I recently got my first pair of IEMs (Truthear Zero), and apparently, my ear canals are incredibly thin. To the point that they fit perfectly fine and don't fall out with no tips at all. I tried them with tips and was legitimately in pain, so I'm not sure how much I'm missing out on. Is wearing no tips on IEMs complete sacrilege and ruining my audio quality or is it fine? They sound perfectly acceptable to my ears, besides a slight "washed out" feeling, which is obviously due to the lack of a seal.
Any ideas?
My own experience is that it‘s really not easy to find the right tips and fit. Took me months or years and I am still learning.
You can get good seal with a shallow fit, i.e. large tips and get a deep fit with small tips. This will also influence the sound, specifically the lower treble resonances.
Experiment! Try different tips and different sizes. Find out what works and what doesn’t, but maybe come back later and try it again! It took me weeks to find a good fit with the UM 3DT, maybe even longer with the Moondrop variations. Now just trying to figure out how to wear the monstrous Sony IER-Z1R…
I recently got my first pair of IEMs (Truthear Zero), and apparently, my ear canals are incredibly thin. To the point that they fit perfectly fine and don't fall out with no tips at all. I tried them with tips and was legitimately in pain, so I'm not sure how much I'm missing out on. Is wearing no tips on IEMs complete sacrilege and ruining my audio quality or is it fine? They sound perfectly acceptable to my ears, besides a slight "washed out" feeling, which is obviously due to the lack of a seal.
Any ideas?
Not only does it affect comfort and isolation (which impacts sub-bass response), but it also affects the sound signature. They can literally make or break an IEM.
FWIW, if you have issues with fitting IEMs, consider custom IEMs or custom eartips, though these are pricier.
Not only does it affect comfort and isolation (which impacts sub-bass response), but it also affects the sound signature. They can literally make or break an IEM.
FWIW, if you have issues with fitting IEMs, consider custom IEMs or custom eartips, though these are pricier.
I managed to make my own eartips by modifying silicone ones with an X-acto knife, by removing the outer bulb. Just the inner sleeve seals with my ears.
That fixed all my comfort/fitment issues. But they will only work for one IEM type (like all the 64Audio IEMs which use the same exact shell). They are a bit expensive at $150 + getting the ear mold, but definitely worth considering if you have the same ear fitment issues I do.
It’s also a good way to see if you want to dip your toes in the Custom IEM market. I used the same custom tips with 64Audio Nio and U12t to see which one I liked before I went custom.
You also might want to check out the Shure and Westone IEM’s. They both use very small nozzles (3mm) which makes them much easier to fit as opposed to stuff like Moondrop or Campfire Audio which use wider nozzles (5mm).
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