[swarmofseals]

I've had my Klipsch Image S4's for a while now, but over the past two weeks they've suddenly given out on me. They were a great value, so I was going to just replace them with another pair of the same... but Amazon is having a promotion now that has thrown my plans into confusion.
 
Basically, you can get $100 off select items with a year long subscription to Audible, which I was planning on getting anyway. So now there is some real competition:
 
Klipsch Image X5 for $75.40
Logitech 985-000172 Ultimate Ears 700 for $48.44
Etymotic Research HF5 for $19.99
Ultimate Ears 700 for $84.06
 
Those seem to be the best options, as the Ultimate Ears TripleFi 10 are not included in the promotion and would run $188.88.
 
I've read a bunch of reviews and the conclusions that I've tenatively made are that:
 
1. The UEs have the best sound quality
2. The Etymotics have the best noise isolation
3. The UEs have the most complaints about construction quality
4. The Klipsch have the least complaints about construction quality (but still have some)
5. I've read that the construction quality of the UEs went downhill when logitech bought them, which makes me wonder if the more expensive UEs (which are not billed as logitech products) are a better choice.... but they have a lot of complaints from consumers about construction quality on their page as well.
 
 
My main problem is that I really don't know how to evaluate these distinctions. If one pair was clearly much more durable than the others I'd be inclined to just go with that as long as the sound quality and isolation are adequate... but they all have enough complaints about durability to make me wonder. I don't care about the aesthetics of the Etymotics and Klipsch models, which get complaints due to sticking out of the ears. For me, the sound quality on my Image S4's was fine... and I assume all of these have better sound quality than the S4's, although maybe that isn't a fair assumption to make.
 
Any thoughts from people with more experience than I do about this would be very helpful!

 

[Marcus_C]

Rather than try to evaluate their build quality, i'd start with what you liked/didn't like about your s4's, no earphones are bullet proof and all of the one's you listed come with a warranty if anything happens. I realise trawling through this massive forum isn't that easy but if you can find some comparisons of those to the s4's I imagine they'd be useful. The s4's have loads written about them so you shouldn't come up with no reviews.

 

[swarmofseals]

Hmm. Well, in part the problem is that other than the S4's I've never owned anything but ultra low-end IEMs. So the S4s just seemed leagues ahead of everything else that I've ever used in every possible way -- more comfortable, much better isolation, much better sound quality. I'm not a sophisticated audiophile or anything, so I'm not really sure what to make of the differences between these options. I mean, I'm sure any one of them would be good enough.

 

[kmhaynes]

The absolute best value in your list is the Ety HF5, hands down.  However, if you really like the aggressive sound of the S4, you probably will not care for the more accurate HF5, and yes they do stick out of your ears.  The UE 700 is a good value for $44.

 

[Rip N' Burn]

HF5's for $19.99 is an exceptional deal. Even if you don't like them, you can still sell them for a profit and offer a great deal to a prospective buyer at the same time.

 

[In10se]

I have the same problem you do, last week my gf got pissed and went and ripped my s4's that I've had for over a year out of my laptop port and in the process ripped off the earbud. Now I'm scrambling to replace them and thinking about something different. I was thinking about RE-Zero or RE0 since the s4's highs were a little too shrill for my liking.  

 

[kmhaynes]

 
Quote:

I have the same problem you do, last week my gf got pissed and went and ripped my s4's that I've had for over a year out of my laptop port and in the process ripped off the earbud.  

 
After you replace your S4, you might think about replacing that gf.  

  (I'm assuming she won't be paying to replace the S4!)
 
The RE0 has THE best highs of almost any IEM you can buy -- they extend to the next universe, but are as smooth as a baby's back side, and absolutely NOT aggressive or shrill.  They won't knock you over with bass impact, but are pretty accurate and neutral sounding.  
 
The Sunrise SW-Xcape is very RE0-like, but with a hair more bass and warmness.
 

 

[In10se]

 
 
After you replace your S4, you might think about replacing that gf.  

  (I'm assuming she won't be paying to replace the S4!)
 
The RE0 has THE best highs of almost any IEM you can buy -- they extend to the next universe, but are as smooth as a baby's back side, and absolutely NOT aggressive or shrill.  They won't knock you over with bass impact, but are pretty accurate and neutral sounding.  
 
The Sunrise SW-Xcape is very RE0-like, but with a hair more bass and warmness.
 

 


Ha, yep she's a fiesty one and I actually did make her pay me $80 which is what I had paid for them. It's all good cause I'm seeing another girl too so no worries I can drop this one once I get my headphones. The only problem Im having with the RE0 is the thought it won't have enough bass for my liking, I listen to a wide array of music and am thinking I might not get enough boom when I listen to stuff like "Breathe" by The Prodigy.