[lechonlubber]

I posted in another thread about the deal at amazon.com for these. I did a lot of research before I pulled the trigger. The two IEM's I had my eye on were these and the Shure E2c's. After much reading on these forums, I decided on the Ety's. My main concern was sound quality. My current reference for headphones are the SR-60's and a set of old Stax SRD-44's. Headphones are not my main source of music, but I do use them. I've been using a set of Apple In-Ears with my iPod daily as the Grado's are not that portable. Everytime I went back to the Grado's I was reminded of how good things can sound. Also, as IEM's, they don't really fit well in my ears and I can't get a good seal.

Initially I was going to get the E2c's because they were cheaper, but after reading all the reviews here I decided to go for the Ety's. My main concern was overall sound quality. I listen to all genre's of music...from Rock to Jazz and even some Hip Hop. From what I have read, the E2c's have great bass, but the mids and highs are weak. That's the main reason I went with the Ety's.

The one thing that I wasn't sure about was the reports of the ER-6i's not having any bass. I have to say that is not correct. The bass is smooth and clear...it's there, but you can also hear everything else. You can clearly hear the change in frequency of bass notes. Also, the bass does not overpower the the mids and highs. The attack is also fast, drums sound like drums, not just a thump. I think the complaint about the lack of bass comes from people who have gotten used to over exagerated bass from the likes of the Sony EX71's and the In-Ears. I never understood why people liked the Sony "MegaBass" on their CD players.

It was suggested that the ER-6i's were not good for Rock and Rap, I have to disagree. Hard rock with many layers doesn't sound all mushed together, you can pic out all the details. You can hear the kick drum hammer hit the drum head. Electronic music sounded clean and airy. Hip Hop still had bass, but everyting else was still there...the bass didn't overpower the rest of the music. Jazz horns and piano had no harshness. Vocals were well presented.

Overall, I have to say that the ER-6i's have a smooth sound with nothing overdone. They fit well and are comfortable for me. I'm glad that I didn't go with the E2c's because I would have probably ended up buying the ER-6i's later. Of course, now I'm wondering how the higher end Ety's or maybe some UE's sound.

Much thanks to all the posters here for all the great posts. I'm more informed about IEM's than I ever thought I would be.

 

[cheechoz]

Just wait till you try the foamies on them. The bass will be better, but not over emphasized.

 

[warpdriver]

Thanks for the review...I agree with your assessment 100%
I think the ER6i is the best IEM under $150 USD

And yes, the foamies make the ER6i even better.

 

[titaniumx3]

Quote:

Originally Posted by warpdriver Thanks for the review...I agree with your assessment 100% I think the ER6i is the best IEM under $150 USD And yes, the foamies make the ER6i even better.

The foamies actually muffled the sound for me, but they were more comfortable over long periods of use.

 

[DigDub]

i use the shure's soft flex grey sleeves on my er6i. good sound, better comfort than the foamies, easy fit and more hygenic.

 

[azncookiecutter]

If you want more bass, get an amp. I'm getting ER-6is and I suspect the Shure sound was never for me in the first place (then again, the Shures broke, leading me to buy the ER-6is). I heard the PA2V2 is probably the best match for the ER-6i, without costing a fortune. The best thing for me is that I live near the guy who sells these, Gary.

 

[Stangs55]

Quote:

Originally Posted by titaniumx3 The foamies actually muffled the sound for me, but they were more comfortable over long periods of use.

Same here...I MUCH prefer the triple flanges

 

[chesebert]

triple won't fit in mine so I cut the to bit off and it works great. But to protect my hearing I never use IEM for more than 1 hr at a time. Er6i in my opnion is much much better than anything I have heard under $200 from the big headphone. Er6i is more lively than Senn, where its relatively dark and boaring, and more neutual than Grado and the bass is excellent if amped. It gets about 80% of what Grado can output, but providing more accurate sound and a little more well defined depth of soundstage.

 

[lechonlubber]

I finally had the chance to sit down and listen to the ER-6i's with the "Foamies" as was suggested. I did notice that they do seem to go down a little deeper, but I think the highs suffer a little. I also noticed that the foamies give a little more isolation than the flanges, probably why the bass is a little better. I'm not sure which way I'm going to stay with, I'll have to go back and forth a few times to see what I like better. Either way, this is probably the best $85 I've spent on my iPod.

I picked the ER-6i's specifically because they are better matched to the iPod...especially with out the need for an amp. As a commuting IEM, they work well for me. Although, I am curious how they would sound with a small amp. I might have to pick up one of the "Altoids" variants and try it out. Anyone have any recommendations, I would want it to be small, portable and not expensive. I'd love to build one, but I just don't have the time right now.

 

[Jmmmmm]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lechonlubber I picked the ER-6i's specifically because they are better matched to the iPod...especially with out the need for an amp. As a commuting IEM, they work well for me. Although, I am curious how they would sound with a small amp. I might have to pick up one of the "Altoids" variants and try it out. Anyone have any recommendations, I would want it to be small, portable and not expensive. I'd love to build one, but I just don't have the time right now.

I agree with your views of the er6i. After owning almost all the universal IEMs, the er6i is one of the few that I know I could be happy with if all the rest disappeared, and that is impressive given their price. They are definitley the best deal in the canalphone world, imo.

From the ipod, I think there is a worthwhile improvement using the line-out -> any amp with the er6i's, mostly in the bass. For a cheap amp that I think matches well with the er6i's, I'd look at the pocketamp v2. I'm happy with the combination. The supermacro 3 is better, of course, but it's a teeeny bit more expensive.

 

[skybl4ck]

What I noticed, swtiching from E2c's to ER6's is that the warmth is really gone. How does the ER6i do in this department?

 

[kugino]

i just received my er6i today (from earphone solutions, for the same $85 shipped that amazon has it for, except i got it in 2 days via priority mail) and boy, are they sensitive. i don't hear any hiss out of my maxed out PR using the er4p, but the er6i reveals a little noise. using the foamies (i hate the triple flange) the bass is fantastic! low, punchy, and quick. using the headphone out of the ipod, however, the er6i's bass is pretty weak, IMO. granted, i've yet to break them in and i expect the bass to improve.

some other things to do tonight: see how they sound out of the go-vibe v.3, see how they sound with the shure soft flex sleeves (my IEM sleeve of choice for both etys and shures).

 

[[AK]Zip]

I will be ordering a pair of ER6i's soon. I will post a review of them once I get them.

-Alex-

 

[lechonlubber]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kugino ...and boy, are they sensitive. i don't hear any hiss out of my maxed out PR using the er4p, but the er6i reveals a little noise.

That's probably due to the huge difference in impedance.

 

[chat7]

er6i + PA2V2 is the excellent combination...