[ulyses]

Some people will never like this phones. Because they are quite analytic. Black filters are not so good. I prefer grey ones. Filters are fragile right. So don't change them to much. And comfort is a wery relative issue. I am definetaly have it with Phonak. I don't try to defencing Phonak, but I have to point these against missunderstandings. If people buying and selling this phones in two week, so they have different tastes than audiophiles.
Btw, which shure olives correct? I saw many shure tips on the net but their names is Shure Black Foamies, not olives..

 

[oarnura]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ulyses /img/forum/go_quote.gif Btw, which shure olives correct? I saw many shure tips on the net but their names is Shure Black Foamies, not olives..

The black foamies are called olived because they look like black olives. I had the same confusion when I first started at head-fi.

My Phonaks should be here on friday.

 

[ulyses]

Quote:

Originally Posted by oarnura /img/forum/go_quote.gif The black foamies are called olived because they look like black olives. I had the same confusion when I first started at head-fi. My Phonaks should be here on friday.

Thanks for quick answer. Now if I can learn which foamies are correct for Phonak, I will order them. There are different types of foamies named 'for e4,e5..etc and for 530, for Se 210,310..etc' Have they different sizes?

 

[oarnura]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ulyses /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thanks for quick answer. Now if I can learn which foamies are correct for Phonak, I will order them. There are different types of foamies named 'for e4,e5..etc and for 530, for Se 210,310..etc' Have they different sizes?

No clue. I have the SCL4 and won't have the Phonaks till this friday.

I think someone mentioned using The Comply T100 with the Phonak. Comply's website says the T100 fits all the SE series and the E3-e5 and the SCL3 and SCL4.

So I think that any of the olives that fit those would work.

Shure lists the PA910

EABKF1-10S (replaces PA910S) - 5 pair, small
EABKF1-10M (replaces PA910M) - 5 pair, medium
EABKF1-10L (replaces PA910L) - 5 pair, large

All of the current Shure models used the same ones. So the PA910 was replaced with the EABKF1-10.

 

[tstarn06]

I tried using the T100s with them, but returned to the T130s, which are the model created by Comply for the Phonaks. They are best, fit-wise.

Also, I found the PA910 olives yesterday at Ear Plug Store for $12.95 (5 pair), which is the best price I have ever seen. Guess cause they are being replaced? Even so, this is a great price, if they are in stock.

Shure Earphone and Monitor Accessories - Earphone Accessories

 

[ulyses]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tstarn06 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Also, I found the PA910 olives yesterday at Ear Plug Store for $12.95 (5 pair), which is the best price I have ever seen. Guess cause they are being replaced? Even so, this is a great price, if they are in stock. Shure Earphone and Monitor Accessories - Earphone Accessories

Good price for US customers. I checked shipping cost to my country. It's 32.95

 

[schneller]

Quote:

Originally Posted by |Fred /img/forum/go_quote.gif I beg to differ, the phonak really need to be plugged to some thing that can deliver, I can't get enjoyable volume on my NWZS639F, I need to max volume on my Archos etc. So if you are street walking , better be warned. Bass is pretty true, I like it, but definitively not everyone cup of tea, there lack of colouration feels really dull if you are use to ATH-ESW9, UE , UM2 kind of bass. Medium with black filter, is a disaster I'm really surprise no-one noticed? , it's not that obvious on electro/house and metal music but with voices they feel empty, emotion less. Treble are as described, they go high, are open and not over aggressive , still a bit sibling to my taste explicitly after a few hours but yes no complains there, it gets the job done Filter seems pretty fragile seen how easy they break. Ear robber are effective but are a pain if you have long hair (because unlike the customs 3) they arent fixed to the earpiece. not really statistic worthily but I know two other people who bought a pair after reading your review,and they both resold them within 2 weeks for Jays

Filters? Fragile?

I have changed filters several times and never has one broke.

But yes, bass to could be a little more colorful.

And as I have said many many times, volume at 80% or so with Shure Olives (medium) offers plenty of volume and isolation for the busy streets and Metro of Washington, DC. I use a SanDisk Sansa e260 with NO amp.

 

[dfkt]

Quote:

Originally Posted by |Fred /img/forum/go_quote.gif I beg to differ, the phonak really need to be plugged to some thing that can deliver, I can't get enjoyable volume on my NWZS639F, I need to max volume on my Archos etc. So if you are street walking , better be warned.

Well, the poster asked specifically about pairing the Phonaks with the D2 - and the D2 is basically the most powerful player I know of. I really don't think you need an extra amp with it. But then again I don't know how loud various people like their music.

 

[b_jay_k]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dfkt /img/forum/go_quote.gif Well, the poster asked specifically about pairing the Phonaks with the D2 - and the D2 is basically the most powerful player I know of. I really don't think you need an extra amp with it. But then again I don't know how loud various people like their music.

thanks dfkt
i asked because i prefer to listen at lower volumes as do you if i remember correctly. my concern, however, is not the issue of volume. i have been reading other threads about portable amps and am still confused as to the correlation between amped portable rigs and sound quality. I am aware that the D2 is quite powerful but ultimately i would like to get the best quality without spending unnecessarily.
so, unamped Phonaks from a D2 with FLAC is a good start then?

mine shipped today

 

[communic]

Got these yesterday (3 days from germany to UK) from the site ulyses posted. Done some quick a/b'ing with x10's, soundmagic pl30 which I'm pretty sure are a rebadged nuforce-ne8 which is also a rebadged dbe hf30 and for fun, shure se110's!

Would definitely put them above all three earphones atleast to my own preferences. The one thing I always look out for is sibilance in earphones and with T100's I detect none unlike x10. No sizzly upper mids like the nuforce either. Mids are definitelty the strong point of these, very natural and not at all coloured like x10's.

Bass, I think extends even deeper than x10's which I thought was not possible, with less midbass bloat and with equal punch and somehow mimics the texture of a dynamic phone (quite simlar to pl30's but gains much lower extension) so I'm actually pretty impressed. I suppose the wide soundtage helps in this as the bass feels as if there is enough air displacement and little constriction as with some armatures.

Highs are not that forward and are not as blaring as the x10's though it is all there.

Soundstage like dfkt stated in review is planar (unlike x10) but wider. I prefer the x10 soundstage even though its physically smaller as the instrument placement within has more definition and is very 3d in presentation.

overall though, I'm liking the phonaks very much. I don;t find it as analytical as others have mentioned with the black filters and comply t100's as it is still quite warm and while more detailed than the other earphones, it is more balanced so it is harder to observe. It seems also very laid back like a dynamic phone, certainly not even close to the very much 'electrifying' x10's! I suppose some might find it boring but I think the balance of this is perfect for smooth easy listening.

Isolation is about 90% or so of X10's but it appears worse because these are hard to drive. My samsung t9 and sony s706 both struggled to pump out sufficient vol. If your collection is normalized at anything below 92db I would suggest either an amp or increasing the gain!

On a sidenote, I was going to get the IE8's as they're cheap here and to see what all the fuss is about I honestly can't imagine them being any better than the phonaks unless you really are bona fide basshead. W3's are out of contention as they are simply too expensive and if they have similar sibilance to the x10's then it is too much for me!

 

[dfkt]

Quote:

Originally Posted by b_jay_k /img/forum/go_quote.gif thanks dfkt i asked because i prefer to listen at lower volumes as do you if i remember correctly. my concern, however, is not the issue of volume. i have been reading other threads about portable amps and am still confused as to the correlation between amped portable rigs and sound quality. I am aware that the D2 is quite powerful but ultimately i would like to get the best quality without spending unnecessarily. so, unamped Phonaks from a D2 with FLAC is a good start then?

Yes you're right, seems I listen to my music with much quieter volume levels than the average guy.

If I understand you correctly, the sound quality (not volume quantity) issues you mean are probably the usual low-impedance/high-sensitivity flaws of many portable players' internal amps. The Phonaks are well behaved in that matter, they don't hiss with the D2 (thanks to their rather low 107dB/mW), and the bass doesn't appear to be that much rolled off (due to their rather decent 32 Ohm impedance).

Of course an amp helps to really flatten the bass response, and also might provide better stereo separation, less channel bleed. This goes for pretty much and portable player out there, not just the D2, of course.

Here's how the D2's (and many other players) frequency response looks like with various low impedance phones:

And here's the channel separation:

http://rmaa.elektrokrishna.com/Compa...2048%20Ohm.htm

 

[tstarn06]

Excellent appraisal of the Audeos. Match my feelings (guess that's why I like the review), as an owner of the X10s as well. Just a point of clarification. Have you switched to the T100s, or are you using the Complys that came with the Phonaks? If the latter, they are the T130s, and according to Phonak, were made specifically for Phonak by Comply (to be included with the Audeos). I thought they were T100s too, and ordered some extras, only to find out they were not. So I also picked up a pack of T130s from Comply.

Odd as it seems, the T130s are a little different shaped than the T100s, though they look very similar, and the T130s seal better as a result (seem a little flatter at the top).

But the more I listen to the Audeos, the more I like them (also using black filters). I am even starting to choose them over the W3s now and again. I like the more enveloping, warmer W3 sound too, but as Chi2 noted early in this thread, the W3 bass may be a little too overwhelming at time, and that's not the case with the Phonaks.

Quote:

Originally Posted by communic /img/forum/go_quote.gif Got these yesterday (3 days from germany to UK) from the site ulyses posted. Done some quick a/b'ing with x10's, soundmagic pl30 which I'm pretty sure are a rebadged nuforce-ne8 which is also a rebadged dbe hf30 and for fun, shure se110's! Would definitely put them above all three earphones atleast to my own preferences. The one thing I always look out for is sibilance in earphones and with T100's I detect none unlike x10. No sizzly upper mids like the nuforce either. Mids are definitelty the strong point of these, very natural and not at all coloured like x10's. Bass, I think extends even deeper than x10's which I thought was not possible, with less midbass bloat and with equal punch and somehow mimics the texture of a dynamic phone (quite simlar to pl30's but gains much lower extension) so I'm actually pretty impressed. I suppose the wide soundtage helps in this as the bass feels as if there is enough air displacement and little constriction as with some armatures. Highs are not that forward and are not as blaring as the x10's though it is all there. Soundstage like dfkt stated in review is planar (unlike x10) but wider. I prefer the x10 soundstage even though its physically smaller as the instrument placement within has more definition and is very 3d in presentation. overall though, I'm liking the phonaks very much. I don;t find it as analytical as others have mentioned with the black filters and comply t100's as it is still quite warm and while more detailed than the other earphones, it is more balanced so it is harder to observe. It seems also very laid back like a dynamic phone, certainly not even close to the very much 'electrifying' x10's! I suppose some might find it boring but I think the balance of this is perfect for smooth easy listening. Isolation is about 90% or so of X10's but it appears worse because these are hard to drive. My samsung t9 and sony s706 both struggled to pump out sufficient vol. If your collection is normalized at anything below 92db I would suggest either an amp or increasing the gain! On a sidenote, I was going to get the IE8's as they're cheap here and to see what all the fuss is about I honestly can't imagine them being any better than the phonaks unless you really are bona fide basshead. W3's are out of contention as they are simply too expensive and if they have similar sibilance to the x10's then it is too much for me!

 

[FlyPenFly]

God, why did I have to read about this just as I was finally about to place an order for the ER-4P.

 

[tstarn06]

Don't do it. Just kidding. But I owned the ER4P, and these phones are along those lines, but warmer (and not losing the crisp, clean sound from the mids/highs). But the bass is not hidden or lean.

Listening right now, with the Sony DAP and E5 amp (using the bass boost) and wow, they sound fantastic. Looking forward to trying them out with my replacement Minibox E+ ... when it arrives some day.

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

Quote:

Originally Posted by |Fred /img/forum/go_quote.gif I beg to differ, the phonak really need to be plugged to some thing that can deliver, I can't get enjoyable volume on my NWZS639F, I need to max volume on my Archos etc. So if you are street walking , better be warned. Bass is pretty true, I like it, but definitively not everyone cup of tea, there lack of colouration feels really dull if you are use to ATH-ESW9, UE , UM2 kind of bass. Medium with black filter, is a disaster I'm really surprise no-one noticed? , it's not that obvious on electro/house and metal music but with voices they feel empty, emotion less. Treble are as described, they go high, are open and not over aggressive , still a bit sibling to my taste explicitly after a few hours but yes no complains there, it gets the job done Filter seems pretty fragile seen how easy they break. Ear robber are effective but are a pain if you have long hair (because unlike the customs 3) they arent fixed to the earpiece. not really statistic worthily but I know two other people who bought a pair after reading your review,and they both resold them within 2 weeks for Jays

We appreciate your honesty.

They seem to be driven fine by my iPhone 3G without amp, and the black filters are not that bad, although I do like the grey filters too (ordered more of both). I do agree about the ear loops - I took them off because of how easily they twist and spin and are then oriented wrong for putting them on, and I have short hair.

With Pico amp on my iMod with portable Vcaps yesterday, there is no lack of emotion with the black filters, and with either filter I only hear sibilance if it is there in the recording, but it doesn't seem to add to or amplify sibilance at all. I listened to the Phonak yesterday with Doug from Westone; and while we both agree the Westone 3 are better we also feel the Phonak are a good competitor to (or on the level of) the Image X10, which I previously felt were a little more transparent than the q_JAYS (which I also liked but not as much). My Livewires and SE530 in a custom Livewires acrylic shell are also still better than the Phonak, but also better than stock SE530 too.

So, for me the Phonak are not a "one IEM to beat them all" kind of earphone, but rather a good neutral transparent IEM that is quick and easy to use with the iPhone 3G (with mic), and that doesn't take away a lot from the musical experience. For serious listening while mobile or when I need a lot of isolation I'll still grab my Westone 3, and for most of my serious listening at home I pick up a nice full size set of cans.