How long usually a good pair of IEM going to last???

[dmcom]

I regularly used my Westone UM2 now for 4 years. At the moment they are in my sport-rig. If you handle your IEMs with care I would say, that they can last at minimum 5 years or even more.

 

[project86]

I've heard the quote (sometimes attributed to Jerry Harvey, sometimes to a random UE rep) about balanced armature lifespan being 5-7 years. Out of curiosity I contacted my Audiologist friend who has many decades of experience.

His reply, via email: "As far as balanced armatures going bad after 7 years, I have never heard of such a thing and certainly do not believe it to be true. Balanced armatures come from the hearing aid world and I know of many hearing aid clients that wore their old analog hearing aids for 15 years without need for repair. While the average lifespan of a hearing aid is only 5 years, the figure is this low because of the age of the clients using them and developments in digital audio processing."

In other words, there is no inherent limitation in lifespan for a BA driver per se.

Cables, earwax, and many other issues are of course still a factor, as is change of preference or desire to upgrade.

 

[Brian_the_King]

My first pair of ER6i's were literally in near-perfect condition after a year of solid use... yes I babied them, but I did use them outside and on the road a lot, so they were subsequently stuffed in my pocket fairly often.

Maggie was, in fact, responsible for their demise. Last time I left such low hanging fruit around for her...

 

[webbie64]

Quote:

Originally Posted by project86 /img/forum/go_quote.gif ...Out of curiosity I contacted my Audiologist friend who has many decades of experience. His reply, via email: "As far as balanced armatures going bad after 7 years, I have never heard of such a thing and certainly do not believe it to be true. Balanced armatures come from the hearing aid world and I know of many hearing aid clients that wore their old analog hearing aids for 15 years without need for repair. While the average lifespan of a hearing aid is only 5 years, the figure is this low because of the age of the clients using them and developments in digital audio processing." In other words, there is no inherent limitation in lifespan for a BA driver per se. Cables, earwax, and many other issues are of course still a factor, as is change of preference or desire to upgrade.

My conversations with my audiologist have provided the same impression - he indicates I'm more likely to seek new IEMs after a decade or more due to the inner shape of my ears changing over time than the electronics in any of my IEMs giving out.

 

[jonnoford]

IMO it's the cable that is the issue. All of mine have failed because of the cable, the longest lasting being my E2c's, they held out for about a year before the cable split around the ear. My other shures gave up a couple of months ago and lasted about 6 months, and my UE's lasted about 6 months also. Strangley it was the right IEM that failed on both. I took the cable extender off the shures and they worked. I switched IEM's around on the UE's and the right worked on the left side of the cable. I bought another cable for them and the right still didn't work so not sure about that as again the IEM worked hooked up to the left hand cable. Go figure. But as far as i'm aware the actual IEM's haven't failed.

I think when a fault like this occurs it's a sign that new IEM's need to be purchased.

 

[ma_t14]

My Dennon C551's worked perfectly for around 1.5 years. But recently the left driver seems to have become very quiet compared to the right one. Btw does anyone know if this has something to do with the cable or is it the driver itself?

 

[TiRider]

Good topic and something I've always wondered. I'm incredibly hard on my IEMs. I have the opportunity to wear them at least 6 hours every day. I work in large non temperature controlled greenhouses so my IEMs are routinely exposed to sweat, dirt, and dust. Then there's the occasional unavoidable snag. On average my IEMs last about 6 months. Because of this I've been reluctant to spend over $50 on any IEM.

My current record holders for longevity are Zune Premium V.2 at a little over a year. They had decent sound, were cheap <$25 on Ebay, but their downside was terrible microphonics from their cloth covered wires. I've also tried different lower end Sennheiser products. They all had decent sound but all lasted about 6 months or less with hard use. The left earpiece on my Head Direct RE2 quit working with light use (they were my backup/around the house) after 8 months. I currently trying to get a warranty replacement.

I currently have two lower priced IEMs that get good reviews here - NuForce NE-6 and Meelectronic M6-CL. I'm about a month into use of the NE-6. Love their sound and at $39 they are cheap enough to replace if their lifespan is acceptable. The M6's are my current backups and will be pressed into duty if the NE-6's die.

 

[patsyleung]

I have a pair of shure e2g going on its 5th year. Everyday use with no special care, just an antiseptic wipe now and then. No cracks in the cable so far.