[tvhead]

Would you consider these phones the best that are out there? Do any of you feel the need to upgrade after purchasing these things? Do you ever think, "man, this couldn't sound any better!" What do you NOT like about them?

I never thought I would consider spending $300 for a pair of headphone let alone ones that look like earbuds! BTW, I think I want to try out the ER-4Ps and later get that S conversion resistor cable.

 

[viciouscarrot]

About that convertor cable: does it just change the imedence of the 'phones? If 4Ps have a slightly better bass response, is that due to the lower impedence or some other change in design? Does the cable make a 4P into a real 4S?

 

[Wes]

After several months of use of the ER4s's, I can't get worked up about any other headphone. There are a good many that I might like to try out of curiousity, but there are not any that I feel are likely to beat my Ety's. The only realisitic upgrade I ever think about is custom molds, but even that doesn't move me much because the stock white tips work so well for me that custom molds would probably allow only the most marginal improvement in sound.

One unrealisitic upgrade that still sends some blood coursing to my nether parts would be some kind of soundstage enhancer that would make headphones have a placement like the concert experience.

Ety's provide, so far as I can judge, as good a soundstage as any other headphone placing instruments precisely left to right. But they do not provide an illusion of distance from the sources of sound. They still have that "inside my head" aura (even with binaural recordings--but that's a story for another post). So, I might think about either signal processors to supplement my Ety's (But, so far, none of them gets the kind of reviews that would make me take them seriously.) or the AKG 1000. (But they're too open for my situation. They are really not headphones but rather "extreme near-field speakers.")

I suspect that, if recordings were made to exploit binaural to its full potential and if all the music that interests me were available recorded in that way, then the Ety's would be for me "beyond upgrade" altogether.

I'll make this claim on behalf of all Team Ety (We'll soon see whether there are any dissenters, won't we?):

Ety's are among the cheapest headphones that have any chance to cure upgrade-itis. (Before Team Sennheiser pounces, it appears that the HD 600 shares this slot depending on what price you buy it for and how much amplification you feel must supplement it. Other teams please feel free to pounce with your candidates, too.)

 

[Vertigo-1]

Quote:

Ety's are among the cheapest headphones that have any chance to cure upgrade-itis. (Before Team Sennheiser pounces, it appears that the HD 600 shares this slot depending on what price you buy it for and how much amplification you feel must supplement it. Other teams please feel free to pounce with your candidates, too.)

By this same train of thought, it depends on what Etys you get. The Ety 4S would also require an amp to sound their best, thus adding to their cost.

 

[Wes]

True enough, Vertigo-1. I was assuming P's because they were tvhead's leading contender.

 

[chych]

Well, no other headphone I have yet matches to the Ety ER4S...

 

[dgs]

Quote:

Originally posted by tvhead Would you consider these phones the best that are out there? Do any of you feel the need to upgrade after purchasing these things? Do you ever think, "man, this couldn't sound any better!" What do you NOT like about them? I never thought I would consider spending $300 for a pair of headphone let alone ones that look like earbuds! BTW, I think I want to try out the ER-4Ps and later get that S conversion resistor cable.

tvhead:

I have the 4p with conversion cable, and now the er6 too. I often have the experience you describe, "man, this couldn't sound any better!" Sometimes I'm sitting in my office with a crapeating grin on my face during such times. They have held off "upgraditis" for a long time (over a year). I just purchased a pair of 501s because I wanted something that sounds like the etys but that would let me hear the phone, a knock on the door, etc. I also just bought the er6 because I wanted something for commuting that had a little less isolation, less microphone effect, and still that ety sound. IOW, my "upgrades" have all been for different applications, rather than for better sound.

What I don't like about them? Well, basically that I can't use them every second.

If you go with etys, I recommend the 4p with conversion cable. Having the option really improves on the versatility of these HPs. But, as for sound, they are mindbogglingly good.

 

[kwkarth]

The Ety's are remarkably good sounding "headphones."
I have the 4P's with the adapter cable, which consists simply of a 68 ohm metal film resistor in series with each driver.

Wes mentioned the issue of soundfield and instrument placement/localization...

I find the Ety's are as revealing of a given amp's ability to resolve 3D information as any headphone I have and I have both the AKG K1000's and the K501's. The AKG headphones do not "solve" the sound in the head phenomenon. They provide a psychoacoustic effect of added spaciousness by allowing acoustic crosstalk to take place between the ears. The only way to truly get the sound out of your head is via a true binural recording or via crossfeed or digital processing.

I have many headphones but I consider only a few to be reference quality. The AKG K1000 (with sub), AKG K501, and the Etymotic ER4P w/"S" adapter cable.

With the right amp, all three of those headphones are capable of providing a "you are there-live" listening experience. All my other headphones introduce enough coloration of one sort or another to detract enough from the natural sound of a live performance so that you know that you're listening to a hi-fi system rather than a live performance.

There are times that I want to hear my surroundings and I listen to the AKG's as a result. There are times that I do NOT want to hear my surroundings and then I listen to the Ety's.

Of all of my headphones, the Ety's subjectively provide the most complete stand-alone top to bottom frequency response.

When I first got them, comfort was a factor. (they were not comfortable long term) That situation has improved (I have accomodated) a great deal to the point that I am no longer concerned about that as an issue.

These little "headphones" provide sonic performance that is of titanic proportion!

 

[Wes]

Well, how diappointing, kwkarth! I had hoped there would be a vastly better soundstage with the 1000 AKG design.

Thanks, however, for setting me straight on that. I guess we both wish it weren't so. On the other hand, what you are saying leaves me more contented than I knew.

 

[MacDEF]

Of all the headphones I've ever heard, the Etys and HD600 are clearly the best IMO. However, they are quite different, so I can't choose one or the other. The Etys isolate (of course) and provide amazing detail and resolution; however, they have a tendency to feel closed in, even with crossfeed. The HD600 are much more open and spacious, and provide a more "real" experience (i.e. visceral), but don't *quite* have the resolution.

(These opinions based on C333ES -> Max 2001)

 

[Peddler]

I have no desire to buy any other headphones since getting my 4P's. I agree with the other post that they actually represent excellent value for money in many ways.

I must admit though that I don't use the Ety's when I'm out and about - they are just too damned expensive for that. Up until recently I used the Sony 888's but I've just acquired a new set of EX70's (the 3-tip ones) and I find that I'm really enjoying them when walking in traffic and the like. (Obviously this is after modding them with tape over 2 of the 3 holes - the bass will kill yer otherwise).

The Ety's are really only used on 'special occasions'. And yes, they do generate that sh*! eating grin mentioned earlier.

 

[gerG]

Peddler, you have to start taking the Etys out and about! You will find that the seg (s**teatinggrin) gets replaced by an expression of sheepish guilt. I feel guilty walking around in puplic with sound of this quality, but amused by the fact that people 5 feet away don't have a clue what I am hearing. Almost naughty!

The Etys kept me from upgrading headphones for 3 years. They have been my reference for judging and voicing loudspeakers. I have bought other cans recently searching for something "better". I have achieved different, but I am not certain about better. Sometimes I just want to switch from canal phones to conventional cans for a change.


In Don we trust.

 

[MirandaX]

tvhead, to answer your question, the main drawback of the Etys is their tight, almost restricted soundstage. With Etys (I have the 4S), the sound seems like it's coming from inside your head. With a good pair of open headphones (I've tried Senn 600's and Grado 125), the soundstage seems to be outside your head, and it's possible to pinpoint the locations of instruments in space. (Or think of it this way... open phones are a lot closer to a good pair of speakers than Etys.) With the Etys, you get the sense that an instrument is on your left or your right, but it's hard to say with any sense of certainty where that instrument is. The effect is somewhat eerie, because Etys have so much detail, but so little 'presense'.

Anyway, IMHO the undetailed soundstage is one of the ways that Etys might disappoint most listeners (if you're in to body-thumping bass, they'll disapoint on that score too). This may or may not matter to you. If you're coming to Etys from a pair of closed phones, you won't miss the enlarged soundstage. If you're coming to Etys from a good pair of speakers, it'll be a shock. You might want to consider a pair of open phones, if you're looking for a realistic soundstage.

 

[joelongwood]

Quote:

With the Etys, you get the sense that an instrument is on your left or your right, but it's hard to say with any sense of certainty where that instrument is. The effect is somewhat eerie, because Etys have so much detail, but so little 'presense'.

I have to respectfully disagree with that statement, MirandaX. While the Etys definitely do not provide the size, width-wise or depth-wise, of the soundstage provided by full sized headphones, and in no way present an "out of head" experience as others do, the placement of instruments in the small soundstage of my head is easily discernable. To my ears, every instrument and every voice is placed exactly where it should be. If I close my eyes, I can pretty much picture a recording studio or stage and the location of the performers.....both left to right and front to back. At least that's what I'm hearing.

 

[kwkarth]

It is obvious from reading the comments here regarding Ety soundstaging that many of us hear or perceive things differently from one another.

While I am quite aware of and enjoy the extra ambience and soundstage width provided by cans like the AKG's they in no way "trick" my brain into thinking the sound originates from somewhere else in the room.

Likewise with the Ety's, I am no less impressed by their ability to accurately portrey the soundstaging and original room ambience of the performance venue. They neither take away from nor do they add to the recorded room ambience and soundstaging.

They present it like it "is", or rather "was," when the recording was made. I appreciate this honesty in their presentation. It makes it much easier to evaluate an amplifier's ability to faithfully retrieve this recorded information. There are very subtle phase relationships going on here that either are or are not preserved by the amplifier and recording chain upstream. The Ety's let me hear its presence or absence very clearly.

Happy Listening!