[Code07]

What are some good IEMs out there that offer good noise isolation + comfort.  Both of these two things are very very important to me.  I have been reading that earbuds offer more comfort than IEMs, is that true?  I don't even know if IEMs is what I should be looking at if I'm after noise cancelling + comfort!  

 

[Code07]

bump no one?!!

 

[Kurdt-bada]

Budget? What kind of music do you like and what are your favourite kind of sound on an iem?

Most iems offer superb isolation and with foams like comply comfort is quite good, you can also do like me and get a pair of custom tips or get a pair of custom iems which are very comfortable, isolate a lot and sound great. Dynamic iems dont offer good isolation normally, grab a pair of sony mh1c if you want good sound snd very good isolation comfort is good but will depend of the tips you will use and of course price is about 30$ they perform close to 100$ iems.

 

[Code07]

Price-nothing ridiculous.  I'm not paying more than 250 (I will also have to buy a BOSE QC 15 before school starts).  As for music, a whole variety of different genres with vocal and non-vocal.  So I would guess something 'neutral'?  I have been looking at the NVX EX10s so far.  

 

[ubs28]

I like my Shure SE215 so far in terms of price / quality / isolation / comfort ratio. If you don't like IEM with alot of bass, then you should not buy these however.

 

[Kurdt-bada]

Dont get that bose and add that money to your 250 $ you can grab a pair of westone 4r or ue900 for 300-350 in this forum they isolate a lot and sound much better than the bose hp those iems are more or less neutral. They also come with removable cables which are very important for me. If you prefer something more fun i recommend you my favourite iem the fischer amps fa 4e which is about 450$ but you have to buy it in europe so maybe youll have problems with customs, they are incredible.

Anyway for 250$ check the new tpeos 200 they are more or less neutral with excelent bass mids and treble they use 3 drivers one dynamic for the bass and 2 balanced one for the mids and one for the highs, isolation is also good. Forget about bose or brands like that price performance is awful

If you think noise cancelling will offer you more isolation than iems it doesnt, that white noise affects the sound and you have to charge the headphones! With a pair of westone 4 for example and good isolation tips you wont believe how good isolation is. If you want perfect isolation custom tips, custom iems with no vents or etymotic iems which isolate around 42 db!!

Hope it can helps

 

[mc21]

Well first, noise isolating and noise cancelling are two different things.
 
Noise isolating is passive. It is the equivalent of putting earplugs in but in the middle of the earplugs are headphones. They don's do anything but create a seal around the speakers so that outside doesn't come in (or not as much gets in).
 
Noise cancelling is active. It reads the outside noise and creates a wave opposite to it so that it because no sound (destructive waves? been a while since I took physics). Anyways, noise cancelling is only good for constant noise, like an engine on an airplane or a fan/AC unite. It cannot do anything for nonconstant sounds like sirens or a basketball dribble, etc etc.
 
 
 
After you pick which you would like more, then I'm sure people can give you better recommendations.

 

[Code07]

Ok thanks for the replies so far!
 
I know this forum and audiophiles in general are not fond of Bose.  The only reason I'm considering Bose is because I will be moving to residence in my first year and there is a good chance that my rommates in the apartment will be wild party animals.  I still don't know if the Bose will help but given how effective it was when I tried it out at a store it was awesome.
 
As for spending more than 250 on earphones...I don't know.  I mean, given their size, and how thin their cables are (well when you compare them to cables of over/on-ear headphones), it just seems like a risk.  I mean anything might happen and boom 300-400 is gone.  I would end up worrying about the headphones rather than enjoying them.  
 
As for the tpeos 200, I can't find it on amazon.  
 
I bought a Shure SRH840 last year and it was HORRIBLE.  Sure the sound might be good and what not for someone who just started to look into good headphones, but damn those things would make my ears hot and would make me have a headache after just 15 mins or so.  I ended up selling them because comfort matters to me more.  What's the use of good sound if the headphones aren't comfortable at all?

 

[Eddie C]

I would recommend mdr 1 noise cancelling instead of the Bose! They are comfortable and sound great

 

[Kurdt-bada]

Get some custom iems like the 1964 ears v3 if you are in the us,i started in this world like u looking for something that isolates a lot with good sound, durability and comfort its been 6 years ago reading daily this forum...custom iems like the 1964v3 have amazing build quality and are more or less in your price range, cables are detachable. isolation and sound are also amazing, as i said you wont believe how good a pair of custom iems or custom tips isolate and how comfortable are.

In my opinion noise cancelling makes no sense, custom iems isolate more and all kind of sounds, are way more lighter and comfortable to spend hours, cables are detachable and are more durable, you dont need to charge them, replace batteries, etc and last sound is way better than noise cancelling headphones.

 

[mc21]

Quote:

Ok thanks for the replies so far!
 
I know this forum and audiophiles in general are not fond of Bose.  The only reason I'm considering Bose is because I will be moving to residence in my first year and there is a good chance that my rommates in the apartment will be wild party animals.  I still don't know if the Bose will help but given how effective it was when I tried it out at a store it was awesome.
 
As for spending more than 250 on earphones...I don't know.  I mean, given their size, and how thin their cables are (well when you compare them to cables of over/on-ear headphones), it just seems like a risk.  I mean anything might happen and boom 300-400 is gone.  I would end up worrying about the headphones rather than enjoying them.  
 
As for the tpeos 200, I can't find it on amazon.  
 
I bought a Shure SRH840 last year and it was HORRIBLE.  Sure the sound might be good and what not for someone who just started to look into good headphones, but damn those things would make my ears hot and would make me have a headache after just 15 mins or so.  I ended up selling them because comfort matters to me more.  What's the use of good sound if the headphones aren't comfortable at all?

Based on what you said, noise cancelling (BOSE) won't do much for you at all. It cannot cancel out changing sounds like a wild party. It can only deal with constant sounds. It has to hear what sound is coming and adjust to it by creating the exact same wave in the opposite direction. If the sound is changing too quickly, it can't make the correct waves to cancel it out. Go test it again. Put it on and have someone near you cough. I bet you can hear that cough as if you didn't have headphones on. Isolation is the way to go to deal with party animals. Trust me, I've had my fair share of 5am parties outside my room while I was trying to sleep before my 8am exam. For isolation, customs and foams (shure olives is the best type of foam for isolating in my experience) are the ways to go.

 

[Code07]

Alright then.  If I will go for isolation then which headphones should I be looking at (not IEMs or earbuds).  I am really skeptical about buying stuff from amazon before I try them.  People said great things about the Shire SRH840 and it was not comfortable at all.
 
Btw, for IEMs, what do you think of the ViewSonic GR07 MK II?

 

[mc21]

Quote:

Alright then.  If I will go for isolation then which headphones should I be looking at (not IEMs or earbuds).  I am really skeptical about buying stuff from amazon before I try them.  People said great things about the Shire SRH840 and it was not comfortable at all.
 
Btw, for IEMs, what do you think of the ViewSonic GR07 MK II?

Anything over the ear is going to get warm. Were you trying the Bose over ear? If so, did those get warm? as in did your ears get warm, not the headphones themselves.

 

[Code07]

No my ears were fine when I tried the Bose.  While as the Shure would just 'attach' strongly to your head right after you put them on.  At that point, really screw sound quality if they're not comfortable.

 

[mc21]

Quote:

No my ears were fine when I tried the Bose.  While as the Shure would just 'attach' strongly to your head right after you put them on.  At that point, really screw sound quality if they're not comfortable.

So you probably want something that doesn't have too much clamping force and maybe a bigger cup? I didn't have any issues with my ears getting too warm with the sony mdr-7520. I remembered my ears got pretty toasty with the akg closed back, somewhat warm with the beyerdynamic t70 and not at all with the denon d5000. IEM provide better isolation. Is there a reason you don't want to go the IEM route?