[Francisk]

From my own experience, tips pairing is very crucial for the TG334. The large Ortofon and Spiral Dots are the best tips pairing with the TG334 for me. Insertion depth does influence the overall sound signature too.

 

[Max Choiral]

  most of the things you describe are direct consequences of the signature differences I mentioned. I fail to see how sound signature could have nothing to do with it.

 

It's pretty simple. once you have start to compare similar sg and vice versa

 

[gnarlsagan]

Quote:

  You've got quite a price range there, but at the higher price range there is the JH13 Freqphase. I've had an opportunity to listen to it and it definitely improves on the ER4S without taking away from the clarity. Of course, with any new audio equipment, you're going to need to give it a week or so of listening before you become accustomed to the new sound signature, but I think that having gotten used to something with better bass extension and presence but which is still considered neutral, you'll find the ER4S are lacking in that department. I've also heard good things about the Noble 4, but I haven't heard them myself.
 
I've owned and tried a number of Shure IEMs and I must say I'm really not a fan of their midrange emphasis. I think out of the 3 big frequency ranges, mids are the worst thing to emphasize. The other UE IEMs you mentioned definitely lean away from neutral, especially as the market has advanced. I'd also recommend the UE Reference Monitor, which I've also heard and was very neutral, although the JH13 Freqphase sounded better to me.

 
Quote:

Thank you for your recommendations, I checked the JH13 and JH16 and although they cost as much as my liver, the reviews look promising. However I don't want to go into the CIEM route just yet (partly because of price and I would want to be able to resell it if I don't like the sound signature), is there a universal IEM alternative?

After owning and using Etymotics nearly everyday for 4 years, I recently dug up tested my partially-broken SE420 and noticed how the mids were bloated over other frequencies. But I do miss how the Shures are forward sounding, making it sound lively and adding smoothness on top of the emphasized mids. My ER4 by comparison is quite laid back which sometimes causes my music to not sound rich or musical. 
 

 
Just to offer a counter opinion, I really don't find the JH13 to be an upgrade from the ER4S. They are much warmer from the lower midrange to the bass, and have a dip in the mids. A fine sound signature for some, but really not comparable to the ER4S imo. The UERM is like a tamed down JH13 to my ears, sounding much closer to the ER4S, while not ending up too bloated or recessed in the mids. Treble has a bit more emphasis on the universal version, but is tamed with the deep fit of the custom. 
 
I found the Aurisonics Rockets to also offer a somewhat similar sound signature to the ER4S with a warmer tilt and a wider sound stage. Treble extension varies for different users. Mine is superb, but other hear it as less emphasized. Definitely worth checking out.

 

[robm321]

I agree with all of that except I never heard the Rockets.

 

[HiFiChris]

@gnarlsagan

I agree with much you said about UERM/ER-4S - owning and listening to both for ~ a year now (sidenote: why didn't I discover the ER-4S earlier?!), I can say that I like both, but the inexpensive ER-4S is the one I like even more - it really frightens me how well this old single-BA IEM is still so good nowadays and probably the best single-driver BA earphone (technical level, neutrality is excellent anyway) ever made.

 
The UERM is great, that is unquestionable (I have wide and quite straight ear canals and got a good and deep fit with the UERM universal demo, so the CIEM version I have now doesn't really differ, but ymmv) - but it isn't dead-flat neutral, at least not with my HRTF. What I can hear is a slight warmth in the ground-tone area (because there is a little more quantity than in the bass and mids), hot upper treble (the famous UE-peak) and a moderately recessed upper lower/middle treble - more like a slight consumer-oriented perceived neutrality instead of diffuse-field compensated neutrality. Speed, resolution and soundstage (instrument separation) are things the UERM clearly does better than the Ety (although it is remarkable what they got out of a single BA driver), especially noticeable with fast and complex music. But in comparison, it sounds a tad relaxed (due to the slightly elevated ground-tone and recessed presence area/middle highs).

Moving on to the ER-4S, it matches my HRTF much better. Its treble is clearly more even, hence it sounds more natural and realistic. Speed (subjectively, the ER-4S sounds bassier to due to its slower bass decay, but the quantity is more or les objectively the same as on the UERM), resolution and soundstage are not as good/precise as the UERM's, but all in all, I have to admit that I like the ER-4S better. It is not technically superior to the UERM (except for the more even treble), but its sound signature is more neutral to my ears.

Just an insight of my perception of both IEMs.

 

[tracyrick]

Have had my ER-4S for many many years. Transparency remains amazing on these and still a great earphone in my collection. Have had to return for cable replacement 3x's or so. I bend the cable quite a bit trying to wrap around my ears and mitigate the microphonics. Just got them serviced again for a small fee, relative to the total cost. I also somehow had some cracked transducers this time. Customer Service remains outstanding and took care of me. My kudos to Moe at Etymotic for making the process so easy. Long live the ER-4!

 

[astro]

  Have had my ER-4S for many many years. Transparency remains amazing on these and still a great earphone in my collection. Have had to return for cable replacement 3x's or so. I bend the cable quite a bit trying to wrap around my ears and mitigate the microphonics. Just got them serviced again for a small fee, relative to the total cost. I also somehow had some cracked transducers this time. Customer Service remains outstanding and took care of me. My kudos to Moe at Etymotic for making the process so easy. Long live the ER-4!

It costs me $50+shipping everytime I need to get the cable replaced. It breaks about once or twice a year for me. I ended up getting the right angle adapters from AWAN on ebay and a shure cable. I think the 90 degree angle is much more durable when I'm laying on the side and wearing it wrapped around my ear. A replacement shure cable only costs $20 on ebay, so if it breaks, it's a lot cheaper to replace. 

 

[nk126]

It costs me $50+shipping everytime I need to get the cable replaced. It breaks about once or twice a year for me. I ended up getting the right angle adapters from AWAN on ebay and a shure cable. I think the 90 degree angle is much more durable when I'm laying on the side and wearing it wrapped around my ear. A replacement shure cable only costs $20 on ebay, so if it breaks, it's a lot cheaper to replace. 

Which cable? Any loss in sq? I got the same adapters and then bought a cable from lunashops but there's definite sound degradation vs the stock cables.

 

[Smugsie]

Which cable? Any loss in sq? I got the same adapters and then bought a cable from lunashops but there's definite sound degradation vs the stock cables.

Darn... What kind of sq loss are we talking about? I replaced the cable of the ER4S at 2 times now and I'm getting fed up with an annual $50 maintenance on the cables of these IEM's.

 

[Jupiterknight]

Which cable? Any loss in sq? I got the same adapters and then bought a cable from lunashops but there's definite sound degradation vs the stock cables.

 
I'm using this cable, link. Shure cable with AWAN adapters. I didn't notice any degradation vs. stock Ety cable and a much better fit when routed around ear. The AWAN Shure adapter functionally works and performs at least similar to original Ety cable combined with an original Shure cable.  In my experience only, so not a universal statement and overall it works for me.  
 
http://www.ebay.com/itm/291490318166?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

 

[Happytalk]

Merge shure cable thickened things up a little too much for my tastes. Seemed weird and no longer as accurate. Still serviceable sound quality. Maybe not for the price of the adapters and cable. I would recommend getting a beater pair of iems instead of spending the money.

 

[astro]

Which cable? Any loss in sq? I got the same adapters and then bought a cable from lunashops but there's definite sound degradation vs the stock cables.

I'm using these cables.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-2M-Silver-Plated-Upgrade-Cable-Replacement-for-Shure-SE535-SE425-315-215-UE900-/171979530743?hash=item280ac761f7
 
I also bought some $60 6N OCC cables. It sounded the same to my ears. *shrugs*
http://www.ebay.com/itm/6N-OCC-Hybrid-Copper-and-Silver-Plated-Cable-for-Shure-215-315-425-535-and-UE900-/221925530576?hash=item33abcadbd0:g:ZsAAAMXQAx9RLy7U

There was a double blind test done with cables and very few people could tell the difference between an expensive silver cable and a cheap radioshack one.
http://www.head-fi.org/t/486598/testing-audiophile-claims-and-myths

 

[nk126]

Nice. Thank you!

I tend to be cynical about fancy cables, myself. But these lunas for sure don't sound good. Either that or the adapters, but the adapters have garnered many good reviews around here.

And funny re: the blind test stuff. I tried a few dac/amps and decided they weren't worth it. Then I got a pair of B&O H6 over ears that for sure sound like they'd like a little more power than my phone/laptop provide. So now I'm back down the rabbit hole researching, but very much want to try some low cost (maybe Chinese) solutions before paying for a brand name.

I'm using these cables.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-2M-Silver-Plated-Upgrade-Cable-Replacement-for-Shure-SE535-SE425-315-215-UE900-/171979530743?hash=item280ac761f7

I also bought some $60 6N OCC cables. It sounded the same to my ears. *shrugs*
http://www.ebay.com/itm/6N-OCC-Hybrid-Copper-and-Silver-Plated-Cable-for-Shure-215-315-425-535-and-UE900-/221925530576?hash=item33abcadbd0:g:ZsAAAMXQAx9RLy7U


There was a double blind test done with cables and very few people could tell the difference between an expensive silver cable and a cheap radioshack one.
http://www.head-fi.org/t/486598/testing-audiophile-claims-and-myths

 

[uchihaitachi]

Nice. Thank you!

I tend to be cynical about fancy cables, myself. But these lunas for sure don't sound good. Either that or the adapters, but the adapters have garnered many good reviews around here.

And funny re: the blind test stuff. I tried a few dac/amps and decided they weren't worth it. Then I got a pair of B&O H6 over ears that for sure sound like they'd like a little more power than my phone/laptop provide. So now I'm back down the rabbit hole researching, but very much want to try some low cost (maybe Chinese) solutions before paying for a brand name.

Go to the sound science section of this forum (for recommendations) if you don't want to waste money.

 

[nk126]

Oh boy. Rabbit hole.

Thanks!

Go to the sound science section of this forum (for recommendations) if you don't want to waste money.