[ljokerl]

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why do most custom iem are ba while only a select few dynamic?

 
Good question - I am not sure there is a way to really know. If I had to guess I'd say it's just the way that market evolved. You have to remember that the custom IEM market isn't very old and wasn't pioneered by the big audio brands with tons of experience on the headphone side of things (Sennheiser, AKG, etc). It was started by guys doing live sound in order to make the lives of musicians easier on stage. Also, I don't know if this had anything to do with it but Etymotic had already proven the accuracy of the balanced armature by that point with the ER4 launched sometime in the late 80s. Anyway, under different conditions it's conceivable that a lot of stage monitors would be dynamic - there's just no way to really know.
 
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Iv been using a pair of VSonic GR02 Bass Edition for over a year. Though I really loved the set overall, I really felt it lacking in the bass department. Didnt quite "Feel" the punch/thump much with these. Now that they have developed an issue (the left bud keeps shutting down all the time, starts working when I tweak the plug. That obviously does not work when I am on the move, and even when I am stationary, I have to keep tweaking it from time to time), I figured I might have to upgrade soon. So I dont have a very big budget (say about INR 5000 ~ USD 100 tops after extending my budget as much as I possibly can), and I am in India, so options are limited too, kind of. I havent been able to figure out the additional cost (customs/taxes/duties) of importing sets. So I need advice on which set to go in for next. As I had said, I really loved the GR02 BEs, except for the bass, which was actually what I had been looking for when I purchased them. So I want something similar overall, with a lot more bass. And they have to be durable too, hate to spend so much on a set and have it breaking on me. I am not a very rough user per se, but still. Some of the names from the top of my head are (In no specific order of preference, and in no way am I limited to these):
> Brainwavz M5/M2/ProAlpha (dont know whether this would be an upgrade or not)
> Fischer Audio. Now im confused between 3 of their sets, Eterna, Silver Bullets, and Consonance.
> Shure SE215
> Meelectronics M11+/M21
> SoundMagic E10
> Audio Technica CKM500
> Anything Else

If you found the bass of the GR02 BE lacking you can pretty much forget about most Brainwavz, the Silver Bullet, the SE215, the MEElecs, and the Soundmagics. 
 
The CKM500 is a little bassier than the GR02 BE (mostly more emphasized in the mid-range region) and very good overall, especially for ~$60. The Brainwavz M5 has a lot of bass but is less similar to the BE than the CKM500 with its much more recessed treble. The Consonance is a slight downgrade from the GR02 IMO. 
 
I would go for the CKM500 - it's tough to beat for the price. You do need a good seal with it to feel that punch but it's there. Another option might be the HiSound Wooduo 2. Not sure how much it costs these days but that's the most bass I can think of with an overall sound signature close to the GR02 BE. Tons of deep bass on it - as much as with the FutureSonics Atrios - which is how it differs from the CKM500 (which emphasizes mid-bass more than sub-bass). 

 

[peter123]

 
I've noticed that the Sony XBA-1 is being sold for USD30 at the moment (making space for the xba-10 I'd guess) and I've never tried any BA's so I'm tempted to give them a shot..
 
My current favourite IEM's (among the ones I own) is the Vsonic GR06,GR99,VSD1 and the ATH-CKN70.
 
Will the XBA-1 be in the same league as these or would I be better of saving up some more money and getting something else as my first BA's?

 

[AzatHead-Fier]

hi,
I wonder how fxt90 compares to hf5 in terms of detail level and imaging. thanks.

 

[Amitl]

thank you very much for commenting Joker and everyone!

 

[sinquito]

Quote:

 
I've noticed that the Sony XBA-1 is being sold for USD30 at the moment (making space for the xba-10 I'd guess) and I've never tried any BA's so I'm tempted to give them a shot..
 
My current favourite IEM's (among the ones I own) is the Vsonic GR06,GR99,VSD1 and the ATH-CKN70.
 
Will the XBA-1 be in the same league as these or would I be better of saving up some more money and getting something else as my first BA's?

I don't have any earphone that you own but I do own the xba-1 and for 30 bucks I think it's a good price, I got mine for a little bit more and I don't regret it even thought I don't use them much, anyway, they are well made and fit really find, they are small so if you have big ears I guess you could even lay down on the side of your head without problem, they look really nice too. They sound is mid centric, but not smooth or liquid, is just that they lack a bit of bass and highs, the mids are upfront, so to my ears they sound 2D, they have a sense of clarity thought. I don't think you could get any BA at 30 bucks than sounds good and is well made, plus if you can get it locally it's a plus, instead of waiting, just my 2 cents.

 

[ljokerl]

Quote:

 
I've noticed that the Sony XBA-1 is being sold for USD30 at the moment (making space for the xba-10 I'd guess) and I've never tried any BA's so I'm tempted to give them a shot..
 
My current favourite IEM's (among the ones I own) is the Vsonic GR06,GR99,VSD1 and the ATH-CKN70.
 
Will the XBA-1 be in the same league as these or would I be better of saving up some more money and getting something else as my first BA's?

 
I've only tried the XBA-1 briefly. At the time I had just the Fischer Audio SBA-03 (same as the MEElec A161) to compare it to and I thought it was a little less accurate, but not too far behind. Based on that short impression, I would say $30 is a good deal.
 
Quote:

hi,
I wonder how fxt90 compares to hf5 in terms of detail level and imaging. thanks.

Both are high-end earphones and have good detail retrieval and imaging. The detailing of the FXT90 is handicapped slightly by its emphasizes mid-bass but in terms of presentation I thought it sounded a little more 3-dimensional than my Etys. 

 

[Niyologist]

Wow. Never noticed how dark my FXT90 was until I did a head to head comparison to the M-DUO. o_O

 

[cubota890]

Hi, ljokerl!
Amazing job done here from you. Big thanks.
I have question about Audio Technica CKM500. Have you tested it on only Cowon J3 or other device too?
Because it sound on cowons dirrerent, than on other sources i have.
With Cowon C2 it sounds like you describe -  with big bass that overshadows mids and realy deserves score 8.
But with other players, like rockboxed ipod, teclast x19hd or hisound rocco ba, that big bass dissapears( but still keeps Soundmagic E30 level for example). But clarity and mids are far better! They sound then exatly  like Senn HD595 with same clarity, mids and highs but only with more lows! They are superior to westone 2, Miles davis tributes and so on.

 

[peter123]

Quote:

I don't have any earphone that you own but I do own the xba-1 and for 30 bucks I think it's a good price, I got mine for a little bit more and I don't regret it even thought I don't use them much, anyway, they are well made and fit really find, they are small so if you have big ears I guess you could even lay down on the side of your head without problem, they look really nice too. They sound is mid centric, but not smooth or liquid, is just that they lack a bit of bass and highs, the mids are upfront, so to my ears they sound 2D, they have a sense of clarity thought. I don't think you could get any BA at 30 bucks than sounds good and is well made, plus if you can get it locally it's a plus, instead of waiting, just my 2 cents.

 
Quote:

 
I've only tried the XBA-1 briefly. At the time I had just the Fischer Audio SBA-03 (same as the MEElec A161) to compare it to and I thought it was a little less accurate, but not too far behind. Based on that short impression, I would say $30 is a good deal.
 

 
Thank you both for your input. I'll guess I've got little to loose at that price so I'll give them  a try.

 

[cubota890]

according to clieos xba-1 is inferior in sq to mh1-c. xba has 4.4 out of 5, but mh1-c 4.65.

 

[peter123]

Quote:

according to clieos xba-1 is inferior in sq to mh1-c. xba has 4.4 out of 5, but mh1-c 4.65.

I don't really like the mh1c at all. My understanding is the xba-1 is pretty different from the mh1c so I'm hoping for a sound that I like better.

 

[sinquito]

Quote:

according to clieos xba-1 is inferior in sq to mh1-c. xba has 4.4 out of 5, but mh1-c 4.65.

So what? first, that's according to him, everyone hears different, second, the MH1c has an awful cable, the cable on the xba-1 isn't super nice but it's good, second, the MH1c has a bloated bass, not everyone can stand to it, so it all comes down to the signature preference of the listener.

 

[peter123]

Quote:

So what? first, that's according to him, everyone hears different, second, the MH1c has an awful cable, the cable on the xba-1 isn't super nice but it's good, second, the MH1c has a bloated bass, not everyone can stand to it, so it all comes down to the signature preference of the listener.

Amen to that

 

[ljokerl]

Quote:

Hi, ljokerl!
Amazing job done here from you. Big thanks.
I have question about Audio Technica CKM500. Have you tested it on only Cowon J3 or other device too?
Because it sound on cowons dirrerent, than on other sources i have.
With Cowon C2 it sounds like you describe -  with big bass that overshadows mids and realy deserves score 8.
But with other players, like rockboxed ipod, teclast x19hd or hisound rocco ba, that big bass dissapears( but still keeps Soundmagic E30 level for example). But clarity and mids are far better! They sound then exatly  like Senn HD595 with same clarity, mids and highs but only with more lows! They are superior to westone 2, Miles davis tributes and so on.

 
I don't do any of my critical listening on the J3.
 
If you use the equalizer or have some other form of DSP that turns down the bass hump (or just have a bass-shy source) the CKM500 will indeed sound clearer but it's just got a lot of mid-bass.
 
 
Quote:

So what? first, that's according to him, everyone hears different, second, the MH1c has an awful cable, the cable on the xba-1 isn't super nice but it's good, second, the MH1c has a bloated bass, not everyone can stand to it, so it all comes down to the signature preference of the listener.

The cable on the MH1C is very perplexing. Sony doesn't usually sell j-corded earphones in the US so I am not sure why they did so with this one.

 

[coryeeeee]

Thank you for the time for this post. I didn't realize there were so many different kinds of IEMs out there.