[WinterCharm]

Before anyone kills me and eats me, I know they are worlds apart. But, I'm focusing on sound signature here and have a question.
 
 
I just got my hands on apple ear pods, and I really liked their sound signature for the most part. They have basically exactly the sound signature I'm looking for. 
 
But, I really want a set of Heirs for the better soundstage, detail, clarity, isolation, etc. My only question is, 
 
Are the ear pods closer to the 3.ai or 4.ai in terms of sound signature? 
 
 
I just got handed these by a friend who told me to try them out. I wasn't sure what to expect, and I really ended up loving the sound signature. It was odd. I've hated every single apple earbud before this.
 
I'll probably keep these as a backup pair.
 
 

Has anyone heard both? I'd appreciate any and all input before I shell out $300-400 on some IEM's. 
 
Thanks in advance for the input.

 

[eke2k6]

I can't answer your question, but I can definitely back you up on the earpods. Those things are ridiculous.

 

[ZARIM]

The Heir Audio 4ai ae definitely upgrade over earpods because if you listen them side by side then you will find them much more detailed in mids, highs and better bass with wider soundstage and great imaging, instruments sepration in soun field.

 

[loxxrider]

I don't think the question is which is superior or what makes the 4.Ai better. Rather, it is whether the sound signature of either the 3.Ai or 4.Ai are comparable to the earpods. The sound signature can be similar without quality being equivalent.

 

[devgru]

Quote:

I can't answer your question, but I can definitely back you up on the earpods. Those things are ridiculous.

 
+1
 
I hear spatial cues/notes in certain trance tunes (Michael Dow's "Ascent") on my earpods that I miss on my IE80s. Perhaps it's the Comply tips muddying things up, but I can't keep them in w/o the Comply 500s. I sold my IE80s to a coworker today. The soundstage is fantastic and the bass is = to the IE80s at 1/3 on the bass knob. Sure they leak, but they're buds, and no damn tips!
 
I still prefer the detail out of my 334s, but I am listening to these most of the time when I am out and about. Lose 'em and they're $33 out the door at the Apple store. Game changers, IMO.

 

[WinterCharm]

Quote:

I don't think the question is which is superior or what makes the 4.Ai better. Rather, it is whether the sound signature of either the 3.Ai or 4.Ai are comparable to the earpods. The sound signature can be similar without quality being equivalent.

This is exactly what I'm asking. Thanks for rephrasing it in a less confusing way. 
 
I want to know which Heirs (3.ai or 4.ai) will have the most similar sound signature. I'm hoping someone can tell me 
 
___ has about as much bass and treble and mids as the ear pods. 
 
I'm so stuck between the 3.ai and 4.ai. 

I know the 3.ai is a "fun" IEM - it has a bass boost and a treble boost, giving it a gentle V shaped signature. 
I know that the 4.ai is "flatter" and designed to be as accurate as possible, though slightly warm. I like warm. It's also noticeably more detailed compared to the 3.ai 
 
 
If the 3.ai is closer to the signature of the Ear Pods, I'll buy that. If it is not, then my second question is, can you use and Equalizer either of the two to make the sound signatures overlap? 

 

[eke2k6]

Ok, let me try to answer your question.
 
After A/B'ing the earpods with the Ety HF3, I find them very similar signature wise. The HF3 improves on the earpods in spatial imaging, speed, treble timbre, and overall clarity. Like the earpods, the HF3 has bass that can hit hard if needed,  but remains extremely tight all times. There is a bit of sub-bass roll off in the HF3, but it's an armature so...
 
Going from the earpods to the HF3, you'll lose that ridiculously open sound space and some of the forward projection. Also, there's the issue of what I call Ety rape.
 
I think you'd be happy with the HF3
 
 
 
 

+1
 
I hear spatial cues/notes in certain trance tunes (Michael Dow's "Ascent") on my earpods that I miss on my IE80s. Perhaps it's the Comply tips muddying things up, but I can't keep them in w/o the Comply 500s. I sold my IE80s to a coworker today. The soundstage is fantastic and the bass is = to the IE80s at 1/3 on the bass knob. Sure they leak, but they're buds, and no damn tips!
 
I still prefer the detail out of my 334s, but I am listening to these most of the time when I am out and about. Lose 'em and they're $33 out the door at the Apple store. Game changers, IMO.

 
Exactly. I think the soundstage is what really made me go "wow."  The really great thing about it is its ability to throw sound forward instead of just backwards or side to side. It makes details in tracks more apparent by giving them more room to play around in

 

[WinterCharm]

Thanks for the advice. The  HF3's look pretty interesting. I'll be sure to check them out.