[sxr71]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ElectricBlack Almost anything will sound better than an ER-6i. They are obnoxiously cheap-sounding. They have a flat frequency response, and almost nobody likes that. They also have too much harmonic distortion.

Yeah almost nobody likes a flat frequency response. It's not something we look for at all.

 

[sethsez]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sxr71 Yeah almost nobody likes a flat frequency response. It's not something we look for at all.

It shouldn't be when it comes to IEMs. Speakers should have a flat frequency response of course, but once you bypass the outer ear entirely a flat frequency response will sound very different.

 

[Remedial]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sxr71 Yeah almost nobody likes a flat frequency response. It's not something we look for at all.

Are you saying this in jest? Like the other poster said, flat frequency is great in speakers for mixing, but for listening purposes, a little coloration is good for the soul.

 

[nightfire]

According to etymotic, the frequency response is flat as perceived by the user, not straight out of the headphone itself. They measure it using special equipment which mimics the ear's internals.

To my ears they are the most neutral listening device I've heard.

Oh, and whoever mentioned "too much distortion" on the ER6's... good lord you are out of your mind.

 

[sethsez]

Well there's that too, but my point was more that a flat frequency response in phones that completely bypass the entire outer ear and a good chunk of the ear canal might as well be heavily unbalanced for all intents and purposes. Flat speakers sound natural when they're used naturally... that is, with your entire ear. IEMs don't do this, so they need to compensate.

 

[bangraman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by milkpowder You make both of them sound as if they're horrible headphones! Oh well... you do come from very high end gear. I guess you probably need some "acclimatisation" to low-fi headphones again!

Not really. They are both quite substandard in comparison with many HEADphones in their price bracket. But both are substandard in different ways, ways that I mentioned. In the case of the Etymotic though, their tonal tuning leads you into believing that they are significantly more resolved than they actually are. You can pull the same trick with almost any half decent headphone if you apply EQ.


As for the 'high harmonic distortion', this isn't audible as out-and-out distortion, at least in my experience. I do suspect people who baldly state it as being merely 'paper experts' i.e. regurgitating information they've seen elsewhere instead of experiencing for themselves. Whatever it is however, the tonal trick of the Etys makes things sound 'crunchier' in the extreme trebles, rather like a very highly speeded-up version of someone running across a field of crisp/chip packets. In fact, something had been bugging me for absolutely ages which the ER-4S and it was when I walked onto a crisp/chip packet one day, then saw how a balanced armature driver was constructed that I suddenly had an 'Eureka' moment. Sometime after that the Headroom measurements came out which I presume the previous poster of the distortion was referring to. I think you have to be able to hear in the extreme trebles to make this out. All that is however not as apparent on the ER-6i compared to the ER-4S in my experience. However the tonal 'trick' still applies.


Shures are more vocal-orientated and all without an exception sound less 'crisp-packetty' in the highs than the Etymotics, while many Shures do suffer from a lack of highs. So many people like that 'clarity' of the Etys. I'm not a fan as I prefer genuine clarity, and in the absence of that I would generally plump for the somewhat more realistic, if still pretty flawed, rendition of the Shures as a whole. It's all about compromises and it's about what you can hear, as well as how you want the music to be presented to you. And IEM's are in themselves a compromise between portability, isolation and sound.

 

[nightfire]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sethsez Well there's that too, but my point was more that a flat frequency response in phones that completely bypass the entire outer ear and a good chunk of the ear canal might as well be heavily unbalanced for all intents and purposes. Flat speakers sound natural when they're used naturally... that is, with your entire ear. IEMs don't do this, so they need to compensate.

Well... ok, but I'm just saying that Etys are very well balanced from a user perspective. And frankly comparing their frequency response to anything Shure (and yes I've heard their whole product line extensively, up to the E5c) is kinda ridiculous.

*EDIT* Though I know a lot of people do prefer Shures. I can totally understand why.. but the Etys are all far more flat.

 

[sethsez]

Sorry for the confusion, I was replying to Remedial.

As for which is more balanced, you'll find those who say the UM2 is, those who say the E4c is, and those who say the ER-4S is. I'm of the opinion that Etymotics sound "more real than real"... that is, the treble is overdone to the point where it sounds more detailed than it really is, and doesn't reflect what things sound like in real life. Good if you're listening for production errors, but not particularly good for listening to accurate reproduction of music.

Still, this is all IMO, YMMV, etc.

 

[sxr71]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sethsez Well there's that too, but my point was more that a flat frequency response in phones that completely bypass the entire outer ear and a good chunk of the ear canal might as well be heavily unbalanced for all intents and purposes. Flat speakers sound natural when they're used naturally... that is, with your entire ear. IEMs don't do this, so they need to compensate.

Please read nightfire's post again. Then visit:

http://www.etymotic.com/ephp/er4-hwmra.aspx

 

[milkpowder]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oistrakh Don't buy Er-6i. It has a bad review on headphonereviews.org and it also seems like its a bad IEM http://headphonereviews.org/headphon...headphoneId=43

I don't agree with some of the points that this reviewer made. His ratings are just appallingly bad! Two ratings make this his review lose its credibility: highs quality and detail. They were rated 5.0 and 4.0 respectively. This is outrageous becuase they are two of the main attractions of the ER6i. I am 100% sure that I'm not the only person on Head-fi who thinks that the ER6i has stunning highs and clinical precision.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jonli Review by Senior Member jonli on 18 Nov 05 17:05 I bought these headphones as a replacement for my Sony MDR-EX71's. Instead, I ended up with more of a utility headphone as they only my choice when mowing the lawn or listening while flying. The sounds from the headphones is flat. Rock, Classical, Jazz, and Electronic all sound dead without using a headphone amp. There is virtually no bass whatsoever. As these headphones are marketed for use with iPods (given their white color), I found it extremely disappointing that even with the bass boost turned on, there was still virtually no bass. What is he going on about here? No bass? These may not be the bassiest of earphones, but they certainly have bass! Music sounds dead without headphone amp?! These have an impedance rating of 16ohms! Isolation-wise, they are fantastic. The seal that can be created is unmatched in any other headphone that I've tried. This effect is caused by following their very detailed insertion instructions. But proper insertion puts the headphones so far into your ear that it almost becomes painful. If you want a good seal, don't expect to wear them for very long without discomfort. Isolation is indeed very good. Discomfort isn't without reason. I find the triflanges have limited comfort as well, but this is a problem with the triflanges and not the earphones themselves. I would suggest the use of foamies instead. Long term comfort is very much increased. Don't expect to be able to take them off very easily either. If I simply do the pull-and-twist, the interchangable head sometimes disconnects from the driver unit and I'm stuck with a rubber cone lodged in my ear. There have been some instances where I needed tweezers to remove them. Luckily this hasn't happened to me. This is a well-known problem that happens after the long term use of the same flanges. The flanges become loose and will come off inside your ears. To prevent this from happening, check to see if the flanges are loose or not before putting them into your ears. It's really no one's fault but yours if it. I haven't had to learn the hard way and I hope all future IEM users don't have to either. For the price I paid, they're just not worth it. Each to his own here. I think these earphones are definitely worth it. If I, too, felt that there was that much wrong with these headphones, then they're not worth it. However, we all know that isn't true.

 

[EscaBoi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by milkpowder I don't agree with some of the points that this reviewer made. His ratings are just appallingly bad! Two ratings make this his review lose its credibility: highs quality and detail. They were rated 5.0 and 4.0 respectively. This is outrageous becuase they are two of the main attractions of the ER6i. I am 100% sure that I'm not the only person on Head-fi who thinks that the ER6i has stunning highs and clinical precision.

i'll agree to that. I find the reviews on that site aren't too accurate and follow what people here on Head-Fi say more.

Granted, i don't have much experience with headphones, but the highs and detail definately deserve better than what it was rated

 

[bangraman]

Not sure about that. As effectively speaking a 'con job' I think it does deserve to get marked down.

 

[fierce_freak]

The E2c is the only IEM I've ever heard...regardless, I often prefer it to many of the cans I've owned in the past - HD650, K701, 325i, DT990, MS1, and a few others. If I enjoy the sound coming from the E2c this much, I think I'm in for a treat with the E500 (well, I hope so).

 

[mmcduff]

I've done my best to search for a good answer to this question on the forum, but I have come up short

Paying $70 for E2c's, I could for the same price get the k81dj. How much better is the sound from the k81dj than the E2c's? To what headphone price range does the sound quality of the E2c's translate in terms of sound quality. I would like to have good isolation, but if they are going to sound like ear buds I'm not going to be happy.

 

[mypasswordis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fierce_freak The E2c is the only IEM I've ever heard...regardless, I often prefer it to many of the cans I've owned in the past - HD650, K701, 325i, DT990, MS1, and a few others.

W-w..what? ... Did I hear that right? Maybe the loud music is finally getting to me.