[archdawg]

EDIT.... When in Rome.... Just switched to the white on the ER2XR. Clearly these haven't been getting anywhere near as much attention on this thread as they deserve!! Brown was an improvement over the green for sure, but I think white really takes it to the next level... plus the benefits of the dynamic driver! These may become my favourite Etys!

I've had the ER2XR on my bucket list for a while now, with the 3XR and 4XR around though I never felt the need to rush but that could change at any given moment.

Tuning-wise they are very close, but the ER4XR is the more resolving with greater separation in the headstage. The ER2XR remains more impactful in base and warmer in the lower mids despite the white filter.

Ok back to work.... But it was nice to have a proper ety session after so long. The still hold a special place in my wider collection

Same here, a very special place; I literally don't leave home without them.

BTW ... I just pulled my two sets of Shure E4c/g out from storage ... my first 'serious' IEMs from back in 2004/5 before I bought my first Etys. Still got all the accessoires and only checked the basic functionality so far but the single drivers (Knowles ED26689?) still seem to work. The rubber parts and cables though are as stiff and brittle as it gets. Anyway, having loved (& rocked) those suckers to bits back then I'm looking forward to bringing them back to life and once I'm at it I might as well install some MMCX connectors. No big deal, time will tell.

Edit: Tuning-wise they are very close, but the ER4XR is the more resolving with greater separation in the headstage.

No idea about the ER2XR but that's somewhat close to my experience with the 3XR against the 4XR. Some comparative FR graphs suggest that the 3XR with impedance filter (20...75 Ohm) has the same FR signature as the 4XR and while they get pretty darn close tonally to my ears (on my dacs/amps) the 4XR still sound a wee bit brighter and more clear, with slightly less (mid)bass, somewhat better details and a slight advantage with imaging and separation. Not day and night but it's there.

 

[Killcomic]

Is there a way to get the Ety brown filters without buying the tuning kit? It's a bit expensive.
Also, I've heard Knowles filters work, but can also break the nozzle over time.

 

[riodgarp]

A question regarding the Etymotic tuning.
I'm in a position now where I can't even stand other IEMs. I bought both the Truthear Hexa and the Letshouer S12, but I just keep going back to my ER4XR. I find everything else sibilant now.

My question is, is the treble truly accurate with the Etymotic tuning and everyone else has stupidly elevated treble, or is the Etymotic target curve way too tame in the treble?
I mean, I wish my ER4XR had a touch more treble, but everything else seems to be uncomfortably high in the top end.

I believe the triple flange that ety has also taming the high area while not so much as foam does

 

[Oscarilbo]

Hi guys.
Want to know what's been your experience with the official Etymotic eartips.
I ask because in my case, I've found differences in sound from the three type of Large tips; Grey, hard clear material (these used to be the ones that came with the ER4XX line and some of the ER2XX), and soft clear material (these I understand are the new ones and the ones Etymotic are packing all the lines with now and will be moving forward).

Both the grey and hard clear are the less comfortable of the three, with the hard clear ones been the least. The soft clear ones are the most comfortable and easier to insert, BUT for me for some reason these sound the most shoutier. Upper mids are a bit too aggressive and sound dryer. The hard clear ones are the most warm and soften the shoutiness the most, and the grey ones are maybe the most balanced ones, maintaining the warm but without softening the uppermids too much.

Of course these differences are in reality very minimal but noticeable, specially doing A-B tests, but that's been my experience.

I wonder tho, why I find the softer ones more shouty? Could it be because being softer the go even deeper? @AnyDave Would love to know your opinion.

Thank you in advance

 

[AnyDave]

Hi guys.
Want to know what's been your experience with the official Etymotic eartips.
I ask because in my case, I've found differences in sound from the three type of Large tips; Grey, hard clear material (these used to be the ones that came with the ER4XX line and some of the ER2XX), and soft clear material (these I understand are the new ones and the ones Etymotic are packing all the lines with now and will be moving forward).

Both the grey and hard clear are the less comfortable of the three, with the hard clear ones been the least. The soft clear ones are the most comfortable and easier to insert, BUT for me for some reason these sound the most shoutier. Upper mids are a bit too aggressive and sound dryer. The hard clear ones are the most warm and soften the shoutiness the most, and the grey ones are maybe the most balanced ones, maintaining the warm but without softening the uppermids too much.

Of course these differences are in reality very minimal but noticeable, specially doing A-B tests, but that's been my experience.

I wonder tho, why I find the softer ones more shouty? Could it be because being softer the go even deeper? @AnyDave Would love to know your opinion.

Thank you in advance

There are only two things I can think of:

1.) The softer material is somehow getting pinched in your canal, affecting the frequency response.

2.) The eartip version of the softer material has a longer stem than the older variants with the higher durometer material.

 

[Toesnip13]

ER2XR I have gone with white, but ER2SE I have kept the green

I have to say I'm truly surprised hehe
I sometimes find the 2XR too bright almost with some tracks and was considering red filters to trial out.

I don't mean to presume anything but I'm curious, what tips are you using and how deep you going and how good of a seal is it to outside noise?

I know the last 2 questions are super subjective but let's try.

Basically because I wasn't getting the best seal I could until I bought a size bigger and went for Comply P series tips and jammed so far in (with newly de-waxed ears) that the entire world disappeared. Then one true heaven melted into my ears

 

[Toesnip13]

If they are too bright with green, then red might help a bit.

Thanks Dave, in the end I sent the 2SE back, super happy with 2XR in the end with green filters but as mentioned just now in another reply I'm considering trying red after getting a superior fit with new comply tips.

Thanks for everything you have done and are doing. You're an absolute legend for making these sets happen. I have the fattest grin nowadays when trying any other IEM and knowing that my £85 2XR can outclass them in so many ways and most importantly help me record acoustic percussion using digital effects whilst isolating me from the un-FXed outside sound. Super invaluable to me.

Honestly I cannot state how much I hate active noise cancelling haha. I just refer to it as active aggravation feature, makes me wanna smash things to bits at times when I hear that whine or get that awful occlusion effect. Yuk!

 

[Toesnip13]

Is there a way to get the Ety brown filters without buying the tuning kit? It's a bit expensive.
Also, I've heard Knowles filters work, but can also break the nozzle over time.

Speaking as someone who meddled with many filters for Ety sets with metal nozzles, I can say that Knowles or any other knock-off filters do not work as they are a few microns too large in circumference. However I have managed to use a Dremel/manual filing to file them down to size but have to be super careful to not overheat the barrel and melt the mesh. Sometimes it looks unaffected but you've added some distortion to the mesh material. Takes ages to do basically.

So anyhow once that's done and you've used a micrometer to check against the plastic filters, the adventure has only begun because now you have to hold your nose in disgust as you squeeze a files metal barrels into a metal nozzle. I was at one point making little kits to send to people with instructions on how to do this and reuse the filters by removing them with a screw that had the correct pitch.

Problem with all this is twofold:
1) There's no proper way to check you have properly sealed against any micro-leakages from the sides of the barrel-nozzle interface since there's absolute no yielding from either surface.

2) when you decide it's time to remove the filters for whatever reason, you run the risk of rushing it or doing it slightly incorrectly or just getting unlucky somehow and stripping the inside of the barrel, causing the filters to fall inside the Ety housing or making it impossible to remove the filter altogether.

This happened to me with my last set of 2XR and I honestly had to almost seek therapy to get over that loss. Was actually really sad but they were a great friend.

@AnyDave you can probably back me up on some of this?

As far as I know Sonion filters ARE the correct size but I haven't been able to find any in stock anywhere in the world yet.

 

[Oscarilbo]

There are only two things I can think of:

1.) The softer material is somehow getting pinched in your canal, affecting the frequency response.

2.) The eartip version of the softer material has a longer stem than the older variants with the higher durometer material.

Thank you Dave!
I think it may be indeed getting a bit pinched somehow, since its so soft for me. That would be enough to affect the sound a bit then?
Didn't notice the the softer ones had a longer steam, that also may be a factor.

I'm a bit worry the harder ones (both grey and clear) won't be produced anymore. I understand that's the case for the hard clear ones, but do you happen to know if the grey will be produced still?

 

[AnyDave]

Thank you Dave!
I think it may be indeed getting a bit pinched somehow, since its so soft for me. That would be enough to affect the sound a bit then?
Didn't notice the the softer ones had a longer steam, that also may be a factor.

I'm a bit worry the harder ones (both grey and clear) won't be produced anymore. I understand that's the case for the hard clear ones, but do you happen to know if the grey will be produced still?

The older, harder durometer eartips are the same material, with the exception of color. Unfortunately, none of them can be sourced anymore.

The new eartips could be molded with the same material in a harder durometer, but I think the impression is that folks like the softer eartips. If that's not the case, I would recommend reaching out to the company. A single email is unlikely to change things, but if there are multiple requests, perhaps it will be considered.

 

[Oscarilbo]

The older, harder durometer eartips are the same material, with the exception of color. Unfortunately, none of them can be sourced anymore.

The new eartips could be molded with the same material in a harder durometer, but I think the impression is that folks like the softer eartips. If that's not the case, I would recommend reaching out to the company. A single email is unlikely to change things, but if there are multiple requests, perhaps it will be considered.

Thank you Dave.
The soft eartips are fine, but not necessarily the best ones. So, even the Grey Large eartips are not sourced anymore, to the best of your knowledge? I ask this because the grey ones are still being sold on the Etymotic site, and even on Amazon (including Amazon México).

So if that's the case I better start buying more of those now that they are still available to have enough spare for my four etys iems for years and years to come

 

[AnyDave]

Thank you Dave.
The soft eartips are fine, but not necessarily the best ones. So, even the Grey Large eartips are not sourced anymore, to the best of your knowledge? I ask this because the grey ones are still being sold on the Etymotic site, and even on Amazon (including Amazon México).

So if that's the case I better start buying more of those now that they are still available to have enough spare for my four etys iems for years and years to come

Sure thing, happy to help.

Afaik, none of them can be sourced from the original vendor anymore, so if the grey eartips are still listed, it's because there is holdover stock. If you absolutely know you prefer those, it couldn't hurt to stock up a bit.

 

[Tonux]

Hello,

So I'm 100% noob when it comes to the technical side of thing. However I know that I love the sound of my ER4PT's in my Sony NWZ-A15 on the go and at home with on my stereo when converted to ER4S with the "ER38-24" P to S converter cable.

However, I've had these a just under a decade now and the cable on the ER4PT's is beginning to fail and the converter cable has almost completely failed.

I lack the technical know how to resolve this myself, so I have two question for the community if anyone could help.

1. I see Lunashops do a ton of cables for the ER4 series. But really am unsure of what a comparable replacement cable to the stock cable would be. Why are some cables listed as 100ohm? All I really want is a cable with a 3.5mm end that will give me near identical sound to what the stock cable had. Can someone recommend which of their cables would be best for my ER4PT's?
2. This might be more of a long shot, but I really can't find a replacement "ER38-24" P to S converter cable. Is there an aftermarket alternative to this? I've seen some posts on this thread about "impedance adapters" but not sure if that is what the converter cable is? Again if someone could recommend a suitable drop in replacement that would be great!

It's wasn't long after I bought my ER4PT's that the new range of ER4XR and ER4SR came out, and I may(?) have bought them back then if I knew about them. However I love my ER4PT's and want to keep them going for as long as I can and have a level of anxiety when it comes to trying alternative IEM's, just because I feel so accustom to the sound of my ER4PT's. Not to mention I couldn't really afford a new set of IEM's at this point in my life.

Thanks in advance for any help. Great to see that so many people still love the ER4's, and looking forward to being part of this community!

 

[AnyDave]

Hello,

So I'm 100% noob when it comes to the technical side of thing. However I know that I love the sound of my ER4PT's in my Sony NWZ-A15 on the go and at home with on my stereo when converted to ER4S with the "ER38-24" P to S converter cable.

However, I've had these a just under a decade now and the cable on the ER4PT's is beginning to fail and the converter cable has almost completely failed.

I lack the technical know how to resolve this myself, so I have two question for the community if anyone could help.

1. I see Lunashops do a ton of cables for the ER4 series. But really am unsure of what a comparable replacement cable to the stock cable would be. Why are some cables listed as 100ohm? All I really want is a cable with a 3.5mm end that will give me near identical sound to what the stock cable had. Can someone recommend which of their cables would be best for my ER4PT's?
2. This might be more of a long shot, but I really can't find a replacement "ER38-24" P to S converter cable. Is there an aftermarket alternative to this? I've seen some posts on this thread about "impedance adapters" but not sure if that is what the converter cable is? Again if someone could recommend a suitable drop in replacement that would be great!

It's wasn't long after I bought my ER4PT's that the new range of ER4XR and ER4SR came out, and I may(?) have bought them back then if I knew about them. However I love my ER4PT's and want to keep them going for as long as I can and have a level of anxiety when it comes to trying alternative IEM's, just because I feel so accustom to the sound of my ER4PT's. Not to mention I couldn't really afford a new set of IEM's at this point in my life.

Thanks in advance for any help. Great to see that so many people still love the ER4's, and looking forward to being part of this community!

The 100 ohm is effectively the ER4S cable (your P with the P-->S converter cable added).

If you get an aftermarket cable, just make sure there is SOME resistance in there as you don't want to run it with just the impedance of the driver. They should have a 23/24 ohm cable to replace the P you have.

As for the converter cable, those are still available: https://www.amazon.com/Etymotic-Research-ER38-24-Converter-Cable/dp/B006N43MEI

You can either snag one of those or make your own (or see if somebody else will solder one up for you).

 

[Tonux]

The 100 ohm is effectively the ER4S cable (your P with the P-->S converter cable added).

If you get an aftermarket cable, just make sure there is SOME resistance in there as you don't want to run it with just the impedance of the driver. They should have a 23/24 ohm cable to replace the P you have.

As for the converter cable, those are still available: https://www.amazon.com/Etymotic-Research-ER38-24-Converter-Cable/dp/B006N43MEI

You can either snag one of those or make your own (or see if somebody else will solder one up for you).

Hi AnyDave and thanks for the quick response!

So the closest I think I can find is this which is 22 ohm resistance, but appears to be "2.5mm TRRS Balanced Plug" but then says also they can do 3.5mm. I can contact them to confirm that but otherwise would you say this is appropriate?
https://www.lunashops.com/goods.php?id=5997

I have come across the ER38-24 on international websites but I've just double checked and they say they wont ship to the UK unfortunately.

I came across this 3.5mm male to female adjustable resistor cable also, would I be able to effectively set this to 78ohms so when the 22 ohm cable is plugged in that results in 100ohms for use on a stereo?
https://www.lunashops.com/goods.php?id=5475

Thanks again,