[strigon07]

Hi all! I have a pretty sad story to tell... My GR07s have broken just recently; the wiring by the left side is damaged (part of the wire is exposed) and I have to hold the cabling awkwardly in place just to get the left IEM to produce any sound.
 
I'm really sad that it's happened Absolutely loved the sound quality of my GR07s, beats pretty much anything that I have auditioned thus far. I have a strong inclination to get a new pair (the GR07 Mk2) from Lendmeurears (I live in Singapore, so it's pretty painless), BUT my ears are getting increasingly irritated by repeatedly stuffing IEMs into them.

So, that leads me to my question: are there any headphones with similar sound stage/characteristics to the GR07s near their price range? I've been thoroughly spoiled...
 
Whatever the case, I'll be needing to bring them about and preferably without the need of an amp (yeah, kinda makes this pretty difficult, eh?).
 
I do not need a lot of bass; I was very satisfied with the level of bass provided by my GR07s (non BE, non Mk2).
 
Thanks for your time and advice!
 
PS: Are the Sennheiser HD239 and UE4000 any good?

 

[strigon07]

Well, decided to get theBose AE2s. Wanted to share so that anyone who's facing a similar dilemma can better decide...
 
Not wanting to start a flame war here, just wanted to say that I chose the AE2s because my audiophile friend (who owns JH15s) said that they were decent (or was he talking about the OG AEs? hahaha come to think of it I didn't quite check XD), AND because they are really comfortable.
 
No need to talk about comfort here, since this is really a matter of preference. If you like in-ears, the GR07s are pretty comfortable already. Although if you use them while walking about/exercising/while lying on your bed they can be a little irritating. It's hard to explain why, but when I'm lying down, the cable would move around and make the part that's over my ears feel lose and insecure.
 
With the AE2s, I can lie down in bed without getting that same feeling. But I digress.
 
Sound quality wise, the GR07s win. There, I said it. At least to my ears, the GR07s are capable of producing a higher level of detail. The mids are beautifully reproduced, and everything just sounds... right. The bass is well-balanced, not too overbearing and the highs are not too shrill.
 
The AE2s, on the other hand, do not sound as good. The highs can sound slightly artificial, and, ironically, given Bose's reputation, the bass on the AE2s is not as satisfying. It's balanced, but that can come of as being muddled.
 
So that's it for now... just a short mini-review based on my experience thus far. Hope it helps!