[toaster]

in a few days lindrone is going to be posting his review of the sensaphonics prophonic 2X soft. i thought now would be a good time for me to get this out...

if you love to listen to music with bass that you can feel and a full lush sound that you can fall in love with, assuming you are willing to take the time to find out which tips you like best and how to get the best fit, i believe that the e5c's very well could be the last canalphone you will ever buy.

that being said, their are models out there which exist, such as the sensaphonics and the ultimate ears that cost more. one look at the client list on sensaphonics website, and you can not help but think that Michael Santucci is doing something right. he is a renowned audiologist and founder and President of Sensaphonics for those unaware.

if you think i am writing this to keep my self assured the e5c's are satisfying enough, you would be partly right, i really am gonna try to stick with the notion that the e5c's are the end all be all canalphone for me. i have been praising the e5c's left and right and the more i listen to them the distance between them and perfection continues to edge towards nothingness.

i acknowledge the possibility that the sensaphonics could sound better than the e5c's. At nearly twice the price i really hope they would.

but for them to sound better than the e5c's, it would not be better in the same sense that the e5's sound better than the e3's for me. with the e3's there was much more i was left wanting. with the e5's there is nothing i am left wanting. i have already said that almost every other possession i own does not satisfy in this same fashion. the only thing the sensaphonics could clearly offer me over the e5's is a custom molding that would not affect the sound signature of the earphone. and i have said before how the e5's comfort leave me feeling like a custom molding could not be any more comfortable. i even modded the memory cable to perfection for my ears and snipped just enough off of each tri-flange to create the perfect seal in each ear. i have personalized the e5's as much as possible.

but alas, at the end of the day we are all too often left asking ourselves, what will a few hundred dollars more get us? why does this point always have to come?

i think we too often we dwell on this. and i am going to start dwelling more as lindrone's review looms in the not so distant future. in an attempt to ease my mind, i am attempting to get everything out in this brutally honest post.

i really want to continue to think that the e5c's are the end of the road for me when it comes to canalphones. and with the sound they produce i see no reason why they should not be.

in a few days when lindrone's review of the sensaphonics comes out, i am going to read it with an open mind. but regardless of what i read, i am going to continue to fight it by asking myself, is perfection enough for me?

if i fail, i will get sucked into the vicious whirlpool of audio peer pressure and begin to start thinking of making a purchase which is not primarily inspired by my desire for a better listening experience. and this will not be a good thing.

thank you for allowing me babble and get this all out. i don't know if it made any sense, but i now feel much better and more prepared to deal with perils that lie ahead...

 

[usc goose]

audiophile paranoia, it's a bitch ain't it?

i think you're probably at a level where there aren't anymore upgrades to make. just side-grades. like with my rs-1s, i think i've found the flavour that best suits what i'm looking for. so while there might be the revered hp-1000s out there, i don't think spending more money would get me a better sound really, just a different sound.

if i were you, i'd just stick with the e5's and worry more about source and amp. sounds, like you've found the headphones that fit you already.

just my opinions of course...

 

[DJGeorgeT]

....after dropping almost $400 on a pair of canalphones you have to somehow justify your purchase with hype...so far I still think that the er4s is king of the canalphones and it costs much less than the e5c.

 

[toaster]

i am aware of what goes on here and i love it all, except for this.

i just want to know if there are other people who feel they have found audio perfection and are able to live with it; really maintain that satisfaction. i would really like to think that i can.

i still believe the e5c's represent to me, portability perfection.

right now, i really need to hear from others member of headfi that feel that they have found perfection in some aspect of their music listening and are satisfied by that.

i thought i could do this alone, and i am being strong...but it gets tough sometimes.

 

[the terabyte]

i think that you highlight two distinct ideologies. you (and indeed i was as well was, as are many notable members here) are of the "absolute" group, that guages headphone enjoyment not in relation to other headphones but rather just by whether or not you feel that your are reaching the level of enjoyment you wish.

not to say that this viewpoint is at all wrong, but i used to be of this persuasion until i heard something that increased my enjoyment beyond what i thought was possible. this would mark the second group that focus more on comparative analysis between headphones or electronics. just a pattern i've noticed while browsing the forums.

 

[toaster]

unfortunately terabyte, you make a very good point.

lindrone really did not make things easy for me though, getting rid of his e5's just as i picked mine up. bad timing man.

the e5c's really are friggin' amazing though...

 

[lindrone]

Quote:

Originally posted by DJGeorgeT ....after dropping almost $400 on a pair of canalphones you have to somehow justify your purchase with hype...so far I still think that the er4s is king of the canalphones and it costs much less than the e5c.

Just as much as one's inability to spend $400 on a pair of canalphone warrants one's own need to find justification, isn't it?

When I first registered and posted here at Head-Fi, there were maybe enough Shure E5c owners that can be counted on one hand, most of which has left the board at some point and moved on.

There's now plenty of E5c owners, including plenty of former and current ER-4 owners. Some chose to keep both to satisfy some need for different genres they feel each earphone is suited for. Some of which has switched over completely citing no need for ER-4 whatsoever.

That in itself is proof that E5c has legitimacy in this market, and it has merits that persuade people to persue them. Meanwhile I understand how much you love your ER-4, and mostly want to fend off any urge of ever spending anymore money... the way you go about rambling on with very little knowledge of what you're really facing is annoying at best.

If you're not willing to value other people's opinion and subsequent choices, or at least respect them; then don't sound any opinion of your own. We will likely give you just as much respect as you deserve.

 

[lindrone]

Quote:

Originally posted by toaster22 but for them to sound better than the e5c's, it would not be better in the same sense that the e5's sound better than the e3's for me.

That much is true.. but in as in all audio equipments, the law of diminshing return is a harsh reality.

 

[smeggy]

I currently have both the Ety's and the E5's, neither of which represent portable perfection. Yes they are the best I've ever had or heard but for me there will always be something better. Usually something I can't afford to try out. I love both of these 'phones but neither of them are 100% 'there' for me. I'm certain there is another level of performance somewhere out there in canal-world. I don't think I'll ever be truly happy with what I have. Another thing with me is that I love trying new things, hearig what they sound like. It's almost drug-like, I hate it and love it all at once.

 

[DJGeorgeT]

Quote:

Originally posted by lindrone That in itself is proof that E5c has legitimacy in this market, and it has merits that persuade people to persue them. Meanwhile I understand how much you love your ER-4, and mostly want to fend off any urge of ever spending anymore money... the way you go about rambling on with very little knowledge of what you're really facing is annoying at best. If you're not willing to value other people's opinion and subsequent choices, or at least respect them; then don't sound any opinion of your own. We will likely give you just as much respect as you deserve.

This is the truth: if the E5C was better than the ER4, I would be getting it. It is not a matter of finances. I can afford the E5C. Do I want to pay for it? No. I don't think the E5C sounds like a $350 product and I can find a handful of Head-fiers who have purchased the E5C to check it out. One described it as 'nasty sound'. I have listened to the E5C and I find it a bit unbalanced and a bit lacking on the high end. The very low end sounds manufactured.

This thread is too funny. Toaster, if you are happy with the E5C, then great. Nobody has to rely his/her preference on someone else's opinion like Lindrone.

Lindrone, cool off and get off my back. You are the one who is pushy and disrespectful here.

 

[toaster]

smeggy what are the imperfections you would site about the er4's and e5's that keep them from perfection in your mind?

 

[DJGeorgeT]

Quote:

Originally posted by toaster22 smeggy what are the imperfections you would site about the er4's and e5's that keep them from perfection in your mind?

Hey toaster, you should probably get an ER4 as a loaner...somehow and give it a listen. More listening is good, but if you want to justify your E5C purchase...it really comes down to...do you like it or not?

 

[toaster]

DjGeorge - lindrone is one of the most respected and fair headfier's here. in all fairness you did make some ridiculous comments recently about the koss ksc 35's being "likely better than the e5's." you also said something in this thread about me backing my purchase of the e5's with "hype." this is entirely untrue. if you have read anything i said about them the last few days you would see this is about as far from the truth as can be.

lindrone - i don't need to tell you anything here, but i don't want this thread that that was meant to do little more than allow me to vent a bit, to turn into a reason for you and george to argue. i am pretty sure you will not entertain his posts, but i really don't want you guys to get into an argument in a thread i started harmlessly.

george, just be a little more wary with what you say, and most importantly do not say things that are not true. i never said any of my satisfaction with the e5 came because of "hype."

 

[DJGeorgeT]

just like I said, your purchase and your decision to keep your purchase is and should be based on whether you like the product or not. And you are still talking about alegiances. Have you listened to the KSC-35?

 

[toaster]

no, i have not heard the ksc-35's and for fairness sake, i will admit the possibility that they sound better than the e5's...but...

if i "want to justify my e5 purchase?"

man - i love my e5's. i have not stopped praising them since the moment i got them. i even love the metal box they come in. i think you are really missing what i was trying to do when i started this thread. basically, i was just doing some reflecting (that actually goes far beyond just the e5's or any single phones) about how we often find something we think we are so satisfied with but we in fact, are not "truly" satisfied. i absolutely love my e5's and have NO need to try anything else with my ipod.

look at what terabyte posted here, and that will give you an idea of the kind of post i was hoping to illicit with this thread.

if you read your posts, you are speaking in absolutes in a general sense. even when i proclaim how great i think the e5c's are, i always at least offer the possibility something is better (no matter how hard it is for me to believe) and especially the possibility that someone might favor something else with their own ears. i respect the fact that you genuinely think the er4's or better than the e5's but i am not going to tell you that you spent 200 dollars on etys and than justified your purchase with "hype," cmon man.

this has really gotten out of hand.