[Toesnip13]

Let's agree to disagree...I still have to hear yet an IEM that come close to my Fostex in any area...the ER3SE is a joke in comparison...but different persons have different hearing, different tastes and at the end nobody knows how the recording is supposed to sound like...unless you made it...
Also I have been here since 2002 and that is the first time I heard such allegations as facts and so general about the dynamic headphones, it seems that choose the wrong thread to ask for opinions and solutions on actual real flaws of IEM's, and I hit a nerve it seems...Sorry I was looking for answers of how to improve the highs of them, but it seems to be a dead horse, trying a couple of adapters right now, same thing, but less efficiency...if I used them like that I need an amp, what I was trying to avoid in the first place, and I have one, but hate to carry around more stuff while traveling....

But surely it also depends on what you’re actually listening out for. The Fostex TH-X00 (tried mahogany one) dip at 4k was very noticeable. Almost sounded like a standard V-tuned IEM to me to be honest. Great bass no doubt but I got an equally engaging sound from my IMR Aten (5th gen) IEM.

With regards to how a recording should sound, I mean when reviewing any friend’s we always tend to agree on what sounds like what exactly, and what requires which changes. Two of them produce on an HD800 and the third on an Audeze something something worth £2k

The gear I use is just an ER4SR through an Astell & Kern SR25.

Get the ER4 bud, I’m sure it’ll resolve better than the ER3.
The treble on the 4 is delicious.

 

[Sovkiller]

But surely it also depends on what you’re actually listening out for. The Fostex TH-X00 (tried mahogany one) dip at 4k was very noticeable. Almost sounded like a standard V-tuned IEM to me to be honest. Great bass no doubt but I got an equally engaging sound from my IMR Aten (5th gen) IEM.

With regards to how a recording should sound, I mean when reviewing any friend’s we always tend to agree on what sounds like what exactly, and what requires which changes. Two of them produce on an HD800 and the third on an Audeze something something worth £2k

The gear I use is just an ER4SR through an Astell & Kern SR25.

Get the ER4 bud, I’m sure it’ll resolve better than the ER3.
The treble on the 4 is delicious.

One thing I had learn along this travel in time and sound, in all these years is that there is no such a thing as one size fits all. I do not care a little bit if the headphone is flat or not, if I like the sound, I like it, if not, I pass....and so far it seems that I have known a few people that use to agree with me as well...there is no way I will spend 200 plus on an Ety's after listening the er3's, and seeing the peak and valleys of that curve, of almost 20 dbs in some areas, to me what is missing will be considered offensive if they do it for many of the followers of them, again many flavors to choose from, I do not like open back, never liked the Senn or Grado sound, Beyers are a hit or miss, loved the R-10 but imposible to find or repair later on, so I settled with the Fostex's, cheaper than the Denon's, couple of dampening modes, no big deal, and I love the three of them, the closest sound of what I liked, and I already had Edition 9 from Ultrasone that I really liked, but too uncomfortable for extended use...but I can't carry those on a travel...

 

[Toesnip13]

One thing I had learn along this travel in time and sound, in all these years is that there is no such a thing as one size fits all. I do not care a little bit if the headphone is flat or not, if I like the sound, I like it, if not, I pass....and so far it seems that I have known a few people that use to agree with me as well...there is no way I will spend 200 plus on an Ety's after listening the er3's, and seeing the peak and valleys of that curve, of almost 20 dbs in some areas, to me what is missing will be considered offensive if they do it for many of the followers of them, again many flavors to choose from, I do not like open back, never liked the Senn or Grado sound, Beyers are a hit or miss, loved the R-10 but imposible to find or repair later on, so I settled with the Fostex's, cheaper than the Denon's, couple of dampening modes, no big deal, and I love the three of them, the closest sound of what I liked, and I already had Edition 9 from Ultrasone that I really liked, but too uncomfortable for extended use...but I can't carry those on a travel...

From the sounds of your taste preference, the perfect IEM for you would actually be from IMR Acoustics. Super engaging and addictive sound. I highly recommend getting the Elysium (planar + DD + bone conduction) or the Astra (electrostatic + DD + bone conduction) if you can drive an electrostatic.

I have a 30% discount with IMR since I used to be a member if you ever fancy trying them out. The only other IEMs with that sound (and cost a ton) is probably Shure SE846 but I think its treble is lacking. CA Andromeda is amazing but so expensive
What did actually surprise me is when I tried my SoundMagic E11 with triflange tips. £50 for a sound that I could’ve sworn is worth upper 3 figures.

Suppose other routes are the ton of ChiFi stuff. Some friends are also raving about the Final Audio B3

 

[chinmie]

My very personal opinion, and I still own, and need IEM for isolation and traveling purposes, and office use, is that none of the ones I have tried, and even I tried one prototype multidriver in one of the Head-Fi meetings a long time ago, that at the time costed over a thousand dollars, and people blamed the seal, this and that, I blamed the monitors...none of them, are in the same remote ballpark of sound, of high-end full-size close back cans...I know the hearing may differ, and people may not even consider to use full-size cans because they use them for commute, traveling, jogging, gym, etc....but there is no way on earth that I will use IEM's home sitting listening music, I got those Ety's really cheap, otherwise I would have never jump on them, (and one of my other IEM die, that BTW is the repair process now, the cable was the issue)...the sound is not even comparable....I had custom-made IEMs once, Sleek, Klipschs, Ety's now, and have tried many others with armatures, and I always found the same issue, roll offs on the highs and no realistic performance on the top high end, for acoustic music they are good though...maybe is because of the fact the outer ear is not used to shape the sound waves, but it is not a problem with seal or anything like that, that is for sure....I love my Fostex's, and even others I have previously owned, and the details are simply amazing, I do not know how to explain with words, but something is missing on the IEM....

this is a rather subjective hobby after all, so personal opinions are definitely fine in my book, because in the end everyone have their own preferred sound and usage situations.

i personally have only 3 headphones at the moment (well, 2, because my son hijacked 1 of them ). I only use them for recording/mixing though, because when listening to music i usually prefer laying down in bed or sofa, so headphones are not too comfortable for that scenario..that's why i prefer earphones (IEMs, earbuds).

On the IEM side, if you like treble extension, have you by any chance tried the old Sony EX1000? that one has a great treble extension and also has soundstage feel that is somewhat similar/closer to headphones. I myself have the Sony M9 as that one has better tuning and fit for my taste.

also if you like headphones but wanted a smaller form-factor, i would suggest trying the earbuds route, as they have a closer feel in sound presentation to full headphones (compared to IEMs). And they are not more expensive than IEMs: even some of the sub 20 usd ones can surprise you

 

[Sovkiller]

this is a rather subjective hobby after all, so personal opinions are definitely fine in my book, because in the end everyone have their own preferred sound and usage situations.

i personally have only 3 headphones at the moment (well, 2, because my son hijacked 1 of them ). I only use them for recording/mixing though, because when listening to music i usually prefer laying down in bed or sofa, so headphones are not too comfortable for that scenario..that's why i prefer earphones (IEMs, earbuds).

On the IEM side, if you like treble extension, have you by any chance tried the old Sony EX1000? that one has a great treble extension and also has soundstage feel that is somewhat similar/closer to headphones. I myself have the Sony M9 as that one has better tuning and fit for my taste.

also if you like headphones but wanted a smaller form-factor, i would suggest trying the earbuds route, as they have a closer feel in sound presentation to full headphones (compared to IEMs). And they are not more expensive than IEMs: even some of the sub 20 usd ones can surprise you

The earbud do not fit my anatomy very well I have a fitting issue with them that is why I got into iem that go deeper into the ear channel, I never expected anything serious out of them till I got my hands on the Klipsch...with the same issue for me on the highs...I always wanted to try the etys so I consulted them for advise...the person whom I chat with there assured me than the difference between the 3 and the 4 were only impedance and sensitivity but the sound was almost the same...for what I paid for them is OK, but the 4 are almost 3 times as much...no way...just to gamble...also I had to use the klipsch tips as theirs are uncomfortable for me...let me see if the Sonys may be a fit...

 

[AryaTwirl]

Hi guys. So, I got into super curious mode, but before I regret my decision, do you think EVO is good for me who likes the upmost neutrality on a pair of earphones? Heard many opinions regarding that, but most think that it is similar to ER4XR (heck even ER2XR). Currently has ER4B, couldn't get any brighter than that. So, what do you think guys?

 

[Toesnip13]

Hi guys. So, I got into super curious mode, but before I regret my decision, do you think EVO is good for me who likes the upmost neutrality on a pair of earphones? Heard many opinions regarding that, but most think that it is similar to ER4XR (heck even ER2XR). Currently has ER4B, couldn't get any brighter than that. So, what do you think guys?

Have a read of this

https://headfonics.com/etymotic-evo-review/

It highly agrees with my findings of the EVO. Also this reviewer loves the ER2B.

You are right, the bass is like the ER2XR but is more detailed. Has the impact of it though.

Have to say though somehow I found the treble to not match what the 4SR can do

 

[AryaTwirl]

Have a read of this

https://headfonics.com/etymotic-evo-review/

It highly agrees with my findings of the EVO. Also this reviewer loves the ER2B.

You are right, the bass is like the ER2XR but is more detailed. Has the impact of it though.

Have to say though somehow I found the treble to not match what the 4SR can do

will read it now. Thank you very much for the reference! i guess i'll get a bit less super curious after this

 

[boost3d]

Any ideas why the ER2XR limited edition is cheaper than the "regular" ER2XR on Amazon ($77 vs $99)? The only difference appears to be that the Limited Edition includes an iPhone adapter and dual flange tips (which are now included in the "regular" packaging). Weird.

 

[MrSpreadsheet]

Hi. Any news on filters in Europe? I am in Lithuania and the only place that I can find them in Europe doesn't even ship them here (and they only have the red ones). I really love my ER2XR and have resorted to using these metal filters from China that just about fit, but I'm worried I'll damage my driver.

 

[Toesnip13]

Hi. Any news on filters in Europe? I am in Lithuania and the only place that I can find them in Europe doesn't even ship them here (and they only have the red ones). I really love my ER2XR and have resorted to using these metal filters from China that just about fit, but I'm worried I'll damage my driver.

No idea but I’ll say what I said to AryaTwirl. I’m in the UK and have no problems whatsoever sending over something as small as filters or tips or whatever
Just let me know and we’ll sort it out.
And greetings to Lithuania from someone who grew up in Latvia. Used to love my trips to Lithuania with my mum each year

 

[MrSpreadsheet]

No idea but I’ll say what I said to AryaTwirl. I’m in the UK and have no problems whatsoever sending over something as small as filters or tips or whatever
Just let me know and we’ll sort it out.
And greetings to Lithuania from someone who grew up in Latvia. Used to love my trips to Lithuania with my mum each year

Greetings back from someone who spent 3 years studying in the UK. Arranging shipping from UK is not difficult for me, but I'd like to order green filters and they are not available in Europe or UK at all as far as I can tell. Given that it's relatively easy to get Etymotic headphones in Europe and UK there should definitely be a better availability of the filters too.

 

[Toesnip13]

Greetings back from someone who spent 3 years studying in the UK. Arranging shipping from UK is not difficult for me, but I'd like to order green filters and they are not available in Europe or UK at all as far as I can tell. Given that it's relatively easy to get Etymotic headphones in Europe and UK there should definitely be a better availability of the filters too.

Hehe, hello back

Oh well in that case amazon still have them for UK shipping

Etymotic ER38-46 Filter Changing Tool with Filters for ER-4/HF Series - Green https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B009OWPDP2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_EKR5EW20781TCQA8AK3J

 

[MrSpreadsheet]

Hehe, hello back

Oh well in that case amazon still have them for UK shipping

Etymotic ER38-46 Filter Changing Tool with Filters for ER-4/HF Series - Green https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B009OWPDP2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_EKR5EW20781TCQA8AK3J

Yeah, but it's quite a bit more pricey with the changing tool than just filters alone and I already have one. With every-day use I need to change filters quite frequently and this would get very uneconomical very fast. Hopefully someone from Etymotic can look into this and arrange some supplies in Europe.

 

[Toesnip13]

OMGOMGOMG!!
Just discovered something quite remarkable! If anybody here has MacOS then please download Boom 2. It's this cool equaliser (think it costs a bit but may have a trial available). Basically what it does is once you install and open it for the first time, it creates a custom equaliser setting for your system (including headphones). So long story short, using my ER4SR in the macbook air with the sound coming through Boom 2 with the automatically made equaliser ON has unleashed something pretty damn insane. I'm talking V-tuning engaging sound with the flat response resolution haha. Honestly, you'd have to just trust me out and try this. I think for XR models the bass may bloat a bit much (only a guess) but you may be into a larger bass response than I am.

Also, if you enable Boom Volume then it will allow you to further increase the volume but this isn't why I enable it sometimes, but because even a touch of Boom Volume increasing the soundstage dramatically. You can also use only Boom Volume and switch off the equaliser if you want pure sound but with a wider soundstage (so much air <3)

This setup isn't the most portable I'll admit but since I work on my laptop a lot it's a dream come true! No more DAC or DAP required! This is a mid-2013 Macbook Air and it clearly has a high quality DAC built-in. I'll never forgive Apple for ditching the headphone jack on phones but goddam can they make a laptop! Anyways, give this a go if you can. Can't wait to hear your opinions