[cck5]

well to each his own

 

[Young Spade]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cck5 /img/forum/go_quote.gif well to each his own

I agree with you in the general sense, but IMO this might only apply if you're amping a headphone jack. If you're amping something like the Fuze or... a Cowon player, then yea I think you're just amping the same sound.

But if you're using a "line out" (not true line out mind you) from an iPod or the Line Out dock on the s:flo/T51 (which is a real line out), you're gonna get an increase in sound quality when you amp (which is necessary).

 

[Alec E]

I'm finding that they require a lot of volume, but I've found that about every IEM I've tried except the Westone 3. I listen to portables at volumes that invariably lead people to warn me that my player must be defective, or that I must have a deafness wish. I'm using a new iPod Classic, by the way, but I also took close to maximum volume with a Cowon S9 and a Vision:M.

There's nothing pale or thin about the sound that makes me think, "Needs an amp."

I'm pretty underwhelmed by them. Took me quite a while to find the right tips for a sound that made me want to keep listening at all. I've settled on the smaller of the gel tips. Maybe they need burn-in. We'll see. I've give them through the weekend to impress me, or it's on to the e-Q7.

They remind me of a car stereo at the moment, for what it's worth. Not particularly a compliment coming from me. I can't match up what I'm hearing with any of the descriptions I've read of them on Head-Fi, but they certainly match my own stereotype of dynamic driver sound pretty well.

I don't think they look at all bad. There's nothing very notable about the appearance at all, in fact. Except for the cases. The cases are beyond hideous (think V-Moda packaging), and useless too since they aren't crush-proof in the slightest.

I would take a picture, but I shaved my head yesterday and I think I look like an android.

 

[cck5]

just take pic of your ear only.

 

[tjumper78]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mochan /img/forum/go_quote.gif One rule of thumb to keep in mind is that IEMs don't require amping. Period. Amps can help but generally I have yet to listen to an IEM that really benefitted (as in had a night and day diff) from listening from an amp compared to from a DAP. As long as your mp3 player is good then the IEMs will be golden. Amping not needed.

dont be so sure about that.
my im716 definitely need amplification. without amp'ing, they sound very thin and i can tell that something is missing. when amp'ed, they sparkle and amaze.
the same with etymotic er4-s. i'm sure there are a lot more iem's that require amp'ing.

 

[cck5]

ill get a nice amp next, i just wanted to have the choice between Iem and full sized first =)

 

[david1978jp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alec E /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm pretty underwhelmed by them. Took me quite a while to find the right tips for a sound that made me want to keep listening at all. I've settled on the smaller of the gel tips. Maybe they need burn-in. We'll see. I've give them through the weekend to impress me, or it's on to the e-Q7. They remind me of a car stereo at the moment, for what it's worth. Not particularly a compliment coming from me. I can't match up what I'm hearing with any of the descriptions I've read of them on Head-Fi, but they certainly match my own stereotype of dynamic driver sound pretty well. I don't think they look at all bad. There's nothing very notable about the appearance at all, in fact. Except for the cases. The cases are beyond hideous (think V-Moda packaging), and useless too since they aren't crush-proof in the slightest. I would take a picture, but I shaved my head yesterday and I think I look like an android.

It sounds like a car stereo? That's not a good news. Can you tell earphones which impress you? I'd like to try them.

 

[rawrster]

it's a bit unfair to judge an iem that you just got in the mail don't you think?

 

[Alec E]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rawrster /img/forum/go_quote.gif it's a bit unfair to judge an iem that you just got in the mail don't you think?

Unfair? Since I said I'd just gotten them, I don't see the problem. People can weight the opinion accordingly.

I'll PM you a picture of them, cck5.

 

[Bennyboy71]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alec E /img/forum/go_quote.gif Unfair? Since I said I'd just gotten them, I don't see the problem. People can weight the opinion accordingly. I'll PM you a picture of them, cck5.

I agree. Is there any scientific proof that iems require burn in? If a manufacturer can't make them sound good straight from the box, well thats pretty crap if you ask me....

 

[Alec E]

I don't pretend to have anything terribly enlightening to say about them yet, and I may well never. I can certainly say though that no one in their right mind could want more bass, and that they have a much, much warmer sound signature than I've personally preferred in the past. But I've found a couple of albums with which they work well, and I'm going to try to be patient with them.

Oh, and someone asked which earphones I've liked in the past. The TF10 has been my favorite and now I like the PFE, although I recognize its limitations. I remember liking the V-Moda Vibe quite a bit, but that was a while ago. I've detested the Atrio, the Q-JAYS, the Westone 3, and I had a brief and unmemorable encounter with the Hippo VB. I thought some generation or other of the Creative Aurvana, a never-discussed phone, had remarkable highs, but otherwise sucked. So there you go.

 

[cck5]

thanks for the picture man.

 

[ChanSP1970]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bennyboy71 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I agree. Is there any scientific proof that iems require burn in? If a manufacturer can't make them sound good straight from the box, well thats pretty crap if you ask me....

My IE8 sounded like crap out of the box.

 

[dweaver]

My IE8 sounded horrible out of the box and improved after 25hrs of burnin, the change was quite significant. After the initial improvement though the rest of the changes have been more gradual. The initial change is very real I think as I was not actually listening to the IE8 regularly while they did the initial burnin so am pretty sure it could not be psychological.

My MTP Gold also improved but this was not nearly as dramatic so it does depend on the IEM.

BTW I found the MTP Gold to scale up nicely with my amp and have found most IEM do improve with one but most don't need one.

 

[Young Spade]

Yea dynamic drivers need that burn in time to sound their best. IMO if I ever get another driver IEM I'll burn it in with pink noise before listening so I don't have to go through that.