[pihx]

Hi.
 
I've had the original sennheiser cx300 for many years and i lost them, so i need to replace them with something better i hope.
 
I listen mostly to metal bands like In Flames and Soilwork, but also the occasional electronic music like Chemical Brothers, Prodigy and Pendulum. So bass is essential, but not a muddy mess. The CX300's were fine, but could have had more defined bass and clarity.
 
I have been looking at Sennheiser CX300 II's and MEElectronics M6. Anything else along those lines that is better suited for my music style?
 
What would be my best bet?
 

 

[Marcus_C]

Depending on where you are in the world, Visang R02, Brainwavz pro alpha will be good. The slightly more expensive models should be good too if you've more readies to burn, though I haven't heard all of those. Meelectronics one's are also a good bet, deciding between M6/M9 is pretty much down to how you want  wear them, they're both good and about the same price. If you want to go with sennheiser go with a newer one like the cx250/cx280/cx271 than the 300ii, that one is not as good. 

 

[pihx]

Thanks.
 
I looked at Amazon.com and they won't ship Brainwavz to my country, but they do ship the M6/M9.
 
What is the difference between M6/M9? And difference between M9P or M9SL? 

 

[Marcus_C]

Brainwavz earphones are sold, exclusively AFAIK, on mp4nation.net, the Visang versions which are essentially the same are mostly found on ebay. Difference between M6/M9 is a large debate, some say they sound the same, others that the 6 is better, i never had them at the same time but soundwise there's little in it, m6 are worn over ear, m9 straight down. M9p is the mic version, M9sl i've never heard of (maybe the silver version, ie the same)

 

[pihx]

Ahhh i see. I found R02 aplenty on ebay. But what would the R03 equal as? The M2's?
 
I think i might actually try the M9's first, as they seem cheap and get raving reviews here and on Amazon. 

 

[cnhardwick]

I would rank the M6 just slightly higher than the M9 in terms of sound quality. The M9 has more bass quantity, but the M6 has better bass quality. Both have a recessed midrange, but the M9 more so than the M6. The highs of the M6 are very bright and sparkly, even compared to the M9 which is also bright and sparkly.*

So which is better? Do prefer to wear your earphones over-ear or straight down? If over-ear, get the M6. If straight down get the M9. If you do not care, then how do you like your bass? Boomy and slightly over powering? Or more refined and balanced? If the former get the M9. If the latter get the M6.

All that said, M6 and M9 have a rather different sound signature than the CX300. The CX300 has a nice warm sound. The M6 and M9 however are aggressive. So you may find the bass of the M6 and M9 a little hard hitting than you are use to and the treble a little harsh. If you are looking something that sounds more like CX300, but better you might want to look elsewhere. Nuforce maybe?

*The M6 and M9 are both very fit dependent which leads to much of the disagreement over how they sound. Changing the insertion just slightly depth can make a big difference in amount of bass and brightness of the highs. Personal I tend use the smallest tips and insert them deep, so take my impressions with a grain of salt as using the included bi-flanges might result in an entirely different sound than I described.

 

[pihx]

Thanks for the info. I would probably pick M9 over M6 because i don't like the over ear thing.
 
The best way i can describe how i want bass to be, is perhaps, punchy and defined and not muddy up the lower mids. I want a bit of an in your face sound. I guess it would be best for me to describe it by having you listen to a few different songs im into.
 
First a bit of metal (nothing too hardcore) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z83vu-TRF6Y and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esWqSqSTFa4&feature=fvwrel
 
Drum and bass http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-a48jxfpZyA&playnext=1&list=PL85035BB4B0B2946F
 
And then Prodigy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3EIogaEwxY&playnext=1&list=PL92C3EB4BE93944B7
 
These songs is a rough idea of what i want to sound as good as it can, without breaking the wallet. If the M9 has recessed midrange, wouldn't that make electric guitar sound a bit muted?
 
 
 
 

 

[cnhardwick]

You would probably like the bass of the M9 then. And doing a head to head comparison on the sample songs you gave the M9's bass would an improvement over the CX300--especially the low bass. Yes, electric guitars are not as prominent do to the recessed midrange, but I do not think I would have noticed it if I where not comparing side by side with the CX300. The best way I know to describe the midrange is say it literally sounds recessed. The vocals sound like they are placed behind the instruments. So if you think of a band where the vocalist stands behind the drum kit that is kind of how it sounds. It can be annoying for some songs, but quite fun on others. One other thing I thought noticed when doing a head to head comparison on those Youtube videos is that M9 needs little more juice to get the to same volume as the CX300. That should not be a problem since most any source can power the M9, but if you are use to listening to your CX300 at x volume you might need to go up a few more notches to get the M9 to same level. Also I have heard that the M9 distorts at high volumes. I never listen at high volumes, but if you do that might want to keep that in mind.

 

[pihx]

Thank you for testing this for me, much appreciated!
 
I think the vocals feeling "behind" the music is not a problem for me since i don't really listen to music where vocals play lead, as you might have noticed on the samples i provided. Regarding volume, i use an old Creative Zen Vision:M and with the CX300 i never even had the volume on half, so i have plenty of room to increase it if necessary. I will be getting a Zune HD or Sansa Clip+ soon though.
 
How you describe the bass has got me excited so i have decided to order the M9's and give them a shot. For under $20 on Amazon i don't think i'll cry much if i don't like them.....hehe.
 
Thank you so much for the help everyone.
 
EDIT: One more thing, would stretching up to the Visang R02 make sense for me? Is it something that will improve on the M9's for my taste in music?

 

[Marcus_C]

Quote:

EDIT: One more thing, would stretching up to the Visang R02 make sense for me? Is it something that will improve on the M9's for my taste in music?

IMO, yes, it's a better earphone, not quite so much bass but better all round and hardly lacking in thump. If you've found Joker's multi iem thread read his review of them, it's spot on as far as i'm concerned.

 

[potatoos]

Regarding the mp3 players, i just recently bought and rockboxed a sansa clip+.
i highly recommend doing the same. it is a great little player and rockbox really gives you all the options you could need

 

[pihx]

I am a little torn between Clip+ or go a little dearer and get maybe a Cowon S9 or J3. What i like about my Vision:M is the ability to watch video when i'm on the road, on a bus or plane etc. The small size and price of the Clip+ is surely attractive and the SD card slot, but the Cowon tempts in video, battery life and sound features.
 
Regarding the earbuds, i think i'll stretch the budget up to Visang R02.

 

[potatoos]

if you plan to watch videos, then the clip+ is not the way to go. but if you have a ton of music and need the sd card slot... well you might just want to get the clip and also keep you old mp3 player.
just a suggestion