[NR76]

Eagerly waiting for my MC5 to arrive now. Also ordered Fiio E5 to see if the (cheap) amp makes any difference.
 
Meanwhile, been listening to S4 a lot. Love them on some tracks (some of my newer collection with pulsating music) - er6i just didn't have the bass to do justice to those tracks. But, even after 50 hours of burn-in, some of my softer tracks are sounding so much worse. These are older tracks where I am getting a lot of hiss that I never got with er6i. It may be that the recording quality is poor or whatever, but that sadly leaves out almost a third of my music that sounded just fine (actually quite beautiful) with er6i. I am encouraged with the comments on more bass than er6i in MC5 - that way, it will make it easier for me to return S4 and just keep on pair.

 

[stevenswall]

Did a review/comparison of the Mc5 to the Hf5... Published as a review of the Mc5 in the product listings here on headfi.
 
Here is the link:
http://www.head-fi.org/products/etymotic-mc5/reviews#3898

 

[slaters70]

Excellent review. Thanks. I am convinced Ety has really come up with a winner here. I really like the MC5s, and I have heard (and still own) some very expensive IEMs, including the flagship ER4P/S.

 

[rawrster]

slaters70, a quick question regarding the bass of these. If you compare it to the DBA 02 what's the slam and quantity like compared to those?

 

[slaters70]

Let me do some head to head listening, which I have not really done (overall I do favor the DBAs). Will let you know.

 

[slaters70]

Quote:

slaters70, a quick question regarding the bass of these. If you compare it to the DBA 02 what's the slam and quantity like compared to those?

The DBAs are simply another level from the MC5s, which are good. Bass-wise, the DBAs are the complete package, and the bass is richer, extends father and is more obvious. But both are, in my view, category winners at their prices (and can compete with the next level IEMs).

 

[csokane]

Are the tri flange stock tips that come with these etys usable by everyone? I've been reading up and it seems a lot of people have problems with fitting the stock tips into their ears (for other models).

 

[Azathoth]

I think it's more of the triflange tips not being comfortable for everyone due to the deep insertion. I had a similar "too invasive" sensation when I tried the Etymotic ER4 (which has the same triflange tips) before.
 
I've now gotten used to it though, as I use the Etymotic ER-20 earplug (also with a triflange tip) quite often.

 

[slaters70]

What he said.
 
I use the Ety tri-flange tips on my DBAs, and the comfort is off the charts good. But again, I am using customs for the MC5s, which puts me in the minority.

 

[ericp10]

So DBA and HF5 bass has more slam than the MC5? If so, I find that quite disappointing. I thought the MC5 was suppose to be Etymotic's answer to keeping the sound with more bass? If the bass is less than the HF5, I  have to take them off my list.

 

[ericp10]

Oh, I heard the DBA as a loner, and while there, I wasn't overly impressed with the bass. This is someone, mind you, who is coming from the bass of the DDM, FX700 and SM3. But, the e-Q7 didn't have as much bass slam as those three and I still enjoyed it. I liked the bass on the HF5, but I wanted more. I was hoping that the MC5 would give me more.

 

[slaters70]

Not sure where you saw that the hf5 has more bass slam than MC5? The review posted by Stevenswall clearly says the MC5 has more bass quantity than the hf5. Never heard theHF5, but I have no problems with the bass on either the DBAs or the MC5s, and if I need a little more, I tick up the EQ on my players and it works. I guess I just find EQing a little low end to be perfectly acceptable. There seems to be a major desire for bass to overwhelm the other frequencies by some, but I guess I don't fall into that camp. If it competes equally with the other sound bands, I am happy. Easy to please, I suppose.
 
No matter, the MC5 bass is more quantifiable than the HF5, according to the HFer who compared the two in this thread at least.

 

[ericp10]

Maybe the review confused me a little when he mentioned the HF5 has more bass extension. Nevertheless, I asked the question since I was confused. Thanks for the clarification.

 

[NR76]

I got my ER MC5 today. And, to put it mildly, I am not overwhelmed by them. The bass on MC5 is certainly thinner than S4. When I amp them with FiiO E5, the bass is better (more quantity), but not as much in quantity as S4. It may be that I am a bass head (despite having loved my er6i for three years), but S4 sound much sweeter to me right now. I have heard a lot here about how the highs roll off on S4 or how they are clear with Ety, but after trying a lot of different music, I cannot hear anything on the highs with Ety MC5 that I is not present with S4. On the other hand, S4 sound much more rounded/complete (warmer?) than Ety.
 
I cannot tell if er6i sounded better, but MC5 and Fiio E5 are going back.

 

[csokane]

Everyone has said that you need to burn them in for a bit. Also, in comparison to the S4s ( I previously owned them), how do the MC5s compare in terms of clarity, detail, and articulation? I like being able to pick out different instruments and enjoy an analytical sound.