[dkpaul]

Today I met with a guy who wanted to sell a pair of used ER4P.

The condition (the looks of it) was fair. So I tried them on with iPod and Corda Move.

I head Eric Clapton (Running on Faith: Unplugged) and Norah Jones (I don't know why) for about four minutes.

Well, the first song did not sound natural. It sounded like it was being played in a big warehouse with echo cancellation. No bass. colored highs.
The second song was ok, but definitely not natural.

So, could there have been something wrong with that particular pair of ER4? or is this general? I have a set of HD595... well not the best set, I know.

I' thinking about upgrading to HD600 or 650 and a set of IEM.

After this experience, I'm not sure if I should keep looking for ER4. Maybe I should try something else.

 

[antonyfirst]

They need to matched with a warm amp like the Supermicro, or at least properly equalized. With flat eq, they sound flat, as well, and boring.

 

[jinx20001]

er4's are generally boring because not much is boosted and its just boring, designed to sound natural but lack of impact in bass means it kicks itself in the arse really

 

[dkpaul]

I see. Then I will keep looking into different directions.... Thanks.

 

[jinx20001]

dont get me wrong the er4's are superb linked with the right set up but if you like warmer fun sound deffinately go somewhere else because these lack straight out of an ipod or somert

 

[dkpaul]

Well... I was listening from from iPod via Corda Move... but it was still boring...
Maybe my ears aren't trained properly?

 

[MusicFirst]

I think that the ER4 is pretty darn close to neutral. It may not have the "fun" of, say, a Grado can, but the ER4 is all audiophile...

...and I find the buds to sound decent directly out of the 1st gen Shuffle!

 

[gp_hebert]

Well, my ER4S paired with an iMod/Hornet is anything but boring. Transparent, neutral, detailed, extended, fast, but definitely not boring. Sure, it's not fun phones like a Grado, but I get more enjoyment than with any Shure IEM I've tried.

 

[catscratch]

If there was no audible bass then chances are you didn't have a good seal. You can get very good isolation with the Etys and still not have a good seal. It's tricky and takes a bit of time. When the seal is right, there will be bass, but the highs will still be overpronounced and will dominate the rest of the frequency spectrum.

I don't think it sounds boring; on some music it sounds fabulous. Things well recorded on tube mics and vintage gear sound terrific, and the overactive treble just adds more detail and immediacy to the sound.

Unfortunately, the quantity of recordings produced with that quality in mind is... small. In today's market, you have dynamic compression, bright, steely sound, low-bitrate encoding, garbage mics/guitar amps/random gear, not to mention garbage DAPs that sound like coffee gringers gargling nails, and the more time passes, the worse it gets.

So, I don't think the Etys are particularly well suited to today's marketplace. But, in the right circumstances, they can really sing.

 

[gtp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dkpaul /img/forum/go_quote.gif It sounded like it was being played in a big warehouse with echo cancellation. No bass. colored highs.

This statement makes it obvious: you did not have a good seal.

 

[jinx20001]

everybody claims if there is no bass there is no seal but i think people are not as stupid as you make out, you have to consider what hes comparing them to that explains why there is no bass

 

[Pangaea]

I just ordered a pr based on posts that claimed the ER4Ps had a sparkling sound similar to grados. I hope they are not boring.

 

[jcn3]

i definitely would not call the er4 a boring iem. sharp, crisp, clean, accurate -- definitely, but not boring.

i use the same set-up and listen to that same kind of music (even the same albums all the time) -- again, boring is not what I hear.

regarding the seal, you may find me to be an idiot, but i went for years before i really got a good seal. i used the regular black foamies and knew they could probably be tighter, but never ordered the larger foamies until recently -- getting a great seal makes a HUGE difference. it's one of those things where you don't know what a good seal is until you get one.

i would also wonder about the ipod -- how was the music ripped? if it was a low bit rate, that would result in tremendously boring music going through a good amp and good headphones.

 

[KrooLism]

ER4 has to be equalised.

They are actually capable of quite some bass if equalised properly.

I have the 4S and you definitely need an amp. I've used the Aleph 3 to amp the 4S. 30 watts per channel for IEM's.

Sounds delicious.

 

[jinx20001]

you dont get 30 watts going through the iem's because they would explode along with your head, that amplifier is designed for speakers