[rincewind]

I've just realised why my ears ache after using the Ety ER4-S. It's cos the barrel (the black part that butts up to the thinner section we call the stalk) is thick enough that it's pushing apart that little nook in the ear that it sits in (yes I must have small ears).

Does anyone know if it can be thinned or something? The actual flanges and all that are completely fine, and I have no problem with insertion depth, it's just this barrel causing pain in that little 'nook' that eventually gets to me after an hour or so. I can't see this level of discomfort just going away, like how ppl say others will get used to the insertion depth.

I'm thinking along the lines of sanding the outside edges of the barrel til it's a bit thinner, but I have no idea how thin the housing already is, or if it would detriment how well they work.

ANY ideas would really be appreciated.

 

[nikongod]

i am afraid of sanding that.

the 1/2mm at most that you can remove will probably void your warenty (maybe a concern) and will probably waeaken them it will also probably not change fit that much. you wind up with a headphone that STILL dosnt "fit", has no warenty, and is more likely to break.

sell em, and get something else.

 

[rincewind]

Dammit. I bought em off Todd. I'll just email him now.

 

[dhp]

You know what they say about guys with small ears...














Etys hurt when they put them on. (Bad joke, I know)

 

[sxr71]

Try the foamies. If you need the smaller foamies then request a sample from Etymotic.

 

[rincewind]

No I don't know the saying about small ears (serious).

sxr71, did you even read my post? Foamies or triflanges, the barrel size is the same.

Anyway, in the past 20 minutes I was stuffing around with some tissues and found out that if I wrapped the red and blue parts in tiny bits of tissue, these things are now VERY comfortable. So I think it's actually the square edges of the coloured sections feeling like they were cutting into my ear! So now I look like a weirdo with tissues hanging out of my ears

I'll have to find something that I can use to create some kind of 'skin' to go around those plastic parts. Clear stuff would be good, so I can still tell left from right! I'm thinking of like a skin-friendly equivalent of 'no-more-gaps' that builders use around the house, but not sure. Anyone got suggestions?

 

[nikongod]

heat-shrink tubing.

jsut be sure that it is NOT self-adhesive, and that if you ever need to send them in for repair, that yu remove it.

 

[rincewind]

Yeah, I thought about heat shrink, but a bit too risky on things this small I think. As a temporary attempt/test, I got some of the foam ear plugs you'd wear to a gig, cut some VERY thin slices of foam off them, wrapped that around the offending sections, then taped over with a small amount of sports cut tape. I thought it worked for a while, but I still get pain in the outer end of my ear canal which I think is caused simply by the triple flange being too thick in diameter for my ear. I *did* request the different types of plugs from Etymotic, and I have persevered for a week. Although the new plugs haven't arrived, I've decided to send these back to Todd if he'll let me. I like heavy metal and electronica and although classical and soundtracks sound great through these, metal was ripping my head off, until I added some heavy EQ and bass boost. But then - I can't get comfortable with them, so decided it's all too difficult. I can tell why they would be popular with some ppl, and maybe I've just got small ear canals (hahah make sense, gf says I'm never listening

)

Anyway, I'm now reading up on the Shure E4C. I still have my Sony EX71s. I may even plug them into my Hornet and see if the Hornet makes them much better, who knows, maybe the Sonys will shine with the Hornet and the woofy bass will be more controlled... NFI, but I'll try anything now. If I like the combination I might as well stick with it and use the credit at Todd's for something else (if he'll let me swap). When ppl said the ER4-S lacked bass impact I didn't realise how diminuitive the bass was in it's voicing. I boosted it a bit to bring it up to what most ppl would call normal, but then I found it lacking for what I realise I really mainly listen to... metal and electronica and only about 20-30% being soundtracks and other stuff.

I know some ppl say there are no IEMs good for metal, but I think I'd be happy with IEMs that are just very good overall and are just capable of handling it when I turned up the bass a bit for heavy metal/rock and electronica. Then I can turn down the bass again and enjoy hi fidelity on my soundtracks and stuff. I'm keen on IEMs cos I don't want to bug the ppl around me in my office and I don't want big closed headphones cos I'd feel silly.

I guess the upside of this is that even if I get the E4C instead of just going back to the EX71's, I'd still have nearly enough credit left with Todd to get a lower level Grado (say the SR-225) so that I've got a full-size rock can for home (since I've got the HD650, but it's a little slow on some metal tracks with fast drumming). Ultimate Ears Super Fi 5 Pro's might have been an interesting alternative but now I've invested with Todd I need to sort it out with his range (unless he won't take them back and I have to sell on here/elsewhere).

Fingers crossed about Todd accepting IEM returns! Has anyone had experience with IEMs being returned to Todd?

 

[sxr71]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rincewind No I don't know the saying about small ears (serious). sxr71, did you even read my post? Foamies or triflanges, the barrel size is the same. Anyway, in the past 20 minutes I was stuffing around with some tissues and found out that if I wrapped the red and blue parts in tiny bits of tissue, these things are now VERY comfortable. So I think it's actually the square edges of the coloured sections feeling like they were cutting into my ear! So now I look like a weirdo with tissues hanging out of my ears I'll have to find something that I can use to create some kind of 'skin' to go around those plastic parts. Clear stuff would be good, so I can still tell left from right! I'm thinking of like a skin-friendly equivalent of 'no-more-gaps' that builders use around the house, but not sure. Anyone got suggestions?

Yes, I did read your post, and I've had similar problems with the triflanges. In fact I've even had a triflange stuck in my ear that had to be removed with an instrument (luckily I had an Oral Surgery resident on my floor who just pulled out a surgical instrument and took it out).

I no longer have these problems with foamies. So it is an easy thing to try that might solve your problem.

The foamies when compressed end up being thinner than the triflange on top of the the barrel thickness. Especially so when you use the thinner foamies (which I haven't needed to resort to actually).

If you remove the thickness on the end of the barrel you will have problems whereby the triflange or foamie as the case may be will not adhere properly to the barrel such that you will end up with the triflange or foamie stuck in your ear. There is a reason why those barrels are designed the way they are.

BTW, you shouldn't have them inside far enough that the colored sections even come close to touching your ears. There's quite a large thick section of the barrel before the colored portion which shouldn't really touch your ear either. I suspect your are pushing them in really far so as to get better isolation, and I can tell you that foamies will give you that better isolation without having to shove the whole thing in your ear as you might be doing (going by your post).

 

[rincewind]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sxr71 Yes, I did read your post, and I've had similar problems with the triflanges. In fact I've even had a triflange stuck in my ear that had to be removed with an instrument (luckily I had an Oral Surgery resident on my floor who just pulled out a surgical instrument and took it out). I no longer have these problems with foamies. So it is an easy thing to try that might solve your problem. The foamies when compressed end up being thinner than the triflange on top of the the barrel thickness. Especially so when you use the thinner foamies (which I haven't needed to resort to actually). If you remove the thickness on the end of the barrel you will have problems whereby the triflange or foamie as the case may be will not adhere properly to the barrel such that you will end up with the triflange or foamie stuck in your ear. There is a reason why those barrels are designed the way they are. BTW, you shouldn't have them inside far enough that the colored sections even come close to touching your ears. There's quite a large thick section of the barrel before the colored portion which shouldn't really touch your ear either. I suspect your are pushing them in really far so as to get better isolation, and I can tell you that foamies will give you that better isolation without having to shove the whole thing in your ear as you might be doing (going by your post).

OK, no offence intended. Thanks for the reply. Well by the barrel I meant the thicker part that your talking about, not the part that the triflange or the foamies slide onto, but the thicker part. Anyway, Not even considering the discomfort and trouble they have been causing me, I haven't got remotely close to a sound I like without insane amounts of EQ being applied and I'm gonna return/sell them and try to find something better for metal (hence the post above), I'm over them.

 

[sxr71]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rincewind OK, no offence intended. Thanks for the reply. Well by the barrel I meant the thicker part that your talking about, not the part that the triflange or the foamies slide onto, but the thicker part. Anyway, Not even considering the discomfort and trouble they have been causing me, I haven't got remotely close to a sound I like without insane amounts of EQ being applied and I'm gonna return/sell them and try to find something better for metal (hence the post above), I'm over them.

Well, better luck on your next purchase. I'll tell though, if you could put the actual barrel into your ear, then you don't have small ear canals. Keep that in mind for when picking the right size foamies for your next purchase.