[Hiya Buddy]

Hi all,
 
I'm new here and this is my first post. I decided to join these forums looking for the right pair of in ear headphones/monitors that would suit my taste in music. I'm having trouble deciding between several models and different brands and guessing by the community, it looks like I came to right right place.
 
This is a probably a common repeated post but I tried searching for posts, most were old and some were close but did not contain models I was looking for. Ok here goes...
 
I like music with heavy bass. Techno, Hip Hop, R&B, and occasionally some soft rock. I do appreciate classical music too and have somewhat sensitive ears to every song. Despite my past headphone choices I could always discern a specific repeating melody and just focus on that throughout the whole song. Most of the time however, I just appreciate the pumping/thumping bass and the rattle I feel in my head when the bass punches. This especially motivates me when I work out the pumping bass just encourages me to work out harder.
 
In the past I started with the basic ipod headphones (yikes!) and started moving up to in ear headphones instead of ear buds because I knew I wanted to feel as if I was in a car with a premium quality stereo. I went on to in ear Sony's (forgot model but they were around 50 bucks). From there I tried some Phillips (another sub $100 pair). And then I started moving towards more expensive brands. My first "premium" in ear headphones were the Beats Tour by Dre. Honestly, at the time they were released they sounded pretty awesome and my first pair lasted about 18 months so I decided to get the same pair with control talk afterwards. Fast-forward another 18 months and I came to a conundrum. My tours had broken, one ear didn't function, and they were out of warranty so I wasn't sure if I would get a third pair.
 
The cable design of the tours was its greatest feature but also the greatest flaw because the cable started cracking and exposing the copper wiring. So I decided to go to the interwebs to find what pair was good. After some thinking I went for the Shure se315s for around $200 from Amazon. They've been sitting in the box, still sealed for the past two months, so I'm wondering If I can sell em. Anyways, instead of breaking open the Shures, I took a walk to my local Bestbuy. In the Magnolia Theater section they have the "premium" headphones. These were the monster headphones, they had monster turbine, turbine pro gold, turbine pro copper, and miles davis, as well as turbine pearls (?). In the end I shelled out the $280 for the turbine pro golds and haven't looked back since. The lifetime warranty is attractive too.
 
Now, I've reached a point where I'm wanting more of an umpf factor in my music. The turbine pro golds are fabulous and the bass is near rattling, but I'm pretty sure there are better in ear headphones out there. I even ordered a pair of UE TF10 from amazon for 150 only problem is, the fit is just awful. I'm not used to over the ear cable but I tried them for 2 whole days on my commute (3 hour plus) to my University and back. They were just sitting uncomfortably and would only stay in my ear for 1 minute at the most. Problem is, I may be a bigger guy but my ear canals are tiny. The only tips that fit me perfectly are the size small demo tips that they let you use in Bestbuy if you want to demo their monster headphones. I ended up swiping 6 pairs from the drawer because they had the best fit. So the TF10s didn't work out for me, even after using the tips from my turbine pro golds (they fit the TF10s) I still had issues with them falling out or losing suction so the music wouldn't sound like I was listening through $400 headphones. Now i'm going to return the TF10s to amazon and wondering what model would suit me best. I will give a list of models that interest me. My max budget is 500 bucks so thats a no go on custom fitting ones until my budget window increases.
 
The models that interest me the most are:
 
Sony MDR EX 1000
Westone UM3X
Shure SE535
 
I would be grateful to anyone who could help me with my choices for headphones. If there any other models please feel free to inform me of them.
 
Thanks in advance

 

[streetfighter]

As a fellow basshead myself, as well as listening to the same genres as you. I would definitely recommend the following:
 
Sony EX1000
Westone 3
JVC FX700
Sennheiser IE 8
 
Any of those will suit your needs, in terms of pricing and availability I would go for either the Westone 3's or EX1000.

 

[nipit]

Bass...hound? You should try JVC FX700 & Sennheiser IE8

 

[Hiya Buddy]

Looks like the Sony EX1000 are my main choice. Unfortunately I can't pick them up today since I called sony and they were out of stock. The same applies to my local Bestbuy, looks like I'm gonna have to have it ordered to my local sony style. I was quoted no restocking fee from the sales associate so if they don't work out I can bring them back.

 

[a_recording]

I've had a listen to the EX1000; I'm surprised that you'd recommend them for heavy bass since they seem really neutral and refined more than anything else to me. The EX1000 bass reaches very deep, like GR07 bass, but I wouldn't describe it particularly as 'thumping'.
 
The Radius HP-TWF21 and the Atrio M5 have the deepest, thunderous yet taut bass I have yet heard. The kind of bass that not only brings out the sub 50hz tones in music, but makes un-edited studio recordings a lot of fun because slight sounds - the moving of chairs, breath on a microphone, etc - really very startling.
 
Otherwise I would second the UM3x or their French cousin the SM3 if you are looking for a BA. I still don't feel that BA's are as tactile with their bass though.
 
I believe the new Sony XBA-4 is considered very bassy because of its slightly more consumer orientated position and also its dedicated subwoofer armature, but I haven't heard it.
 
 

 

[i2ehan]

Quote:

I like music with heavy bass. Techno, Hip Hop, R&B, and occasionally some soft rock. I do appreciate classical music too and have somewhat sensitive ears to every song. Despite my past headphone choices I could always discern a specific repeating melody and just focus on that throughout the whole song. Most of the time however, I just appreciate the pumping/thumping bass and the rattle I feel in my head when the bass punches. This especially motivates me when I work out the pumping bass just encourages me to work out harder.
 
Now, I've reached a point where I'm wanting more of an umpf factor in my music.

You need not look past the FX700. a_recording is right, the EX1000 isn't the best suited option in your case. You won't find a better quality bass-heavy in-ear than the FX700, and it fits within your budget. 

 

[Hiya Buddy]

I went to my local sony style today. Picked up the ex 600 and I tried them out for literally 10 minutes and returned them right there. I know this doesn't seem right, but the tips are too big for my ears. The SS size sony has for tips are too big and they prevent me from hearing the music well. I figure I will have the same results with the EX 1000 so I'll retract my earlier post now. So I'm left between Westone UMX3 and Shure se535. I have tried to find the JVC fx700 literally typed that but I'm not sure what website is reputable to buy from. I know amazon doesn't have them, does anybody know a reputable online seller for those JVC headphones? I'm thinking I might as well ask my parents to help me out with some money and get a custom fitted pair from Westone because I have literally tiny ear canals. Think of the burger king tiny hands commerical...thats kinda my problem.
 
On a side note, the guy at my local apple store offered me a chance to try out the Klipsch x10i's. They have the tiniest ear tip I've seen, it was actually too small for me. But, alas, I was not impressed with them, especially for their $350 price tag.
 
So now my dilemma is ear tip size. My Monster Turbine Pro Golds happen to fit me the best right now, but will a custom pair do me any better???

 

[a_recording]

Quote:

I went to my local sony style today. Picked up the ex 600 and I tried them out for literally 10 minutes and returned them right there. I know this doesn't seem right, but the tips are too big for my ears. The SS size sony has for tips are too big and they prevent me from hearing the music well. I figure I will have the same results with the EX 1000 so I'll retract my earlier post now. So I'm left between Westone UMX3 and Shure se535. I have tried to find the JVC fx700 literally typed that but I'm not sure what website is reputable to buy from. I know amazon doesn't have them, does anybody know a reputable online seller for those JVC headphones? I'm thinking I might as well ask my parents to help me out with some money and get a custom fitted pair from Westone because I have literally tiny ear canals. Think of the burger king tiny hands commerical...thats kinda my problem.
 
On a side note, the guy at my local apple store offered me a chance to try out the Klipsch x10i's. They have the tiniest ear tip I've seen, it was actually too small for me. But, alas, I was not impressed with them, especially for their $350 price tag.
 
So now my dilemma is ear tip size. My Monster Turbine Pro Golds happen to fit me the best right now, but will a custom pair do me any better???

 
Hmm what an interesting problem, since as I understand it the Turbines don't really have a nozzle much thicker or thinner than the new EX series. Have you ever tried pulling on the edge of your ear outwards when you insert the IEM, to straighten out your ear canal? http://www.etymotic.com/technology/earinsert.html
 
Also again if you are considering the SE535 you really oughta consider the SM3. The 535 doesn't have a very prominent bass response.
 
 

 

[Hiya Buddy]

@a_recording I didn't try pulling my ear, however, the sony tips would remain stuck in my ear after removing the monitors. The same happened when I put in the tips from my beats obviously they aren't designed to work with sony. Unfortunately I cannot put up a picture, because apparently I'm not allowed to create attachments, to show you the exact size of the tips I use on my monster turbine pro golds.
 
Alright, so the way I see it, the Shures are a no go because they lack the bass response. What about Westone and which of the Westone customs has the best bass??? I think i can convince my parents to help me out a bit because i have a chunk, $600 exactly, of their price and the difference will be my parent's christmas gift to me. I was eyeing the custom ex3s but I haven't heard too much about them online. How are they for bass???

 

[a_recording]

If you are planning on losing or gaining any weight or you are still relatively young, I would be wary of customs. I wouldn't know much about how they actually sound but they always seem an awfully large investment for me.
 
Then again I have an Uncle in Hong Kong and every single one of his family members has customs, including his kids heh.

 

[djvkool]

Quote:

@a_recording I didn't try pulling my ear, however, the sony tips would remain stuck in my ear after removing the monitors. The same happened when I put in the tips from my beats obviously they aren't designed to work with sony. Unfortunately I cannot put up a picture, because apparently I'm not allowed to create attachments, to show you the exact size of the tips I use on my monster turbine pro golds.
 
Alright, so the way I see it, the Shures are a no go because they lack the bass response. What about Westone and which of the Westone customs has the best bass??? I think i can convince my parents to help me out a bit because i have a chunk, $600 exactly, of their price and the difference will be my parent's christmas gift to me. I was eyeing the custom ex3s but I haven't heard too much about them online. How are they for bass???

I would agree on i2ehan suggestion above that FX700 would probably suits you best, Westone 3 and Atrio M5 will not fit your ear, I own them and they don't come with any small tips.
 
I would recommend you look at UE700, it is tiny and comes with small tips, the bass is not boomy but fast, tight, and very punchy
 

 

[i2ehan]

Quote:

I would recommend you look at UE700, it is tiny and comes with small tips, the bass is not boomy but fast, tight, and very punchy

While I'm quite fond of the UE700 myself, going back to the OP's statement, stating "Most of the time however, I just appreciate the pumping/thumping bass and the rattle I feel in my head when the bass punches.", I can say with full certainty that the UE700 won't suffice.

 

[Hiya Buddy]

This is true about loving that thumping bass. I'm not pre-pubescent young lol...I'm 19 and according to my last xray on my foot my podiatrist told me "you're done growing"
 
So does anybody know of the custom Westone's???

 

[eke2k6]

Before you spend $1000 on customs, PM these guys first so you can at leat try the FX700. You can resell universal iem in a heartbeat if you don't like the sound. Customs are a whole different ballgame.
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/584282/jvc-fx700
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/585081/interest-check-jvc-fx700

 

[djvkool]

Quote:

Quote:

While I'm quite fond of the UE700 myself, going back to the OP's statement, stating "Most of the time however, I just appreciate the pumping/thumping bass and the rattle I feel in my head when the bass punches.", I can say with full certainty that the UE700 won't suffice.

UE700 surprised me to be honest with its bass, I had a brief listening session about 2 years ago, but I didn't think it had that much bass, so I was under the assumption that it is similar to B2/DBA-02.
 
Fast forward to last week, I received my UE700, and after fiddling around with tips, I found that the VSONIC hybrid (light blue) gave me the best fit and seal, and damn the bass is really good, I think much better than B2 (though detail and separation still not as good as B2)