[suman134]

  Hello, thanks for your helpful response. I'm not sure about the DUNU Titan 1 because of its' shape. From experience it seems as if deep-insertion can give a better sound, but this one looks like it may not go in deep enough. And what are those vent holes on it?
 
For the RE-400 this seems nice, but I've not been a fan of the general Hifiman 'house sound' from their full size 'cans, except for the HE-6 which was phenomenal. By any chance would you be able to post which full size headphone the RE-400 sounds most similar to - Hifiman or any brand? Thanks, and I still hope LjokerL can jump in on this too 

 

 There are not many in this price range, and those you will find will be either super flat like ER-4 series, ortofons and Doppio or will be V shaped like Dn-1000 and XBA-H3. But there are a few you can consider.
  I dont know if its available at your convenience or not but flare audio R2 is an awesome sounding earphone, another one will be Fidue A83, be careful of its shape though, best i can think of is FLC-8!! Even if its a bit over your budget, its worth it. I fancy owning one of this FLC-8 earphones myself.
 
 Then i think if you enjoy some bass, you will like DN-2000 too. Not overly analytical.
 
 I think Joker can shed more light on this.

 

[Toom]

Oi oi Joker. Will you be checking out the new Soundmagic E80?

 

[Za Warudo]

Hi Joker, what top tier CIEM has a similar neutral signature as the RE400, maybe with just a tad more lower bass.

 

[getclikinagas]

  Hello, thanks for your helpful response. I'm not sure about the DUNU Titan 1 because of its' shape. From experience it seems as if deep-insertion can give a better sound, but this one looks like it may not go in deep enough. And what are those vent holes on it?
 
For the RE-400 this seems nice, but I've not been a fan of the general Hifiman 'house sound' from their full size 'cans, except for the HE-6 which was phenomenal. By any chance would you be able to post which full size headphone the RE-400 sounds most similar to - Hifiman or any brand? Thanks, and I still hope LjokerL can jump in on this too 

 

 
"Deeper fit" does not necessarily translate to "better sound". A good seal is definitely more important.
 
The vent holes serve to relieve air pressure around the diaphragm. Vents are usually placed on either side of the driver and can reduce the damping effect. Pressure(or lack of pressure change) inside the IEM shell will resist large movements and cause the driver to return to default(null) position. 
They affect bass and can extend soundstage width. This of course comes with with a trade-off : Isolation.
 
Manufacturers try to strike a good balance of bass quantity, tightness, isolation and soundstage when designing IEMs with vents.
 
The principles are similar to Open back Headphones and Closed back Headphones and Headphones with Semi-open designs.
 
PS: Venting is not the only way to acheive good soundstage width. Custom IEMs are completely sealed and yet manage to reproduce a spacious stage.
 
PS2: Unfortunately I have not had the pleasure of hearing any HiFiMAN headphones so I will not be able to compare the RE400.

 

[Xacxac]

  Hello guys, I'm posting here in hopes to get a suggestion for an IEM. After 500+ postings on head-fi, this is surprisingly my first post about IEMs. So maybe somebody can help me to 'come out of the closet' with IEMs... or even if the thread owner @ljokerl would chime in, I would be super tickled!
 
Last year I had studied the first half of this thread for sub $60 IEMs, and bought both the Soundmagic E30 and Maximo iMetal iM-590. Of these, I found the E30 to be too dark / muddy, and I like the iMetal, but one of the channels died and it sounded a tad too claustrophobic.
 
So here is what I'm looking for: An IEM under $250-ish, bullet or tube shape, that has fairly neutral FR, good clarity and punch. By bullet / tube shape, I like these as opposed to the full IEM 'hearing aid' type so it's much faster to put in / take out. And more on the sound signature I'm looking for: I like a decent amount of clarity / instrument separation / detail (yet not super analytical), and I like the frequency response to be fairly flat but maybe slightly V-shaped is OK - natural bass response but nothing even remotely resembling 'bass heavy' of 'basshead'; - closer to neutral.
 
For reference with full size 'cans, I love the sound of the Senn. HD 650 and Stax SR-009, I like the DT 880, but am not into the Audeze LCD2 or Ether headphones sound which seem too 'dark' for me.
Thanks in advance!

I've heard both of HD650 & SR-009 and I wasn't really surprised. They're too neutral/laid back/clean; boring for me. 

 I've never heard any Audeze tho. However, I have a pair of RE-400 and I think its sound signature quite similar to HD-650. RE-400 (and any <$250 IEMs) are far from SR-009 (well, the price...). I bought RE-400 because of amazing price/performance ratio. I think the biggest downside of RE-400 after listening HD-650 will be soundstage. RE-400 can't compete with open full size like HD650. Dunu 1000 (and 2000 for a lil bit more $) got good reviews too. They're quite V-shaped.
 
I'm agree with getclickinagas. Some IEMs are made for deep insertion, some are shallow insertion. RE-400 is made for deep insertion, but it is so small so it doesn't bother me.
 
I live in Santa Clara & I'd be happy to let you hear RE-400 if you're interested. Btw, I'm not selling it. 

 

 

[Shawn71]

  Hello guys, I'm posting here in hopes to get a suggestion for an IEM. After 500+ postings on head-fi, this is surprisingly my first post about IEMs. So maybe somebody can help me to 'come out of the closet' with IEMs... or even if the thread owner @ljokerl would chime in, I would be super tickled!
 
Last year I had studied the first half of this thread for sub $60 IEMs, and bought both the Soundmagic E30 and Maximo iMetal iM-590. Of these, I found the E30 to be too dark / muddy, and I like the iMetal, but one of the channels died and it sounded a tad too claustrophobic.
 
So here is what I'm looking for: An IEM under $250-ish, bullet or tube shape, that has fairly neutral FR, good clarity and punch. By bullet / tube shape, I like these as opposed to the full IEM 'hearing aid' type so it's much faster to put in / take out. And more on the sound signature I'm looking for: I like a decent amount of clarity / instrument separation / detail (yet not super analytical), and I like the frequency response to be fairly flat but maybe slightly V-shaped is OK - natural bass response but nothing even remotely resembling 'bass heavy' of 'basshead'; - closer to neutral.
 
For reference with full size 'cans, I love the sound of the Senn. HD 650 and Stax SR-009, I like the DT 880, but am not into the Audeze LCD2 or Ether headphones sound which seem too 'dark' for me.
Thanks in advance!

T-PEOS Altone 200 triple hybrids cld be a better choice.....for your bolded and underlined texts.

 

[ljokerl]

  Hello guys, I'm posting here in hopes to get a suggestion for an IEM. After 500+ postings on head-fi, this is surprisingly my first post about IEMs. So maybe somebody can help me to 'come out of the closet' with IEMs... or even if the thread owner @ljokerl would chime in, I would be super tickled!
 
Last year I had studied the first half of this thread for sub $60 IEMs, and bought both the Soundmagic E30 and Maximo iMetal iM-590. Of these, I found the E30 to be too dark / muddy, and I like the iMetal, but one of the channels died and it sounded a tad too claustrophobic.
 
So here is what I'm looking for: An IEM under $250-ish, bullet or tube shape, that has fairly neutral FR, good clarity and punch. By bullet / tube shape, I like these as opposed to the full IEM 'hearing aid' type so it's much faster to put in / take out. And more on the sound signature I'm looking for: I like a decent amount of clarity / instrument separation / detail (yet not super analytical), and I like the frequency response to be fairly flat but maybe slightly V-shaped is OK - natural bass response but nothing even remotely resembling 'bass heavy' of 'basshead'; - closer to neutral.
 
For reference with full size 'cans, I love the sound of the Senn. HD 650 and Stax SR-009, I like the DT 880, but am not into the Audeze LCD2 or Ether headphones sound which seem too 'dark' for me.
Thanks in advance!

 
 
Someone mentioned Ortofon which is the first thing I thought of as well. The e-Q5 is right in that price range and has a bullet housing and nice balanced sound without being overly analytical. Runner up in that regard would probably be the VSonic GR01, but if bass punch is a factor and you're trying to go less analytical, I don't think I'd pick the VSonic over the Ortofon. 
 
The requirement for a straight housing eliminates most of the dynamic-driver options in that price range (like VSonics and Philips Fidelios) but leaves the Sony MDR-EX600 (sort of). These can be difficult to find and have a weird housing shape, but in the end they do fit like a "straight" housing and have great sound for what you're after. Most in-ears will have a soundstage more like the Maximos, a little in-the-head compared to full-size cans, but the EX600 is one of the exceptions to this. 
 
In my short time with them so far the Aurisonics Rockets are promising as well, but I haven't had them long enough to say anything definitive. Just throwing them out there because I'm sure there's already a ton of Rockets reviews out there.
 

  Oi oi Joker. Will you be checking out the new Soundmagic E80?

 
Probably, but not right this moment. Came across a couple of good earphones lately that deserve full write-ups, starting with the Rockets mentioned above. 
 

Hi Joker, what top tier CIEM has a similar neutral signature as the RE400, maybe with just a tad more lower bass.

 
From the ones I have, the Noble 4S reminds me most of the RE-400 (neutral-leaning-warm tone, very smooth, nothing getting in the way of the midrange, etc) and the direction I'd want the RE-400 sound to go. Comparison here: http://theheadphonelist.com/headphone_review/noble-4s/ 

 

[proedros]

  Hello guys, I'm posting here in hopes to get a suggestion for an IEM. After 500+ postings on head-fi, this is surprisingly my first post about IEMs. So maybe somebody can help me to 'come out of the closet' with IEMs... or even if the thread owner @ljokerl would chime in, I would be super tickled!
 
Last year I had studied the first half of this thread for sub $60 IEMs, and bought both the Soundmagic E30 and Maximo iMetal iM-590. Of these, I found the E30 to be too dark / muddy, and I like the iMetal, but one of the channels died and it sounded a tad too claustrophobic.
 
So here is what I'm looking for: An IEM under $250-ish, bullet or tube shape, that has fairly neutral FR, good clarity and punch. By bullet / tube shape, I like these as opposed to the full IEM 'hearing aid' type so it's much faster to put in / take out. And more on the sound signature I'm looking for: I like a decent amount of clarity / instrument separation / detail (yet not super analytical), and I like the frequency response to be fairly flat but maybe slightly V-shaped is OK - natural bass response but nothing even remotely resembling 'bass heavy' of 'basshead'; - closer to neutral.
 
For reference with full size 'cans, I love the sound of the Senn. HD 650 and Stax SR-009, I like the DT 880, but am not into the Audeze LCD2 or Ether headphones sound which seem too 'dark' for me.
Thanks in advance!

 
 
@joker mentioned them and i support them as well , get the eq-5

i just saw @shotgunshane selling his like-new pair for just 125$ , a great price imo
 
punchy (but not bloated) bass , good sweet(but not thick) mids and airy sparkly (but not sibilant) highs

a no brainer for what you ask if you wanna stay below 200$

as for the re400 , i had it and i found it very mediocre (imo) and sold it, eq5 is way better plus it is bullet-style as you want

for 125$ , the eq-5 simply shouts to you 'buy me now'

 

 

[Shawn71]

musicacoustics have them for $148!.....
 
http://www.musicaacoustics.com/#!ortofon/c168n

 

[alert426]

Wow good information! Thanks!

 

[DecentLevi]

Thanks much guys, I'm interested in the Ortofon EQ 5, seems to tick all my boxes. Another popular in-ear man on HeadFi also seems to highly recommend the Atomic Floyd Darts, based on my sound preferences. Any of you tried their Super Darts Titanium, Super Darts or Mini Darts?
 
He also recommends Shure SE425. Does anyone have any experience with these? But I wonder about the ease of quickly putting in / taking out

 

[maxjstern]

  Thanks much guys, I'm interested in the Ortofon EQ 5, seems to tick all my boxes. Another popular in-ear man on HeadFi also seems to highly recommend the Atomic Floyd Darts, based on my sound preferences. Any of you tried their Super Darts Titanium, Super Darts or Mini Darts?
 
He also recommends Shure SE425. Does anyone have any experience with these? But I wonder about the ease of quickly putting in / taking out

The Atomic Floyds are said to be very V-Shaped, that means: Dynamic driver rumbling bass + balanced armature driver sparkling highs...
 
The Shures are generally very comfortable once they fit, it is quite a technique on its own to insert them, Shure themselves released some tutorials.
The SE425 is said to be fairly neutral with dry and lean bass, some find it to be a bit too less... I once ran a test on their website which earphones suits me best, I ticked rock music, ect..., the SE425 was the result....

 

[ljokerl]

  Thanks much guys, I'm interested in the Ortofon EQ 5, seems to tick all my boxes. Another popular in-ear man on HeadFi also seems to highly recommend the Atomic Floyd Darts, based on my sound preferences. Any of you tried their Super Darts Titanium, Super Darts or Mini Darts?
 
He also recommends Shure SE425. Does anyone have any experience with these? But I wonder about the ease of quickly putting in / taking out

 
In my experience you generally don't want a hybrid earphone like the Dart if you're looking for balanced/neutral sound. Of the 20-30 hybrid earphones I've tried I don't think any have fit that description.  

 

[jant71]

   
 
They should know that the XX IEMs are just not bassy enough for me 

 
 
 
Yes, I'm happy with the Elation so far. Seems to be smoother than my old FX101/FR301 (harshness is my biggest issue with those). 
 
+1 on that being an IE7 clone. Not a bad thing, those were always comfy for me, assuming Kanen got the nozzle angle right.

Okay, two related things on those two earphones. I got the Kanen and they are actually a bit better than the Elation esp. in the clarity dept. Great little value even though the IE7 housing is not my easiest to fit since it is shallow and the memory wire adds to the learning curve at the beginning. All is good with a little practice and the right tips(TF10 grays). Big, airy, pretty quick and a bit of a V but not that much. They do present like the IE7 does due to the housing as far as stage height, depth, and width. I've bought the VSD2S/AN16 combo and the e80 for $52 but the Kanen are the best value phones of late for me. They did show up with only the generic bi-flanges on them and no S/M/L singles.
 
Now, the Elation being the walking phone in my sports arsenal were already beaten by the Philips SHQ5200(think waterproof SHP5401 for sports) in the SQ dept. Something had to be done
 
I peeled of the front screens. They are peel and stick so I put them on some wax paper. Now they do the things they say on the box such as quick and solid bass(jabs tighter but harder). A bit bigger and more open since they aren't blanketed over and they are brighter but still not peaky like JVC of old. I look in and see that the driver is metal capped(a center dome and 2mm holes on the perimeter) so their signature comes from that and not the filter screens which just seem to be there to turn them into an "XX". Since they are  still encased I doubt I'll put replacement screens on and just leave them. Still bassy but not basshead.
 
Really jumped them up a level since they are freer, quicker, clearer which shows their detail and what they highlight in their signature even more so now. I recommend the mod for them to be both better and an all-rounder.

 

[wolf230]

 
Okay, two related things on those two earphones. I got the Kanen and they are actually a bit better than the Elation esp. in the clarity dept. Great little value even though the IE7 housing is not my easiest to fit since it is shallow and the memory wire adds to the learning curve at the beginning. All is good with a little practice and the right tips(TF10 grays). Big, airy, pretty quick and a bit of a V but not that much. They do present like the IE7 does due to the housing as far as stage height, depth, and width. I've bought the VSD2S/AN16 combo and the e80 for $52 but the Kanen are the best value phones of late for me. They did show up with only the generic bi-flanges on them and no S/M/L singles.
 
Now, the Elation being the walking phone in my sports arsenal were already beaten by the Philips SHQ5200(think waterproof SHP5401 for sports) in the SQ dept. Something had to be done
 
I peeled of the front screens. They are peel and stick so I put them on some wax paper. Now they do the things they say on the box such as quick and solid bass(jabs tighter but harder). A bit bigger and more open since they aren't blanketed over and they are brighter but still not peaky like JVC of old. I look in and see that the driver is metal capped(a center dome and 2mm holes on the perimeter) so their signature comes from that and not the filter screens which just seem to be there to turn them into an "XX". Since they are  still encased I doubt I'll put replacement screens on and just leave them. Still bassy but not basshead.
 
Really jumped them up a level since they are freer, quicker, clearer which shows their detail and what they highlight in their signature even more so now. I recommend the mod for them to be both better and an all-rounder.

Sorry dude,
 
i'm interested into buy Kanen as a running rough iem, and i love bass (actually i use a Meelec M6, but they do not convices me); you will reccomed these to me?
 
Thanks a lot
 
Edit: In addition ANYONE can reccomend me a good sport IEM (possibly sweatproof or at least very robust) with Mic with a Bassy/Warm/V-L Shaped Signature? 
THANKS more and more