[nleahcim]

Hi there - I've had a pretty sad battle with headphones for the past, ohhh, 10 years. I just want portable, comfortable headphones that sound great. I travel a lot (think planes, trains, buses, etc.) - so my headphones see a lot of use. I want isolation both in the sense that I can't hear what's going on around me, and those around me can't hear what I hear.

So far, I've attempted a lot of things:

Etymotic Research ER-6: best sounding headphones, super portable, super uncomfortable, amazing isolation
Shure E2C: Pretty good sound, super portable, somewhat uncomfortable, decent isolation
Some JVC IEMs: meh, meh, meh, meh
Bose QC2: OK sound, completely not portable, super duper comfortable, mediocre isolation
Sony D66 Eggos: Good sound, fairly portable, pretty comfortable, no isolation

Those are the best of the bunch - I've tried a bunch of others.

Can anybody suggest something that might work? Being gainfully employed now (I was in school when testing all of these) - I don't mind throwing a bit more green at this problem. I was thinking I might buy some ER-6s again, but this time, get some custom ear molds for them.

Does that make sense? I see some online stores that do custom ear molds - but they want you to do the molding at home... that sounds sketchy. But maybe an ear doctor could do a better job? I dunno.

Thanks everybody!

 

[ibis99]

Well if you liked the ER6 then the natural progression would be the ER4 series. Comfort wise they are good but not excellent. You would be better off with a ER4 and custom tips made specifically for the ER4 by Westone.
Along the same lines as the ER4 is the Westone UM3x. Sound signature is close to Ety but they are more comfortable. Not nearly as isolating.

 

[RASeymour]

Although it seems to have fallen out of favor, not to mention difficult to find, but I still like the q-jays. The isolation, with comply tips, is comparable to my Ety4s and they are far more comfortable. The sound signature is apples and oranges compared to the Ety4s but good in their own way.

Also, on the comfort scale, the SoundMagic PL50 are very comfortable and unobtrusive, probably very good for travel. Not too expensive, so if you lose a pair, eh?

 

[Vitor Teixeira]

Have you tryed the X10?
I think they are very confortable and may fit your needs.

 

[krismusic]

Sounds like customs are the way forward.

 

[yunaforever009]

I agree with Vitor, the X10 are great headphones. Isolation is really great but the comfort and ease of putting them in place are absolutely phenomenal.

 

[nleahcim]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ibis99 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Well if you liked the ER6 then the natural progression would be the ER4 series. Comfort wise they are good but not excellent. You would be better off with a ER4 and custom tips made specifically for the ER4 by Westone. Along the same lines as the ER4 is the Westone UM3x. Sound signature is close to Ety but they are more comfortable. Not nearly as isolating.

Any idea how expensive the Westone tips are? I'm trying to get a hold of the local dealer but no luck so far. Shouldn't the ER-4 be really comfortable with the Westone earpiece? I mean - how could the UM3x be more comfy?

 

[nleahcim]

Quote:

Originally Posted by yunaforever009 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I agree with Vitor, the X10 are great headphones. Isolation is really great but the comfort and ease of putting them in place are absolutely phenomenal.

I've had nothing but bad experiences with stock in ear headphones (I mean - all three I've tested so far have been uncomfortable) - so I don't think there's much chance that those would work for me without a custom fit. Unless I'm missing something?

 

[Nirmalanow]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nleahcim /img/forum/go_quote.gif Any idea how expensive the Westone tips are? I'm trying to get a hold of the local dealer but no luck so far. Shouldn't the ER-4 be really comfortable with the Westone earpiece? I mean - how could the UM3x be more comfy?

I paid $150 for my custom tips from Westone for the Etys and the same price for the UM56 custom tips for my UM3Xs, but I have seen where others on here got them for less, so you may want to shop around.

I think he meant that the UM3X are more comfortable with universal tips, which I would agree with. To get good sound with the Etys using the universal tips, you have to insert them further into the ear and that hurts after a while.

And by the way, I found the Westone custom tips for the Etys a little more comfortable and easy to use than the UM56 tips for the UM3X. The Ety custom tips were larger and extend more into the space of the outer ear, so I also found them easier to put in and take out. The UM56 work fine but they are much smaller and trickier to insert and remove.

 

[Solid Snake]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vitor Teixeira /img/forum/go_quote.gif Have you tryed the X10? I think they are very confortable and may fit your needs.

They are very good but the durability qualities are not to my expectations. This may not work as a portability solution. YMMV

 

[Nagasaki_Kid]

Sennhieser hd25 perhaps.
Wow eggos, I miss my eggos

 

[nimxnooj]

Another vote for the X10's. I bought my er6i's about 3 years ago and loved them at the time. They lacked quite a bit in the lower end though, and my musical tastes lie heavily on hip-hop/r&b/rap so the low end is pretty important to me. The comfort of the er6i was unmatched -- until i tried the X10's. I'm listening to them now.

Portable?
Klipsch claims they are the world's smallest IEMs, so yes. Portable.

Comfortable?
On par with the er6i. I use the triple flange tips with the er6i's, and use the double-flange on the X10's, and they're great. Can't even tell they're there. They're also incredibly light like the er6i. Tried the over the ear type of earphones with the UE 5pro, wasn't a fan. Kind of a pain. But the X10's. VERY comfortable.

Sound great?
YES! Whereas the er6i were very analytical and the high end was very specific, the X10s are a delight to listen to, no matter what genre you're listening to.

Get them, you won't regret it.

 

[nleahcim]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nagasaki_Kid /img/forum/go_quote.gif Sennhieser hd25 perhaps. Wow eggos, I miss my eggos

I just broke my second pair of eggos. I broke the headband on the first pair (it just wore out) and sent them back to Sony. Sony said it was my fault and wouldn't cover it under warranty. I just broke the headband on my second pair of eggos. Exact same way. Still not my fault - it wore out. I don't think I'm going to even bother trying to get them to replace it. Schmucks.

But I really do love those headphones.

 

[nleahcim]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nirmalanow /img/forum/go_quote.gif I paid $150 for my custom tips from Westone for the Etys and the same price for the UM56 custom tips for my UM3Xs, but I have seen where others on here got them for less, so you may want to shop around. I think he meant that the UM3X are more comfortable with universal tips, which I would agree with. To get good sound with the Etys using the universal tips, you have to insert them further into the ear and that hurts after a while. And by the way, I found the Westone custom tips for the Etys a little more comfortable and easy to use than the UM56 tips for the UM3X. The Ety custom tips were larger and extend more into the space of the outer ear, so I also found them easier to put in and take out. The UM56 work fine but they are much smaller and trickier to insert and remove.

I just got in touch with a Westone distributor. They quoted me $100. Not bad at all! I was expecting to pay way more!

So how is the isolation of the Westone custom molds?

edit: By the way - I'd want to get the ER-4P, right? It looks like the ER-4S needs an amp? These will be mostly driven from my cell phone (Droid) or computer.

 

[nleahcim]

Also - do people like the Etymotic Research headphones more than the Westones? I talked with one distributor who seemed to think that most people were getting the ES1s over the ER-4s.