new setup

[jnev]

hey everyone, i'm new here so be easy on me lol

anyways, i recently bought a zen micro, and while so far i love it, i want to extend the love even further

now, i'm a n00b at this stuff, so i'd like to get some new headphones and a portable amp (do i even need one??). the headphones i want to be sound-isolating earbuds for under $200. i've read that many people around here like the shure e3c's. any other suggestions? would an amp make a big difference in my listening? i wouldn't say i'm an audiophile, but i am more sensitive towards music than most people are. if it helps i can barely tell the difference between a song encoded at 128kbps vs a song encoded 256kbps.

thanks so much

 

[crypt@]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jnev ... i want to extend the love even further now,...

You can always go with the AKG K1000, which most definitely requires an amp to drive it.

Which brings to mind the saying:
Welcome to Head-Fi, sorry about your wallet!

Quote:

Originally Posted by jnev ... the headphones i want to be sound-isolating earbuds for under $200...

Etymotic's ER6, ER6i...?

 

[Cyclone]

er6i's are better than the er6's i hear. so i would shill out the extra 10 bucks or whatever it is and go with a color matching headphone that sounds better

. oh and congrats on the zen micro, i love mine

. theres a ton of people around here with em.

 

[jnev]

thanks for the welcome

and i'm also sry about my wallet

i was looking at the er6i's. how do you think they compare to the shure e3c's? i've heard that the shures are hard to get a good fit in your ears with...

about the akg's. where can i find them? i searched amazon (my usual music equipment place. is there a better place?) and couldn't find them...

thanks

 

[Jmmmmm]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jnev i was looking at the er6i's. how do you think they compare to the shure e3c's? i've heard that the shures are hard to get a good fit in your ears with...

i don't think the shures are any more difficult than the ety's, though i may be wrong.

ety's: more detail, much better highs, not so much bass
shure's: more bass, 'fuller' sound,not as much detail

a lot of people prefer ety's, i prefer shure's because i'm more of a basshead...

 

[Cyclone]

i spent the last 15 minutes reading a bunch of posts/threads on the er6i vs e3c's and ive come to the same conclusion that Jmmm has come to. The ety's do have their astetic drawbacks/fitting issues. some people have problems fitting them with the 3 cone plug and just use the foam ones wich isolate more noise. but the foams are so F'ing ugly. why coulnt they make them black or white or grey? WHY ORANGE?!? that doesnt make any sense, they arent selling to construction workers.

.

so my advice is try out the fit if you can and chose the phones on what kind of music you listen to IE: Rock/Rap = Shure's Classical/Other Higher pitched music = Ety's

 

[jnev]

the main things i'm looking for is clarity and to a lesser extent bass. the stock 'phones than come with the micro have NO bass at all, whereas my crappy sony mdr-v250's have too much

looks like both have some of what i'm looking for...

 

[Cyclone]

ya tell me about it. unfortuanatly the only way to remedy the problem is to shell out another 100-150 bucks for the er4's.... i dont think you will fully understand the welcome to head-fi sorry about your wallet statement until your having to will your hand away from the add to cart button.

 

[Jmmmmm]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jnev the main things i'm looking for is clarity and to a lesser extent bass. the stock 'phones than come with the micro have NO bass at all, whereas my crappy sony mdr-v250's have too much looks like both have some of what i'm looking for...

i dont think i would worry about the e3's having too much bass...it's just more than teh ety's. i think your best bet is to buy one or both from a place with a good return policy, and return the ones you dont like. if you can't do this, then go to the headphones section and read up! of course you'll probably end up with ue10's in a month

note that all canalphones take some getting used to, so do some listening with them before making a decision. i've initially disliked/been disappointed with all canalphones i've used, but soon I started to really like them

 

[jnev]

you're probably right... when i buy them (around mid-march) i'll probably be shelling out around $500 instead of the <$200 i initially wanted. don't know if that's a good or bad thing...

so far (if i'm to stick with sub $200), the shure e3c's (who comes up with these names??) seem to be the best for me. anyone know if comp-u-plus is a good place to buy from? they have the e3c's for only $120 and the er6's for $114.

 

[Jmmmmm]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jnev you're probably right... when i buy them (around mid-march) i'll probably be shelling out around $500 instead of the <$200 i initially wanted. don't know if that's a good or bad thing... so far (if i'm to stick with sub $200), the shure e3c's (who comes up with these names??) seem to be the best for me. anyone know if comp-u-plus is a good place to buy from? they have the e3c's for only $120 and the er6's for $114.

yeah but compuplus's cheapest shipping is $15. some places have the e3c's for $120 incl. shipping

http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/showt...&highlight=e3c

 

[jnev]

that's a good point. oh well, i still have plenty of time to decide.

any other suggestions for the 'phones?

thanks

 

[fr4c]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jnev about the akg's. where can i find them? i searched amazon (my usual music equipment place. is there a better place?) and couldn't find them...

he meant it as a joke. they are way over your budget.

 

[jnev]

taking advantage of noobs isn't very nice... lol

 

[Cyclone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jnev i searched amazon (my usual music equipment place. is there a better place?) and couldn't find them... thanks

well as mentioned before he meant it as a joke, but i prefer newegg to amazon anyday. they almost always ship to my doorstep in about 3 days sometimes 4 if its a big item or if i buy late at night.

(oh and they're prices are great with fantastic customer support, not that you'll ever need it)