Future Sonic "Ears" -- anyone try them?

[Magicthyse]

Quote:

Originally posted by Robster1958 here's the link to that iPod forum review: http://www.ipodlounge.com/ar0030_020709.asp

One bizarre review!

 

[Robster1958]

hey..i'm as skeptical as the next guy, but as i said Mr. Garcia knows his stuff. whether or not he was exxagerating his quality...of course he was biased, but def. not a huckster.

i'm really looking for an Ety equivalent without the insertion issues.

in any event, he seems very willing to let someone (me!) demo a pair and evaluate them. he seems quite confident of the outcome. and no..he won't give them to me....and wants credit card info (rightly!), but he did sound like he would waive the restocking fee if i didn't like them.

here is a copy of the email i sent him:
-------------------------------
Marty,

thanks for taking the time to speak with me. as you will see from that head-fi forum, there are lots of us seeking the holy grail of portable headphones....and apparently willing to pay for it.

until several months ago, i thought that earbuds were earbuds. since then i have found huge improvements from recommended headphones on the forum. but for me at least, i am looking for good bass, imaging, dynamic range...all in a tiny package that i can carry with my iPod. oh...and that can block out the train noise on my commute too!

imo, if your EARS can equal or better the audio quality of the Etymotics, you should have a viable commercial niche. In addition, you can likely improve on the shortcomings of the Ety (mainly the idiosyncratic fit issue, and the microphonic effects). Also, some Ety's require a headphone amp, which gets cumbersome. A little color change (white for us iPoders) and a short cord, you'll have a winner!

I will email you later from home about your evaluation/tryout offer.

thanks again,
Rob
-------------------------------------------------------------

that being said, i know my own limits. and i am probably not the right person to perform the evaluation. if "we" could decide on who whould do it, then it could benefit all of us.

 

[grinch]

/me points to macdef.


also, i am interested in tyll's feelings on this headphone. has headroom heard of these? if so, do they have any experience with the company or product?

 

[taoster]

most interesting.. it'd be interesting to get someone who enjoys their ety and hd600 to do a proper review, factoring in high, mid, low end amping.

 

[RuizWave]

I have a pair of Future Sonics coming in the mail. Looks like so far we may be having two evaluations coming up, one from me and one from Rob.

I've had my ER4S's and HD600's for about half a year, and I definitely enjoy them very much. To drive them, I own a Cosmic (2001 Version) + Base Station, and for portable use a Total Airhead 4.5V. That should at least give an idea of how they perform with differing solid state amps.

Rob, I'm probably not the "right" person to do an evaluation either, but we can at least test the waters. If we both like them, someone with more prestige and experience may become interested in listening to them. Maybe not. Either way, us personally trying them out will at least tell us if we personally like them or not - and that's definitely valuable. Hopefully we can help others in the process, but that is a side effect. Since you can try them out without the restocking fee, I say just go for it!!!

 

[Robster1958]

i didn't want to be presumptuous....but i second MacDEF...no insult to anyone else..

 

[Tim D]

Well the ipod review does mention cord microphonics to a strong degree which doesn't really point to these Universal Fit phones to having less insertion or microphonics issue. These are *still* in-ear phones. If their universal fit phones were perfectly fit for everyone's ears...then why do they still have the more expensive custom-fit phone. Strong cord microphonics and occlusion effects are typical of any earphone that needs to be well sealed...and any in-ear phone that needs to be well sealed will have "insertion issues".

Ety insertion issues will always be an over-rated topic...that is mainly because people that happen to not have the earholes to meld well with Ety's typically complain openly when they read the "successful" accounts of other people. Ety's also comes with multiple size foams, and has both rubber and foam tips. Until we get in-ear phones composed of reconstructable intelligent nanites, you will not avoid "insertion issues".

Robster1958, have you personally tried any Ety's to know if insertion issues apply to you or not? You seem well-intentioned in wanting an Ety alternative, but don't seem to indicate wheter you have ever tried Ety's yet. Or are you throwing this out there to find our reviewing pioneer/guinea pig depending on outcome.

 

[Robster1958]

i did try the Ety's..4's and 6's...at a Headroom traveling show.

i spent about 20 minutes with them....and they had a bunch of sterilized, disposible <?> flanges....so i may not have given them a fair trial. but the pressure felt uncomfortable. and i thought i would suck out my eardrum when i took them out.

fwiw, Mr. Garcia mentioned how the underlying technology is different: the Futuresonics being dynamic and the Ety's being: something else

...not electrostatic. also he was well aware of taming the microphonics.

maybe i should order the 4P's (or even the4S w/ an iPod...is that a better match?), before Headroom stops the restocking fee trial, which i read about in some other post...

-------------------------------

" Or are you throwing this out there to find our reviewing pioneer/guinea pig depending on outcome. "

-------------

read me like a book

 

[williamgoody]

Rob, definitely try the ETY's again, this time with the foam inserts. Odds are it will fit the same as the Futuresonics, as they almost look the same from the stem. Use the return policy. Ta ke the full 30 days to evaluste the fit, as I don't believe 20 minutes is a fair trial period. It took me a good week to get used to the fit, but it's definitely worth it. The ETY/Ipod combo is tough to beat. throw an amp in there and WOW!
I dunno, there's something about this that spells "cheap marketing push" Where are the testimonials from these bands, from the magazines he sent these to? If you love them then great, but somethings wrong here.
Can't hurt to try them though if you can return them.

 

[roadogin]

Long time user of the Future Sonics stuff - esp. the Ears - since hearing them at AES a few years back in their prototype. Watched people ooh and ahh over them and needed to be impressed. I was and am proud to say that I have one of the first production sets. Looks may be deceiving but who says that you should base sound on sight? These things sound far better and are more efficient that anything I've heard that might be similar. Are they pretty? No. Actually, they are really tweaked for live and I find that rolling in a touch of 8k helps for some older recordings but they are really great and totally reliable.

I am very lucky to have my pick of the litter, as they say, and I have two sets of these things in my road case. I become the hero to any of the musicians who use them for backup when they can't find their custom made ones. They love the generics and they sound better than most customs out there. Lots of bottom end and it is not mush - all clean and tight. Great for "mic-eaters" who know no proximity other than making contact<g>.

One thing to think about is that as mentioned here, these are for pro-audio users in a live environment. An article in Pro Sound News was the first to mention that these puppies "just happen to make" a lot of other uses sound amazing.

"The EARS EM3s sound, in a word, excellent. The drivers are extremely efficient, as sensitive as any headphone I've experienced. They are also robust, taking everything thrown at them-with me saying 'uncle' long before I could hear any potential anomalies from extreme volumes. Bass response, spec'd to 40 Hz, is very impressive-exceeding that of most conventional cans. The bass presence is even a good indication of whether you have the earpieces properly inserted-if you are lacking bass presence, try again. Rated to 20 kHz on the high end, the EM3s have a smooth, unobtrusive high end suiting their primary application-they wouldn't be considered bright by any definition, but are not lacking in high frequency definition. The Future Sonics EM3 package offers fully professional performance perfectly tailored for their intended application, at a very attractive price. There are also ancillary applications-you won't catch me on a plane without my EARS!"

I love turning people on to these things.

Aaron

 

[RuizWave]

Aaron,

Have you tried the Etymotic Research ER-4 series earphones? These are very popular on this forum, and for good reason. Any comparison to the etys could be helpful to many people here.

I saw in your profile that you owned a pair of Future Sonics Ear Monitors as well as the EM3 Ears. Could you give some insight about the differences in sound quality between the two? Thanks...

 

[roadogin]

The Future Sonics Ear Monitors are custom made earphone monitors which require ear impressions. They are the top of the line for live use.

The Ears are Future Sonics universal earphones that have "universal fit" using foam. Better comfort than most and easily replaced (I need to more often as I sweat like a beast when I'm working) as needed.

Both sound far superior to any other live use brand that I've heard but it can be subjective. I have had good results (but not as clean on the low end as FS products) from Westone's but they are use-specific and lack the dynamics and realistic image that I get from FS stuff.

Etymotic stuff is definitely a warm tonal quality from the little I've listened to them at trade shows and all. They are a great consumer product that have a distict color to the sound. In my opinion, Future Sonics has a response more designed for live use and has a cleaner separation and much more present low end without sounding like a speaker. FS sounds live and that is what I like. Maybe the Etymotic people will send me some to try (do they lurk here??? <g>)

It is all about what each user likes for sound. Very subjective. I'm lucky to have the priviledge of choice so I have really tried to check it all out carefully.

Aaron

 

[MacDEF]

Quote:

Originally posted by roadogin Etymotic stuff is definitely a warm tonal quality from the little I've listened to them at trade shows and all. They are a great consumer product that have a distict color to the sound.

I'm sure you're going to get a LOT of disagreement over this statement (if people are actually reading this thread). Etys are the furthest from being "warm" or "colored" of any headphone I've ever heard, and that opinion is fairly widespread. There's really only one other pair of headphones ever produced that I've heard anyone claim is more neutral than Etys, and thos are the Grado HPs. Perhaps the Future Sonics are tilted towards the treble and upper mids, so the neutrality of the Etys sounds "warm" to you?

P.S. The ER-4P have a bit more bass than the ER-4S, but even so I wouldn't call them "warm."

I'm interested in hearing these Ears...

 

[BDA_ABAT]

Roadogin: What MacDef said.

Third nomination for a MacDef review of these puppies!!!

Bruce

 

[roadogin]

I was referring to "warm" (re: Etymotics) compared to other generic ear bud type earphones (retail), not compared to FS stuff. Having said that, the FS Ears have a very natural low mid but it is appropriate and sounds just right, not box-y or muttled at all. You know how I love that bottom end already. In terms of highs (4k - 10k), for recorded use you can even dial in a little 8k for detail. Live, they are like Goldielocks' favorites -- just right... <g> Vocals are right there and sound like they would if the person/instrument were right in front of you.

Sorry if I was unclear there. I would be happy to listen to anything out there and always do. As I'd said, for what I do and need, this stuff is it.

I might also suggest checking out the "reviews" page on the FS site. Of course, not too biased from what I can see but the truth is in the way they sound -- for my money.

Aaron