ETY 4-P owners— what are your at-home amps?
Oct 23, 2002 at 6:14 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 21

dave-the-rave

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I am currently doing Senn 580's + Creek OBH-11 (w/ standard power supply) at home (too dark, need amp upgrade); Sony MDR-V700DJ's with my PCDP on the road. (I know everyone hates the DJ's; that's OK, I like them).

However, based on my brief listen to them at the 2001 Hi-Fi show in NYC, I will be moving to Ety 4-P's with custom earmolds for portable use. Based on my recollection of the sound, I might want to use the ETY's as the at-home 'phones as well.

Question: What amp do you Ety users use at home? Is there a home amp that would work well with both the ETY's and the Senn 580's? Given that the 4-P's are designed to work without an amp, would one need the 4-P to 4-S converter cable to get best sound with home amp? All opinions welcome. Opinions backed by actual listening experience somewhat more welcome. Thanks, guys.

(BTW, I did a search and there was a thread on ETY/amp matching, but it mostly focused on the $200-ish range.)
 
Oct 23, 2002 at 8:31 PM Post #2 of 21
Home, portable, doesn't matter to me... it's either CHA47 or SuperMini to drive Ety ER4. There are a number of folks at this site that have Etys and either a CHA47 or a META42 (or both!!! See joelongwood). Both work extremely well for driving these cans. Both are under your price point. However, the general consensus is that the META + Ety =
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My experience with both the CHA47 and the V2 SuperMini has been very positive. The SuperMini does sound better when A/B'd with the CHA.

You're correct, for the Etys to sound their best, the adapter cable (to make the Ety's = ER4S) is necessary. While the ER4P sounds VERY good on it's own, adding the extra resistance improves the sound quality. The adapter can be had from HeadRoom or from Fixup (www.fixup.net). It's just a piece of cable with a female and a male connection... easy to add and easy to take off as needed.

Another option: if you get someone to build you an amp, you could always have the resistance added to the amp. There's a thread about that here somewhere around here... Makes a lot of sense. It's an easy thing for the DIYers to add (plus, it's cheap to do!) and it saves you the trouble of having an extra cable in the cable chain.

BTW: I'm intrigued... you're planning on getting custom ear molds but don't currently have the Etys??? Did you have a serious problem when you tried the Etys at the Hi Fi show?? The reason for asking is that there are several different tip options for getting good fit and seal with the Etys that can be tried before going to the custom mold route. Frequently, it seems to take most people some time to get used to/try different tips or insertion techniques to be able to find the combination that works well for them.

Earmolds: Not only is it relatively expensive, but several folks have reported problems with their custom molds as well. Certainly there are people that have had great success with the custom molds. Just it seems like a big jump so early in the process.

Bruce
 
Oct 23, 2002 at 9:03 PM Post #3 of 21
Quote:

Originally posted by dave-the-rave
What amp do you Ety users use at home? Is there a home amp that would work well with both the ETY's and the Senn 580's? Given that the 4-P's are designed to work without an amp, would one need the 4-P to 4-S converter cable to get best sound with home amp?


Amp: I use the Corda HA1 at home for both the 4s and 580. Very nice. I also have begun to use the Maxed Out Meta (by the incomparable JMT), which is also very nice. Both drive both phones well, but I haven't sufficiently broken in the MOMeta for a comparison. I also use a nonmaxed out Meta42 portably (another JMT creation), which drives both okay, although I prefer it with the 4s.

4p to 4s: there is no question that the 4s is more eargasmic than the 4p IMO. See my thread in the full headphone review comparing these two phones. I do not use the 4p ever with an amp--instead I use the 4s whenever I have an amp. It is absolutely worth it. But don't believe me, listen for yourself; you are likely to be wowed.
 
Oct 23, 2002 at 9:26 PM Post #4 of 21
I'm a META42 man for both my ER-4Ps & my 580s. It's also serves as my portable amp (runs off of both 9v & AC) when needed, although I'll be getting a separate travel amp from JMT in the near future.
 
Oct 23, 2002 at 9:49 PM Post #5 of 21
I've used the Ety's with a Cosmic, MG Head OTL, Melos and Grado RA-1. They really sounded good with all of them, except the Grado. I always heard a slight background hiss. I was surprised I never heard that from the MG.
 
Oct 23, 2002 at 10:25 PM Post #6 of 21
I like my ER-4X best with the Earmax Pro, sometimes with the 500 ohm potentiometer connected directly to the DAC line out.
 
Oct 23, 2002 at 10:50 PM Post #7 of 21
I have the ER4P with S adaptor. I almost exclusively use the 4P without the adaptor and always with a Cosmic amp. It sounds incredible!

I guess I'm more of a bass lover because I prefer the sound of the 4P (with its better bass response and slightly rolled off treble) to the 4S.

MJ
 
Oct 23, 2002 at 11:00 PM Post #8 of 21
I use the 4P straight out of an iPod. For other portable uses (CDP, MD), I use the ER4S with either a JMT built META42 or CHA47.
At home, it's the ER4S with a Sugden Headmaster........now, THAT'S a WOW!
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Oct 24, 2002 at 1:01 AM Post #9 of 21
Quote:

Originally posted by MusicJunkie
I almost exclusively use the 4P without the adaptor and always with a Cosmic amp. It sounds incredible!


What do you know...someone else who prefers their ER-4P straight (sans 4S adaptor) out of a Cosmic!
 
Oct 24, 2002 at 1:27 AM Post #10 of 21
Quote:

Originally posted by dgs
Amp: I use the Corda HA1 at home for both the 4s and 580. Very nice. I also have begun to use the Maxed Out Meta (by the incomparable JMT), which is also very nice. Both drive both phones well, but I haven't sufficiently broken in the MOMeta for a comparison. I also use a nonmaxed out Meta42 portably (another JMT creation), which drives both okay, although I prefer it with the 4s.



I have the same setup (sans the MOM, 4s only) and couldn't agree more. I've also used them with the Cosmic and Little More Power and they sounded great out of both, too.

With the Ety's, you can rarely (if ever) go wrong.
 
Oct 24, 2002 at 2:57 AM Post #11 of 21
Sorry, just struck a chord...

What FCJ said!
Quote:

With the Ety's, you can rarely (if ever) go wrong.


Bruce
 
Oct 24, 2002 at 4:17 AM Post #12 of 21
Frank and Bruce have it. You can't go wrong.
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That said, when I travel I use my 4S's exclusively with a META I built that is just a tad souped up. I rarely listen to the Etys at home, but when I do, the Max/Ety combo is to die for.
 
Oct 24, 2002 at 5:00 AM Post #13 of 21
I really appreciate everyone's response, and can really sense the level of enthusiasm among Team Ety. At the Hi-Fi show, I listened to both the 4-p and 4-S out of a PCDP thru a portable Headroom amp, I believe it was the Cosmic. As a rocker, I preferred the bass of the 4-P. As you guys know, the sound was incredible, between the tremendous isolation and the solidity of the sonic image. Definitely seemed to bypass the ear and go straaight to the pleasure center in the brain!

What I didn't love was how those bad boys felt in my ears-- Chinese water torture comes to mind.

So to answer BDA_ABAT's question about the earmolds, there's an Ety dealer a few blocks from my office in NYC that does custom earmolds for just $30 when you buy a pair of Ety's; it's $100 if you're not buying phones. I figure for just $30, it's worth it to see if I can get more comfort; I can always go back to the foam or flange.

Also, between the 4-P and the 4-S, I'd like to go portable without an amp, no matter how small— getting the Ety's is about great sound, but also part of my program to lighten up for the commute-- no portable amp (Though you guys may tempt me into changing that) and no more V700DJ. (WOW-- going from V700DJ's directly to Ety's-- around here, that's a conversion along the lines of a crackhead becoming a drug abuse counselor.)

Thanks again; further comments still welcome... maybe see some of you at the upcoming NYC Head-Fi gathering.
 
Oct 24, 2002 at 5:56 PM Post #14 of 21
One thing that I seem to recall Tyll of headroom saying during their recent tour was that the custom ear-molds are the best for pure comfort but they do not give you as good a sound as the silicone plugs. I may have misheard his comments but that is what I recall.

I found that with a little time your ear/plugs adapt and any discomfort goes away. I wear earplugs for a number of activities at home and work so my ears breaking time was almost instantaneous.
 
Oct 24, 2002 at 7:19 PM Post #15 of 21
Dave:

Sorry to hear about the pain on insertion. Unfortunately, you are not alone. After I first got my Etys, I tried to demonstrate to my wife how wonderful they are. When she put them in, her face got all scrunched up. She couldn't stand listening to them for even a full song! So, she's even more concerned about my purchase! Same thing happened with my bro-in-law.

If you were trying the Etys out at a show, they were likely using the white rubber tips. There are other options that come with the Etys that many folks perfer. There are foam tips that can be used in place of the white rubber tips. A bunch of threads have been done on this already.

Bottom line: foamies often work wonders for those that can't stand the standard white tips. I let my bro-in-law borrow the ER4s for a long flight. He got scared at the thought of using the white tips. All hesitation went away once I put on the foamies and started jammin'.

There are two sizes of foamies available. The standard (that come with the Etys) and a larger size that you can order driectly from Etymotic. This provides several options to obtain proper fit and comfort.

I'd also echo what john said... it can take some getting used to. Think about it... the Ety design runs counter to everything that you've been told about ears! Takes some time for some folks to get used to. In fact, one of the guys from Etymotic that posts here I think said that he uses one rubber tip and one foam tip to get the best seal and comfort for his anatomy.

Also, one comment that I've heard about the ear molds.... insertion takes some doing (described as almost of like screwing them into your head). Once they are in and seated comfortably, they can work great! But just hope you don't have to take them out regularly.

BTW: Nice to have the Ety dealer so close!!!

Good luck!
Bruce
 

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