saelanares
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Jan 8, 2015
- Posts
- 16
- Likes
- 10
Hi everyone! I've been a lurker on Head-Fi for quite a while now. Well, not that long; maybe 6 months or so. This is my first post, as you can probably see, and I think I registered yesterday or something like that. Basically, I'm looking for *something* to add to my collection of gear, and I think I've narrowed that down to a set of CIEMs (and a dac/amp, probably). What I've accumulated so far are Senn HD555s and VMODA Crossfade LP2s, along with a bunch of IEMs including the Xiami Piston 2 as well as LG Tone 730s (neither the fit nor sound are great, but they're so convenient!).
What I'm looking for now is a pair of headphones/IEMs that is (a) isolating (b) comfortable (c) portable and (d) an upgrade in sound to my current setup. I like my 555s quite well, but, obviously, there is absolutely no isolation, and I'm rarely in a particularly quiet environment, even at night. (In my college dorm.) So a lot of the time they're just not optimal at all. My LP2s are decent too, but they feel like a hybrid of on-ear and over-ear for me, as the pads are not quite large enough for my ears (although I do have some XL pads coming in soon). Also, I've noticed (even with my poor ears) that they sound more muddy than my 555s, and can also make female vocals sound shrill and rather irritating. Also, the isolation is not good, although that might be due to the poor fit. Now, the LP2s work fairly decently outside, but it seems I have an aversion to wearing headphones outside (they're just ... bulky, ostentatious, I dunno), and recently I've been using my LG Tones for daily walking-around activities. They're incredibly convenient due to having no wires to keep track of, but the lackluster audio quality isn't so helpful.
I was looking for a new pair of cans to remedy all these problems, reading information about ones like the DT770s, AKG 551s, Beyer Custom Ones, even bluetooth models such as the AKG K845BTs. What I then slowly realized is that what I really want is just a pair of solid IEMs. While headphones are great for listening at my desk, I doubt there will ever come a point at which I will want to walk around with full-size headphones when going from class-to-class or whatever. They're just too bulky. Also, I hate trying to fit my universal IEMs into my ears. So if I'm going to spend a good amount of money, I think I'll be buying an X3 (I think this should work; I don't want something to have to connect to my iPhone and I also want to be able to walk around with it) and some sort of CIEMs. Unless you guys have a better solution for me, in which case throw it at me.
*One note - the Sleek CT7s + W-1 wireless kit looked really nice, but it seems they stopped producing those. I was really considering dropping $800 or whatever it is on those, but with discontinued production and what presumably will lead to no more updates for their wireless technology, I suppose that's not a very good solution. That's rather unfortunate, and it doesn't look like I can find another portable wireless headphone kit with good quality (i.e. Kleer transmission or whatever), so I think I'll give up on that for now.
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Okay, now that you've read the entirety of my life story, here's the part where I ask for recommendations. I would very much like to spend less than $500, excluding audiologist ($50-$100?), X3 ($200 w/ SD card). However, if it merits the price, I can go above that, not sure what my limit really would be. Obviously, I have way too much money for a college student that should be broke due to textbooks, but whatever I guess. I currently listen mostly to electronic and ambient music, as well as female vocalists (don't judge me). I'd like to make my music collection more eclectic in the future, though. Thus, clear and "sparkly" (I guess that's the technical term nowadays) treble and bass with strong presence are the two things I'd prioritize, but all-around sound is important. I'm not a music connoisseur by any means, so the more "fun" sounding CIEMs would probably work for me well, and I'm not sure if I would even be able to tell that neutral IEMs are, well, neutral. But that's also something I'd like to adjust in the future. Namely, my terrible listening ability.
So yeah, "fun" sounding CIEMs for a newbie who likes electronic. Two that looked promising (in the low-ish price range) were the Custom Art Music One and the JH5s. Besides those (and the CT7s that I failed to find much information on), I really don't know much about CIEMs, as I never even looked at them until recently. I'll be trying to get through the massive CIEM review list from average_joe in the meantime. Thanks for reading, and all suggestions are welcome!
What I'm looking for now is a pair of headphones/IEMs that is (a) isolating (b) comfortable (c) portable and (d) an upgrade in sound to my current setup. I like my 555s quite well, but, obviously, there is absolutely no isolation, and I'm rarely in a particularly quiet environment, even at night. (In my college dorm.) So a lot of the time they're just not optimal at all. My LP2s are decent too, but they feel like a hybrid of on-ear and over-ear for me, as the pads are not quite large enough for my ears (although I do have some XL pads coming in soon). Also, I've noticed (even with my poor ears) that they sound more muddy than my 555s, and can also make female vocals sound shrill and rather irritating. Also, the isolation is not good, although that might be due to the poor fit. Now, the LP2s work fairly decently outside, but it seems I have an aversion to wearing headphones outside (they're just ... bulky, ostentatious, I dunno), and recently I've been using my LG Tones for daily walking-around activities. They're incredibly convenient due to having no wires to keep track of, but the lackluster audio quality isn't so helpful.
I was looking for a new pair of cans to remedy all these problems, reading information about ones like the DT770s, AKG 551s, Beyer Custom Ones, even bluetooth models such as the AKG K845BTs. What I then slowly realized is that what I really want is just a pair of solid IEMs. While headphones are great for listening at my desk, I doubt there will ever come a point at which I will want to walk around with full-size headphones when going from class-to-class or whatever. They're just too bulky. Also, I hate trying to fit my universal IEMs into my ears. So if I'm going to spend a good amount of money, I think I'll be buying an X3 (I think this should work; I don't want something to have to connect to my iPhone and I also want to be able to walk around with it) and some sort of CIEMs. Unless you guys have a better solution for me, in which case throw it at me.
*One note - the Sleek CT7s + W-1 wireless kit looked really nice, but it seems they stopped producing those. I was really considering dropping $800 or whatever it is on those, but with discontinued production and what presumably will lead to no more updates for their wireless technology, I suppose that's not a very good solution. That's rather unfortunate, and it doesn't look like I can find another portable wireless headphone kit with good quality (i.e. Kleer transmission or whatever), so I think I'll give up on that for now.
---------------------------
Okay, now that you've read the entirety of my life story, here's the part where I ask for recommendations. I would very much like to spend less than $500, excluding audiologist ($50-$100?), X3 ($200 w/ SD card). However, if it merits the price, I can go above that, not sure what my limit really would be. Obviously, I have way too much money for a college student that should be broke due to textbooks, but whatever I guess. I currently listen mostly to electronic and ambient music, as well as female vocalists (don't judge me). I'd like to make my music collection more eclectic in the future, though. Thus, clear and "sparkly" (I guess that's the technical term nowadays) treble and bass with strong presence are the two things I'd prioritize, but all-around sound is important. I'm not a music connoisseur by any means, so the more "fun" sounding CIEMs would probably work for me well, and I'm not sure if I would even be able to tell that neutral IEMs are, well, neutral. But that's also something I'd like to adjust in the future. Namely, my terrible listening ability.
So yeah, "fun" sounding CIEMs for a newbie who likes electronic. Two that looked promising (in the low-ish price range) were the Custom Art Music One and the JH5s. Besides those (and the CT7s that I failed to find much information on), I really don't know much about CIEMs, as I never even looked at them until recently. I'll be trying to get through the massive CIEM review list from average_joe in the meantime. Thanks for reading, and all suggestions are welcome!
