son, so I bought 1-unit sample from a few taobao sellers then, few weeks later, ordered bulk from the seller with sample that had good SQ after 100 hours burn-in. That was 2 years ago and was the right choice for my difficult-to-fit earbud ears. Also tweaked them a bit with cables and such. IIRC, @wilbur found an Ali seller that had quite good SQ record with E808+ but, frankly, I don't think the end-sellers have a clue what their E808+ sound like. But I think grey coloured E808+ shell would be a red flag for me.

You really have saved a lot! Most of mine use the MX500 shell...there are so many excellent ones. I call it the Monk shell because the first bud I bought was a Monk+.

No worries, a penny saved is a penny spent elsewhere! Just bought a 3D printer (CR10s pro) to make some enclosures for my bare circuit board projects. Obviously it's overkill, but I doubt anyone in headfi has a clue about the concept of overkill. And dare I dream of custom-fitted 3D printed earbud shells! But 1-step-at-a-time. Again, another unfamiliar concept here

 

[mbwilson111]

Obviously it's overkill, but I doubt anyone in headfi has a clue about the concept of overkill.

My whole list is an example of overkill... and my husband's list is even worse!

 

[raghav20]

Yes it's dangerous, once you start there's no turning back. So many decent buds and IEMs have come out of China in the past couple of years.

On topic if I could recommend one low cost earbud it would be the Qian69 (though I prefer the housings of the 39).

Would definitely have a look

 

[parthabhatta]

@parthabhatta

I wonder if you would like a bell shaped bud like the NiceHCK EB2 Excellent bud.

I have a similar looking earphone, perhaps **** PT15. These look physically similar but may vary in sound signature. I think you must be having the ****. How do they differ in sound?

 

[mbwilson111]

To be honest, I wouldn't strongly recommend E808+ as I've bought many of them with swapped out inferior drivers and cables. My plan was to build stock of over 2 dozens to be shared with my son, so I bought 1-unit sample from a few taobao sellers then, few weeks later, ordered bulk from the seller with sample that had good SQ after 100 hours burn-in. That was 2 years ago and was the right choice for my difficult-to-fit earbud ears. Also tweaked them a bit with cables and such. IIRC, @wilbur found an Ali seller that had quite good SQ record with E808+ but, frankly, I don't think the end-sellers have a clue what their E808+ sound like. But I think grey coloured E808+ shell would be a red flag for me.

I just took a photo of the grey E808+ What do you think? Does this look like one of the inferior drivers? You can zoom in on the driver. I wanted you to see the shell too.

 

[purplesun]

I just took a photo of the grey E808+ What do you think? Does this look like one of the inferior drivers? You can zoom in on the driver. I wanted you to see the shell too.

The drivers certainly look different from the ones I use on all mine. And the holes on the grill also appear to be different. The holes on mine are placed like five of diamonds on a playing card. IIRC, the wrong drivers sound very ordinary, like earbuds from low-end cellphones even after burn-in. The effortless bass and treble clarity is what I enjoy about these E808+. Not perfect, but works for me.