[Kryft]

Hi,

I'm looking to buy a pair of earphones/IEMs for my soon-to-be-ordered Cowon D2. I'm currently considering the following phones, based on what I've read and what's available where I live:

Etymotic Er-6i (~80 euros)
Shure E2C (100 euros)
Shure SE210 (130 euros)
UE super.fi 5 pro (200 euros)

Obviously I care about sound quality, but I consider comfort, isolation and durability (I want these phones to last a few years) equally important. Based on what I've read, I understand that the Er-6is have great sound quality for the price and excellent isolation, but I've heard complaints about their durability, and at least some people feel they lack bass. The Shures seem comfortable and durable, but I'm unsure about the sound quality. The UE SF5 pros are in a class of their own, also in terms of price.

These are just my vague impressions based on what I've read so far; how would you compare these phones? I listen to all kinds of music (vocal, classical, folk, pop, rock, electronic, metal, etc). I'm not sure about my relationship with bass, but I certainly want to hear every note, and I'm not averse to strong bass if it's part of the music (eg. some electronic music). I guess I'm looking for a fairly detailed and balanced representation. Thanks for your input.

 

[nothing101]

tbh i dont think the etys lack bass too much. especially with foamies. they will probably sound the best. only problem is the cable seems to go dead after a year.

 

[Kryft]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nothing101 tbh i dont think the etys lack bass too much. especially with foamies. they will probably sound the best.

You mean that the er-6i sounds better than UE SF5pro?

Quote:

only problem is the cable seems to go dead after a year.

Ah, now that would be a problem.

I assume you can't (easily) change the cable yourself?

 

[Kryft]

Oh, and what about microphonics for the listed phones?

 

[nothing101]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kryft /img/forum/go_quote.gif You mean that the er-6i sounds better than UE SF5pro? Ah, now that would be a problem. I assume you can't (easily) change the cable yourself?

oops... yeah the super fi sounds better but its hardly comparible at over twice the price. but the build quality of the etys seems to suck. the plug on the black one is different and might have solved the plug problem though. i am not sure.

 

[elnero]

Have you looked into how much the Sleek Audio SA6's would be there?

 

[synaesthetic]

ER-4P is win, though the cable is arse.

 

[ClieOS]

I don't know how SF5pro compare to q-Jays, but since Jays is a EU company and they have several online seller over at Finland, I thought you might also want to consider it.

 

[Kryft]

Quote:

Originally Posted by elnero /img/forum/go_quote.gif Have you looked into how much the Sleek Audio SA6's would be there?

As far as I can see, they're not available here at all.

 

[asacks]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ClieOS /img/forum/go_quote.gif I don't know how SF5pro compare to q-Jays, but since Jays is a EU company and they have several online seller over at Finland, I thought you might also want to consider it.

I own both and much prefer the q-jays for both comfort and sound quality. Just my two cents. I'm surprised q-jays are not on this list, although I must admit I'm not sure what they cost in Euros, but they retail for 240 dollars here after a price increase to reflect exchange rates so I would think they'd be under 200 Euros (and can be had in US for 210 US dollars).

 

[Kryft]

Quote:

Originally Posted by asacks /img/forum/go_quote.gif I own both and much prefer the q-jays for both comfort and sound quality. Just my two cents. I'm surprised q-jays are not on this list, although I must admit I'm not sure what they cost in Euros, but they retail for 240 dollars here after a price increase to reflect exchange rates so I would think they'd be under 200 Euros (and can be had in US for 210 US dollars).

That's interesting. How would you describe the difference in sound quality between the q-jays and the SF5pros? What's the build quality like on the q-jays? Why do you feel they're more comfortable?

The q-jays weren't on my list because I thought they weren't available here, but as ClieOS pointed out there are in fact several online retailers who stock them. They cost 150 euros.

 

[monolith]

Good god, where are you buying from that sells SF5Ps for 200 Euros? That's insane. I bought them from someone here for $120 and that was pushing how much they're worth.

 

[jinx20001]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kryft /img/forum/go_quote.gif You mean that the er-6i sounds better than UE SF5pro? Ah, now that would be a problem. I assume you can't (easily) change the cable yourself?

the cable isnt too bad on the er6i, its just very thin and if care isnt taken can fall apart easier than it should.

no the er6i does not sound better than the super fi 5, the 5 pro are amazingly good, super clear highs, deeeeep lows,and ok mids, nothing special, some say the lows are a little too deep but the way i look at it is this, you can always EQ the bass to make it lighter with no effect.

now the er6i would likely need EQing to boost the bass and earphones needing a bass boost usually callapse in a heap of distortion, so more bass is always better as standard because it can be reduced with no bad effect unlike bass boosting.

trust me and others on this, the super fi 5 are pretty good in thier price range.in fact they are very cheap nowadays.

design isnt the best but again can be modified for the better if needs be

 

[Kryft]

Quote:

Originally Posted by monolith /img/forum/go_quote.gif Good god, where are you buying from that sells SF5Ps for 200 Euros? That's insane. I bought them from someone here for $120 and that was pushing how much they're worth.

Well, I read in some other thread that you paid $120 for your ER-4Ps, and those cost 200 euros as well, so perhaps prices are just higher over here.

Come to think of it, I guess I could consider the ER-4Ps as well --- I'm just a bit worried about the bass and durability.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ClieOS I don't know how SF5pro compare to q-Jays, but since Jays is a EU company and they have several online seller over at Finland, I thought you might also want to consider it.

I did a bit more research on the q-jays because asacks spoke so highly of them, and apparently he's not the only one who thinks they beat the UE-SF5pros. Unfortunately it seems that the filters may need to be changed quite often. That's a big turn-off for me, so the q-jays are off the list.

 

[Aimless1]

The ER-6i, IMHO, sucks with the D2. Now I loved the Etys when I had them, but not with the D2.

There seems to be something special about Shures with the Cowon D2.