Entry into IEM world... E5c bass?

[Ge|atinousFury]

Hey everyone, first post on here but I've been a lurker for a while

I finally took the plunge into the portable world and ordered an Ipod Nano (4GB black) and some E5c's (from Earphone solutions....very fast delivery I might add!!) to go with them. I was initially looking at the E4c's due to the cheaper price but in the end I decided on the E5c's because of the better bass.

Well, I received the E5c's today and since my Ipod Nano hasn't arrived yet I decided to plug them into my computer and listen to some mp3's just to see how they do.

Well, two hours have passed now and I have tried literally every type/size of tip that has came with the E5c's. At this point my main issue is the bass (or lack thereof). I had read in numerous posts that the bass of the E5c was pretty incredible, and since I listen to rock and metal I really wanted those kick drums and bass guitars to come out and play. I'm sure that I'm getting a good seal with the E5c's because I can't hear anything at all going on around me and when I talk I can hear my voice amplified in my head, etc. The majority of my CD's are ripped at 192/320 kbps and I play the mp3's through winamp. My computer's sound card is a Chaintech AV-10. I do not use a headphone amp.

I don't really know the correct wording, but in every single song I've listened to the bass is WAYYY back there in the background. The treble is overpowering so I can't increase the volume to hear more bass, else the treble hurts my ears. As my thread title states, this is my first ever pair of IEM's, so the only thing I can compare these to is my Sennheiser HD-590 cans that I use to listen to all these mp3's through winamp. With my HD-590's the presence of the bass guitars/kick drums are definitely alive and make the song jump out and be exciting (which is exactly what I want). With the E5c's, I can't really hear any kick drums or bass guitars, and if I can it's so overpowered by treble that it takes a very good bit of fun out of the music. As stated before, the seal is good. I realize my source could be better, but this same source with these same songs sound excellent to me on my HD-590's. The only thing I've been able to do to help alleviate the problem is turn on the rock EQ preset on Winamp, but that's really just a minimal improvement.

Am I wishing too much from IEM's for wanting a good presence of bass guitar/kick drum in my songs? As everything stands now, I'm definitely not enjoying my music as much as I previously was. Did I pick the wrong pair of IEM's or what?

Thanks in advance for any info, advice, etc.

 

[joelongwood]

Since this is your first IEM, although you think you have a good seal, my guess is that you don't. Do you feel any vacuum when you try to pull them out? If not, you don't have a good seal. If you do have a vacuum, and your seal is good, and you still feel there is no bass, then maybe IEMs are not for you.

 

[elephantman]

U just need to learn how to insert iems; it takes days to master.

 

[warpdriver]

First time I've ever heard someone say the E5's to be treble happy and lacking bass!

From headroom
Quote:

These cans are quite warm sounding with a significantly bass heavy response.

Quote:

Nuts about bass? These are the in-ear cans for you.

What you are describing sounds like a case of bad seal.

 

[catscratch]

You definitely don't have a good seal. You've basically described the symptoms of a bad seal perfectly - no bass, strident treble. The E5c, when properly inserted, will have a good deal less treble than the HD590, with a lot more midrange and about the same levels of bass. It will also be a lot smoother, taking the edge off a lot of your music.

A good test of a proper seal is to rub your fingers together about a foot away from your ear; if you can hear the rubbing, then your seal most likely isn't very good.

I should also add that, due to our own individual anatomies, it may be likely that it is impossible for you to get a good seal without custom molds. That will, of course, make things more inconvenient for you, but the point I'm trying to make is - don't judge the E5c so early, especially since this is your first canalphone. You're definitely not getting a good seal, so practice with it until you do. If things don't turn out well, you can always sell them here.

 

[Ge|atinousFury]

Thanks for all the replies. I guess that I'm gonna have to keep trying to get a good seal. So far I've discovered that I like the foam tips best, and I assume its because I've gotten the best seal with them. I definitely won't judge these IEM's until I know I'm getting a good seal. I also want to listen to an uncompressed source such as a PCDP and see how much of a difference that makes in what I'm hearing.

Will I get a suction feeling when pulling out foam tips if they have a good seal?

 

[elephantman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ge|atinousFury Thanks for all the replies. I guess that I'm gonna have to keep trying to get a good seal. So far I've discovered that I like the foam tips best, and I assume its because I've gotten the best seal with them. I definitely won't judge these IEM's until I know I'm getting a good seal. I also want to listen to an uncompressed source such as a PCDP and see how much of a difference that makes in what I'm hearing. Will I get a suction feeling when pulling out foam tips if they have a good seal?

yep, when inserting in and pulling out.

 

[roy_jones]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ge|atinousFury Thanks for all the replies. I guess that I'm gonna have to keep trying to get a good seal. So far I've discovered that I like the foam tips best, and I assume its because I've gotten the best seal with them. I definitely won't judge these IEM's until I know I'm getting a good seal. I also want to listen to an uncompressed source such as a PCDP and see how much of a difference that makes in what I'm hearing. Will I get a suction feeling when pulling out foam tips if they have a good seal?

I was going to say, while the most likely reason for your perception of a lack of bass would be a problem with seal....I wouldn't discount the possibility that your source could also be problematic. I'm not 100% about the 710 (I think it's a good source(?) for a soundcard), but I know that the sound from my computer at this point is really poor all the way around.

 

[nikongod]

i never felt any suction when pulling out the foamies on my etymotics. i also found them (foamies) to be most comfortable.

 

[joelongwood]

I've never had suction with foamies.......only with silicon tips.