[PANGES]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rawrster /img/forum/go_quote.gif the fit for these have typically been great for most people who have owned them. they are one of the most comfortable with the stock tips ive tried. panges, enjoy your new earphones easily better than stock buds. now i suggest you run away from head fi and never come back or your wallet will not be as happy

haha. Yeah. I'd run away, but I'm already looking into some earphones that cover my ears for home use... Besides... I found this site while I was running away from other forums, as I was spending too much money on my car. lol.

lol. I must say, just searching and reading around, there's so much good info on this site and everyone seems very helpful. I'm enjoying my stay thus far.

One quick question for you guys.. The stock tips that come w/ the s4's fit my ears really well, but comfort aside, will the slight improvement in sound quality justify spending $20 on a pack of comply tips?

 

[Judge Buff]

^ If you enjoy the sound and feel, it's probably not worth it, IMO. If you were having problems, I'd say go for it.

I've listened to my S4s for months with my Zune and no eq at all. Listening to my new 3GS with them, though, I feel a need to use the acoustical setting because I find the iPhone to be too warm, bordering on dark. It's not the S4s... I've listened to them on a BB and the Zune for almost 6 months and its not them. Just something to think about for you iPod folks... those of you with a decent eq anyway. The iPhone on the acoustical setting sounds like the Zune with no eq, but a little brighter. YMMV...

 

[soju killa]

How loud should the volume be during the 'burn in' process?

I have left them on a 4th gen Ipod Nano with the volume slightly over the halfway mark for about 120 hours (as I listen with the volume typically slightly below the halfway mark)

The bass has cleared up but I still find it a bit sibilant, with cymbals and "S"s a bit harsh

Did I burn in at too low of a volume?

 

[Steve66]

Wow! Very interesting thread. I was of course familiar with the concept of burn-in but I had no idea it was so controversial. Can I please address a request for advice to everyone but mainly those strong advocates of burn-in?
Tomorrow my new Cowon s9 32gb will arrive and in a few days my new S4's. And then, well, that's it. Budget blown, available, hard-earned cash gone. No ordering a new pair if I don't like the sound. So... If I just connect up and start listening, am I effectively burning in or will the volume (obviously listenable) be too low for this? And if the phones are used but not 'burnt in' for say 150 hours and then I still think the sound isn't right, does this preclude the possibility of then burning them in by turning up the volume from then on? The Cowon is supposed to have great EQ (BBE+ etc) so poor sq initially in the phones could be compensated for by using EQ, but only if the burn in is still taking place. Make sense? Also, while I'm on, what do Cowon/Klipsch owners think about bit rates? Will I really, actually hear the difference between say 256 kps and 320? I don't mean to sound skeptical about any of the above, just honestly asking what people think.
Cheers.

 

[rawrster]

Some people here use pink noise, frequency sweeps, etc. I've never done that before and probably never will with future purchases I'lll make on dynamic earphones.

You can just connect it to your dap(S9 in your case) and press play. Thats pretty much what burn in is really. I burned my pair of S4's before selling them by running them through my dap overnight for a week and using it on the go some days.

 

[Judge Buff]

Quote:

Originally Posted by soju killa /img/forum/go_quote.gif How loud should the volume be during the 'burn in' process? I have left them on a 4th gen Ipod Nano with the volume slightly over the halfway mark for about 120 hours (as I listen with the volume typically slightly below the halfway mark) The bass has cleared up but I still find it a bit sibilant, with cymbals and "S"s a bit harsh Did I burn in at too low of a volume?

I don't know if it was too low as I haven't a reference point from your description. This is what I do when I use my Zune for burn-in: I usually listen to my Zune unamped at 10-12. I cook using it at about 25% more; about 14-16. My advice is to cook it now with white noise (higher freqs), at a volume significantly louder than you would listen to it, in 12 hour shifts, using a sibilant reference song that you really know as a test. You can Google for a wave generator, if you don't already have one.

 

[tstarn06]

Good advice, it works.

 

[tstarn06]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve66 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Wow! Very interesting thread. I was of course familiar with the concept of burn-in but I had no idea it was so controversial. Can I please address a request for advice to everyone but mainly those strong advocates of burn-in? Tomorrow my new Cowon s9 32gb will arrive and in a few days my new S4's. And then, well, that's it. Budget blown, available, hard-earned cash gone. No ordering a new pair if I don't like the sound. So... If I just connect up and start listening, am I effectively burning in or will the volume (obviously listenable) be too low for this? And if the phones are used but not 'burnt in' for say 150 hours and then I still think the sound isn't right, does this preclude the possibility of then burning them in by turning up the volume from then on? The Cowon is supposed to have great EQ (BBE+ etc) so poor sq initially in the phones could be compensated for by using EQ, but only if the burn in is still taking place. Make sense? Also, while I'm on, what do Cowon/Klipsch owners think about bit rates? Will I really, actually hear the difference between say 256 kps and 320? I don't mean to sound skeptical about any of the above, just honestly asking what people think. Cheers.

I owned the S9 and am a fan of the S4. Just try listening first, and choose a track you know to have some potential sibilance. If it bugs you, just burn in the S4 overnight with the S9 at 3/4 volume, music works fine, or a pink/white noise file too (I have one that last an hour). There are going to be some people who think it's hocus pocus, some of us who don't.

As for bit rates, my lousy ears think 192 WMA/MP3 files sound fine. Rip at 192 or 228 and see if they sound good, because no reason to go too high for most portable listening.

 

[soju killa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Judge Buff /img/forum/go_quote.gif I don't know if it was too low as I haven't a reference point from your description. This is what I do when I use my Zune for burn-in: I usually listen to my Zune unamped at 10-12. I cook using it at about 25% more; about 14-16. My advice is to cook it now with white noise (higher freqs), at a volume significantly louder than you would listen to it, in 12 hour shifts, using a sibilant reference song that you really know as a test. You can Google for a wave generator, if you don't already have one.

Could a continuous 120 hour burn in be harmful to the earphone?

I didn't research enough and literally just had music playing on these for 5 full days straight

 

[dweaver]

If you music had good variety I think you will be fine... The question you need to ask yourself now is, do they sound better? Your ears are the best test

 

[SeaBreezer]

My personal opinion after auditioning 3 different pairs of properly "burned-in" S4s over a period of 2 months is that sibilance remained and overall sound was good only at moderate volume levels. I never felt as though I was hearing the entire sound stage in its full dynamic range as reported in so many reviews. Are the S4s a good pair of IEMs? Yes. I was just underwhelmed after reading many glowing reviews about this particular product and I have long been a Klipsch enthusiast. I think the moral of my post is that we can all do research, but ultimately have to try a product to determine if it is right for each of us. Happy new year to all!

 

[Judge Buff]

Quote:

Originally Posted by soju killa /img/forum/go_quote.gif Could a continuous 120 hour burn in be harmful to the earphone? I didn't research enough and literally just had music playing on these for 5 full days straight

Beats me...

I couldn't have kept my hands off of them that long. While I think that stressing the phones is an essential part of burn-in, 5 days is a long time for anything to be continuously played.

 

[tstarn06]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SeaBreezer /img/forum/go_quote.gif My personal opinion after auditioning 3 different pairs of properly "burned-in" S4s over a period of 2 months is that sibilance remained and overall sound was good only at moderate volume levels. I never felt as though I was hearing the entire sound stage in its full dynamic range as reported in so many reviews. Are the S4s a good pair of IEMs? Yes. I was just underwhelmed after reading many glowing reviews about this particular product and I have long been a Klipsch enthusiast. I think the moral of my post is that we can all do research, but ultimately have to try a product to determine if it is right for each of us. Happy new year to all!

Interesting research. Not sure who claimed they offered "the entire sound stage in its full dynamic range" (CNET?), but most of the S4 fans hereabouts just think they are a very good value phone that benefit from burn-in. But your point is pretty much true of most gear - after some research, buy and try, then decide.

Also, seems moderate volume would be the best listening level for most people, so being good at moderate (or even low) volume is a plus, I think.

If you were underwhelmed, it could be because your mindset/expectations were too high. Personally, I find the S4s a very good IEM for the money, which is all you can ask. We've all read reviews and when we got the gear were disappointed (happened to me at least a dozen times with IEMs), but that's why we are all here in large part - to chase that Holy Grail of the perfect IEM.

 

[DavidMorton]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tstarn06 /img/forum/go_quote.gif ...to chase that Holy Grail...

"We've already got one."

 

[cn11]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidMorton /img/forum/go_quote.gif "We've already got one."

We do?