[Lowtech Trevor]

I had posted posted this question as a new thread but didn't receive any responses. I'm curious if anyone has had custom earmolds made for their IEM and how they compare to regular tips?

For the Shure tips (I have se846), I find the olive tips the most comfortable and longest lasting but the foam tips are the best sealing tips for me.

 

[270995]

Sometimes even with the same tips, you could perceive the sonic signature to be different due to the following reasons:
1) Ambient environment - generally bass is lost in a noisy environment, so in general for outdoors music tends to sound less bassy than indoors
2) Attention/psychology - generally we tend to be more observant of microdetails and stuff when we are alert and not distracted/tired. Towards the end of the day, sometimes we are tired and just tune out certain frequencies/details?
3) Volume played at - Fletcher Munson curve - music is perceived to be V shaped at louder volumes, and U shaped at softer volumes. Sometimes we do not keep the same volume pot level and hence this may affect the frequency response.
4) Eartip insertion depth - deeper insertion tends to give better isolation in general and vice versa. So for some IEMs, just inserting it a few millimeters out of the ear canal can affect the bass, as isolation affects subbass a lot.
5) Baseline comparisons against other IEMs? - sometimes listening to a bassheavy IEM first, then later switching to a less bassy IEM straight away, the mind perceives the 2nd IEM to be very bass lite. And vice versa. So if you are doing listening sessions quickly with various IEMs, it might be good to reset your hearing by using something neutralish as a palette cleanser.

1) I'm in my home office. Same place I've been listening to the IEMs since I got them. (still waiting for my potable DAC/amp so I can use them on the go)
2) Listening during work = same attention than last time
3) I've checked at different volume levels.
4) Yep, this could be the reason. I've experimented with different insertion depths but still could not reproduce what I heard last time.
5) Now this could be the main culprit. I've been listening to my new HD6XX over the past days. Before that I mainly used a DT770 pro for listening. So it could well be brain-burn-in.

 

[StacoHRP]

Looking for sizing advice on Final and SpinFit ear tips.

I've got size L Dekoni bulletz, which are working well for me, so can I assume size L in Final and SpinFits?

Haven't had much luck with silicon tips in the past, but want to try some of the better ones..

tia

This post by @IEMusic :
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/best-iem-tips.626895/post-15981172

 

[LoryWiv]

Sedna EarFit Lights are the 1st ear tip i can wear for longer than an hour w/o discomfort, and with my Kinera Nanna they sound as good or better than alternatives. A win-win for me!

 

[iammarcy]

How does bore size generally change sound frequency? I read that narrower bore will sometimes kill high frequency, whereas wide bore will "open" them up.

 

[chifihead]

I feel the same way, but comfort-wise they're the best I've tried so far.

With normal silicone tips my ears hurt after about 2 hours. Sometimes earlier, sometimes later. Tried all the stock tips I have, Spiral Dots and Final E.

Really want to try SpinFits, but I don't want to spend 15$ for a pair when I don't know they're fitting my IEMs and my ears.

It is a soreness, like when something hard presses your bone for too long, or is it a sharp chafing pain?

I've been playing around with different types of eartips these last weeks and now I'm kind of confused.
There are some tips that I really like. But I get different results from day to day. Is this normal?
Ex. When using the stock L eartips on my Tin T2 plus, it usually sounds really good. But sometimes it's just too much bass and the mids sound a bit too much on the background. Usually the SpinFit CP100 XL sounds a bit leaner. It does that too when the stock L tips sound too bass heavy, which means they sound great and not too lean. They have cleaner highs on those days too.
So the soundsignature can change from day to day, with the same tips. Most noticeably on the bass but certainly not limited to the bass.
Since I keep notes for all the tips I tried, I can now make a good guess which ones will sound best for the day. (if my initia choice in tip doesn't sound the best)
Is this quite common or not?

That's fascinating.. Since you keep notes enough to be able to guess, could you share the notes with the rest of the class please?

 

[baskingshark]

How does bore size generally change sound frequency? I read that narrower bore will sometimes kill high frequency, whereas wide bore will "open" them up.

In general, I find narrower bore tips decrease the treble (and make it bassier) whereas wider bore increases treble (and decreases bass). But this is quite dependent on your individual ear anatomy, so YMMV.

 

[270995]

It is a soreness, like when something hard presses your bone for too long, or is it a sharp chafing pain?


That's fascinating.. Since you keep notes enough to be able to guess, could you share the notes with the rest of the class please?

My notes are in Dutch. I'll have to translate them first. But they are nothing special. Mainly what the fit feels like (comfort/seal), which is personal and some small remarks about the sound.

 

[CommanderCute]

It is a soreness, like when something hard presses your bone for too long, or is it a sharp chafing pain?

You described it very well.

It's both. The "first pain" you mentioned lasts longer and is more consistent and the "second pain" is just here and there for a few seconds and then gone.

 

[JEHL]

The ones with the shortest bores that I've found:

Wide bore: Tennmak Whirlwinds will roll off sub bass, Spiral Dots are a bit longer and preserve more sub bass, Azla shorts guarantee lots of treble without sacrificing sub bass but also seem to reduce mid bass impact. Xelastecs would be on this list but they seem to behave completely randomly and I can't get a handle on what they work with. KBear just released the Believe tips I think, which make for another super low profile option, haven't tested them on anything but the Believes so far.

Penon Audio for a medium bore width - just awesome, great seal, no weird resonances, my default tip on a lot of sets for sheer comfort before I start getting OCD. https://penonaudio.com/3-pairs-in-ear-silicone-eartips.html

Sony clones for narrow bore - work really well on my T800s, havent needed them for anything else - tiny, basically. https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000044794297.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.33ad4c4dpGKPJ5

As someone who only has a BLON BL-03, my personal experience seems to be that BL-03 and short bores don't mix, but may wanna buy some whirlwinds for future IEMs.

Spiral dots seem to be nearly impossible to find or at least the L size I want.

So Sednaearfit Light L is the first pair I picked. I don't have narrow bore so I guess Spiral dot is next when I get the chance.

ALso the 13mm eartips seem to make my BL-03 fall off, so I guess penon eartips are out.

 

[chifihead]

You described it very well.

It's both. The "first pain" you mentioned lasts longer and is more consistent and the "second pain" is just here and there for a few seconds and then gone.

This may sound obvious and I'm sure you've considered this, but I gotta ask: have you tried moving down a size?

 

[chifihead]

How does bore size generally change sound frequency? I read that narrower bore will sometimes kill high frequency, whereas wide bore will "open" them up.

Narrower bore will make the bass frequency bounce around more, making it bigger but slower. I find that the vocals gain a little bit of flange as well, e.g. In the CP100. The CP100 is especially bad with vocals because the "mouth" is narrower than the actual bore.

Longer bore will make the driver farther away, which decreases the lower frequencies (without negative consequences in my experience). It also widens the soundstage a bit.

Harder bore will make the sound tighter, there's a tinge of more treble as well but I don't know if the volume is higher or its just the tightness making things sound sharper?

My notes are in Dutch. I'll have to translate them first. But they are nothing special. Mainly what the fit feels like (comfort/seal), which is personal and some small remarks about the sound.

Ah yeah, no worries then. Thanks anyway!

 

[CommanderCute]

This may sound obvious and I'm sure you've considered this, but I gotta ask: have you tried moving down a size?

Yes, of course it's more comfortable then but I don't get good seal or seal at all.

But my ear canals are a bit strange I have to admit

 

[270995]

Yes, of course it's more comfortable then but I don't get good seal or seal at all.

But my ear canals are a bit strange I have to admit

Double flange tips could be an option. I can go one size smaller with those. CP240 are reasonably comfortable.

 

[IEMusic]

I had posted posted this question as a new thread but didn't receive any responses. I'm curious if anyone has had custom earmolds made for their IEM and how they compare to regular tips?

For the Shure tips (I have se846), I find the olive tips the most comfortable and longest lasting but the foam tips are the best sealing tips for me.

Sorry you’re not getting any responses. I personally have not tried any custom molded ear tips. I know Sensaphonics is the “approved” custom ear tip manufacturer for Shure IEMs. Custom tips make the fit a lot more comfortable, especially for long periods of time, since they fit your anatomy perfectly. They are especially useful if you have complex ear anatomy. Unfortunately, it’s not substitute for custom IEMs, because all ear tips effect sound, and with custom tips, the bore length, diameter, density, curvature, can all effect the sound, for better or worse. Since CIEM‘s sound is tuned at the point where it is actually exiting the end of the custom nozzle, it will sound as the manufacturer intended. Effectively, there is no ear tip.