Etymotic Research EVO impressions and discussion thread
Apr 27, 2021 at 6:17 PM Post #241 of 1,201
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New pics.
 
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Apr 28, 2021 at 6:13 AM Post #245 of 1,201
ER4XR is the most detailed IEM I have ever heard. I'd love to see what Etymotic can do with a triple BA driver.
As do I. Shaking with excitement here
+1. Me too.

It is really quite incredible Etymotic has such a long history with so few products, just because they (products and the team) are incredibly good. I define a good product by the absence of a need for replacement: why replace something that is technically fine and only replaceable by something that would be a compromise (My 10-year old factory-calibrated Dell Ultrasharp, or Hilleberg Namatj tent are other examples). I wish all companies would be like that; I'd actually be interested in working for them :D
 
Apr 28, 2021 at 10:20 AM Post #247 of 1,201
Apr 28, 2021 at 10:32 AM Post #248 of 1,201


A new pic.

The colour looks really nice.


ER4XR is the most detailed IEM I have ever heard. I'd love to see what Etymotic can do with a triple BA driver.

As do I. Shaking with excitement here

Then you two may perhaps also really like the InEar ProPhile 8. While, for serious CD listening, I prefer the more "sterile studio flat" approach that the ER4SR and my ER-4S have (which is why they are my absolute number one IEMs for this purpose, as their frequency response seems to follow my personal HRTF much more closely than the vast majority of other neutral-ish in-ears, and as their bass tuning is actually "flat boring" (in a good way) and does not have any sort of compensation for physically perceived vibrations built into them (which the XR series are clearly meant for), even though they are not among the "best" in-ears when it comes to technical performance for the very fast, very dense, and very complex musical arrangements), I sometimes take my ProPhile 8 for the very fast, demanding, dense and complex music stuff as they are ultimately just audibly more resolving, cleaner and better separated and controlled in the situations where the Etys start to "struggle", and their tuning (that is widely comparable to that of my Ultimate Ears Reference Monitors, actually even more to that of the Ultimate Ears Reference Remastered) is still neutral, but I would describe it more as "natural neutral" instead of "sterile studio flat neutral". Otherwise, for personal listening, ultimate technical performance in very demanding music situations is less important to me than the "perfect" tonality (that the ER4SR and ER-4S come very close to, at least to my personal perception), so I generally use the Etys more often.

I'm still really curious about the EVO, though.
 
Apr 28, 2021 at 10:35 AM Post #249 of 1,201
Then you two may perhaps also really like the InEar ProPhile 8. While, for serious CD listening, I prefer the more "sterile studio flat" approach that the ER4SR and my ER-4S have (which is why they are my absolute number one IEMs for this purpose, as their frequency response seems to follow my personal HRTF much more closely than the vast majority of other neutral-ish in-ears, and as their bass tuning is actually "flat boring" (in a good way) and does not have any sort of compensation for physically perceived vibrations built into them (which the XR series are clearly meant for), even though they are not among the "best" in-ears when it comes to technical performance for the very fast, very dense, and very complex musical arrangements), I sometimes take my ProPhile 8 for the very fast, demanding, dense and complex music stuff as they are ultimately just audibly more resolving, cleaner and better separated and controlled in the situations where the Etys start to "struggle", and their tuning (that is widely comparable to that of my Ultimate Ears Reference Monitors, actually even more to that of the Ultimate Ears Reference Remastered) is still neutral, but I would describe it more as "natural neutral" instead of "sterile studio flat neutral". Otherwise, for personal listening, ultimate technical performance in very demanding music situations is less important to me than the "perfect" tonality (that the ER4SR and ER-4S come very close to, at least to my personal perception), so I generally use the Etys more often.

I'm still really curious about the EVO, though.

For this I have the Shure KSE1500
 
Apr 28, 2021 at 10:52 AM Post #250 of 1,201
For this I have the Shure KSE1500

Ah, okay. I've been quite interested in them as well, but when I saw their frequency response measured for the first time, my interest suddenly disappeared.
Then again, with the EQ options applied by Speakerphone (https://clarityfidelity.blogspot.com/2016/08/shure-kse1500-iem.html
• -3dB @ 250 Hz
• -6dB @ 1.6 kHz (Medium BW)
• +4dB @ 2.5 kHz
• -6dB @ 10 kHz (Medium BW)
), they look rather nice.

But in the end the FR alone isn't everything. For example, the Fidue A73s' (or A83s' (more precisely UPQ Q-Music QE80 which are the OEM version that I have on hand)) rather exaggerated w-shaped frequency response and rather average technical performance are clearly far from ideal (as in "natural sound reproduction" and "clean, controlled sound"), nonetheless there are times when I really like both (especially the former) for non-serious music listening. That said, I just noticed that I haven't used the Fidue in a longer time, as the ER2XR and NocturnaL Audio Atlantis as well as my Moondrop Starfield (basically like the ER2XR but with around even 4 dB extra on top in the sub-bass and likewise more midbass warmth; actually they are tuned even a little closer to the ER4SR in the upper mids and highs than the ER2XR but are ultimately just a bit less natural/even sounding than Etymotic's bass-boosted dynamic driver model, and are somewhat softer and less controlled as well as tight in comparison as well, but they are super convenient due to their shape and shallower insertion depth) are even higher on my list of IEMs that I absolutely love for recreational, non-flat/neutral listening.
 
Apr 28, 2021 at 11:17 AM Post #251 of 1,201
Ah, okay. I've been quite interested in them as well, but when I saw their frequency response measured for the first time, my interest suddenly disappeared.
Then again, with the EQ options applied by Speakerphone (https://clarityfidelity.blogspot.com/2016/08/shure-kse1500-iem.html
• -3dB @ 250 Hz
• -6dB @ 1.6 kHz (Medium BW)
• +4dB @ 2.5 kHz
• -6dB @ 10 kHz (Medium BW)
), they look rather nice.

But in the end the FR alone isn't everything. For example, the Fidue A73s' (or A83s' (more precisely UPQ Q-Music QE80 which are the OEM version that I have on hand)) rather exaggerated w-shaped frequency response and rather average technical performance are clearly far from ideal (as in "natural sound reproduction" and "clean, controlled sound"), nonetheless there are times when I really like both (especially the former) for non-serious music listening. That said, I just noticed that I haven't used the Fidue in a longer time, as the ER2XR and NocturnaL Audio Atlantis as well as my Moondrop Starfield (basically like the ER2XR but with around even 4 dB extra on top in the sub-bass and likewise more midbass warmth; actually they are tuned even a little closer to the ER4SR in the upper mids and highs than the ER2XR but are ultimately just a bit less natural/even sounding than Etymotic's bass-boosted dynamic driver model, and are somewhat softer and less controlled as well as tight in comparison as well, but they are super convenient due to their shape and shallower insertion depth) are even higher on my list of IEMs that I absolutely love for recreational, non-flat/neutral listening.
I never base my judgement on FR graphs until I have a chance to listen to them extensively. Human ears and listening ability are much more advanced than the perceived accuracy of mechanical sensors used in capturing FR. Yes they are useful to give us the general understanding of the sound characteristics. For example would you believe me that my most used cans is also the cheapest in my collections? The AKG K52 at $36. With some mods here and there that thing is so addictive to wear and listen to. And on paper probably it looked like a piece of dung tech wise.
 
Apr 28, 2021 at 2:00 PM Post #252 of 1,201
Will this also work best with foam tips? They appear to be compatible with the existing Etymotic tips but in my experience foams offer the best isolation and bass impact and treble extension/clarity.
 
Apr 28, 2021 at 2:04 PM Post #253 of 1,201
Will this also work best with foam tips? They appear to be compatible with the existing Etymotic tips but in my experience foams offer the best isolation and bass impact and treble extension/clarity.
If you observe the nozzle for EVO, it definitely is sized similarly to the current ER series meaning the tips are interchangeable. Heck I even use Shure tips and some aftermarket like Comply and SpinFit which works with ER series perfectly - and rightfully these should apply to EVO
 
Apr 28, 2021 at 2:52 PM Post #254 of 1,201
If you observe the nozzle for EVO, it definitely is sized similarly to the current ER series meaning the tips are interchangeable. Heck I even use Shure tips and some aftermarket like Comply and SpinFit which works with ER series perfectly - and rightfully these should apply to EVO
I use the ER3XR currently (also had the ER4 variants recently) with the Shure olive tips and the upper treble extension is up there with some expensive IEMs lol but the tuning overall could use more work. I'm guessing the EVO will be even more competitive in that regard.
 

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