[majicn8ball]

I was wondering about etymotice IEM's. Especially some of the differences between er6i and er4 s (or p i'm not really sure what the "s" or "p" means as well)

 

[majicn8ball]

so i feel kinda stupid cuz i looked this up on my own while i was waiting for a reply an found out most of the answers i was looking for, but i discovered new questions as well. according to this: <http://www.etymotic.com/ephp/epcomp.aspx>
the er4p's (which seem the most attractive to me because they dont require an amp) and the hf5's seem very similar with a large price gap. can someone maybe explain the difference in these?

 

[ak40ozKevin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by majicn8ball /img/forum/go_quote.gif I was wondering about etymotice IEM's. Especially some of the differences between er6i and er4 s (or p i'm not really sure what the "s" or "p" means as well)

The er6i is there lower end model. It's supposed to be pretty good but I haven't heard them myself. Most people recommend to go straight to an er4 model.

I own an er4p with a converter that turns them into an er4s that's available on ebay. These 2 are obviously similar with the only difference being that the er4s has higher impedance which allows them to achieve a slightly more accurate frequency response curve according to etymotic. You're gonna hear opinions that go both ways on which one is better so it's best to simply buy the er4p with an adaptor and hear for yourself. Keep in mind however that the er4s is fairly difficult to drive directly from a portable source and you will likely need some sort of amp. Right now I've been amping my er4s with a ****ty ibasso T1 but find the results better than without the amp in er4s or er4p mode.

Also don't forget that etymotic now offers the HF5 and HF2! I haven't heard these either but if you search you can find opinions that compare them favorably to the other models. From what I understand they definitely have an improved cable over the er4 models but differ slightly in sound. Again, some prefer it to the er4 models and others don't like them as much. Search for impressions.

 

[Kclone]

Keep in mind the Ety ER4P/S can really scale up depending on source and amps. Meaning pair them with a good amp or an amp they have good synergy with, and it will show you some of it's potential. Some IEM's do not benefit as much as the Eyt's do with amplification.

 

[jleewach]

hf5's are a somewhat more "contemporary" version of the er4's. They share the same drivers, although the hf5's are built in China, whereas the er4's are hand-built in Illinois & the drivers are hand matched, resulting in a slightly more accurate sound quality. I've heard both, and they both sound very similar, w/ the extension (treble & bass) on the er4's only slightly improved, but it's not extremely noticable. The er4's MSRP is $299, but can easily be had for only a few more bones than the hf5'S on amazon. However, w/ the current sale on hf5's, along w/ the improved cable & slicker design, the hf5's are the better buy imho. Once they go back up to $150, you may as well spend the extra $20 or so and get the er4's.

Good luck.

 

[nc8000]

If you are only going to be using the headphones straight from a dap/phone I would definately go for the hf5 at the current offer price of $99 provided you are in US. Without an amp the difference in sq between the HF5 (or HF2) and the ER4-P is so small as to almost not matter and the cable is a LOT better with regards to handling and microphonics and the phones stick out a lot less from your ears.

 

[majicn8ball]

thank you, this has been helpful