[DigDub]

just got my sony ex71 today. sound is not as bad as i expected. in fact, its pretty good. bass is tight and not boomy, provided you use the correct gasket size. i tried the biggest sized gasket and it had the most secure fit, but the mid-range and treble were muddy and bass were bloated. i tried the middle size gaskets and they had a comfortable and nice fit and it improved the sound by quite a bit. the bass is tight and not boomy anymore. mid-range and treble also became crystal clear.

i was expecting the ex71 to sound like ex70, with boomy bass and sibilance, however, i was wrong. the ex71 is certainly not a cosmetic only improvment over the ex70. seems like they managed to control the bass and get rid of the sibilance, even though the mid-range could be stronger. i think the key to getting good sound from the ex71 is to use the right sized gasket - not too big or too small. make sure the phones go right inside your ears.

so how does the ex71 stack up against the er6? the ex71 had better high end range than the er6. i could hear the cyymbals and the hi-hats more clearly than with the er6. the er6 just seems to hide the them behind the mid-range and sounds swishy at times. as for mid-range, the er6 certainly beats the ex71. ex71's mid-range is quite weak but its an improvement over the ex70. er6's mid-range is very strong and clear. as for bass, the ex71 wins. bass is deep and sounds natural. er6 has not been known for its low end prowess, but nevertheless, it sounds tight and more controlled, maybe because the bass is more restricted in the er6.

canalphones is more about isolation, so i'll mention it here too. the ex71 do not isolate as well as the er6. i can still hear the loud roar of the bus engine with the ex71 on, but with the er6, i can hear only a soft whirring sound from the bus engine.

the ex71 is also significantly softer than other earbuds i've tried. i thought the er6 were soft already, but i had to turn the volume up 2 notches for the ex71 in order to attain the same loudness as the er6.

i think for people who have not tried canalphones before, it is important to get a good fit. if not, comments like 'sibliance', 'boomy bass' would inevitably come.

 

[Duncan]

I'm glad that you don't think the EX71s are all that bad...

...They get quite a bad press around these parts... sure they're not ETY ER4Ps, but for the small price you pay for them... i'd like to see how anyone can get better (if nothing else, better isolation)

Thanks

Duncan

 

[Nights_85]

u could probab;y get better isolation from the e2c's. I'm not speaking of personal experience with ex71's although I do have a pair of ex70 which are terrible in my opinion.

 

[DigDub]

Quote:

Originally posted by Nights_85 u could probab;y get better isolation from the e2c's. I'm not speaking of personal experience with ex71's although I do have a pair of ex70 which are terrible in my opinion.

the ex71 are definitely an improvement over the ex70.

 

[DigDub]

Quote:

Originally posted by Duncan I'm glad that you don't think the EX71s are all that bad... ...They get quite a bad press around these parts... sure they're not ETY ER4Ps, but for the small price you pay for them... i'd like to see how anyone can get better (if nothing else, better isolation) Thanks Duncan

i would have to agree with you there. i think sony has got it right with the ex71, although the isolation and mid-range can be better improved. overall, this is a worthy buy.

 

[dragonlong]

Quote:

Originally posted by DigDub bass is tight and not boomy, provided you use the correct gasket size. i tried the biggest sized gasket and it had the most secure fit, but the mid-range and treble were muddy and bass were bloated. i tried the middle size gaskets and they had a comfortable and nice fit and it improved the sound by quite a bit. the bass is tight and not boomy anymore. mid-range and treble also became crystal clear.

Maybe that was my problem all along. I was using the biggest tips to get better isolation, and I found that the bass is overblown and the mids and highs were worst than stock earbuds. When I have the time today, I'll switch them back to medium. Hopefully that will revive my use for the EX71.

Thanks for the info. I really haven't thought about switching the tips to improve the sound. I was thinking that the different sized eartips were only there to help with isolation and it never crossed my mind that sound would be affected.

 

[DigDub]

Quote:

Originally posted by dragonlong Maybe that was my problem all along. I was using the biggest tips to get better isolation, and I found that the bass is overblown and the mids and highs were worst than stock earbuds. When I have the time today, I'll switch them back to medium. Hopefully that will revive my use for the EX71. Thanks for the info. I really haven't thought about switching the tips to improve the sound. I was thinking that the different sized eartips were only there to help with isolation and it never crossed my mind that sound would be affected.

yep. when i got the ex71 at first, the biggest gasket had the most isolation, and i thought this means a better sound. but apprarently, this is not true. i changed to the middle sized gasket and everything came out about right, except the weaker mid-range.

 

[dragonlong]

Well, I finally found my EX71 packaging and tested the medium tips. I even did a comparison with my new unburned-in gold E888 as well as trying out the small tips and switching back to large. The medium tips produced a muffled and "unfull" sound and I swear that I can't hear certain notes that I could with my E888, but I realize that it's comparing apple to oranges. Anyway, switching to the small ones adds a ton of sibilance, so I didn't bother testing the small ones further. I switched back to the medium ones to use as "reference" before switching to the large ones. The large ones still gave the best sound (fuller, less muffled) and they made me realize that the "muffled" sound from the medium ones is probably due to some amount of sibilance from less isolation. However, the sound is still not that clear.

Maybe it's because I'm so used to the clarity and detail of the E888 that I can't enjoy the EX71 in any way.

Quote:

Originally posted by DigDub yep. when i got the ex71 at first, the biggest gasket had the most isolation, and i thought this means a better sound. but apprarently, this is not true. i changed to the middle sized gasket and everything came out about right, except the weaker mid-range.

 

[Duncan]

Quote:

Originally posted by dragonlong Maybe it's because I'm so used to the clarity and detail of the E888 that I can't enjoy the EX71 in any way.

Just to be awkward, I find the E888s have anything but detail and clarity, sounding warm, and in some cases hiding the music..

...The EX71s sound at their best underpowered... whereas the E888s need lots of power (not neccesarily volume though

) to sound their best... pick your poison... and enjoy it

 

[Leeco]

Interesting comparison DibDub.
Having both headphones, I disagree with your findings however.
ER6 completely blow EX71 out of the water. It's like compating a tape walkman to a CD player. (EX71 being a tape one

)
I agree that EX71 are nice for the price, but they sound in the range of Koss Plugs, with less boomyness, depending on the tips you use.
I see that on head-fi the ER6 are very often seen as not worth the money, as they are outclassed by ER4's. I noticed that people who do have both (ER6 and ER4's) are very positive about ER6's performance, even though ER4 sound better.

But everyone has it's own opinion and I respect yours!
Have a nice day!

 

[dragonlong]

Quote:

Originally posted by Duncan Just to be awkward, I find the E888s have anything but detail and clarity, sounding warm, and in some cases hiding the music.. ...The EX71s sound at their best underpowered... whereas the E888s need lots of power (not neccesarily volume though ) to sound their best... pick your poison... and enjoy it

Wow, that's definitely strange. Are you sure you weren't trying a broken E888? Or maybe we just have completely opposite ears. I find the E888 clear enough to be transparent.

You may be right about the power part. My bro tried my E888, and he said that it drains the power out of his Shockwave PCDP faster than anything else he tried.

I'm using an MPIO FL100 (flash MP3 player), and I don't think it's all that powerful, although I don't really have anything to compare it with.

Here's some specs of my source:
Output 12 mW (in case of maximum sound: each channel (left, right) : 6 mW )
Output Registance 16 Ohm
Frequency Band 20 Hz - 20 KHz (Error Range : +/- 3 dB)
Signal-to-noise ratio 85dB (with JIS-A filter)
Distortion rate Less than 0.1% ( use of JIS-A filter)

I'm not sure if the specs are relevant, but I'm still interested in finding out why some people like the EX71 a lot while others completely hate it. I'm guessing, as you've mildly suggested, that the source has to do with it.