[grrr223]

I just graduated from MIT, and I guess my parents do really love me because they got me a 30 gb iPod as a graduation present. And after spending about 50 hours in a car the week after I got it driving from Boston to Chicago and then to Philly with my Grado SR-60s and the OEM iPod headphones, I needed something new. So, without telling anyone, I ordered the ER-6s (people would flip if they knew I spent $130 on a pair of headphones when I already have the HD-600s and the Grados). They have been one of the best purchases I've ever made.

Let me clarify. They're not replacing my HD600s or the SR-60s, esp. when either of those are plugged into my OBH-11SE. However, it is not practical to bring either of those with me everywhere I go like I can the iPod. The iPod deserves headphones as portable and beautiful as it is. I have never gotten so much use out of a pair of headphones. I listen to my iPod + ER-6 combo for at least 8 hours 5 days a week. I have a very boring job through a temp agency (anyone want to a recent MIT finance major in the east coast?), but I do have my own office, so I listen to music every minute I'm in my office. And then I wear them while biking for 2-3 hours after work almost every day, and they have been an absolute dream. Please don't yell at me for wearing headphones while biking, it's a paved trail, so no cars, and I'm going faster than everyone else, so I don't have to worry too much about people coming up behind me, it hasn't been an issue so far.

In short, I highly recommend this combo, I'll save my praise of the iPod for another day. On a side note, I didn't like the rubber ear pads, so i've been using the foam ones, and I love them. Does anyone think it would be worth upgrading to the ER-4's? I also love the carrying case and everything for them, I can wrap them up along with the wired iPod remote, and be on my way. I'm thinking of getting another one of the Ety cases to hold the dock and firewire cable, it's the perfect size. I get so happy every time I see my Ety case sitting on my iPod and think about the backpack of discman, 100 or so CDs and my Grados or Senns I used to haul everywhere, it's incredible.

K, back to work, I'd just like to thank everyone here for their thoughts on the Ety's, This place is responsible for me blowing something like $1000 now but I don't regret any of it, I love you guys.

 

[psxguy85]

Congratulations on graduating! Enjoy your 30GB iPod and Etys!

 

[sephka]

I've been thinking of upgrading to a pair of Ety's for my Nomad Jukebox 3. The PX200 are great and all, but I do have the money for an upgrade. Decisions, decisions....

 

[joelongwood]

Quote:

Does anyone think it would be worth upgrading to the ER-4's?

Most definitely!

 

[MD1032]

Sounds like an awesome combo! ipods are expensive, consider yourself a lucky person to own one! I would have gotten the ER-4P's, though. From what I've heard, they're a huge step up.

 

[chicken]

congrats on graduating and the awesome combo. I too have the ER-6s and I love them. Someday I'll get a nice HD source like a Ipod so it's good to know that they are a good combo. Enjoy the music.

 

[Oliver :)]

Congrats!

If you want move up to the Ety 4x range, one should recommend the 4P if you want to stay unamped. You can always upgrade them to 4S easily.

...Ah, and of you feel like spending just a little more, why not the Shure E5c? I still starve for a review of those + iPod, unamped.

 

[lindrone]

Shure E5c + iPod...

I've got a first generation 5GB iPod, so I can't speak for the new iPod. Although I don't think there are any differences in the output between the first gen and the new iPods.

Unamped, the E5c creates a very good mid-range and fills out the high end very well. It isolates and creates that whole "sound inside your head" feel. With the proper fit it's very comfortable, and can be worn over a long time. Compares with the E2 and most other single driver in-ear isolation headphones, it also has a better bass production than most of them.

Loudness is not a problem with the E5c... it's rated at 110 ohms... it has no problem recreating sound at any given volumes.

However, I do have to say this, I've tested the E5c unamped with an iPod against a Sony D-25S, and the iPod's output dwarfs compared against the D-25S. With the D-25S, it really pushes the E5c more towards its full potential.

With the D-25S as the sound source, the full dynamic range is filled up with clear, strong sounds. The bass range is extended much further... almost makes you feel like you're sitting in front of the subwoofer... (still not quite, having a subwoofer in your ear wouldnt' be all that comfortable, after all)

In short, iPod doesn't provide a very clean or powerful sound source to show off the E5c to its full potential... However that doesn't mean it's not a great headphone. If your only reason for getting it is to go alongside an iPod though... you'll probably be satisified just going with a Shure E2c instead. (Or maybe even the E1c)

 

[Oliver :)]

Hey, that was quick, thanks!

Quote:

Originally posted by lindrone In short, iPod doesn't provide a very clean or powerful sound source to show off the E5c to its full potential... However that doesn't mean it's not a great headphone. If your only reason for getting it is to go alongside an iPod though... you'll probably be satisified just going with a Shure E2c instead. (Or maybe even the E1c)

So, just as I thought, you would still need an amp. *sigh* Where, oh where is the sleek-looking-microphonic-free-ER-4S-to-shame-putting-perfect-sounding-even-unamped canalphone with integrated crossfeed processing?

Etymotic Research, give us the Grail!

 

[troublemaker]

if gen3 ipod plus ER6 is heaven then g3 ipod and ER4's must be higher than heaven

 

[fractus2]

Hello grrr223, Congratulations on your graduation. I've got a 1st gen 10G iPod and use my ER-4S and sometimes my KSC-35. The iPod/4S combination is very nice with most of my listening unamped. I also started with the ER-6 and the upgrade is a big jump in sound quality, to understate it. I've never had the 4P and am very satisfied with my 4S'. Never tried the foam tips, still use the rubber tips.

 

[lindrone]

New update on iPod + Shure E5c...

Out of curiousity, I uploaded a couple of .wav files of the same songs I had in MP3 into the iPod, and did a side-by-side listening test...

Turns out, iPod does provide a very good sound source for the E5 even when it's unamped. The midrange was very clear, the high-end and the bass is very, very good for an unamped device.

The problem was in the MP3 encoding. Even with LAME set on the highest quality VBR... MP3 files still inherently lose a lot of low-end and high-end sound data.

You just can't get the fidelity you need with MP3 files.... So if you've got no other choice but hearing the best... Try using wav files on your iPod instead of MP3 files. Granted, you will not be storing as many hours of music, but it's worth it if you truly want the best sound.

 

[skagen]

Quote:

Originally posted by lindrone You just can't get the fidelity you need with MP3 files.... So if you've got no other choice but hearing the best... Try using wav files on your iPod instead of MP3 files. Granted, you will not be storing as many hours of music, but it's worth it if you truly want the best sound.

I too have the ER-6 and love it, but I've been holding out on the IPOD becuase I don't like the MP3 sound quality (still prefer my minidisc & ATRAC for compression) and the fact that you can't play tracks seamlessly (apparently it has a very noticeable break between files).

But I hadn't thought about using the IPOD for WAVE files. Will it play WAV files seamlessly i ie the same way that you can play a CD dance mix seamlessly right through the track marks without any break in the sound?

 

[lindrone]

No, since the way that the iPod reads files into RAM first, and then plays the file back from the RAM (to save battery power and not keep the hard drive constantly spinning). You're always going to have files outside of that RAM reading area, and needs to be loaded into the RAM first.

Although I don't see why Apple couldn't integrate a more seamless transition from files that's already loaded into RAM. They simply didn't. If you skip a few songs though, you're sure to invoke a hard drive read function. After all, 32MB of RAM ain't all that much.

Now if you're loading wav files directly into the iPod.. you're talking even more hard drive read hits, because you can't fit more than 1.5 songs into the RAM at one time (maybe 2?)...

It will probably drain the battery a lot faster than using MP3 files.. hmm....

 

[Oliver :)]

Well, with iTunes you can apparently combine songs into a single unit which are then supposed to be played without a break - unless you run out of RAM. At 32MB this could be a neat half/full-album thing for MP3 & AAC, especially at low bitrates, but I guess then we are out of the target group. At 320kbps AAC this would mean about 3-4 "standard" songs.
For WAV/AIFF it means one song -> pointless.
In fact I have never used this option, but I think I will do some testing with songs that blend into each other, with skits, etc..
What I did yesterday though was to listen to a CD which I burned from 320kbps MP3 & AAC stuff only using my Big Rig, and I noticed that AAC is really way superior to MP3, even at 320kbps. The songs that were encoded as MP3 lacked... life. They sounded a bit flat, with overly perfect notes, I had the impression that they did not swing out properly.
Maybe I will do some AIFF VS. AAC testing lateron.

lindrone: Thanks for the E5c update!