[ricola_pak]

If you've read my threads from earlier this week, you'll know that I've been "tuning into" the canalphone realm, asking about the Ety ER-6i. I've never previously used canalphones before and you can call me a noob in the audiophile world.

Well, we are all living in a small world, and it so happens that my cousin who has a pair of Ety ER-4S came to visit this week.

Well I've tried them on for about 2-3 hours now, using first my Creative NJB3 ---> 2AA TAH, and then now on my home Sony hi-fi ---> 2AA TAH, listening to Jamie Cullum's Twentysomething, Norah Jones' Come Away With Me, some Van Halen, and some John Patton's hot organ playing

I must say, perhaps to the surprise of many, that I'm not blown away at all.

Usually I use my AKG K240S with the same amp and DAP, and I love that setup. Honestly, I cannot say that I find a WHOLE LOT more detail in the Etys relatively.

I always thought that when people say these canalphones give detail, it'd be like how the new Plasma TVs playing DVD look: a lot clearer and higher-resolution than my 10 year old TV sitting at home.

However, the only thing I've noticed with the Etys is that it has GREAT isolation, great sound, but the "detail" I've noticed is just that I can hear more imperfections in my recordings. I actually think that high-hats and crash cymbals on my recordings sound a bit more harsh on the Etys than normal.

Is there something wrong with my ears?

 

[Kirosia]

You really have to get used to canal phones. It takes at least a week to adjust.
They almost always sound lackluster at first.

 

[enzoferrari650]

yeah, you're obviously doing something wrong or arent used to them. Or perhaps you just dont have the ears to hear the difference. But er4's are among the clearest highs out there.

 

[AuroraProject]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ricola_pak Is there something wrong with my ears?

Maybe, maybe not. When I first got my Ety's I put them in my ears, turned on my source, and said some expletives that I can't repeat here! They sounded that good to me. Keep in mind the Ety's were my wake up call to the head fi world, all previous phones had been junk. Now I have the Ety's and a set of Sennheiser HD-650's, I like the way the Senns sound, but the Ety's still amaze me. Maybe you were expecting more, or the phones you use now sound as good as the Ety's.

What sounds good to one person can sound horrible to another.

 

[ricola_pak]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kirosia You really have to get used to canal phones. It takes at least a week to adjust. They almost always sound lackluster at first.

I've just gave it another go with Santana's Supernatural and I must say some of the percussion shines through more than ever than with my previous headphones.

When I switched back to my AKG K240S, the overall sound was a lot warmer (nothing new here, since I see everyone seem to say the Ety sound "thin"), less detailed in the highs and I must say, more enjoyable than the Etys.

But like you've said, I will give these canalphones more time (that is if my cousin doesn't mind

)

 

[bLue_oNioN]

Thanks so much for reporting in! I've never had the fortune of trying the Ety's myself, but most Head-Fi'ers have such a good impression on them that I can't help wondering if there's anyone left on the face of the earth that doesn't like them!

If you wind up turning into an Ety convert though, I just might have to try that path out sometime

Thanks again for your thoughts!

 

[Kirosia]

The AKG is just more fun to you. The etys are analytical, and not everyone likes that. You may enjoy a Shure type-phone better (they're known to be "fun"). Or, you just aren't for canal-phones. It's just preference. Yuu shouldn't force yourelf to like something just cause everyone else does. Everyone I know likes bean sprouts, I think they're evil incarnate. Preference.

 

[james902]

took me a while to warm up to these headphones.

if you listen to them long enough, you'll start to enjoy clarity over bassy headphones. I just need a good in-line amp that'll add good bass. The player can play it, but my laptop just doesn't have a good bass bump for hip hop rap

 

[toaster]

your impressions are very understandable.

to some the etys are great. i thought they sounded great when i first heard them. thin, and harsh yes...but despite this imperfections i still felt that they had their share of impressive sonic characteristics.

however, depending on your experience with other audio equipment, it's very easy to see how the ety's could sound very displeasing.

i think what happens is, once you hear something great you naturally measure everything else against it. if the etys are the best headphones you've heard, then the "ety" sound becomes your perception of what "best" is. however, after finding a headphone that you like more, the "ety" sound signature no longer occupies your perception of the "best" sound. you realize the shortcomings of the ety more than ever before, and the sonic qualities of your new favorite headphone come to shape your idea of "best sound."

my point in saying this, is that you've just heard something that you think sounds better. and for this reason, the ety's simply aren't that great to you.

on top of this, you may just find the shortcomings of the etys unbearable, while others find they can overlook them and enjoy the rest of what the etys have to offer.

either way, it seems that the etys just are not clicking for you, at the same level they click for others. based on your comments on them though, i can totally see where your descriptive perceptions on their sound are coming from.

 

[erikzen]

I'm wondering about your source. What kind of files are you listening to through your NJB3? What exactly do you mean by a Sony Hi-Fi?

Because the Etys are analytical maybe they're exposing the weaknesses of your source or source material.

 

[Ffodor]

I have had a somewhat similar experience with the Etys 6i I bought this week (in large part because I discovered head-fi two weeks ago; man, you're evil

).

By all accounts, the 6i are less thin than the 4s without an amplifier, but I still find them much more so than my PX-100, especially with rock music. It goes without saying that the 6i reveal a lot more detail than the px-100 but on occasion this may turn into a problem. For example, this morning, I was listening to a Mozart piano sonata registered live. At first, I was turning my head all around to see who was coughing like that... Felt very silly when I realized where it was coming from.

Thereafter, all my attention was focussed on the coughing (there was a lot!). In fact I became as stressed out as I am at a classical music performance when everybody but me seems sick in the room.

Does this mean I am not happy with the Etys? Of course not. First, they are worth every cent because of sound isolation alone. And when everyone is healthy on the recording, detail is a marvelous thing, much more important than a little more bass, IMO.

 

[bLue_oNioN]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ffodor Thereafter, all my attention was focussed on the coughing (there was a lot!). In fact I became as stressed out as I am at a classical music performance when everybody but me seems sick in the room.

ROFL!! I completely understand, that happened to me just the other day, I was going out of my mind =/

 

[james902]

oddly, it's the flaws that makes me enjoy music even more hahaha.

i was also listening to a live performance for mozart and i noticed a person a dropped a coin. my old headphones would never have picked up the words that they said. I found it quite funny because it remdins me of my music days.

 

[ricola_pak]

Quote:

Originally Posted by erikzen I'm wondering about your source. What kind of files are you listening to through your NJB3? What exactly do you mean by a Sony Hi-Fi? Because the Etys are analytical maybe they're exposing the weaknesses of your source or source material.

By Sony hi-fi I mean model number MHC-7900... and it has Sony mini-hifi written on it (guess it's only mini

). Nothing special there.

For my mp3's on my NJB3 I use the EAC Lame setup, and for my favourite songs I would use ap-insane (320), whilst for other songs I use ap-standard.

Not only am I going to test these ER-4S, I'm also going to test my cousin's 3rd Gen iPod (lucky me). I'm so glad I get to test all these equipment all of a sudden.

 

[dura]

according to the graphs I saw here: http://headroom.headphone.com/layout...subTopicID=189

Quote:

When I switched back to my AKG K240S, the overall sound was a lot warmer (nothing new here, since I see everyone seem to say the Ety sound "thin"), less detailed in the highs and I must say, more enjoyable than the Etys

.

the etys seem to have a flat response with some treble lift.
That might explain your experience.
Never mind graphs of course, go for whatever gives you musical pleasure.
Shure's f.i have a rolled off treble and a basslift, not neutral perhaps, but probably sounding warmer in practice. I love my humble E2's.