[Grimloki]

Here's the hypothetical. You have a budget of $500. Split into $100 and $400. You can purchase an IEM and a full size headphone... You can use each budget for your choice of IEM or headphone, but you can't mix the two. These would be your only audio gear.

I'm predicting everyone picks a full size can for $400 and spends $100 on the IEM, but I'm not sure if the SM3 would change that. In also curious to see if people pick a similar sound signature, or a complementary one.

Personally I'd pick the SM3 as an IEM and the Allesandro MS1 and my headphone, because I need isolation for most of my listening.

 

[slntdth93]

I'd like to have the adidas originals HD25 (better asthetics)
Maybe Westone 2 or turbine copper with the remaining
 
But i would never spend 200+ (just yet) on headphones/earphones

 

[lucozade]

can i purchase a $400 iem and a $100 iem as back up ?

 , i love iem's , not at all keen on full size cans

 

[koonhua90]

Or you can spend all your $500 on a custom earphone. After realizing the potential of going custom, I ordered my first custom iem just last week.

 

[Grimloki]

Lucozade- why no cans at all? Would u really prefer a cheap iem when you have a top tier one? But yeah go ahead and pick two iems

 

[Goku]

love my IEM's. Dont care what nyone says

 

[lucozade]

full size cans make my ear hot and sweaty and for that sort of money i do not think you will find anything that sounds as good as a $400 iem 
 
 SM3  & custom 3 if i could get one for $100 
 

 

[ClieOS]

$400 for IEM and $100 for, well, nothing. That is simply because I don't use much full sized these days so the $100 will be better off in my wallet.
 
I would rather have the budget splits into $200 (IEM) + $300 (full sized). This way I can have both decent IEM and headphone.

 

[Bennyboy71]

in a theoretical world where I don't already own the SM3, I'd buy that and spend the remaining money on legally purchased music, cos I'm feeling a bit guilty about nicking it all for free lately.

 

[Carthage]

$80 for Er6-i's
and the rest for replacing the cables when they get frayed.

 

[mnhnhyouh]

 
Save some more money and buy the JH-16?

 

[Bennyboy71]

wait till bionic ears are available?

 

[Grimloki]

Quote:

$400 for IEM and $100 for, well, nothing. That is simply because I don't use much full sized these days so the $100 will be better off in my wallet.
 
I would rather have the budget splits into $200 (IEM) + $300 (full sized). This way I can have both decent IEM and headphone.

I think everyone would... Which I thought would make the question a little more interesting. I wondered how people would rate their listening priorities... IEM vs headphone, and wondered if people would pick a similar sound sig for both, or something a little different. Turns out most people turn down the headphone option, if they don't decide not to answer the question at all
 
I keep seeing this 2:1 of money spent for equivalent sound quality in IEMs vs headphones, and how the bester-est IEM is trumped by the mediocre headphone, and thats not my experience at all. In a roundabout way, its that bit of conventional wisdom that caused me to formulate this question... given a choice between IEM and headphone, one excellent, one mediocre, which would you choose. Can't have decent both in this hypothetical quandry.
 

 

[Grimloki]

Quote:

wait till bionic ears are available?

 
Who said they weren't?

 

[JoeyRusso]

Interesting question..  Hmm.. If I could find an IEM that captured everything I love about my Grado's I'd be done.  I love the convenience of IEM's and I love my Copper's, but I won't ever be without a Grado.  That said, I'd spend the $400 on a pair of Grado's and search the FS forum for a $100 pair of IEM's.