Looking for IEMs that have a flat frequency response

[Clay49]

I need to find a good set of IEM’s that have a pretty flat frequency response, similar to the Sennheiser HD 600 headphones. I own a really nice pair of empire ears legend EVO, which sound fabulous, but the bass is huge in those and doesn’t sound anything like my HD 600.

I’m doing some work with acoustic guitars through my Kemper profiling amp so I need The sound isolation that comes from a good pair of IEMs because I haven’t found any closed back headphones that replicate the sound of my HD 600.

I don’t mind spending money on a good set of IEM’s, as you can tell from what I currently own, so let’s just cap it at around $2500.

Thanks for your suggestions in advance!

 

[podnosimyszafe]

If you do not mind extremely deep fit, Etymotic ER4XR seems a good choice for you.

Seeing how big your budget is, I wonder if Custom IEMs are possible solution. To be honest, I know next to nothing about custom IEMs, but to me seems if you need good isolation and have very specific sound requirements, perhaps CIEM is a way to go?

 

[Clay49]

If you do not mind extremely deep fit, Etymotic ER4XR seems a good choice for you.

Seeing how big your budget is, I wonder if Custom IEMs are possible solution. To be honest, I know next to nothing about custom IEMs, but to me seems if you need good isolation and have very specific sound requirements, perhaps CIEM is a way to go?

Actually, I get a complete seal with the empire here’s Evo legend stock tips… I don’t really know that I wanna spend the extra money to get ear molds made, Plus, I flip stuff pretty quickly, and wouldn’t wanna get stuck with something that only fits my ear. My HD 600 headphones are about the only thing that kept for more than a couple of years.

 

[earmonger]

I can't tell you anything about kilobuck IEMs.

But Etymotic makes famously flat "studio reference" IEMs (ER2SE, ER3SE and ER4SR) and slightly (not overpoweringly) bass boosted IEMs (ER2XR, ER3XR, ER4XR).

I tried ER4SR and ER3XR and kept the ER3XR; just enough bass boost for a touch of warmth, no decrease of clarity.

You can find reviews all over the internet -- Etymotic was an IEM pioneer and these have been around forever.

Adorama has incredible deals on the ER3, which are usually $100-$150 IEMs.
I'm not shilling for Adorama; it's just that for some reason it's the only place with those prices.

https://www.adorama.com/etyer3se.html?emailprice=t. ($60)
https://www.adorama.com/etyer3xr.html?emailprice=t. ($70)

Both of the ER2 models are $100, list price.
https://www.adorama.com/etyer2se.html?emailprice=t
https://www.adorama.com/etyer2xr.html?emailprice=t

I know it looks cheap, but it doesn't sound that way.

If you want to ramp up to the 4SR, they're $300, but some reputable reviewers say the Ety 3 are just about comparable. You can find comparative reviews on Head-Fi, Reddit, Crinacle, etc.

They go deep in your ears, super isolation -- too deep for some people's ears, YMMV. But you can find out for yourself: Adorama offers 30 day returns, though you have to pay for return shipping (about $12). Be careful opening the shrink-sealed Adorama envelope so you don't rip the outer sleeve of the Ety box.

I suggest trying them with the gray foam tips, not the triple flange shown on the package; for me, the foams tickled a bit the first couple of times, but now they are entirely comfortable and just disappear.

 

[Clay49]

I can't tell you anything about kilobuck IEMs.

But Etymotic makes famously flat "studio reference" IEMs (ER2SE, ER3SE and ER4SR) and slightly (not overpoweringly) bass boosted IEMs (ER2XR, ER3XR, ER4XR).

I tried ER4SR and ER3XR and kept the ER3XR; just enough bass boost for a touch of warmth, no decrease of clarity.

You can find reviews all over the internet -- Etymotic was an IEM pioneer and these have been around forever.

Adorama has incredible deals on the ER3, which are usually $100-$150 IEMs.
I'm not shilling for Adorama; it's just that for some reason it's the only place with those prices.

https://www.adorama.com/etyer3se.html?emailprice=t. ($60)
https://www.adorama.com/etyer3xr.html?emailprice=t. ($70)

Both of the ER2 models are $100, list price.
https://www.adorama.com/etyer2se.html?emailprice=t
https://www.adorama.com/etyer2xr.html?emailprice=t

I know it looks cheap, but it doesn't sound that way.

If you want to ramp up to the 4SR, they're $300, but some reputable reviewers say the Ety 3 are just about comparable. You can find comparative reviews on Head-Fi, Reddit, Crinacle, etc.

They go deep in your ears, super isolation -- too deep for some people's ears, YMMV. But you can find out for yourself: Adorama offers 30 day returns, though you have to pay for return shipping (about $12). Be careful opening the shrink-sealed Adorama envelope so you don't rip the outer sleeve of the Ety box.

I suggest trying them with the gray foam tips, not the triple flange shown on the package; for me, the foams tickled a bit the first couple of times, but now they are entirely comfortable and just disappear.

Thanks for this in-depth info…I’ll check these out

 

[carlcamper]

Crinacle IEM Ranking

See Signature Column and look for Neutral

 

[ProtegeManiac]

I need to find a good set of IEM’s that have a pretty flat frequency response, similar to the Sennheiser HD 600 headphones. I own a really nice pair of empire ears legend EVO, which sound fabulous, but the bass is huge in those and doesn’t sound anything like my HD 600.

I’m doing some work with acoustic guitars through my Kemper profiling amp so I need The sound isolation that comes from a good pair of IEMs because I haven’t found any closed back headphones that replicate the sound of my HD 600.

I don’t mind spending money on a good set of IEM’s, as you can tell from what I currently own, so let’s just cap it at around $2500.

Thanks for your suggestions in advance!

I have the Westone2 and Aurisonics ASG-1.3, and they're basically the HD600 (with stronger bass if you have ambient noise problems when listening to the HD600) and HD650 (with stronger bass, even if your noise floor with the HD650 is under 35dBA), respectively.

W2 is out of production and no idea if the latest W20 sounds like it, but you can ask around for IEMs that sound like the Westone2, preferably custom fit if you're willing to go up to two grand.

 

[Terco]

64 Audio U18S is the most neutral/flat of the TOTL iems that I've herd, that is my recommendation.

 

[Clay49]

Crinacle IEM Ranking

See Signature Column a

I appreciate this...wonder if there is something similar to this that has sampling of multiple “sets of ears”, not just one person???

 

[earmonger]

Frequency response can be measured and graphed. You don't really need multiple sets of ears for that if the equipment is reliable, and a graph can tell you if the signature is flat, V-shaped, etc. Different rigs have different quirks, but people who make a lot of measurements (like Crinacle, Squig, the Head-Fi lab) are internally consistent.

Unless someone didn't fit the IEM correctly, you're not going to get wildly divergent opinions about whether something is bassy or flat or treble-forward.

Other judgments -- timbre, imaging, coherence, comfort -- are far more subjective, which is why you'd want to look at reviews from multiple sources.