[dr cornelius]

Deciding between Er3se and Er4sr Part 2 The final Decision)

Firstly, I had an Er3se and was very happy with it. I listen to mostly FLAC files and Spotify premium on Radsone es100 with custom silver balanced cable. Many types of music but concentration on Indie Folk. I was curious, if the middle tier Er3se was so good, what in the world would the flagship Er4sr be like? Some reviewers said that the 3 and 4 are almost indistinguishable, and other users said that they were very distinct and the 4 was better in every way.

I was very excited to be able to buy an Er4sr on ebay to compare to the 3se. I expected to be blown away with the 4. The first thing I noticed is that the very bottom of sub bass was missing compared to the 3. Everything sounded very smooth and easy. Where songs were very busy with multiple voices and instruments, the 4 did seem to let everything float out very clearly. The 3se at times would present these busy sounds with a little congestion or rough edge around the voices like they were struggling to get all the sound out. Don’t read too much into that as this is very faint to hear and barely perceptible comparison to the 3 vs the 4.

However, all the smooth and easy flow from the 4 left a lot of emotion out for me. Disclaimer: I am 66 and I know my upper hearing is not what it once was. So, you might have a totally different reaction from mine. After multiple back and forth listening sessions with:

‘Mercy’ by Max Richter and Mari Samuelson

‘Coal Fire’ by Jeffrey Martin

‘Victory’ by the Avett Brothers

I concluded that while the Er4sr may technically be more accurate, for me and my taste I was happier with the Er3se. The voices had more emotion. The Strings had more pluck and reverberation on the guitar and bass. Violin had more feeling of the texture of the bow vibrating the strings. Overall I felt more intimate, being with the performers in the room with the 3se. I could justify that little bit of a rough edge as a trade off for the emotion in the music.

Then after I had made my mind up to post the ER4sr on ebay (they are up now), I tried the new 2 flange tips. OMG. The medium tips fit me perfectly. Easier to fit in the ear, not as deep but still 100% seal. They did not get itchy after 30 minutes. Great, physically I liked them better than the 3 flange. But Oh, the music, opened up, sounded less strained and that little edge of congestion on more complex passages disappeared. I think I have found my Nirvana

Thanks for sharing your test tracks - great music BTW. Your listening experience reminds me of why I like the 4XR so much - they can be technically insightful, but for me they still maintain that emotion to the music. I tried my 4SR's for the first time in a while and they just don't draw me into the music like the XR's do.

 

[staticV3]

Hi guys, two questions about Channel matching with the 4XR:

The website states that each ER4 comes with a Channel-Matching Compliance Graph, yet the unit I bought on Amazon.de (new packaging, dual flange tips included) didn't come with one. Is this to be expected?
Furthermore, I just checked the balance myself using a primitive microphone setup (should be good enough for direct comparisons) and here's my result. The graph shows only the difference between left and right.

Spoiler: Channel Matching

Is this still within Etymotic's limits?

PS: That imbalance below 100Hz is definitely audible, albeit only slightly.

 

[blse59]

Hi guys, two questions about Channel matching with the 4XR:

The website states that each ER4 comes with a Channel-Matching Compliance Graph, yet the unit I bought on Amazon.de (new packaging, dual flange tips included) didn't come with one. Is this to be expected?
Furthermore, I just checked the balance myself using a primitive microphone setup (should be good enough for direct comparisons) and here's my result. The graph shows only the difference between left and right.

Spoiler: Channel Matching

Is this still within Etymotic's limits?

PS: That imbalance below 100Hz is definitely audible, albeit only slightly.

I have not looked at your graph but to answer your question it's unusual to not come with a certificate. I've heard of them not being signed by a technician but I've not heard of them not coming with one.

 

[rggz]

Hi guys, two questions about Channel matching with the 4XR:

The website states that each ER4 comes with a Channel-Matching Compliance Graph, yet the unit I bought on Amazon.de (new packaging, dual flange tips included) didn't come with one. Is this to be expected?
Furthermore, I just checked the balance myself using a primitive microphone setup (should be good enough for direct comparisons) and here's my result. The graph shows only the difference between left and right.

Spoiler: Channel Matching

Is this still within Etymotic's limits?

PS: That imbalance below 100Hz is definitely audible, albeit only slightly.

If you got a unit "Used – Like New" on amazon that's highly possible the old owner lost it and returned the ER4 to amazon without it. However, if you got a unit brand new with original protective wrapping I'd consider sending an e-mail to Etymotic because it's not normal coming without the certificate.

 

[rbf1138]

Still wondering if anyone can point me to a 4.4 balanced cable that’s verified to work and sound good with the er2xr? Most places seem to just designate the 4sr/xr but not 2sr/xr. Want to be sure I don’t order something from China that doesn’t fit into the mmcx connectors of the 2xr properly. Thanks!

 

[emklap]

Still wondering if anyone can point me to a 4.4 balanced cable that’s verified to work and sound good with the er2xr? Most places seem to just designate the 4sr/xr but not 2sr/xr. Want to be sure I don’t order something from China that doesn’t fit into the mmcx connectors of the 2xr properly. Thanks!

again, Chinese but cheap and working on my ES3XR. because the MMCX connectors of the ER2, 3, and 4 are the same (IMO) they must work fine on a ER2XR.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/400...earchweb0_0,searchweb201602_,searchweb201603_

here two images to compare the MMCX connectors.
ER2
https://i0.wp.com/www.universmartph...ds/2020/03/etymotic-er2se-review-41.jpg?ssl=1

and my own ER3 with balanced cable attached.

 

[DBMcElroy]

Still wondering if anyone can point me to a 4.4 balanced cable that’s verified to work and sound good with the er2xr? Most places seem to just designate the 4sr/xr but not 2sr/xr. Want to be sure I don’t order something from China that doesn’t fit into the mmcx connectors of the 2xr properly. Thanks!

The 4 sr/xr; 3se/xr; 2 se/xr all use the same connector. It is an mmcx with a key tab cut into the base of the connection to keep the iem from rotating.

 

[ClieOS]

Just finished building an over-the-ear cable...

 

[DBMcElroy]

Just finished building an over-the-ear cable...

Nice work.

 

[gazzington]

I’m using a 3xr and wow does it sound good with a lotoo 3xr

 

[Blackwoof]

Been using my ER2SE with only one green filter, Waiting for new ones in the mail. To still use them i use EQ APO with a -15db cut at 2.5KHz at Q 2.5, To not sound like ear rape on my left ear.

 

[gazzington]

So I love the 3xr for metal, electronic and the classical music I listen to. What next 4xr or 4sr?

 

[rbf1138]

Do the filters work on the 2xr? Has anyone tried this and how do they sound?

 

[Blackwoof]

Do the filters work on the 2xr? Has anyone tried this and how do they sound?

Seems like they work the same way on the ER4. Going by my quick EQ fix, No idea if using red filters will shift the sound on them.

 

[blse59]

Yes, the ER2, 3, 4 all have interchangeable filters and cables. Filter effects (source):