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Mid Range Dual-Drivers: UE700 versus ATH-CK10

This is my first post here. I have read a large number of reviews and forum threads in the past week or so and I must say, this forum is far above and beyond any other website in terms of helpfulness. I have a query for anyone who is knowledge about either or both of these devices, or simply knows more on the subject than I do (which I am sure applies to most people here). I haven't found a thread here or a comparative discussion anywhere on these two IEMs and I hope that responses can help me decide as well as help others who might look at the same headphones. I apologize if happen to be repeating a previous discussion; I assume not because a search didn't yield exactly what I was looking for.


Background [not vital, read if you wish]:

I purchased the Bose In-Ears about three years ago on nothing more than the brand name. As many here could probably have predicted, that was a bad decision. It didn't bother me at the time because I had less of an acquired taste for good sound (not that I'm any connisouer even now). A few weeks ago, the wire on the Bose IEs wore through completely and the connection to the right bud became intermittent, so I moved back to a an old pair of clip-ons. At that point I realized how horrible the Bose phones were. The cheap clip-ons (~$10) sounded in certain ways significantly better because the base was not overpowered as in the Bose phones, and as such, the mids and highs were finally clearly audible. Mid to high female vocals in particular sounded much better than with the Bose phones. Suffice to say, I decided that it was time to get real, quality headphones.


My preferences [again, not vital]:

Sound Quality: I'm not an experienced audiophile, but I do hope to head in that direction. Base: must not overpower the mids or be 'boomy'; must have an accurate feeling, as well as be tight and quick; quality first. Mids: I don't have enough experience to have a well developed preference for mids. I've heard the words 'smooth' and 'buttery' describe good mids, but I wouldn't really know how those descriptions translate to the sound. Highs: I've heard that good highs have almost a 'shimmer' to them. Highs are fairly important to me. Most of all, I am interested in a well balanced sound that performs well in a large frequency response. I want to make sure that I don't miss any of the detail in my music whatever frequency it may be at.
I know there are many single-driver IEMs out there that have great sound and a large frequency response, such as the Audéo PFE, but I feel pretty confident that I'd like to try a dual-driver IEM, as I hope that it will provide a better balance over a larger frequency response. (Am I making a bad decision in that?) Of the dual-driver IEMs, I looked seriously at the UE700s, the Q-Jays, and the CK10s. All three have similar street prices. I decided that I'd rather have the UE700s over the Q-Jays, so that narrowed it down to two.

Comfort and Fit: I have not used canalphones extensively, so comfort is very important to me. I am somewhat apprehensive about jumping to a canalphone, but I feel fairly comfortable with things in my ears, so I hope discomfort/pain won't be a problem. I plan to wear them for many hours at a time and I do not want to feel them on my ears. I don't want to be distracted by any pressure or slight pain in my ears.

Build Quality and Wire Durability: This is also important to me. As I said above, the wire on my Bose IEs wore completely through at it's connection to the bud. When wearing headphones, I will frequently be moving around desks, tables, and other objects where, if I lean over, the wires can get caught on a corner and rip the buds or IEMs out of my ears. This is probably part of the reason for the breakdown of my Bose IEs. (someone needs to make a more companct hi-fi wireless IEM. Etymonic has a decent pair, but I guess the bluetooth technology isn't quite there yet) To allow for the occasional rip-out-of-ears scenario, the wires would preferably be able to take a good tug, and the phones themselves would be able to survive a fairly significant impact from falling from head height onto a table. On another note, I'm not terribly concerned about microphonics. Isolation shoud be decent, but I have no need for it to be triple-flange Etymonic spectacular.

Appearance: No significant preference, just don't be gaudy (no 'Frankenbolts' please).


My Final Two Choices:

Ultimate Ears 700: [amazon $186]

Personal Pros:
- is said to have very good sound accross the board, with particularly and highs and acceptable lows
- are said to be extremely comfortable, largely due to their tiny size and low weight.
- smaller than the ck10s; less visible; can be slept with in
- can be worn either wire-down or over-the-ear
- is said to have a very secure fit that is great for high-activity wear.
Personal Cons:
- one of the reviews on an Apple-associated website said that the overdone treble can hurt one's ears after prolonged listening
- stress-relief at the juncture of the wire and the phones is almost nonexistant.
- wire durability is uncertain
-


Audio Technica CK10: [amazon $212]

Personal Pros:
- is said to have a superb soundstage
- possibly more balanced and better overall sound? (can anyone confirm this, or is it preference-dependent?)
- superior build quality - aluminum body; better stress relief
Personal Cons:
- some say the quantity of base is lacking
- larger than the UE700s, although still not very large. The two are about the same weight: ck10s are ~0.5oz; UE700s are ~.43oz
- price premium - not that bad
- must be worn over-the-ear
- the foam tip is not the 'Comply' brand, so it wouldn't be as easy to get replacements (although on a thread here someone says that the Comply T400s fit the ck10s. Can anyone confirm this?)
- The filter is right at the entrance to the silicone or foam tip, so it can be dirtied by dust/earwax much more easily.
- frequency response only goes to 15khz; will that leave out some of the higher highs? (although some say that audio technica is just being honest and that all IEMs go to around 15khz)



Would anyone care to comment on the relative SQ, comfort, and durability of these two phones?

Thanks for your help!

 

[shigzeo]

I vastly prefer the CK10 to the U700, but of course it is opinion. It is made much, much better however, and has a cable several leagues above the U700. The price premium which you mention is completely worth it if you want to keep your earphone for a longer time.

But sound will be up to you. The CK10 are overall a smoother sounding earphone which are more practical. yes, you must wear them over the ear, but if you get used to it, you may never go back to the other way.

Extension isn't a problem. 15 000 isn't the full extent, but AT are probably denoting its pragmatic extension to where roll off becomes severe. Makers who mention things like 26 000 etc, usually don't take into account roll off. Any earphone should get to 20 000 with enough volume, but of course, at those volumes, it is silly to consider it anyway as those frequencies will be drowned out by everything else anyway.

In fact, those frequencies largely are drowned out by anything 17 000 and lower and as you will hear, there isn't a lot of music which makes its way that far north anyway.

 

[ljokerl]

I have not heard the UE700 but I do own the CK10 and consider it a high-end universal, not a mid-range. I prefer it to UE's own top-of-the-line TF10 pro as well as Etymotic's and Hifiman's flagships.

I will say that the build quality is unmatched (except maybe by the Ck100

), microphonics are nonexistent, and comfort is top notch. Contrary to common sense, they can be worn straight down, which I have previously illustrated here, but of course over-the-ear is preferable.

For balance and speed I simply cannot recommend them enough. The filter needs to be cleaned, yes, but a cleaning tool is provided and if your ears aren't too waxy you can do that once a month or so. Comply T400s do not fit the CK10 (too loose). I believe the T200 will but I don't have any on hand to check. I use Sony Hybrids or De-Cored Shure black Olives and both are extremely comfortable and provide excellent sound.

 

[cmb]

Thanks for your thoughts/suggestions shigzeo and joker, I feel better about the ck10s now and will probably go ahead and buy tomorrow.