[sheamus]

Yes, another first poster starting a IEM for iPhone thread.  I have spent about 6 hours going over these forums the last couple days, and every time I think I have it figured out, I change my mind. So I figured I'd post the questions with my music tastes.
 
History
Started with Apple phones. Got a pair of iBeats (monster), I overpaid for them and knew it, but I was impatient. These were a huge upgrade from the apple ones, really put a smile on my face. I was worried that they would be too bassy, but it wasn't a huge issue, though they were way clearer than the Apple ones. I likely would have been happy enough with them, but I lost them. Just started a new job and thought I would treat myself to something better. 
 
Music
Bands I have listened to most lately:
Band of Horses
Arcade Fire
WinterSleep
Kings of Leon
The Killers
Matt Mays
Joel Paskett
Brett Dennon
Irish Descendants
Andrew Bird
 
Guilty pleasures/Every now and then
Great Big Sea
Waylon Jennings
Eve 6
Fred Eaglesmith
Gordon Lightfoot
Rob Zombie
AC/DC
Eminem
 
As you can see, I am all over the map, though I have not really ventured into Jazz, Classical, or Blues yet. I generally dislike rap and dance, but find myself listening to it every now and then.
 
Though process so far
There are a lot of IEM's that would be great if they had the remote/mic. But I use that feature a lot with the iPhone because the screen lock (locking out play/pause), and the mic because I spend a lot of time driving, and hate holding phone to ear.
 
I am not a bass lover by any means, though when appropriate tight bass can put a smile on my face (thinking of Fat Bottomed Girls by Queen), just as much as hearing fingers slide across guitar strings while switching chords (think of Cannonball by Damien Rice). Does this mean I like a 'bright' sound?
 
The Ety HF3's sound great but I am worried that when I do decided to listen to something like Dragula by Zombie or We Made You by Eminem (and co.) that I will be disappointed. I don't need those songs to make my eyes bug out, but when the bass is meant to be heard. Would the HF3's be sufficient?
 
Sounds like the s4i's may be a little to bassy for me.
 
The Turbine Gold and Coppers sound great on paper. People mention that they can be bassy, but they also tend to praise the mid's and lows. Sounds like a good balance.  The problem is the gold's and coppers are too expensive, and the regular ones get poor mids and highs (though I can get the regular ones for $50 refurbished from Monster).  Might be able to find golds for less than $200, but ebay is so full of fakes, I am worried.
 
MMX100 - supposed same as Beyerdynamic's DTX 100, but I can't find much info on these, and while there doesn't seem to be much criticism, their isn't exactly glowing praise.
 
Please help me, I am sick of this research!
 
~Shea M.

 

[seanmo]

maybe the nuforce 700m, might be a little bassy
or the imetal 590's  there is a version with a remote

 

[sheamus]

How would you say they two you mention compared with what I have listed?

 

[wyffels]

After contemplating the various IEMs available for the iPhone, I decided to go with the Klipsch X10i for just $250. A little above what you want, but good quality. The mids and treble are great and it has a nice natural bass, not boomy or artificially over-bassed. I bought my wife the Klipsch S4i, which may be the best deal on the market. They have amazingly good sound quality for a sub $100 IEM. I would advise to try these out from Amazon and return them if you don't like them. They have a ridiculously good return policy that I use for headphone comparisons. Both of these have the iPhone mic and play controls. 
 
You know, you can also go the way of buying a separate mic or play controler that attaches to the bottom of your IEM cable too. This may open up the possibilities of other IEMs for you. I believe Shure makes the best one. 

 

[seanmo]

@sheamus
not sure...I've tried the mc5 not the hf3 and returned it...to cold and analytical for me
also tried the coppers and really liked them, a step up over the two I mentioned in SQ and in price, but no ipod controls
plus turbines tend not to fit my ears well(I bought some refurb turbines for $40..sound great but not super comfortable for me)
definitely check out joker's reviews for more info
 

 

[sheamus]

Well FutureShop and BestBuy didn't have anything, and I new they wouldn't.  But I was in London Drugs for something unrelated last week, and they had the S4i's and the HF3's. They said they had a 30 day return policy, so I bought both to use for a couple weeks while I decide.
 
The clarity and the detail of the HF3's is crazy. I have a decent set of cans, and I remember getting them and thinking wow, I have never heard those sounds in that song before.  The HF3's do that all over again, another level up from my HD485's. You really have to jam them in your ear.  Can be a pain using them at your desk, and having to take them in and out as co-workers come to talk to you.  Bass is there... just. 
 
The S4i's sound clear, and have a ton of bass. The bass can wash the rest of the music out a bit though.  
 
I keep going back and forth. Going from HF3 to S4i, everytime I think, wow the HF3's are clearer. Going from S4i to HF3, everytime I think wow the S4i have a ton more bass. But if you haven't listened to either in a while, which ever one you put in sounds great. I really wish I could get a combination of these two for < $200.
 
For some reason I keep putting in the HF3's, I think because I want to hear the new details.  Some of my older MP3's are of lower bit rate, and I was worried the detail level of the HF3's would really ruin those songs but it is not an issue (for me).
 
The S4i's are exactly half price... and I am wondering if I could just use them... still a a massive improvement on the stock headphones of iPhone. I'll post back with my final decision.
 
edit: I should mention that people think I sound very clear on the HF3 mic; clear enough to evoke an unsolicited comment. I have not tried s4i mic yet. I usually use a JawBone Prime.

 

[Kid AXoln]

I don't know if you checked this but Apple Stores have the HF3 for $179; $20 less than London Drugs I belive. I couldn't find the S4i on London Drugs' website, but Apple has them at $109. I'm in the exact same predicament as you (need to replace an almost broken Shure E2C, and I listen to the same types of music) so I really want to hear which one you decide on.

 

[Marcus_C]

You want glowing praise of the beyer's? Look this way, I love mine. You don't get a volume control like you do for the hf3's but they're quite capable. The reason I think they don't attract much attention apart from lack of promotion from beyer is, they have a distinctly average sound signature, not bassy or bright, but to my ears with good emphasis wherever it's needed. The isolation isn't even comparable to the ety isolation but comfort is rather better. I sold the hf5 and kept the dtx100, although they are about to be replaced, if not have been already.
 
I've owned the s4, found it muddy and sibilant,didn't like it at all. The ety which I liked is very good though it's easy to get bored by the sound.
 
Although i've just noticed this thread is a few days old, enjoy the hf3's, I liked my hf5's while I had them.

 

[sheamus]

AxOln, the s4i's are $99 ar LD.
 
As it stands now, I'll likely take back the s4i's.  Funny enough, not because of their bass, but because the highs become too harsh after 20 minutes of listening.  Not sure what the proper terminology is for this.
 
I wish I could find the Beyer's locally to test them. I have seen announcements for the mmx101ie's but can't find them anywhere, too bad because supposedly the same as the 100's, but cheaper. The volume control isn't really important, as the volume on the phone functions when it is locked.  It the pause/start/skip button that is really handy, and the mic. Based on your description I should really give these a go.
 
Edit: just ordered the MMX 100's off amazon.com for about $135 with taxes/duty and shipping to Canada. That is is about $80+ cheaper than the HF3's and it sounds like they might be the 'in-betwen' I was looking for.  I'll post back, but they won't be here for a  couple weeks.  So'll return my HF3's and S4i's and go back to my cheapos for a couple weeks.
 
Thanks,
~S

 

[Marcus_C]

 
Quote:

Originally Posted by sheamus /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Not sure what the proper terminology is for this.
 

 
Ssssibilance, and you're not the only one to have thought that.

 

[sheamus]

Well my MMX 100's showed up from Amazon.com today. 
 
Packaging
Packaging is great... but by far the most frustrating box of headphone I have ever opened. They must have been hand packed, because there is no way a machine could do that.  In fact I had to remove one of the ear rubbers to remove it from packaging!
 
Build
They feel very high quality, much more so than the S4i's, and definitely par with the HF3's.  Fairly heavy cable, metal buds, hefty clip, reinforced  Y.  Though they didn't come the slider piece for shrinking the Y, which was weird, not never really that useful anyway, and easy to make one if I want.
 
Mic/Remote
The mic is actually nice not having the volume buttons.  I can instantly feel the stop/start/answer button, and that is the one I really used anyway.  Haven't had a chance to test quality of the mic though.
 
Sound.
These really are somewhere between the HF3's and the S4i's.  Not as much bass as the s4i's, but way more than the HF3's.  Clearer than the S4i's for sure, for the price range I feel they have great clarity.  They don't have the shocking detail of the HF3's, but I have a feeling that much detail plus bass is expensive and rare; in fact I am pretty sure it doesn't exist under $200 with a iPhone mic/remote.  I don't know if balanced is the term or not, but they seem to have equal amount of bass/mid/treble. Rock that sounds good with bass was satisfying but not overwhelming, and acoustical music had a warm feeling to it.
 
Conclusion
These are pretty much exactly what I was looking for; glad I followed the recomendation.  I paid $199 for the HF3's for a B&M, and these were $90 from Amazon (mind you retail is $170). I really recommend if you music taste is near mine.  I can't comment on what they'd sound like for rap, and likely a little to 'warm' for classical. 
 
Hope this helps someone else.

~S

 

[desolateplanet]

Winning!
 

 

[versp]

I think I'm too late, but for other reading this, the Phonak Audeo Perfect Bass are absolutely awesome for this. I've personally had issues with their build quality, but no-one I know who's bought them has had any issues ever.

 

[neejurulzheadfi]

Hey guys im having a dilemma between Bose MIE2i and beyer mmx101ie...and im actually considering sennheiser cx 680i. My library is about 30% rap, 35% classical and the warm feeling songs melodies, 35% techno. Somebody help me pls...

 

[sheamus]

I haven't use the other's you are considering.  But the mmx's have enough bass for rap (though there are definitely more bass heavy phones out there), and I feel that they would handle classical fine too. 6 months later I am still have with my decision.

~S