Break-in for Klipsch Custom 3?

[drtwofish]

Thanks to the kind advice I requested a week or so back, I decided to pick up a pair of Klipsch Custom 3's from Amazon. I was hoping they'd give me a rich sound with full bass (with luck, similar to my AKG K26P cans or better) and a smooth mid/high. On first listen (Muse, Outkast, Cypress Hill, etc) I'm pretty disappointed. I tried all the earpieces, and I know how to wear these things - I can hear bass is there, but it just doesn't, well, hit.

My question is, is this something that may improve with break-in? I can return them to amazon, and the sooner the better if I'm to replace them. Am I expecting too much from IEM's? My previous were low-end UE's, and they had zero bass - I assumed that would be rectified by the reviews I read on these. So...am I jumping the gun, or is bass response likely to stay the same no matter how long I keep them? Thanks!

 

[ThePandemonium]

I think you just have to "break-in" your ears. Your really not changing anything physically, just mentally. Just keep listening to them and eventually you will get used to them.

 

[drtwofish]

Ha - thanks I'll give them a few days, but they really don't seem to have much of a "kick" to them. I may be asking the impossible, for earphones to sound brilliant on both hard metal/rap and the Decemberists, though...

 

[Scott_Tarlow]

Uhh, it is very hard to find a IEM with hard hitting bass. The only 2 that I have heard that have good bass are the TF10 and the IE8, and the w3 and Shure 530 is respectable.

 

[ThePandemonium]

I've only heard the Custom 3's only breifly and it would seem that for rap and metal the Image X10 is a far better choice. The X10 did have a much fuller sound to them and maybe you should look into them if the C3's are not doing it for you. Just keep on listening to them and maybe they will work for you, the sound is not for everyone though.

 

[drtwofish]

I was afraid of that - it may be that all the reviews I read claiming "chest thumping bass" from the C3's were relative to other IEMs. I'm afraid the ones you mentioned are out of my price range - I might have to go back to cans...

 

[drtwofish]

Thanks guys (gals?)

I'll keep listening, but I think my expectations may have been unrealistic...

 

[Sixteh]

I doubt you can get "chest thumping bass" from IEM's since that sensation is from a woofer...that is, the sound waves are literally hitting your chest/gut. At least taht's my understanding.

 

[ZARIM]

You can pair with Fuze or Clip and you will get better bass reponse but romal they sound mid oriented, little bassy IEMs.

 

[drtwofish]

Sixteh, yeah, I assumed they were slightly exaggerating, but I was getting significantly deeper bass from my sealed AKGs, which are pretty small. Zarim, by fuze or clip do you mean the mp3 players? i'm running from an iphone and gotta stick with it...thanks though!

 

[mark2410]

get some small olives and try them on them

 

[FYJX]

Custom 3's not kicking in the lows? that is quite weird...i found them to be quite powerful on the lows compared to many earphones. What earphones are you coming from? Also try silicone sleeves instead of foam sleeves.

 

[drtwofish]

Thanks for replying MaoDi - I'm coming from a pair of AKG k26P sealed headphones (I think they're now called the 414P), which have a full bass sound but quite rolled off mids and highs. I settled on the biggest rubber tips that came with the Klipschs, as none of the others would seal off my canals.

I understand that aftermarket tips might help, but I'm really hesitant to drop another $20-30 on this...already pushed my budget with the phones!

 

[ilney]

Want bass? Get a Sony DAP and set Clear Bass to 3. I don't recommend it though...

 

[drtwofish]

lol - nah, gotta stick with my iphone... my old sony cd player had crazy bass though... Really, I'm looking for sound (ideally) that's similar to a decent set of studio monitors with a sealed 8" sub. Punchy, fun, plenty of bottom end, but not at the expense of mush elsewhere. Guess I am asking too much for $150 phones...