[gg141717]

Hi guys,

I have a problem, a few weeks back i accidentally left my Blox TM5 ear buds in my trousers while putting them in the washing machine. They still work but as expected they sound less crisp and just not the same.

I just loved the sound of those TM5's but TM5 is out of production so i am now searching for an alternative. I hate in ears, tried many but i just like ear buds more despite some shortcomings.

- There is blox m2c but i have my doubt they are an improvement over my TM5's due to being in a different price segment.

- I read about Sunrise Audio-Charm but i could not find anything about how they compare to TM5 and at 150 ohm while i will mainly use them unamped.

- I already had sennheiser MX980 but i didn't like the sound, it lacked base and i found it to have to much treble for my taste.
 
- I also had yuin PK2 but TM5 where much better.
 
 
Hope you guys can give some opinions! Budget is not the problem.
 
 
Kind regards

 

[Danneq]

I've never heard the Blox TM5, but from what I've read they are supposed to be pretty good.
 
I've got the M2C and they are really good for the price. They are not the most detailed earbuds and bass is not that deep, but they respond well to EQing. If budget is not a problem, you could buy a pair and try them out until you find a true replacement. However, they are just slightly better than PK2, and right now they are out of stock at the Blox homepage.
 
Apparently Blox are working on a new flagship earbud, called BXIII. But it is only at the prototype stage yet. You can find some discussions about it here: http://www.head-fi.org/t/531063/earbud-guide-12-earbuds-compared/360
 
If you want to try vintage earbuds, you could try Sony MDR E484. It was sold from around 1987 until around 1995 and it is described as one of the best Sony earbuds ever. I've got one off Ebay for 156 euro. You might be able to find it for less. They do not pop up that often, but you might be lucky. It has got a wide soundstage and very good bass. I'm surprised that 20 year old earbuds sound as good as or even better than newer ones. It might not beat the TM5, but still it is much better than my PK2 and M2C.
 

 

[kanonathena]

Put the buds in hot places and let it dry for a week or more and see if that improves. The sound is most certainly affected by the water on the diaphragm.
 
I don't think there is any buds with nearly as much bass as tm5, but technically m2c is a very close match to tm5, same huge soundstage, same level of resolution and extension. tm5 has big bass and layback and even mids and highs. m2c has more highs and quite forward mids but much less bass. Other than the difference in sound sig, tm5 has more 3d imaging and deeper and rounded soundstage, m2c has more clarity and is good for female vocal. Both are very transparent.
 
To me, pk2/ok3/ok2 are far inferior to m2c/tm5. m2c is out of stock right now, I wonder if blox will replace it with a higher end model.

 

[gg141717]

I will probably buy M2C just to try out but i like the bass in the TM5 so i will probaly miss something but it is worth the try. I also had the PK2, i liked the clarity and detail but lacked lots of bass and it broke down. I was thinking of trying out PK1? How is PK1 compared to TM5?
 
I really hope they will replace the higher end model.
 
Thanks for the replies!

 

[kanonathena]

http://www.headfonia.com/high-end-earbuds-review/
 
 

 

[gg141717]

Quote:

http://www.headfonia.com/high-end-earbuds-review/
 
 

Yeah i read that one, he really likes the MX980 but i think it's to hissy and leans to much towards the treble. I am really curious how the PK1 sounds like but it is 150ohm. I mostly listen to my earbuds through my phone or sansa, will this have a bad impact on performance?

 

[kanonathena]

Never listened to pk1 either because of the impedance. Pk1 is suppose to be very power hungry but perform well without amps on ipc. Woo said pk1 is for clarity, ok1 for accuracy, tm5 is when you want to look at the instrument, mx980 is refined but does not sound big. You might to wait for the BXIII (sounds like bass monster to me), go ask woo.

 

[gg141717]

Quote:

Never listened to pk1 either because of the impedance. Pk1 is suppose to be very power hungry but perform well without amps on ipc. Woo said pk1 is for clarity, ok1 for accuracy, tm5 is when you want to look at the instrument, mx980 is refined but does not sound big. You might to wait for the BXIII (sounds like bass monster to me), go ask woo.

Thanks! I will wait, my imperfect TM5 will do till then ^^