[Ellis]

They are roughly the same size as Klipsch oval tips.

Thanks, see below.

I literally am getting custom silicone sleeves from 1964EARS for the Flux. Yes, I know that paying $100 for a $50 IEM seems crazy, but I really do like the Flux's sound. (Plus, I hadn't heard of the Klipsch oval tips fitting when I ordered them.   )

That said, 1964EARS have taken sleeves off their website since then (I ordered them in late December), so you'd have to go somewhere else for that option.

Yeah, that is a little crazy I will try the Klipsch ovals first I think xD

I only have medium Klipsch gels. I feel like the Klipsch gels run a little smaller than the stock SS tips on average but I don't have the other Klipsch gels to confirm.


The Spark is more v-shaped, with less deep bass and treble extension and mids that are not as rich and full.


[COLOR=454545]That’s a little crazy, alright . Hope they sound even better with a custom fit![/COLOR]


RE: the EPH-100 – it sounds to me like you’re after something leaner. The EPH-100 has a ton of bass, a pretty warm tone, and a unique treble character with the energy coming in pretty high up in the spectrum. It’s a quicker driver compared to the GR99 so it doesn’t have the VSonics’ issues, but considering that you’ve gravitated towards the CC51 and SHE3580 (aside from presentation) I think the tonal balance and thickness of the EPH-100 might be problematic for you.


 


P.S. Yes, those came to mind because they are in your budget


 



Honestly I'm not convinced the A81 is as good as the GR07 quite yet. Jury's still out on it though. I would say Phonak 232 with Comply tips but that costs quite a lot more and doesn't have more forward vocals. The Alclair Reference would be even better but its bass is more in line with the GR07 than the GR07BE.

OK cheers, I think I will grab some mediums then.

 

[Francisk]

Mechgamer 123, the Phonak PFE232 isolates pretty well but not to Ety ER4PT's level of isolation. The PFE232 is very detailed on the top end and has a good and fast slam to percussive instruments. Low bass is presented very well with good body but not to the extent of sounding boomy. The ports on the earpiece is merely for cosmetic purpose.

 

[steelglam]

  RE: the EPH-100 – it sounds to me like you’re after something leaner. The EPH-100 has a ton of bass, a pretty warm tone, and a unique treble character with the energy coming in pretty high up in the spectrum. It’s a quicker driver compared to the GR99 so it doesn’t have the VSonics’ issues, but considering that you’ve gravitated towards the CC51 and SHE3580 (aside from presentation) I think the tonal balance and thickness of the EPH-100 might be problematic for you.
 
P.S. Yes, those came to mind because they are in your budget

Thanks, ljokerl.
 
I actually don't think I have a problem with IEMs that have thicker note presentation.  In fact, I think a big part of the reason that the HiFiMAN Re-0 spent the least time in my possession out of all the IEMs that I've tried is because of the lean presentation (also they were too bright for my taste).  The note thickness was actually one of the things that I most liked about the Vsonic GR99's; what I didn't like about them was that things seemed too veiled (not sure if that was due to too much of a bass bump or the speed of the driver).
 
I think the problems that I had with the CC51's were the presentation of the mids (too far back) and the lack of air.  The SHE3580's got the presentation of the mids and the tonal balance correct for my taste, but they just didn't resolve enough and were a bit lean.  This is where the JVC HA-FXT90's came in: they delivered a thicker note presentation (same goes for the GR99's) and got the clarity, resolution, airiness, speed, imaging, and expansiveness aspects correct for my taste.  When I first got the JVC's, it was eye opening what I had been missing with the less expensive models that I've tried.  But the tonal balance and forwardness of the JVC's is just off for my tastes; they make me fatigued. 
 
If there was some way to combine the SHE3580's tonal balance and presentation of the mids with the above qualities that I like about JVC's, I think it would be pretty close to what I was after.    

 

[jhooVA]

I recently just bought some of the RHA 750s and have to say that their construction is very solid and materials are top notch. However, there is a couple things that I don't like about them.

Cons
1. The cones could be a little longer. I feel like they don't get into my ear easily enough and have a tendency to have the metal housing rub against the inner cartilage of my ear causing my ear to become sore. This could just be my funky ears, but thought its worth mentioning.
2. While the sound clarity is excellent, I feel that the mids are a little too pronounced and leave my ears with a ring in them even at mid to mid-high volume levels.
3. The cable is of excellent quality, but perhaps a bit too long. I use my IEMs on the go and hate having to wrap my chord to conceal it when I like it tucked away. Could stand to have the chord 8-10" shorter in my opinion.
4. I don't consider myself an avid basshead. But feel that the bass on these are lacking, unfortunately. The bass is exceptional through the ranges but not powerful enough to my liking. I listen to a lot of hip hop and rock and would like a little more on the low end if the spectrum to equal out the exaggerated mids. That said, listeners to jazz, country, female vocal rock or classical will adore these IEMs.
 

Completely agree with you about anything related to fit with these IEMs.  I had to send them back because of that as otherwise for the most part I thought they hit it out of the park. 
 
Interesting you say that the mids are too pronounced while the bass is lacking.  I thought the mids were veiled and the bass plenty voluminous, and most reviewers seem to agree with that statement.  Not sure at all about the mids, but when it comes to bass, given your musical preference, perhaps it's mid-bass you are looking for and not necessarily sub-bass, which the MA750 have plenty of.  I think things will even out for you with some burn in.  It took about 25-30 hours for mine to really hit optimal SQ. 
 
Good luck with the fit and keeping it in the ear.  If that works out for you, these seem to be a steal for SQ. 

 

[hwkaholic]

  Completely agree with you about anything related to fit with these IEMs.  I had to send them back because of that as otherwise for the most part I thought they hit it out of the park. 
 
Interesting you say that the mids are too pronounced while the bass is lacking.  I thought the mids were veiled and the bass plenty voluminous, and most reviewers seem to agree with that statement.  Not sure at all about the mids, but when it comes to bass, given your musical preference, perhaps it's mid-bass you are looking for and not necessarily sub-bass, which the MA750 have plenty of.  I think things will even out for you with some burn in.  It took about 25-30 hours for mine to really hit optimal SQ. 
 
Good luck with the fit and keeping it in the ear.  If that works out for you, these seem to be a steal for SQ. 

 
I am a self proclaimed non-audiophile and just your everyday Joe, so take that for what it's worth.  
 
I have put about 5 hours of listening to various types of music with these today. From Led Zeppelin to Zac Brown Band to Avicii to Eminem each have performed better today.  I also switched to a pair of silicone tips from an older set of IEMs that I had and seem to be getting better bass.  I will say that after listening to them for the duration today that the my ears have maybe gotten more use to the comfort or the in ear portion.  However, the over ear portion of the chord is kind of annoying.  I really wish that it was more rigid and formed a little better to the contour of my ear.  I may try using cable heat shrink to firm it up a bit.  I just can't get past the fact that any time something hits the chord that the buds move in my ear. I have tried all of the tips provided and the same thing happens with each of them.  As I stated previously, I really want to like these!!  But the small annoyances such as overall comfort and the over ear cable may force me to send them back.

 

[ljokerl]

  To be honest, I'm partly doing this to get a sense as to whether I'd like how a CIEM feels in my ear. I know silicone sleeves are going to feel somewhat different than acrylic shells, but if I don't end up minding the feel I'm probably going to save up my money for a CIEM as my next major pruchase.

 
That makes more sense.
 
It would be nice of the Flux had a more common nozzle diameter, so you could re-use those custom sleeves on other universal earphones.
 

I recently just bought some of the RHA 750s and have to say that their construction is very solid and materials are top notch. However, there is a couple things that I don't like about them.

Cons
1. The cones could be a little longer. I feel like they don't get into my ear easily enough and have a tendency to have the metal housing rub against the inner cartilage of my ear causing my ear to become sore. This could just be my funky ears, but thought its worth mentioning.
2. While the sound clarity is excellent, I feel that the mids are a little too pronounced and leave my ears with a ring in them even at mid to mid-high volume levels.
3. The cable is of excellent quality, but perhaps a bit too long. I use my IEMs on the go and hate having to wrap my chord to conceal it when I like it tucked away. Could stand to have the chord 8-10" shorter in my opinion.
4. I don't consider myself an avid basshead. But feel that the bass on these are lacking, unfortunately. The bass is exceptional through the ranges but not powerful enough to my liking. I listen to a lot of hip hop and rock and would like a little more on the low end if the spectrum to equal out the exaggerated mids. That said, listeners to jazz, country, female vocal rock or classical will adore these IEMs.
5. The case that comes with these could have been a little more thought out. It isn't big enough for me to comfortably place the headphones in it and have the confidence that they aren't scrunched or could be possible damaged. These definitely deserve a hard case and I will likely buy one for them.
6. The solid construction doesn't make these heavy. If anything, I wish the chord that goes over the ear was a little more rigid and form fitting. When wearing the cable inside/under a jacket or shirt it has a tendency to "ride up" or lift., so to speak, causing the ear pieces to become loose in my ears.

Bottom line, I am going to give these a loooong day of listening to give them a better shot at what I want them to be and test them with a variety of genres.

Design and looks wise, they are everything I want an IEM to be. I know I touched on the negatives more here, but joker hit all of the the positive quite well.

Overall, the sound stage is very good. Vocals, guitar, horns and the mid range are dominant in the sound. I just wish the bass had a little more oomph to it on the low end.

I'll report back after a while to see if some burn in has any effect on my findings so far. I'll also say I only have about 5-7 hours on them as of now.

 
It sounds like you’re not getting a good seal. The MA750 definitely has significantly more bass than mids – I would suggest trying all of the different eartips and inserting them deeper in your ear (hopefully the housing design won’t prevent you from doing this).
 

  Whoa, even though the A81 is almost twice as much as the GR07, you don't think it sounds quite as good?
Does the Phonak 232 isolate very well though? Those ports on the back make it seem otherwise... And I know I've asked this before (against the GR07 and UE900), but how would you say the bass and upper midrange (female vocal area?) compares on the 1964 V3 to the GR07 BE?

 
There are a lot of earphones and headphones that cost more than the GR07 but don’t perform as well.
 
The vents on the PFE 232 are fake/decorative, With silicone tips its isolation is average-ish but with the Complys its pretty good.
 
The V3 has more mid-bass than the GR07BE and mids that are a bit more forward/present overall. The V3 lacks the sibilance of the GR07 though.

 

[obsydion]

Hi Joker!
I’ve been lurking in this incredible thread for awhile now trying to learn the world of IEMs from scratch so I could ask for a recommendation without sounding like too much of an idiot.
 
I currently own Audeo PFE 122 perfect fit (black filters) and use silicon tips over comply because the latter gets gummed up and I live in a cold environment that makes the foam tough as hell to mould. Also probably prefer shallow to mid insertion depth. I absolutely love them as my very first upgrade from stock Apple earphones. (I won’t go into the 2 x UE Super Fi 5vis that broke within a few months of getting them. Shoddy wiring and quality). I only run them off iPhones and iPods in the past and I don’t see myself going down the amplifier route in the near future so low impedance is key.
 
Looking for a big upgrade and the natural progression would be Phonak PFE 232 but I’m not confident on warranty issues since they’re folding and I want to increase my horizons and go with another brand.
Decided on CIEMs, budget <$500
 
Music taste: alt-Rock, metal, movie scores, neo classical, ambient, jazz/blues/vocals, IDM. According to your list, a few CIEMs fall under that price range and are rated highly: 1964 V3, Alclair Reference, Clear Tune CT-200, Custom Music One/Two and (though universal) InEar SD-2s.
 
That list runs the gamut of the number of BA drivers used so I guess it’s down to sound signature, value, service.
I am quite intrigued by the silicon shells offered by Custom Art though There’s a slim chance I may be in Singapore end of March and be able to demo some of the Custom Art stuff but the rest I may never get a chance to try. I would love any advice on the list I provided and most definitely any that aren’t in that list or are universals! Keep up the amazing work!!

 

[mechgamer123]

 

  Whoa, even though the A81 is almost twice as much as the GR07, you don't think it sounds quite as good?
Does the Phonak 232 isolate very well though? Those ports on the back make it seem otherwise... And I know I've asked this before (against the GR07 and UE900), but how would you say the bass and upper midrange (female vocal area?) compares on the 1964 V3 to the GR07 BE?

There are a lot of earphones and headphones that cost more than the GR07 but don’t perform as well.
 
The vents on the PFE 232 are fake/decorative, With silicone tips its isolation is average-ish but with the Complys its pretty good.
 
The V3 has more mid-bass than the GR07BE and mids that are a bit more forward/present overall. The V3 lacks the sibilance of the GR07 though.

I guess I'm not too surprised. Just in terms of tonality when I compared the GR07 BEs I have here to the ASG-2, UE900, DN-1000 and VSD1Ses, I prefer the GR07 to all of them. It has the forward sounding vocals (both male and female), a nice bass boost (though it could have a bit more midbass for the closet basshead in me), and for whatever reason I don't hear the sibilance on this particular set of GR07 BEs that I remember on my GR07 MK2s I had last year. Maybe my ears are just broken though. Maybe it's also because I've pretty much stuck to the hybrids with foam in them though.
 
I sort of figured out how to boost the mediocre isolation of the GR07s, I cut the stems off some old Klipsch tips and put them around the nozzle, then put some Meelectronics tri-flange tips cut down to bi-flange for more comfort on top of those. 
 
Dang it, that's exactly what I wanted to hear in terms of tonality for the V3. I'm still arguing inside on whether or not to get CIEMs, considering the resale value would be terrible if I ever sold them and I'd have to reshell them to the tune of $250 from 1964ears every ~24 months (even less since I seem to be losing weight a bit right now)... 

 

[EveTan]

   
 
Dang it, that's exactly what I wanted to hear in terms of tonality for the V3. I'm still arguing inside on whether or not to get CIEMs, considering the resale value would be terrible if I ever sold them and I'd have to reshell them to the tune of $250 from 1964ears every ~24 months (even less since I seem to be losing weight a bit right now)... 

I know I've already told you before, but you could definitely get alot more "sound" with a $500 universal vs a $500 custom. I wouldn't get the V3 if I were you. 

 

[mechgamer123]

 

   
 
Dang it, that's exactly what I wanted to hear in terms of tonality for the V3. I'm still arguing inside on whether or not to get CIEMs, considering the resale value would be terrible if I ever sold them and I'd have to reshell them to the tune of $250 from 1964ears every ~24 months (even less since I seem to be losing weight a bit right now)... 

I know I've already told you before, but you could definitely get alot more "sound" with a $500 universal vs a $500 custom. I wouldn't get the V3 if I were you. 

I really don't want to get CIEMs either, frankly, but please tell me of a <$550 IEM that the same sound sig as the V3 and also isolates as well, because I haven't seen one. 

 

 

[EveTan]

  I really don't want to get CIEMs either, frankly, but please tell me of a <$550 IEM that the same sound sig as the V3 and also isolates as well, because I haven't seen one. 

 

I can't answer the sound question, but if you have a finicky ear canal...well, I guess there's not much room unless you go custom. Isolation is largely on tips, so if you can't find a tip that suits you for isolation, you'll have to go for CIEMs. From my experience, acrylic CIEMs isolate as much as a good tip (like Ortofons for my ear canal), but if you can't get one with a certain tip, then just ride with the V3s.

 

[Lempelig]

Hi joker.
 
I'm wondering if you can help me find a new IEM. I bought the AT CK10 after reading your review, and absolutely loved them, unfortunately I lost them and haven't found a replacement yet. The only thing I found missing in them were a bit more bass presence, but I wouldn't sacrifice the precision and speed for it though. Since I'm looking for something new, it might as well be an upgrade. Do you perhaps have a couple of recommendations, or a general path to look at? At this stage I'm looking at both universals and customs.
 
Regards
 
Edit: I mainly listen to metal, rock, classic rock, blues, singer songwriter and a bit of folk and country.

 

[Pastapipo]

Hello Joker,
 
Thank you again for the great reviews!
I ordered the vsd1s on your recommendation and I absolutely love them, especially the clarity, non-siblant highs and the smooth forward mids (guitars).
Now I'm looking for another upgrade.
 
What I'm searching for is:  the vsd1s with:
1.) sub-bass instead of mid-bass.
2.) a more spacious sound.
3.) Better instrument separation.
 
I listen mainly to Indie/rock music.
What do you think comes the closes to my wishes with a budget of <100$. Maybe 150$ if its worth the "bang for buck", but lower is always better for a student .
Thank you!

 

[soundblast75]

  Added RHA MA750. The overall ranking has been updated here.
 
 
 
 
 
 
To be honest I hadn't heard of it until now. I still haven't been convinced that going balanced is worth it with IEMs, but it's certainly interesting if it improves the RE-400. I do use my RE-600 balanced with the HM-901 every once in a while - it's an excellent combination. 

Hey , it would have been great if you'd reviewed the SE846 on page 846, haha

 

[Shawn71]

Hey , it would have been great if you'd reviewed the SE846 on page 846, haha

+1»»» Nice pointing out.