[lnteractive]

Was wondering if anybody could help in referring a decent IEM for on-bus use, in uni use, just daily frequent usage. I commute to uni a lot and always listen to music while waiting for my next lecture to come by, however i'm a little sensitive as I have to ensure that it's good audio i'm listening to.

Willing to invest in the mid-high range(300-500), not too high range like 1K+ for an item though.

A little brief overview of what i'm looking for:
I really liked the hd650 senheiser amped which is my PC setup atm, i even gave up my t90s as i prefer the bass on hd650 as it's a lot "boomier and bassier" which is what i realise I liked, something with bass and boom and not too bright that it hurts my head after long usage. I was wondering if there's any IEM that can offer me this without distortion (Hd650 has boom and bass and treble and doesn't distort easily at high volume). Some form of clarity is good too =).

Would like a few recommendation so I can go look them in the store to listen to (A playlist to ensure full testing would be great too)

Thank you very much to whoever that takes the time and effort to replying.


Note: Currently using DUNU-DN1000 with comfort tips (comply), just too heavy that it keeps dropping out when I'm walking and hurts my ear after a while since the cans are solid and heavy. The bass isn't that boomy either.

 

[billybob_jcv]

I have not tried them, but you might want to look into the Sennheiser IE80.

 

[lnteractive]

I've read about the IE80, looks like its designed for bass heads like myself.
 
Anybody on the comfort or something else just to give me some variety?

 

[cadamwil]

You might look at Custom IEMs for that price range.  I have a pair of JH Audio's JH11, I really like them.  You can get a set of JH5s for that price.  You will need a molding of your ears, but those can be obtained for $50.  Just an idea.
 
I really like mine for sound isolation and nice clean sound.  But still not near as good as a nice set of Circum-aural Open headphones.
 
Adam

 

[ProtegeManiac]

A little brief overview of what i'm looking for:
I really liked the hd650 senheiser amped which is my PC setup atm, i even gave up my t90s as i prefer the bass on hd650 as it's a lot "boomier and bassier" which is what i realise I liked, something with bass and boom and not too bright that it hurts my head after long usage. I was wondering if there's any IEM that can offer me this without distortion (Hd650 has boom and bass and treble and doesn't distort easily at high volume). Some form of clarity is good too =).

 

Look at the response graphs of the IE8 and HD650 here, vs the T90. The Sennheisers nearly parallel each other in the treble and midrange, and the IE8 just has a wide bass boost (easier to "fix" that with a wideband parametric EQ setting then fessing around with peaks and dips in the midrange and treble that are too close to each other). IE80 shouldn't be far off from the IE8 (not sure why Headroom's database doesn't have it).
 
 

 

[kapanak]

I'd get the Sennheiser IE80, and adjust the bass only after a couple of hundred hours of listening, to match your tastes. It's an excellent IEM and the build quality is also impeccable.
 
As an alternative that I use myself, the Shure SE535 are liquid gold of sound in the ears for portable use. Neither will need an amp, but can benefit from a portable DAC/Amp (just to get more silent black backgrounds and no distortions).

 

[servicenow]

  I'd get the Sennheiser IE80, and adjust the bass only after a couple of hundred hours of listening, to match your tastes. It's an excellent IEM and the build quality is also impeccable.
 
As an alternative that I use myself, the Shure SE535 are liquid gold of sound in the ears for portable use. Neither will need an amp, but can benefit from a portable DAC/Amp (just to get more silent black backgrounds and no distortions).

Fiio 6 works well with IE80 and SE535

 

[TK277]

If you like bass the IE80 would work for you... the Westone 4 (W40 these days?) may also be a good match; they aren't bassy out of the box, but with foam/comply tips they start to emphasize bass (foam tips included with W40). Throw in a BTG-Audio cable and the bass will receive another bump.

 

[lnteractive]

Thank you so very much for all the response.

 

  You might look at Custom IEMs for that price range.  I have a pair of JH Audio's JH11, I really like them.  You can get a set of JH5s for that price.  You will need a molding of your ears, but those can be obtained for $50.  Just an idea.
 
I really like mine for sound isolation and nice clean sound.  But still not near as good as a nice set of Circum-aural Open headphones.
 
Adam

Thank you Adam! Unfortunately I don't think I'm experienced enough or have access to a custom IEM as I wouldn't know how to personally pick parts to build what I need.

In the general consensus looks like everybody is leaning towards the IE80 and SE535 and a mention of Westone 4, all available at the audio place which I'm going to tomorrow! I usually plug and play with my ipad/iphone4(mostly iPhone 4) and i do have a fiio17k however I don't really like to carry it around (since it's currently paired with my e09 desktop amp at home) as i am afraid of damaging it/losing it and it's quite bulky for constant travel (in between lecture halls).

Thank you very very much for all the input.

So if I purchase any of these mentioned IEM would you guys recommend to just immediately pick up some comply foam tips too? And if so which would be a good choice? I like noise isolation so it doesn't distort my sound but if any bonus gives to that it'd be good too, obviously comfort+fit is a must.

 

 

[kapanak]

  Thank you so very much for all the response.

 

Thank you Adam! Unfortunately I don't think I'm experienced enough or have access to a custom IEM as I wouldn't know how to personally pick parts to build what I need.

In the general consensus looks like everybody is leaning towards the IE80 and SE535 and a mention of Westone 4, all available at the audio place which I'm going to tomorrow! I usually plug and play with my ipad/iphone4(mostly iPhone 4) and i do have a fiio17k however I don't really like to carry it around (since it's currently paired with my e09 desktop amp at home) as i am afraid of damaging it/losing it and it's quite bulky for constant travel (in between lecture halls).

Thank you very very much for all the input.

So if I purchase any of these mentioned IEM would you guys recommend to just immediately pick up some comply foam tips too? And if so which would be a good choice? I like noise isolation so it doesn't distort my sound but if any bonus gives to that it'd be good too, obviously comfort+fit is a must.

 

I like the Shure tips and the Sennheiser tips. The Comply foam tips are not an immediate recommendation, but only needed if you are experiencing comfort issues, otherwise not a huge benefit (and in case of the SE535 for me, a slight decrease in the sound quality).

 

[Matte82]

Fwiw custom doesn't mean build it yourself. It simply means you go to an audiologist and have a molding of your ears made. Then they send that to the iem maker and they build them to personally fit you.

 

[cadamwil]

Fwiw custom doesn't mean build it yourself. It simply means you go to an audiologist and have a molding of your ears made. Then they send that to the iem maker and they build them to personally fit you.

Yeah, it takes a few weeks but they are great and if they don't fit perfectly, they will fix them. You can watch videos online of how they make them. I can't remeber who does the videos, JH Audio, Ultimate Ears or Westone.

 

[jay567]

So many classic suggestions which makes sense 3~4 years ago... But then again I gotta admit OP may love SE535/SE530/W4 going by the description. BA200, RE600, CKR10, DUNUs are my alternative suggestions. IF using android phone and won't mind EQing, FX850 has SQ rivaling/bettering the HD650 IMO.

 

[Kalavere]

Noble Audio do CIEMs starting at £300.