[JohnYang1997]

Any you guys able to compare 3XR and 2XR? I’ve tried 4XR, 4PT/S, 3XR, and 3SE, and the 3XR sounded noticeably more congested than all of them, because of the extra bass boost on top of the 4XR’s bass boost. From the measurements it seems the 2XR has a similar bass boost over the 4XR which makes me think that they’ll sound similarly congested like the 3XR.

I have ER2SE on the way which I’m looking forward to. Got on Amazon for $120 and if it’s anything like the 3SE but perhaps a bit more bodied, I’ll be pleased.

2xr should be better than 3xr. But it's still not great. Surely the bass can be more enjoyable, but less 4-7k energy plus increased bass will give a weird tonality. I think you'll like er2se.

 

[csglinux]

First of all, your measurements suggested much more difference that his measurements. Yours pretty much showed same difference below 7khz.

About resonance frequency and stuff. It's not that dynamic driver needs to be inserted shallow. No, mk5 benefits when inserted as deep as er4. Er2 will have a sharp peak at 13k when inserted deep but give no peak at all when inserted shallow(in the ear). I use tone generator to test this. This method is valid at 20-500hz and 7khz+. It should not be flat between 500 and 7k. In fact 10khz. But there shouldn't be peak at any frequency.
https://www.szynalski.com/tone-generator/

I'm still not quite following. Are you saying you think the 2se and 2xr models shouldn't be inserted the same way as the 4r models?

 

[JohnYang1997]

I'm still not quite following. Are you saying you think the 2se and 2xr models shouldn't be inserted the same way as the 4r models?

It's not that it shouldn't. But it is something to notice. If your er2 sounds great, there is nothing wrong.

 

[manthisis]

2xr should be better than 3xr. But it's still not great. Surely the bass can be more enjoyable, but less 4-7k energy plus increased bass will give a weird tonality. I think you'll like er2se.

Great. What I wanted from ER4S was a tad more bass but not as much as the 4XR offers, and without the bleed. I’ve heard the ER2SE is slightly slightly warmer than ER4S

 

[ClieOS]

The measurements is a bit different from mine. Mine definitely showed better low end extension and less 5-8k energy.
One thing to notice is that due to different driver structure, er2se requires to insert much shallower than er4. It may differ from different person. But the sound is best with just well isolated instead of inserting deep into the second bend. You can use tone generator to help find a smooth treble response.

I measured them the same way how I wear them, with the stock tri-flange that is meant for deep insertion as Etymotic has specifically suggested in its manual. But I did just try briefly with a pair of shallow fitting, single flange Spinfit - whatever change the Spingfit brings to ER2SE, I hear about the same for ER4SR as well. I didn't detect any ER2SE specific improvement. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, shallow eartips such as the SpinFit on Etymotic (*true for both ER2SE and ER4SR) just doesn't stay very well in my ears, namely due to the elongated earpiece sticking too far out of the ear canal and single flange eartips just don't have the same amount of holding power as tri-flanges. Maybe wearing them over-the-ear could help with the situation, but there is again no particular reason for me to want to use it that way. If Etymotic really wants people to wear the ER2SE shallowly, then they have engineered that wrong shape of housing on this one.

 

[JohnYang1997]

I measured them the same way how I wear them, with the stock tri-flange that is meant for deep insertion as Etymotic has specifically suggested in its manual. But I did just try briefly with a pair of shallow fitting, single flange Spinfit - whatever change the Spingfit brings to ER2SE, I hear about the same for ER4SR as well. I didn't detect any ER2SE specific improvement. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, shallow eartips such as the SpinFit on Etymotic (*true for both ER2SE and ER4SR) just doesn't stay very well in my ears, namely due to the elongated earpiece sticking too far out of the ear canal and single flange eartips just don't have the same amount of holding power as tri-flanges. Maybe wearing them over-the-ear could help with the situation, but there is again no particular reason for me to want to use it that way. If Etymotic really wants people to wear the ER2SE shallowly, then they have engineered that wrong shape of housing on this one.

I didn't mean not to use tri flange. But different insert depth with tri flange. If you can hear peak with er2 try different depth, if not then it's not a problem to begin with. I was just sharing some information.

 

[csglinux]

I'm of the same opinion as @ClieOS here. These are all designed for deep insertion and good isolation. I understand the comment about the 13 kHz peak. It is slightly more prominent the the 2XR. But foam tips help with that. I quite like Comply comfort foam, with the tips prepared (by squashing the ends down) before rolling.

 

[ClieOS]

I didn't mean not to use tri flange. But different insert depth with tri flange. If you can hear peak with er2 try different depth, if not then it's not a problem to begin with. I was just sharing some information.

The problem with your suggestion is that there is only really one insertion depth on tri-flanges for me.

 

[JohnYang1997]

The problem with your suggestion is that there is only really one insertion depth on tri-flanges for me.

ok

 

[manthisis]

I'm of the same opinion as @ClieOS here. These are all designed for deep insertion and good isolation. I understand the comment about the 13 kHz peak. It is slightly more prominent the the 2XR. But foam tips help with that. I quite like Comply comfort foam, with the tips prepared (by squashing the ends down) before rolling.

The isolation on the ER2 any worse than the other models? Unsure if the ER2 is vented as a result of its DD design

 

[AudioNoob]

e4000 has twice if not more bass than er2se. The treble is much smoother on er2. Shallow insertion of e4000 introduces 7khz peak in coupling to the ear canal. And I prefer e3000 over e4000. But er2se is the best.

The e3000 is bass overload, the e2000 is much more neutral, I thought e4000 was supposed to be more like the e2000 and so perhaps not bass crazy. Anyhow, looks like I should take a look at the er2. Only if etymotic would release the mic cable for the ers now that there are 6 of them that share a cable.

 

[csglinux]

The isolation on the ER2 any worse than the other models? Unsure if the ER2 is vented as a result of its DD design

I was worried about that too, but it seems any venting is internal (across the driver, in certain models). None of these IEMs vent to the exterior. All have the same (excellent!) isolation.

 

[panasonicst60]

Does anyone have measurements of the Er3se? Wondering how it compares to the er2se.

 

[betula]

Any you guys able to compare 3XR and 2XR? I’ve tried 4XR, 4PT/S, 3XR, and 3SE, and the 3XR sounded noticeably more congested than all of them, because of the extra bass boost on top of the 4XR’s bass boost. From the measurements it seems the 2XR has a similar bass boost over the 4XR which makes me think that they’ll sound similarly congested like the 3XR.

I have ER2SE on the way which I’m looking forward to. Got on Amazon for $120 and if it’s anything like the 3SE but perhaps a bit more bodied, I’ll be pleased.

Regarding the 3XR it is pretty source dependent. Also can't emphasise enough the proper tip/insertion/isolation with Ety IEMs.
I could't really enjoy the 3XR out of a Cowon P2 but from Chord Mojo with 20ohm resistor it is another story.

 

[wquiles]

OK, my er2xr arrived today. Now I "finally" have all of them to compare.

Hands down, to me, the ER4XR are the best. Overall the best balance of highs and lows, on all of the songs I like.

The ER2SE are really good, but lack a little of the low-end impact of the ER4XR. I can see how these would be "reference" as they are "even".

The ER2XR is like the ER2SE, but with a low-end that to me exceeds the ER4XR. It is "almost" a little bit too much low-end. The low-end is strongest in the ER2XR - definitely not as "even" as the other two: almost as if somebody used an equalizer to increase the low end.

From comparing all 3x back to back on the key music tracks that I like the most, the ER4XR is "perfect" for me. Really even across low/mid/hights, but with a "decent" low end that does not leave me wanting for more. But I wanted a second pair, and I love the Etymotic sound, so I am keeping the ER2XR and selling the ER2SE (sold already).

Will