[cisforchooch]

As part of my job, I fly pretty much every week of the year.

I recently purchased a Zune and a Gigabeat S, and I take both players with me on the road. The Zune holds all my lossy files (rock/alternative), and the Gigabeat holds some of my lossless collection (classical and jazz). For now, I've got EP-630s for isolation on the plane and in the office, and PX100s for when I'm back in my hotel.

I have no complaint about my Senns, they sound great, but I'd like to upgrade my IEMs, since I spend so much of my time at work and on the plane. SQ out of my Zune and Gigabeat is really quite good, so I'm wondering if I would be better served spending the money I would invest in a good IEM amp, on a better set of IEMs, for example, the UE Triple.fi 10 Pros. Or would I be better off pairing a Tomahawk with ~$100 IEMs (Shure e2c or Super.fi 3s).

I don't need to listen to music at loud levels, and the SQ out of both DAPs is really quite good.

Thanks in advance for your input!!

 

[GreatDane]

I vote to put the money into IEMs.

 

[rockin_amigo14]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GreatDane /img/forum/go_quote.gif I vote to put the money into IEMs.

x2

 

[YoungClayB]

x3

nice IEMs will give you the absolute biggest bang for your buck.

 

[Digitalbath3737]

x4

IEMs sound great out of the headphone out. Invest in a good pair of universal an amp can come later if you really want it.

 

[rockin_amigo14]

especially when paired with a player with great sound like the Zune, the higher-end IEM's will be great. take a listen, and you might find you like the sound perfectly fine without an amp.

 

[wgr73]

Yep, iems...an amp could come later.

 

[bellsprout]

i think u should get er-4s and supermicro iv combo, which would cost about the same as triple-fi's

 

[reynman]

If you are going to travel a lot, invest more in your IEM - maybe go the custom route. I dove right in and bought the Sensa 2X-S. Best headphone purchase I've made since I started this craziness. Once you get that seal and isolation, nothing comes between you and the music (good and bad). IMHO the Sony HD1/Sensa 2X-S/RSA SR71 combo had great synergy.

Regarding a portable amp purchase do it eventually (what else are you going to do with your money!)

The sound would be better when/if a LOD is made for the Zune. I've tried the SR71 out of the headphone out of the Zune, nothing spectacular.

Another thing about the portable amp since you will be traveling a lot, you may not want to bring it with you due to airport security. Unless you are checking-in your luggage they may question you about your "little black box" in your carry on. Or they may just take it. That would be sad.

Regards - reynman

 

[battleMAUS]

they shouldnt take your amp @ an airport as long as you put it in the "electronics" bin when you are getting xrayed. you know the one, its gray and you have to put your cellphone, laptop, ipod, etc in it. if you leave the amp in your carry on then it looks suspect. well this is what i do anyway and they never say anything.

edit: and you know something if they did ever try to take my amp i wouldnt let it go easy, my pockets arent deep enough where i can just let them have something that expensive. idc if i miss my flight, id just make them replace my ticket when they figured out it wasnt a bomb

 

[wgr73]

Quote:

Originally Posted by reynman /img/forum/go_quote.gif Another thing about the portable amp since you will be traveling a lot, you may not want to bring it with you due to airport security. Unless you are checking-in your luggage they may question you about your "little black box" in your carry on. Or they may just take it. That would be sad. Regards - reynman

They won't take your amp. I recently took mine on a trip, and the only thing they did was tell me I has a cool setup!

 

[Febs]

Quote:

Originally Posted by battleMAUS /img/forum/go_quote.gif they shouldnt take your amp @ an airport as long as you put it in the "electronics" bin when you are getting xrayed.

You don't need to put the amp in a bin. In fact, I would recommend keeping it in your carry-on, because if you take it out to put it in a bin you are going to slow down the security line. The only electronic item that needs to go into a bin separately is your laptop.

I travel all the time. My carry-on typically contains my Treo, iPod, TotalBithead, e500s, an extra battery for the Treo, Treo charge/sync cable, iPod dock, a 2.5mm interconnect, iPod cable, AAA battery charger, and the Treo earpiece. None of those electronics has ever caused any trouble whatsoever.

The TSA agents who are x-raying your bag are more concerned about whether your tube of toothpaste exceeds 3 ounces then they are about your headphone amp.

 

[WindowsX]

er-4s with amp too. You can even use that IEM with high-end amplifier to get its real sound (It can come close up to top lines of full-size too)

 

[jmourik]

Good question, I could have asked it
I use the Shure E3g when flying, and the PX100 in the hotel. I've been debating a switch to the Audio-Technica ATH-ANC7, for both the flight and the hotel. I'm not always too comfortable with the E3g's shoved into my ears...

Any opinions on the SQ of the E3g vs. the ANC7? And on the noise-canceling aspect of the E3g vs. the ANC7 in a plane?

 

[cisforchooch]

So I returned my Zune, and have been amazed by my Gigabeat / K601 combo (for home listening, of course). Volume doesn't get loud but it still sounds great.

I just purchased Super.fi 5 Pro's on Earphone Solutions for $160 shipped (they have a coupon deal for the 4th) to replace my EP630s (going to the GF to justify my purchase).

Will post impressions later. Thanks everyone for the input.