[suman134]

  Hi ljokerl,
 
I ordered S1 and listened to it for couple of days but I'm returning it. Unfortunately they didn't sound better than A161p to my ear. They have too much bass. It's OK for guitar, rock and metal music but jazz trios sound rather disappointing. I mean double bass and drums are all over piano notes for instance. Plus I felt smooth lower end made highs sound harsh at higher volume, trumpet especially sounds unpleasant.
While sound stage does appear to be wider I felt instrument separation wasn't as good as in A161p. Plus A161p gives you so much more detail.
Maybe I'm on BA side in BA vs DD battle? I don't know.
 
Anyway, I'm back listening on A161p and I hope they will survive few more months but I still wander, where do I go when they die? The have the best sound I came across but poor build quality in comparison to other sets at that price point.
Should I try etys HF2 next, or some dual driver BA? What would you consider an upgrade from A161p, with similar characteristic, preferably with mic, but I guess I might have to give up on mic at the end.
 
i appreciate your response!

 
    hf2 will kill your bass , ruler flat bass , if you can do with that , go for hf2 any day , or you can opt for re-400 , rha ma-750 , in BA's you can go for gr-01 , ba-200 . if you are not looking for bass nor high , just clarity and separation , go for re-400 .

 

[loomisjohnson]

ljokerl:
apologies if you've answered this already, but on your 1-10 quality scale, where would you put the philips fidelio s1/s2?
many thanks,
lj

 

[Francisk]

Chide Mleko, if you like balanced jazz trio sound I think you're going to like the Ety Hf2. If you prefer slightly better high frequency extension then go for Ety ER4PT instead. If you like a little fun sound signature with excellent detail and better bass extension but not bloated then go for Phonak PFE232. Jazz trio also sound very good with the PFE232 too and I find them to be very vers atile actually. It produces very nice sound with whatever I throw at it but if you prefer a more forward mid and a flatter sound signature then go for the Ety ER4PT instead. The PFE232 is going on sale at Amazon around $390 which is excellent value. It used to be priced at $600.

 

[ljokerl]

  Yeah, I'm pretty happy with the N4, especially given how I jumped the gun and bought it before it was released purely based on your 4S review and hoping it's at least similar to it in performance. As far as the new design, I have no issues with the comfort but it is a bit on the thick side in comparison to 4ai, for instance, but it is more like a proper universal now with the screwed on faceplate and without the consistency issues of the handmade nozzles.

 
That's good to hear. Thick is better than extra bits sticking into the side of your ear. 
 

  Hi ljokerl,
 
I currently own the SE530 IEM and the cable is starting to crack. I've had it for almost 5 years now, so fine, time to replace it. I'm however looking for a more affordable IEM now, since I recently bought a good pair of headphones which I use for my more critical listening sessions. These IEMs will be mostly for commuting and exercising and otherwise casual use. So I'm looking in the price range of $100 - $200.
 
For one, I'm looking for IEMs that isolate really well, as I like to be able to isolate myself fully from my surroundings when listening on a train / airplane. In terms of sound signature, when comparing to the SE530 I'm looking for a bit more treble extension, as the SE530 is quite rolled off. I like the presentation of the mids, but I could also live with mids that were slightly less forward and thick. And in terms of bass, I'm not a basshead, but I do like it when an IEM produces a decent amount of bass and can reach low into the sub-bass region, while still being pretty detailed. Definitely not looking for anything bloated. And in terms of soundstage, I'd definitely like a much wider soundstage than the SE530, with good layering and depth as well.
 
I realize I probably can't have everything given the price range I'm looking at, but do you have any recommendations? I looked at your IEM list on your site but I'm really not sure what to pick.

 
The HiFiMan RE-400 might be all you need. It has smooth but pretty well-extended treble, not lack of midrange presence and punchy, some bass roll-off but not really worse than the SE530. It doesn't have a particularly wide soundstage but like you said, can't really have everything.
 
The VSonic GR07 does a little better in bass depth and has a wider soundstage but its treble might sound a bit sibilant coming from the SE530 and it doesn't have the greatest layering. Its isolation is also not quite as good as that of the RE-400 IMO. 
 
The Creative In-Ear 3 is something I've always thought sounds like a Shure product but IMO it doesn't improve on the SE530 in any way.
 
As a super-low-budget option you can also consider the SteelSeries Flux In-Ear. Again good isolation (though you may have to get some aftermarket eartips), excellent bass presence, and good end to end extension overall.
 
Lastly, the Ety HF5 is the absolute best thing you can get for isolation and has good treble extension and a very balanced overall sound. Not as much bass presence as the SE530, though, and I don't think it has a soundstaging advantage over the SE530.
 
P.S you might want to contact Shure - they have pretty good customer service and might cut you a discount on the 535.
 

  Hi ljokerl,
 
I ordered S1 and listened to it for couple of days but I'm returning it. Unfortunately they didn't sound better than A161p to my ear. They have too much bass. It's OK for guitar, rock and metal music but jazz trios sound rather disappointing. I mean double bass and drums are all over piano notes for instance. Plus I felt smooth lower end made highs sound harsh at higher volume, trumpet especially sounds unpleasant.
While sound stage does appear to be wider I felt instrument separation wasn't as good as in A161p. Plus A161p gives you so much more detail.
Maybe I'm on BA side in BA vs DD battle? I don't know.
 
Anyway, I'm back listening on A161p and I hope they will survive few more months but I still wander, where do I go when they die? The have the best sound I came across but poor build quality in comparison to other sets at that price point.
Should I try etys HF2 next, or some dual driver BA? What would you consider an upgrade from A161p, with similar characteristic, preferably with mic, but I guess I might have to give up on mic at the end.
 
i appreciate your response!

 
The A161P uses a Knowles ED driver. Since you like it so much maybe just stick with it - the Ety HF2 and ER4 both use variations of it. There are a couple of hybrid earphones that use it as well but I doubt you will like those. Dual BAs sound different and if you found the S1 harsh you'll want to be very careful venturing into that territory. The VSonic GR01 is the safest option among those IMO but it lacks a mic, is pricy, and isn't quite as durable as the cheaper VC1000 in my experience.
 

  ljokerl:
apologies if you've answered this already, but on your 1-10 quality scale, where would you put the philips fidelio s1/s2?
many thanks,
lj

8.9-ish. I like both of them better than the MA750, for example, but not as much as the GR07.

 

[starfly]

 
The HiFiMan RE-400 might be all you need. It has smooth but pretty well-extended treble, not lack of midrange presence and punchy, some bass roll-off but not really worse than the SE530. It doesn't have a particularly wide soundstage but like you said, can't really have everything.
 
The VSonic GR07 does a little better in bass depth and has a wider soundstage but its treble might sound a bit sibilant coming from the SE530 and it doesn't have the greatest layering. Its isolation is also not quite as good as that of the RE-400 IMO. 
 
The Creative In-Ear 3 is something I've always thought sounds like a Shure product but IMO it doesn't improve on the SE530 in any way.
 
As a super-low-budget option you can also consider the SteelSeries Flux In-Ear. Again good isolation (though you may have to get some aftermarket eartips), excellent bass presence, and good end to end extension overall.
 
Lastly, the Ety HF5 is the absolute best thing you can get for isolation and has good treble extension and a very balanced overall sound. Not as much bass presence as the SE530, though, and I don't think it has a soundstaging advantage over the SE530.
 
P.S you might want to contact Shure - they have pretty good customer service and might cut you a discount on the 535.
 

 
Thanks! I went ahead and ordered the RE-400. I did contact Shure for a trade-in, but they said I would first have to send in the SE530 and they couldn't tell me beforehand if they would just fix it or then offer me to buy a new SE535 at a discounted price; in other words, too much hassle for me. And the discounted SE535 probably still couldn't beat the RE-400 in terms of price.
 
Edit: I also ordered the Yamaha EPH-100, will see which one I like more. Perhaps I might like the Yammie, to contrast my full-size Sony 7520 cans.

 

[Chude Mleko]

   
The A161P uses a Knowles ED driver. Since you like it so much maybe just stick with it - the Ety HF2 and ER4 both use variations of it. There are a couple of hybrid earphones that use it as well but I doubt you will like those. Dual BAs sound different and if you found the S1 harsh you'll want to be very careful venturing into that territory. The VSonic GR01 is the safest option among those IMO but it lacks a mic, is pricy, and isn't quite as durable as the cheaper VC1000 in my experience.

Thanks ljokerl,
 
I think I'll try next one of these then: VC1000, Ety HF2 or ER-4PT (thanks Francisk). The latter is probably a bit too expensive for me. Have you compared HF2 and VC1000 before?

 

[docked seaman]

what iems do you reccomend for classical music (any price range) ?   thanks

 

[oHUTCHYo]

Joker please can you help me...

Can you reccomend a succesor to my Hippo VB? I'm on my second pair now but would like to move up a notch, circa £200 budget. I use my Hippo VB with the bassiest plate, so am looking for an IEM which really bangs hard on the lows similarly but also has better clarity/resolution/separation as my needs from an IEM progress and I grow more demanding of SQ.

My most expensive headphones to date have been the Sennheiser IE80, they didnt go as low as my Hippo VB and had that midbass hump Im not accustomed to from a V-shape profile Ive become accustomed to, but I did appreciate the better overall SQ. Ultimately however I sold them and stuck with the Hippo.

Any other suggestions I can research/try? My main genre is techno and house plus electronic acts such as Underworld, Chemical Brothers, Prodigy etc.

Thanks in advance

Suggestions from Headfi have been Sony XB90EX, Denon C300, JVC FX200, JVC F700.

 

[ozkan]

Etymotic Er4s is good for classical music.

 

[suman134]

  what iems do you reccomend for classical music (any price range) ?   thanks

 
      re-400 .

 

[Ivabign]

Joker,
 
I have a question for you....
 
I bought, enjoyed, but ultimately sold my UE TF10's due to an inability to wear them anywhere else than sitting at my computer due to fit issues. I plunged in the UE pool again when there was a sale on UE900's figuring that the ergonomics were superior and the fit issues inherent in the TF10's would not replicate themselves. I guess I have really big canals as I struggle to get a consistent seal with even the biggest tips - no issues when stationary, but try to wear outside and move around? You get the idea.
 
My question is whether a re-shell would be the way to go cost-wise and sound-wise - I only have $200 in on these and Fisher Hearing can mold them for around $110 shipped - but is there a straight custom for around the same $$ (or a hundred or so more) that you think would outperform a pair of re-shelled UE900's?
 
Or would trying to replicate the sound I could expect from the 4BA custom version of the UE900 necessitate a larger investment in a straight custom? (or nothing that cheap will beat the UE so an investment of $500++ would be required)
 
I owned a couple of sets of Heir CIEMS and loved the feel of a custom - they were the best fit of any headphone I have ever owned and if a couple of unforeseen bills hadn't cropped up, I would still own them.
 
Sorry for being so wordy - congrats on 300!

 

[davidcotton]

  Joker,
 
I have a question for you....
 
I bought, enjoyed, but ultimately sold my UE TF10's due to an inability to wear them anywhere else than sitting at my computer due to fit issues. I plunged in the UE pool again when there was a sale on UE900's figuring that the ergonomics were superior and the fit issues inherent in the TF10's would not replicate themselves. I guess I have really big canals as I struggle to get a consistent seal with even the biggest tips - no issues when stationary, but try to wear outside and move around? You get the idea.
 
My question is whether a re-shell would be the way to go cost-wise and sound-wise - I only have $200 in on these and Fisher Hearing can mold them for around $110 shipped - but is there a straight custom for around the same $$ (or a hundred or so more) that you think would outperform a pair of re-shelled UE900's?
 
Or would trying to replicate the sound I could expect from the 4BA custom version of the UE900 necessitate a larger investment in a straight custom? (or nothing that cheap will beat the UE so an investment of $500++ would be required)
 
I owned a couple of sets of Heir CIEMS and loved the feel of a custom - they were the best fit of any headphone I have ever owned and if a couple of unforeseen bills hadn't cropped up, I would still own them.
 
Sorry for being so wordy - congrats on 300!

Thought about custom tips for them instead of a reshell?  As far as I know no one's done a ue900 yet.

 

[Ivabign]

 
Thought about custom tips for them instead of a reshell?  As far as I know no one's done a ue900 yet.

I corresponded with Fisher re: UE900 and they stated they could keep the MMX connectors (unsure if that is a plus or not) but they didn't seem to have an issue with a re-shell. I wondered about tips, but worry that they would be unwieldy - that is, sit way outside my ear and get in the way of glasses, hats, hair, etc....

 

[suman134]

Joker please can you help me...

Can you reccomend a succesor to my Hippo VB? I'm on my second pair now but would like to move up a notch, circa £200 budget. I use my Hippo VB with the bassiest plate, so am looking for an IEM which really bangs hard on the lows similarly but also has better clarity/resolution/separation as my needs from an IEM progress and I grow more demanding of SQ.

My most expensive headphones to date have been the Sennheiser IE80, they didnt go as low as my Hippo VB and had that midbass hump Im not accustomed to from a V-shape profile Ive become accustomed to, but I did appreciate the better overall SQ. Ultimately however I sold them and stuck with the Hippo.

Any other suggestions I can research/try? My main genre is techno and house plus electronic acts such as Underworld, Chemical Brothers, Prodigy etc.

Thanks in advance

Suggestions from Headfi have been Sony XB90EX, Denon C300, JVC FX200, JVC F700.

 
    im not joker but i have a xb90ex and had auditioned c300 , c300 is 4 times pricy here , 90ex being $60 c300 is like $240 in india , c300 has better sq for sure and has more rumble in bass , a bit faster decay but 90ex is a true budget bass headphones and c300 is a grown version of 90ex , not a huge improvement over in the department of bass but not bad , amazon uk have them for 65 pounds , for that price if you can handle that huge profile ( bigger then 90es from every angle ) go for c300 , they have in-built iphone controller too .

 

[ljokerl]

   
Thanks! I went ahead and ordered the RE-400. I did contact Shure for a trade-in, but they said I would first have to send in the SE530 and they couldn't tell me beforehand if they would just fix it or then offer me to buy a new SE535 at a discounted price; in other words, too much hassle for me. And the discounted SE535 probably still couldn't beat the RE-400 in terms of price.
 
Edit: I also ordered the Yamaha EPH-100, will see which one I like more. Perhaps I might like the Yammie, to contrast my full-size Sony 7520 cans.

 
Probably not in terms of price - I would think they'd provide 50% off at most. 
 
Hope you like the RE-400 and I would be curious if you get on well with the EPH-100 - it's a pretty different sound. 
 

  Thanks ljokerl,
 
I think I'll try next one of these then: VC1000, Ety HF2 or ER-4PT (thanks Francisk). The latter is probably a bit too expensive for me. Have you compared HF2 and VC1000 before?

 
The reason I recommended the GR01 over the VC1000 is that it's smoother and a little warmer in tone. 
 
The HF2 is flatter through the upper midrange than the VC1000 which IMO gives it slightly better clarity but it also sounds more "thin". The VC1000 has a bit more full-bodied sound (especially bass) but sounds a little brighter/more splashy in the treble region.
 
By the way there's an S1/VC1000 comparison in the VC1000 review - might be useful: http://theheadphonelist.com/headphone_review/vsonic-vc1000/
 

  what iems do you reccomend for classical music (any price range) ?   thanks

 
See previous page: http://www.head-fi.org/t/478568/multi-iem-review-309-iems-compared-ces-impressions-part-4-added-01-27-14-p-852/12810#post_10227049  . If you want to go up in price I recommend the Noble 4S.
 

Joker please can you help me...

Can you reccomend a succesor to my Hippo VB? I'm on my second pair now but would like to move up a notch, circa £200 budget. I use my Hippo VB with the bassiest plate, so am looking for an IEM which really bangs hard on the lows similarly but also has better clarity/resolution/separation as my needs from an IEM progress and I grow more demanding of SQ.

My most expensive headphones to date have been the Sennheiser IE80, they didnt go as low as my Hippo VB and had that midbass hump Im not accustomed to from a V-shape profile Ive become accustomed to, but I did appreciate the better overall SQ. Ultimately however I sold them and stuck with the Hippo.

Any other suggestions I can research/try? My main genre is techno and house plus electronic acts such as Underworld, Chemical Brothers, Prodigy etc.

Thanks in advance

Suggestions from Headfi have been Sony XB90EX, Denon C300, JVC FX200, JVC F700.

 
I haven't tried the sets you've been recommended except for the FX700. When I had it I thought it lost out to the FutureSonics Atrio for what you're after. The EPH-100 from Yamaha might be one to consider but I haven't heard the VB in a while so I'm not sure if its max setting had more subbass than the EPH-100 or not. The most (sub) bassy IEM I've tried is the Wooduo2 but I wouldn't call it an upgrade over the VB.
 

  Joker,
 
I have a question for you....
 
I bought, enjoyed, but ultimately sold my UE TF10's due to an inability to wear them anywhere else than sitting at my computer due to fit issues. I plunged in the UE pool again when there was a sale on UE900's figuring that the ergonomics were superior and the fit issues inherent in the TF10's would not replicate themselves. I guess I have really big canals as I struggle to get a consistent seal with even the biggest tips - no issues when stationary, but try to wear outside and move around? You get the idea.
 
My question is whether a re-shell would be the way to go cost-wise and sound-wise - I only have $200 in on these and Fisher Hearing can mold them for around $110 shipped - but is there a straight custom for around the same $$ (or a hundred or so more) that you think would outperform a pair of re-shelled UE900's?
 
Or would trying to replicate the sound I could expect from the 4BA custom version of the UE900 necessitate a larger investment in a straight custom? (or nothing that cheap will beat the UE so an investment of $500++ would be required)
 
I owned a couple of sets of Heir CIEMS and loved the feel of a custom - they were the best fit of any headphone I have ever owned and if a couple of unforeseen bills hadn't cropped up, I would still own them.
 
Sorry for being so wordy - congrats on 300!

I haven't heard many cheap customs but I doubt you'll find a better sound with a custom fit for $300-400 if you like the UE900's signature. For an upgrade in the same vein you'd have to go for like a Lime Ears LE3 or something on that level. For all I know there definitely could be something out there that would work for less but my experience with customs is pretty limited.