[gRiNcH.sid]

hi, i'm brand new at this forum, just wanted a bit of advice from you guys, wanted to buy a pair of earphones, budget being 100USD. Primary purpose would be listening to electronic sets (ISOS, Magik, Anjunabeats, ASOT etc)...what would u guys suggest?? i'd use them either with my iPod Video or notebook (no soundcard)... thanks in advance...

*EDIT* was narrowing on d ER6i, what's the take on that??

 

[chinesekiwi]

ER6i = not enough bass really.

This is easy

The Denon c751 shine with trance and electronic music so yeah.

 

[salami]

I really like the UE Metro.Fi 2 for electronica, but depending on your taste they might need some boost in the bass segment. This shouldn't be a problem with an iPod ("more bass" works wonders with these!).

 

[dmashta]

Atrio M5 or Denon C751

 

[dimisam]

Hey grinch.sid. Nice to see another trance/electronica fan on the message boards. I see you're from India, well I'm pretty closeby, I'm Sri Lankan,

though I'm in college in Canada right now. I had your same dilemma just a week ago. My B&O A8s broke down and I wanted a really good earphone with great bass. Well, after a lot of digging it came between the atrio m5 and the sleek sa6. The sleek sa6s are generally rated better than the m5s in terms of mid and higher end freqs in terms of clarity, range and precision. However, the atrios are supposed to have very good mids and good highs, but their most outstanding feature is supposed to be their deep, powerful, accurate, tight bass (that doesn't overwhelm the rest of the sound spectrum at all) which trumps all other earphones in its price range or higher price ranges. Also, I found that the sa6s (which are still a relatively new product) have some durability issues, and it is the general consensus that the atrios are more durable at the moment.
The listed price for both the atrios and the sa6s are $199 at soundearphones.com. However I emailed that website asking for a coupon discount and they offered me a $40 discount for the atrios and a $10 discount for the sa6s. Both earphones are said to have good isolation and comfort. The sa6s come with the added bonus of having replaceable cables for around $26 if you somehow damage them. There is also a wire less headset package that was just released for the sa6 which will set you back another $100 if you decide to purchase it Both earphones come with a 2 yr warrantee from the above website, and I hear customer service is very good, though you are living abroad, so you should find out how that works.
The fundamental difference between the two is that the atrio uses a dynamic driver which supposedly gives a warmer, more natural sound while the sa6 uses an armature driver which is more precise and analytical.
It was a very tough choice between the 2, but since durability and great bass were my top priorities, I got the atrio m5. It is being shipped to me as I write this. I can't wait to rediscover all my electronica on awesome sounding phones! I hope this post helps.

 

[gtfool]

As an electronica enthusiast myself (i'm more into house/experimental right now - checkout James Holden, Hernan Cattaneo, sander klienberg), i was quite torn when it came down to choosing between SA6 and the Klipsch Image X10. I had both pairs at the same time, and quite frankly it was hard to decide which one to keep. As much as i loved SA6 for vocals, something just didn't quite feel "right" when i listened to my electronica collection. I saw Nick Warren a week ago live, and i think that's when it hit me - part of the experience of trance is the bass that you "feel" in your body - no IEM is ever gonna be able to truly replicate that..

For what it's worth, i ended up keeping the x10, and i'm very happy with it because..
1) powerful low-end while not muddling the mids/high
2) most comfortable IEMs i've tried
3) super small/light. Gets some style points for being an IEM that actually looks good in your ears - doesn't jet out the sides
4) klipsch had a promotion, so authorized online dealers were selling them for 200

Based on what other people who have auditioned way more IEM than i have, i think the x10's compare very favorably against A5's. Supposedly they have similar bass, but A5's mids/highs are compromised slightly.

On the other hand, the sets you listen to tend to be more pop-y/vocal. In that case, I think you should give SA6 a try. I know i'll definitely be keeping tabs on Sleek Audio, especially now that the wireless thing is a reality..

good luck!

 

[screwglue]

I listen to a lot of electronica and I own a pair of super.fi 5 EB, yeah i'm a bass fanatic. Tight bass and since it's the cheapest duel driver I know about it has crisp highs.

 

[Solid Snake]

I have kept my X10 for over 6 months now...I tried out the M5 which was basically one big step down for me.

The comfort on the X10 is superb. The bass is powerful but very tight and controlled. The isolation is MUCH better, while it has wide soundstage.

 

[Nicolas2305]

Listen to a lot of electronica too and I use my only pair of earphones: SE530.

That being said, having hardly ever heard any other earphones but I'm amazed at how they sound. I don't quite have the experience to describe the sound but I'd say that they have strong and clean bass and crystal clear highs. A lot of people say that they are analytic and I think they are just perfect for Electronica. No amp needed.

 

[Clok]

SA6
or
UM2
edit: actual meant to be a question

 

[qusp]

I love my SE530 with pico and DIYMOD for electonica too, and while I do use them ampless on the go with my iphone sometimes and they do a great job, they really excel with an amp that is well suited to them, but thats way out of your price range.

Guys Grinch.sid mentioned that he had a budget of $100 and no-one has recommended anything even close to that. the UE super.fi EB was the closest to that and IMO it really only sounds in any way decent with an amp; otherwise the bass is a bit flabby. I would recommend the UM1 (single driver armature) or audio technica CK7 single dynamic driver. with the CK7's coming out on top for running ampless. they do require a bit of burn-in though because of their dynamic driver design.

I know the head-fi tradition is to get people to want more than they had bargained for when they came here (I know because I fell victim to it; i'm glad that I did, but still

but we really should try and supply some suggestions that fall within the boundaries of his question.

well thats my 2c