[fl00r]

A couple of weeks ago I was just an ordinary guy who loved listen to all kind of music on his MD player using stock buds. The trouble began when I purchased a SlimX imp 550...
I didn't like the sound of the standard Senns that came with the SlimX and started to read this wonderful forum. In no time I bought the following cans:

EX71SL --> big improvement in sound and comfort but very heavy on the bass
PX100 --> nice sound, overall but a bit dark and no ambient sound blocking
SR-80 --> really love the clear sound but again, no isolation
E2C --> good isolation, sound is O.K. but not as good as the SR-80's

Anyway, to make a long story short: I spent €45 + €40 + €80 + €100 = €265 (in Europe most of these cans are (much) expensive than in the States) in my quest for better-fi since the senns buds but if I total up the pros of all the cans I tried, I only can come to the conclusion that the ER4P are the ones for me: clear sound, not to much bass, good isolation.

So, I'm planning to sell all of them and go for the Ety's! I know I'm not unique with this story and I think we should recommend the newcomers to purchase a set of (expensive) top-of-the-bill cans right from the start instead of upgrade step by step.

This is my first post and, yes I feel sorry for my wallet! But than again I had a lot of fun on this forum. Thanks!

P.s.: anyone (In Holland or Germany) interested in buying/trading the whole bunch!?

 

[Superbaldguy]

That's the way the ball bounces for the natural progression to get a set of ER-4P's; spend lots of $$$ on lesser phones and come to the same conclusion you have reached.

BTW, the bass on the 4P's is fine, it's just that it's not that bloated, gushy kind that everyone seems to like or expect in a headphone.

 

[Ton]

I fully agree with Superbaldguy. I went the same way.
Now that I have my Etymotic ER-4P I can't live without them anymore.
flOOr, I live in Holland and bought my Ety's on Ebay. In Holland they would cost about € 430,- that is € 150, - more that the retailprice at Etymotic. I could buy them brandnew for 220 dollars, inclusive shipping, that is about € 185. I had luck too because I didn't have to pay duties or taxes, because they were shipped as a gift. (ask for that when you order them somewhere).

 

[fl00r]

Thanks guys. I feel much better now

 

[IYIxPx]

i might be interested in your sr 80s..
i am from Austria(just under Germany)

 

[peekarwe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by IYIxPx i might be interested in your sr 80s.. i am from Austria(just under Germany)

Gramatically, it should be below Germany, not under.

Sorry, just kidding. But anyway, guys, isn't the various upgrading and working with different earphones the fun of it all? fl00r, if you didn't go thru the process, do you think you would have appreciated the er4 that well?

 

[fl00r]

Quote:

Originally Posted by peekarwe fl00r, if you didn't go thru the process, do you think you would have appreciated the er4 that well?

Don't know. I simply didn't heard the er4's yet. That's another problem for us here in Holland. There's no way to test them 'cause they aren't available over here.

Anyway, for the sake of your wallet it is better to skip all the upgrades and go right away for the er4's and most important: leave this forum and never come back!

 

[halcyon]

I'm beginning to sound like a broken record on this issue, but as Etys are almost universally acclaimed here, I must chime in with the cons...

Beware that ETYs even with the new improved cord and using a shirt clip can be very microphonic. This means that when moving or anything brushing against the cord, you will hear additional noises in your ear canal. Some don't find this a problem and there are ways to alleviate this (by wrapping the cords around your ears, not moving or getting expensive custom moulds suited to your own ears). To me however, the microphonics is very irritating and I don't recommend Etys for portable use due to this.

Just FYI and I'm not saying Etys are not a very good set of canal phones, even with their issues.

PS And sorry about your wallet. Really. You haven't even begun yet

 

[erikzen]

If all you wanted to do was just buy a great set of headphones and never think about it again then maybe buying top of the line right off the bat is the way to go.

If, however, you want to experiement and increase your knowledge of headphones then improving incrementally is the best way to go. As peekarwe wrote, if you didn't try out all of those other phones then you don't appreciate the higher end cans.

Also, for those on a budget progressing up the headphone ladder is a good way to get decent sound while saving for high end cans. Once you save a bit more money you can sell your previous headphones and buy the next ones. Most decent cans seem to have a fairly good resale value around here, even the lower end ones. There's always someone new to headphones that wants to see what the next step up from stock earbuds is.

Now you can sell your headphones and get back at least half of what you paid. If you kept everything in good condition, boxes, accessories, etc. in tact, you may get even more. You might even want to hold onto your SR-80s for those times when you don't want the isolation of the Etys.

 

[Truckson]

If u haven't tried those headphone, I don't think u can find out that the ER4P are the ones for u.

It is fun to experiement and increase your knowledge of headphones

 

[peekarwe]

Headphones (sound/music, whatever you associate with it) are something in life that you just have to appreciate the journey. It's the journey, baby, not the destination... like some girl told me before....

 

[peekarwe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by halcyon Beware that ETYs even with the new improved cord and using a shirt clip can be very microphonic.

I wouldn't even start to argue with anyone on microphonics. I have a pair of Sony 71s which, due to unbearable microphonics, are spending more quality time with my brother who doesn't mind them.

Think about a motorbike. If you like the character and mobility and wind-in-da-face feeling of riding a bike, you would live with the exhaust, smelling clothes, messed up hair associated with riding one. Some pple could live with it, some just can't. So, there you go.

Halcyon, I agree, if you are astonished at the amount you are spending, you aren't even in the game yet.

 

[fl00r]

OK, I guess I sounded like a Dutch miser to you.

But the only thing I tried to say is that some of my 'upgrades' were not that spectacular. Sometimes it is better to save (a little bit) more money and get yourself a set of cans that makes a substantial improvement rather than a little step forward.

Thanks for your opinions!

 

[erikzen]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fl00r OK, I guess I sounded like a Dutch miser to you. But the only thing I tried to say is that some of my 'upgrades' were not that spectacular.

As a father, husband, and new homeowner, I understand how tight money can be. So to me, being concerned about cost is a very real issue. I have to be careful to spend only what I can really afford on hobbies and toys because I never know when a real emergency is going to pop up (like the mechanic yesterday who told me I need to spend $900 on my old jalopy just to get it to pass inspection

).

However, the other side of the coin is how would you know that the upgrades were not that spectacular if you didn't make them? You could listen to the advice of others but everyone's tastes are different. When people buy based solely on the opinions of others you get the "flavor of the month" phenomenon. That's when some members start touting a headphone as the greatest thing since sliced bread and other members buy the headphone in droves. After they've had a chance to live with them for a while the bloom is off the rose and they realize the headphone is only marginally better than their old headphone, or that they actually like their old headphone better! Then everyone says that the headphone isn't really that good and you see 10 pairs up for sale in the course of a month. What happens is that when we try to describe to others our experience with headphones, it's almost impossible to do without using at least a little hyperbole. Without a bit of exaggeration it is difficult to get your point across, but the reader must be conscious of that.

The best way to travel down this headphone road (IMHO, of course) on a budget is to determine a dollar amount you can afford to spend, do lots of research - which is half the fun anyway

- and buy a pair of headphones within your budget. If you can audition them first that's great. If not, see if you can buy them from someplace with a return policy. If that's not possible, live with them for a while and determine what it is you do and don't like about them, while saving a bit of money for your next purchase.

Once you know what headphones you want to try next, sell your old headphones for a bit of extra capital and start the whole process over again. The "for sale" forum on this site is an excellent resource and can allow you to move along the upgrade path for a bit less.

The only "mistake" that you made was buying all of your headphones within a short period of time. I believe that with any of the headphones you purchased that they already pushed you into the 90 percentile in terms of the sound quality vs. the total population of headphone users in the world. Moving up the scale only helps you get to the 91st, 92nd, 93rd...Nth percentile. It seems to me though that you need to spend larger and larger amounts of money to get smaller and smaller gains. When you do get your Etys you may think that for three or four times the price of the EX71s, that they just aren't worth it. Then again you may have found audio nirvana (at least for a little while

).