[aj_brown_99]

I've been searching around for some answers to my question but I haven't found much. I'm looking at a new pair of IEMs and I want to spend around $400 or less. For universal IEMs I've more or less narrowed it down to the IE8 or the UM3X, which I am aware are very different sounding earphones, but I haven't yet decided if I want to go with the accuracy of the UM3X or the more fun sounding signature of the IE8. Then I started to consider customs, since there are now quite a few options for fairly low-cost customs. Basically what I'm asking is what are the options for customs in my price range, and how do they compare to the top of the line universals?

Just for reference I listen to all kinds of music, with maybe 2/3 electronic (trance, psytrance, house, chillout) and then some jazz, hip hop and rock. My source for portable is currently Cowon D2 with no amp, possibly something simple like an E5. At home I would either be running it out of my DAC or my speaker amp (Cambridge Audio 640A V2).

Thanks for helping me to make a decision.

 

[Get_Zwole]

I just got my westone 3's today and i have to say im very impressed with them so far. Its very fun to listen too but also accurate and not fatiguing to me at all so far. That was the main thing i was worried about is getting fatigued im going on 1 hour non stop and i cant even tell they are in my ears.

 

[dosley01]

I considered some of the sub $400 customs before getting my IE8s but the lack of resale pretty much killed the custom route. For me personally, I think if I "really" wanted customs, I would just go all the way and get either the JH-13/UE-11/ES3X and never look back.

 

[aj_brown_99]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Get_Zwole /img/forum/go_quote.gif I just got my westone 3's today and i have to say im very impressed with them so far. Its very fun to listen too but also accurate and not fatiguing to me at all so far. That was the main thing i was worried about is getting fatigued im going on 1 hour non stop and i cant even tell they are in my ears.

I'm sure you are enjoying your W3's, but I've pretty much dismissed them since the UM3X seems to be better in most ways.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dosley01 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I considered some of the sub $400 customs before getting my IE8s but the lack of resale pretty much killed the custom route. For me personally, I think if I "really" wanted customs, I would just go all the way and get either the JH-13/UE-11/ES3X and never look back.

Well, the lack of resale isn't really an issue for me, since I will use the headphones till they are run into the ground. I really do want customs, and it seems worth it to me to spend a bit more than universals on them (for the impressions), but there's no way I could see myself spending like $1000 on them.

I'm really looking for some help though, maybe someone who has owned various customs and universals, or someone who is just much more knowledgeable than me. Thanks for the input though.

 

[roy_jones]

It might be more accurate to talk about the price difference as being (for sake of argument) $100 for the universals or $400 for the custom. If you were to use the universal for a couple of years and then sell it, you might be able to recover most of what you paid. The same is probably not true for the custom. Therefore, it's not an apples-to-apples price comparison.

PS- I'd go for the universal.

 

[FYJX]

Why not make them custom? Livewire Triples are quite nice and they cost $379 +Impressions. Universal wise, i would say by the looks of your music choices, go for the Um3X or the Futuresonics Atrio.

The customs won't really have any custom value, but for many people out there they just get the custom refit and shelled to their own ears and cost them a small fraction of the custom's MSRP so many are willing to buy OTHER peoples customs to have them fit to their own ears. HOwever, Universals would be easier to sell off and gain part of the money you paid for them.

So the choice is yours, can't really decide for you. i myself would go for custom because it guarantees a perfect fit, and the highest potential SQ of the monitor itself when compared to Universals which vary depending on the angle, deepness and the tip you are using on the universals which could ruin the sound of the monitor itself. These are my speculations and thoughts, not facts.

 

[aj_brown_99]

Quote:

Originally Posted by roy_jones /img/forum/go_quote.gif It might be more accurate to talk about the price difference as being (for sake of argument) $100 for the universals or $400 for the custom. If you were to use the universal for a couple of years and then sell it, you might be able to recover most of what you paid. The same is probably not true for the custom. Therefore, it's not an apples-to-apples price comparison. PS- I'd go for the universal.

You see, the thing is, I have very little interest in selling the headphones when I am done. I see buying a headphone as an investment, one that I like to hold on to for reference later or just to look back on and enjoy. Also, I usually use a headphone until some part of it breaks anyways

.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MaoDi /img/forum/go_quote.gif Why not make them custom? Livewire Triples are quite nice and they cost $379 +Impressions. Universal wise, i would say by the looks of your music choices, go for the Um3X or the Futuresonics Atrio. The customs won't really have any custom value, but for many people out there they just get the custom refit and shelled to their own ears and cost them a small fraction of the custom's MSRP so many are willing to buy OTHER peoples customs to have them fit to their own ears. HOwever, Universals would be easier to sell off and gain part of the money you paid for them. So the choice is yours, can't really decide for you. i myself would go for custom because it guarantees a perfect fit, and the highest potential SQ of the monitor itself when compared to Universals which vary depending on the angle, deepness and the tip you are using on the universals which could ruin the sound of the monitor itself. These are my speculations and thoughts, not facts.

I am really leaning towards customs, just because they sound like everything you can get out of a universal, and more. However, do you know how the Livewires/other similarly priced customs compare to the um3x, etc. in SQ alone?

 

[shigzeo]

ive heard the um3x quite extensively in the last 3 or 4 weeks and they are very nice. my sleek ct6 is us 350$ and is better in every respect. the main problem universals suffer from is the soft plastic tube they go through to a soft flange or foam and suffer from constriction in the canal, poor echo based on the above materials and nearly no bone conduction.

unless a custom is really shoddy using cheap parts, i cannot imagine even a 150$ custom (with decent driver) being worse than a top of the line universal. my sleek of course is based off of the sa6 which, admittedly is not one of my favourites: the fit is awful for me. but the custom wipes the floor with any universal. the only i have yet to try is the tf10 pro. but i am confident that as much as it destroyed everything else, it will do the same.

the sound tube is of higher quality, fit is perfect (once you get it), bone conduction - they whole outfit is made for dancing, not just the innards.

 

[Sinocelt]

This thread may interest you, too.

 

[midoo1990]

well,i have 90% of my music collection trance and electronic stuff and some house(i listen mainly to vocal trance)and i can tell you that the ie8 are superb for this kind of music and the bass and drums slam and hit just right,female vocals playing through the ie8 are wonderful and in your face kind of thing,and instruments laid back behind the vocal with gr8 seperation and detail.if you listen to this kind of my music(chicane,tiesto,armin van buuren,dj angel one,infected mushrooms.....)then this is the best universal iem to get.
i dont have any customs nor i listened to one so i cant commenton that.

 

[aj_brown_99]

Quote:

Originally Posted by shigzeo /img/forum/go_quote.gif ive heard the um3x quite extensively in the last 3 or 4 weeks and they are very nice. my sleek ct6 is us 350$ and is better in every respect. the main problem universals suffer from is the soft plastic tube they go through to a soft flange or foam and suffer from constriction in the canal, poor echo based on the above materials and nearly no bone conduction. unless a custom is really shoddy using cheap parts, i cannot imagine even a 150$ custom (with decent driver) being worse than a top of the line universal. my sleek of course is based off of the sa6 which, admittedly is not one of my favourites: the fit is awful for me. but the custom wipes the floor with any universal. the only i have yet to try is the tf10 pro. but i am confident that as much as it destroyed everything else, it will do the same. the sound tube is of higher quality, fit is perfect (once you get it), bone conduction - they whole outfit is made for dancing, not just the innards.

Well, I guess that basically solves the dispute of customs vs universals. Now the question is which customs to get?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sinocelt /img/forum/go_quote.gif This thread may interest you, too.

I read all through this thread and another similar one, and it seems that no one really knows much about the JH-5 or the UE4, but the speculation seems to be that the JH-5 was originally aimed at the UE5, but the price was then dropped to compete with the UE4. This may mean that the JH-5 is more on par with the UE5, but no one really seems to know.

So I guess that so far I would take the JH-5 over the UE4, but what about the other options, namely the Sleek CT6, the Fidelity (Livewires) Triples, and Hearyourself C3? There seem to be very few review available anywhere, so I am having a very difficult time deciding which one to go for.

 

[FYJX]

Quote:

Originally Posted by aj_brown_99 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Well, I guess that basically solves the dispute of customs vs universals. Now the question is which customs to get? I read all through this thread and another similar one, and it seems that no one really knows much about the JH-5 or the UE4, but the speculation seems to be that the JH-5 was originally aimed at the UE5, but the price was then dropped to compete with the UE4. This may mean that the JH-5 is more on par with the UE5, but no one really seems to know. So I guess that so far I would take the JH-5 over the UE4, but what about the other options, namely the Sleek CT6, the Fidelity (Livewires) Triples, and Hearyourself C3? There seem to be very few review available anywhere, so I am having a very difficult time deciding which one to go for.

Despite not have hearing any of these, i myself would say go for the JH5. Why? because the customer service at JH Audio is absolutely fantastic, also because they were meant to be priced at $599.99 instead of the current $399.99 so think of it that you have just saved $200, last but not least of course...you get the fabulous looking Carbon Fiber case...and also because everyone seems to be extremely impressed with the products of JH Audio right now, so the little brother of the band can't go wrong can it?

 

[jleewach]

you mention wanting something that can serve as a long term investment. How long-term? What happens when you you've kept them so long that your ear shape changes due to weight, age, etc... and the customs no longer fit properly? Just imho...

 

[aj_brown_99]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MaoDi /img/forum/go_quote.gif Despite not have hearing any of these, i myself would say go for the JH5. Why? because the customer service at JH Audio is absolutely fantastic, also because they were meant to be priced at $599.99 instead of the current $399.99 so think of it that you have just saved $200, last but not least of course...you get the fabulous looking Carbon Fiber case...and also because everyone seems to be extremely impressed with the products of JH Audio right now, so the little brother of the band can't go wrong can it?

Thanks for the input. That seems like a good way to look at it. I guess I will go for these unless something changes my mind within the next few days.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jleewach /img/forum/go_quote.gif you mention wanting something that can serve as a long term investment. How long-term? What happens when you you've kept them so long that your ear shape changes due to weight, age, etc... and the customs no longer fit properly? Just imho...

The thing is, it seems unlikely that I'll go the 3-4 years for my ears to change without breaking the headphones or upgrading to new ones. If, however, I do, it's not the end of the world to just go get new impressions and get them to refit them. And there's absolutely no way I'm gaining weight

. In my opinion, losing the ability to keep them forever and losing the lack of resale value are small things to give up compared to the huge advantages of having custom phones. I could go running with headphones in! Or eat! Things I've never been able to do before. Plus, a perfect fit every time, and they are so comfortable I could wear them for hours straight without getting that pressure on my inner ear canals and having to take them off.

 

[brown274]

I think the JH 5 are such a better deal than the JH 13. If you think about it, it takes the same time to make the molds and scans for both pairs. They pretty much take the exact same process to make except the 5s have 2 drivers and the 13s have 6 drivers. So you are paying $800 for 4 more drivers.

I know people are gonna get pissed and say how much better the 13s are. I bet they are with 6 vs 2 drivers, they should be that much better. But my point is in making them. They take the exact process to make except for adding more drivers. So I think they are making about $100 profit on the 5s and making $500 profit on the 13s.