[LWR999]

I'm relatively new to this hobby - I discovered it after buying some Shure SE846 and then refused to give in to temptation when I read this forum more.

I came with the assumption that IEMs were for portable listening and Full Size were for serious at home, in a chair or or at your desktop type listening. The logical extension of this assumption was that IEMs had the upside of being portable, but surely that meant that they were somehow compromised and that Full Size was the audiophile king.

I think I might be wrong in my assumption and wanted to test that with people's opinions here.

I think I like IEMs better than Full Size regardless of sitting at home or being on the move. I prefer the comfort and the sound. That seems strange to me. It seems to go against other people's thinking.

I'm wondering if I'm doing it wrong

For desktop listening, have Hugo Chord TT. For portable I have an A&K SP1000. I can (and sometimes do) use IEMs with the Hugo TT and Full Size headphones with the A&K SP1000 - so my conclusions aren't source dependent.

My full size headphones were : HD800S, Ether Flow Closed, Ether Open, Focal Elear
My IEMs of note are : Shure SE846, Campfire Andromeda

I'm not a bass-head. Prefer neutral. If I had to choose, I would go brighter rather than warmer. I like separation and soundstage. I like the music and vocals to be "present" rather than search for it in the background. I don't like Dark.

The Ether Open and Focal Elear are sold, because I wasn't using them in favour of the others.

The Ether Flow Closed are getting ready for sale, I'm 95% there. I bought them to listen to music the same room as my partner, but I find I'm preferring IEMs for that.

Only the HD800S seems to offer something different to the IEMs. Whether they are different enough for me to buy them again, I'm not sure. But different enough to not be worth selling.

So... am I doing wrong? Are there full size headphones that will blow me away? Given my penchant for IEMs, are there a pair that I should definitely try next?

Thanks!

 

[Wolfskie]

you're not doing anything wrong, everyone has their own preferences!
I, for one, dislike IEMs, not because of the sound, but because of their comfort - something you don't have any issue with.. as for listening at home, for casual listening while doing something else i usually prefer speakers, but if i really want to listen to something, i use my Elears.
I do have a pair of CIEMs on the way, so who knows, maybe i'll 'convert'.

as for what to try next, i really enjoyed listening to the AKG K1000 and audeze LCD3, so if you have a chance to listen to them without first buying, do that.. as for iems, maybe CIEM, though to upgrade from the shure se846 i guess it would be a steep jump in price..

 

[ubs28]

I know what you mean. IEM’a are faster and clearer than full sized headphones imo. It is the reason I bought the HD 800 as it was the first headphone that could offer the same kind of speed and clarity that I was hearing from IEM’s.

If you want a full sized headphone that will blow away the Andromeda at every level, it is going to cost alot of money (Focal Utopia with upgraded cables)

 

[LWR999]

I know what you mean. IEM’a are faster and clearer than full sized headphones imo. It is the reason I bought the HD 800 as it was the first headphone I heard that could match the performance of IEM’a.

If you want a full sized headphone that will blow away the Andromeda at every level, it is going to cost alot of money (Focal Utopia with upgraded cables)

I remember trying the Utopias at a show once. With an AK380. I though they sounded great and I credited that to the headphones rather than the player. But since upgrading my Mojo to an A&K SP1000, I'm wonder if it was the Utopias or the A&K sound I loved. Probably both, but in which proportion? I should demo to find out.

What makes you reach for the HD800S over the Utopia when having a session?

 

[ubs28]

I remember trying the Utopias at a show once. With an AK380. I though they sounded great and I credited that to the headphones rather than the player. But since upgrading my Mojo to an A&K SP1000, I'm wonder if it was the Utopias or the A&K sound I loved. Probably both, but in which proportion? I should demo to find out.

What makes you reach for the HD800S over the Utopia when having a session?

I use the HD 800 S mostly when I have to travel to an other country. I take the Chord Hugo 2 with me also.

I don’t like the idea of travelling with a $4000 headphone

 

[soullinker20]

I'm relatively new to this hobby - I discovered it after buying some Shure SE846 and then refused to give in to temptation when I read this forum more.

I came with the assumption that IEMs were for portable listening and Full Size were for serious at home, in a chair or or at your desktop type listening. The logical extension of this assumption was that IEMs had the upside of being portable, but surely that meant that they were somehow compromised and that Full Size was the audiophile king.

I think I might be wrong in my assumption and wanted to test that with people's opinions here.

I think I like IEMs better than Full Size regardless of sitting at home or being on the move. I prefer the comfort and the sound. That seems strange to me. It seems to go against other people's thinking.

I'm wondering if I'm doing it wrong

For desktop listening, have Hugo Chord TT. For portable I have an A&K SP1000. I can (and sometimes do) use IEMs with the Hugo TT and Full Size headphones with the A&K SP1000 - so my conclusions aren't source dependent.

My full size headphones were : HD800S, Ether Flow Closed, Ether Open, Focal Elear
My IEMs of note are : Shure SE846, Campfire Andromeda

I'm not a bass-head. Prefer neutral. If I had to choose, I would go brighter rather than warmer. I like separation and soundstage. I like the music and vocals to be "present" rather than search for it in the background. I don't like Dark.

The Ether Open and Focal Elear are sold, because I wasn't using them in favour of the others.

The Ether Flow Closed are getting ready for sale, I'm 95% there. I bought them to listen to music the same room as my partner, but I find I'm preferring IEMs for that.

Only the HD800S seems to offer something different to the IEMs. Whether they are different enough for me to buy them again, I'm not sure. But different enough to not be worth selling.

So... am I doing wrong? Are there full size headphones that will blow me away? Given my penchant for IEMs, are there a pair that I should definitely try next?

Thanks!

Hi, well You can also try the planars from Hifiman (?) Abyss Phi, Abyss Diana, Audeze LCD MX4(20 ohm)...

just my 2 cents

 

[LWR999]

Sitting here with a glass of Japanese Whisky, an ice ball with Mike Longo's "900 Shares Of The Blues" on the SP1000.... I feel I may have been a bit harsh on the Ether Flow C's.

I think one thing I might be "doing wrong" is not driving the full size cans hard enough - I have to remember that the CA Andromeda can sound authoritative at 65 volume on the SP1000, whereas the MrSpeakers need to be at 120