pianoplayer88key
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Dec 30, 2002
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Hi all. My current $25 pair of earphones just bit the dust after 4 months, so I need to find a more durable pair.
I'm looking for:
* preferably under $100 shipped, but might be willing to consider something up to $150.
* DURABLE! I want these to last at least several years even with heavy use/abuse. Pretty much EVERYTHING I've had in the last 10 years has given out within like 6 months or so. (Durability guarantee alone would be worth a moderate (30-40%) price premium over a cheaper pair.)
* good isolation - I like the specs on the Etymotic HF5 for example (35-42dB according to their website). I like to listen in noisy environments without having to crank up the volume very loud.
* suitable for classical music, also able to faithfully reproduce all the detail, nuances, the entire frequency range, etc, of a concert pipe organ (especially ones with a 64-foot rank - going down to 8 Hz.. and if it could go down to 4 Hz and faithfully reproduce this (especially the 2nd half of that sound clip) it'd be nice), concert grand piano and well-produced choral vocals (not the type that sounds like monks chanting in a monastery)
* clear pitch definition at all frequency ranges.... for example in the bass be able to tell pitches apart that are simultaneously played and less than 100 cents apart in pitch at the bottom end. (and NOT "muddy" like some that artificially boost the response around 200 Hz - that totally ruins bass response for me, as in my definition bass doesn't even start until you get down to about 32 Hz.)
* an in-line volume control would be nice, but if I can get better quality and more durable ones without it that's fine.
Two pair I have "ears" on are the Etymotic ER-6 and HF5, but I'm willing to consider others.
I'd prefer to buy at a local store - like Guitar Center, Fry's, Best Buy, Radio Shack, etc... (I'm in San Diego, CA.) so if for some reason I don't like them I can return / exchange them. (Unfortunately it'll be a few days before I'm able to buy a pair as I'm trying to recover from some bug.)
So what would you all recommend?
P.S. I'm just curious a little about the high-end ones that are custom-fitted by an audiologist. I would assume their sound quality is equal to or truer than hearing the instruments live in the best seats in Carnegie Hall? Also how is the isolation on those? When properly designed and inserted can you simultaneously fire a 14-gauge shotgun and 50-caliber pistol 2 inches from your ear (when there's no sound playing in the monitors) and not hear the firearms at all? Also durability? Could you hoist a full-gross-weight Airbus A380 and fling it into orbit with the cable from one of those and can the ear drivers/molds survive a direct hit from a nuke?
I'm looking for:
* preferably under $100 shipped, but might be willing to consider something up to $150.
* DURABLE! I want these to last at least several years even with heavy use/abuse. Pretty much EVERYTHING I've had in the last 10 years has given out within like 6 months or so. (Durability guarantee alone would be worth a moderate (30-40%) price premium over a cheaper pair.)
* good isolation - I like the specs on the Etymotic HF5 for example (35-42dB according to their website). I like to listen in noisy environments without having to crank up the volume very loud.
* suitable for classical music, also able to faithfully reproduce all the detail, nuances, the entire frequency range, etc, of a concert pipe organ (especially ones with a 64-foot rank - going down to 8 Hz.. and if it could go down to 4 Hz and faithfully reproduce this (especially the 2nd half of that sound clip) it'd be nice), concert grand piano and well-produced choral vocals (not the type that sounds like monks chanting in a monastery)
* clear pitch definition at all frequency ranges.... for example in the bass be able to tell pitches apart that are simultaneously played and less than 100 cents apart in pitch at the bottom end. (and NOT "muddy" like some that artificially boost the response around 200 Hz - that totally ruins bass response for me, as in my definition bass doesn't even start until you get down to about 32 Hz.)
* an in-line volume control would be nice, but if I can get better quality and more durable ones without it that's fine.
Two pair I have "ears" on are the Etymotic ER-6 and HF5, but I'm willing to consider others.
I'd prefer to buy at a local store - like Guitar Center, Fry's, Best Buy, Radio Shack, etc... (I'm in San Diego, CA.) so if for some reason I don't like them I can return / exchange them. (Unfortunately it'll be a few days before I'm able to buy a pair as I'm trying to recover from some bug.)
So what would you all recommend?
P.S. I'm just curious a little about the high-end ones that are custom-fitted by an audiologist. I would assume their sound quality is equal to or truer than hearing the instruments live in the best seats in Carnegie Hall? Also how is the isolation on those? When properly designed and inserted can you simultaneously fire a 14-gauge shotgun and 50-caliber pistol 2 inches from your ear (when there's no sound playing in the monitors) and not hear the firearms at all? Also durability? Could you hoist a full-gross-weight Airbus A380 and fling it into orbit with the cable from one of those and can the ear drivers/molds survive a direct hit from a nuke?