momerath
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Feb 16, 2004
- Posts
- 240
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- 10
I have some ER4Ps with a, once flakey, now nearly-always-absent right channel. It seems clear to me that it's the cable, though I haven't done the ultimate test of swapping drivers, because I was worried about making the connection loose; I'd obviously do that before making any final decision to use them, but let's assume it's the cable.
Etymotics hasn't yet responded to my email about buying a replacement cable (certainly they're out of warranty being more than 5 years old), but I've seen another post where someone said it was $50. I'm hesitant to spend that given what people have said about the cable's quality (being spliced, etc), and the microphonics, which have always bothered me. The only 3rd party cable I've seen (available now) is APS, which means $180 for the length I need.
I'm pretty skeptical that a cable could make enough difference to justify that price (for me), and I'm curious about the Phonaks, which people compare to the ER4, often favorably. I'm quite fond of the Ety sound, so I'm not looking for a radical departure, but the claims of better bass extension are intriguing. I would also find the microphone option useful, so I'm kinda leaning toward the Phonaks, and I'm pretty sure I'd buy them over the hf2, for instance, but given the fixable ER4s I already have, would I be throwing money and/or better SQ away?
And then there are the possibilities at higher prices. Maybe you can convince me I should save up for some W3s or something. Feel free to try
I would initially be using whatever IEMs mostly straight out of a dap, but I have vague plans for reviving my insane luggable rig (notebook->squeezebox->dAck->(something)->er4/phonak), so scalability is a factor (I'm even considering getting a balanced cable from APS and building a (trans)portable balanced amp like doobooloo's). Also, I mostly listen to post rock, idm and classical (and couldn't care less about how vocals sound).
Etymotics hasn't yet responded to my email about buying a replacement cable (certainly they're out of warranty being more than 5 years old), but I've seen another post where someone said it was $50. I'm hesitant to spend that given what people have said about the cable's quality (being spliced, etc), and the microphonics, which have always bothered me. The only 3rd party cable I've seen (available now) is APS, which means $180 for the length I need.
I'm pretty skeptical that a cable could make enough difference to justify that price (for me), and I'm curious about the Phonaks, which people compare to the ER4, often favorably. I'm quite fond of the Ety sound, so I'm not looking for a radical departure, but the claims of better bass extension are intriguing. I would also find the microphone option useful, so I'm kinda leaning toward the Phonaks, and I'm pretty sure I'd buy them over the hf2, for instance, but given the fixable ER4s I already have, would I be throwing money and/or better SQ away?
And then there are the possibilities at higher prices. Maybe you can convince me I should save up for some W3s or something. Feel free to try
I would initially be using whatever IEMs mostly straight out of a dap, but I have vague plans for reviving my insane luggable rig (notebook->squeezebox->dAck->(something)->er4/phonak), so scalability is a factor (I'm even considering getting a balanced cable from APS and building a (trans)portable balanced amp like doobooloo's). Also, I mostly listen to post rock, idm and classical (and couldn't care less about how vocals sound).