Warning: I am a noob to decent IEMs and headphones. For years I've worn many $10 cheapies from Ratshack, etc, all failed within 12 months. Last year I bought some $20 Sony MDR-V150s because they looked sturdy and had a longer cord on them. They were clampy and never sounded right to me. I actually got some JVC Flats recently, but one side rattled badly so I decided to skip them and get something better instead.
I did a lot of reading here and received my "mid-range" JVC HA-RX700s today. Out of the box, I immediately noticed detail that's completely missing in the Sonys, DOH. I have a favoite song that is only 64Kbps and I can actually hear how crappy it is now, and my hearing svcks. The JVCs also are less clampy than the Sony, pretty comfy excpet my ears to get a little warmer perhaps, still very tolerable though since they fit better. I read about these needed to be modded, not so sure now. I also ordered some "expensive" $80 Audio Technica ATH-AD700 and "cheap" Koss KSC75s to play with, but am not sure either can get much better than these.
Thanks to everyone who has written about and recommended these JVC HA-RX700s.
Since I promised to get my wife something new when I found out her ear buds were basically useless, I've purchased a few (5) sets of IEMs, want one more pair for about $100, and am waiting for the other headphones. I have hauled an old 2-channel Rotel amp/preamp B&W speakers out of the closet, now my old Pioneer tape deck to convert wifes cassettes to digital. I even put a new AV-710 soundcard I had laying around in the PC. This site has consumed me for about a month!!
Jim
