Hopefully nobody will mind this bump, but I can see that the few posters above me have got away with this. Just thought that I'd chip in with my bit since I just got my ACS T3s today, after a turnaround time of three weeks. I'd like to thank milkpowder for the astoundingly detailed review/consumer anecdote as this not only gave me a good insight into the audiologist procedure, but also what to expect from ACS' earphones. FWIW, I had my impressions taken at the Hearing Care Centre on the edge of Ponteland, but while the silicone was setting I was allowed to talk. On the spot, I didn't really think of keeping my mouth open, but hopefully the constant jaw movement from my lapse into being talkative distributed the silicone well enough for good impressions.
Having moved onto these from bottom-rung, OEM Sennheiser CX-300s (plus CX400s which are still on loan from my uncle--these are the only in-ear phones that I've ever owned until now), I was pretty taken aback by their clarity and detail when I gave them a proper listen at home. If I can say one thing with confidence, it's that most certainly do not miss the gigantic midbass hump found in Sennheiser's cheaper buds, so while the flatter bass is something of a sea change, it's pretty enjoyable to be able to properly hear the mix of an entire track. It's definitely not lacking.
After wondering if I'd find the superior mid and high frequencies to be a bit grating at first, they are, to me, as smooth and refined as everybody in this thread has claimed. As the T3s have the one driver, there's clearly not a booming bass, but at the same time it still sounds very present when there's a proper seal. None of the frequencies stand out too much; I can hear a bit of everything in hitherto unheard of detail. Listening to Santana's 'Black Magic Woman', I instantly noticed a shimmering cymbal drone that I had never noticed before. It goes without saying and has been said time and time again, but it's these extra details which turn music listening into an enjoyable rediscovery.
My only problem thus far is that, as I've only owned the earphones for about five hours, the silicone hasn't had much time to loosen up. According to the HCC administrator, given time the silicone will seal more effectively as it loses its elasticity. Right now, I can push the earphones so that they seal perfectly, but they will spring back slightly (while still isolating extremely well). Having said that, I'm still enjoying the sound a lot even if it is currently a bit compromised. In fact, I got used to inserting and reinserting the phones pretty quickly, with the lube not being as essential as I thought it would be. I'd chalk this up to my ear canals being very small and flat, creating a pretty guided slot mechanism. Basically, I can get a very good seal, but it isn't perfect. Should I need to, I'll remember to keep my mouth opened for the remould.
Accessory-wise, I think that the earphones look pretty nice in the blue/red colouring that I opted for. Since I'm a stage musician, this would be a very useful feature for me should I be rushed onto a stage in front of a crowd of overly insistent posh people. I stuck with the translucent white cable, which looks nice and sturdy and certainly shouldn't cause me any problems in any circumstance. The plug also looks like it won't ever screw up on me, which particularly pleases me.
Overall, I'm very pleased thus far with my first pair of decent earphones. Price-wise, they're a pair of ER-4Ps with ACS custom tips, so I can't really complain. From what I've heard, they use the same drivers as/very similar drivers to the Etys anyway, so they seem to be the same thing in a smaller and lighter package, which is all that I can ask for when I'm using these for stage monitoring. Hopefully, I can get a better permanent seal with these things as I wear them more, and if that happens then I wouldn't envision myself worrying about earphones for another few years (by then I'd probably need a reshell anyway).
Hopefully, this post will be useful to anybody who was in the same situation as me in a general sense of wanting to make the jump from cheap audio equipment--I had to dig around a bit to find anything even remotely close to information about these T3s, so I certainly appreciate every last scrap of information that can be found on these things. As a less expensive option for musicians looking for a better monitoring solution, or just anybody else who, like me, is new to custom monitoring and high-end audio in general, I'd definitely recommend T3s, so long as the customer can be sure of getting good impressions and will actually have a proper application for customs to warrant the price.
