[antk]

Hi all,

I've been lurking around here for quite some time but this is my first post.
I was lucky enough to have as my first hi-fi phone the ER-4P about 3 years ago. I absolutely love them ! I do not find them lacking in bass (contrary to the common belief here) and I really like their incredible detail: the layered presentation and the incredible reproduction of instrument timbre ( which is something I am very sensitive to). So sonically, they have been bliss for me. However ...

... I do find them extremely uncomfortable ! They need a bold move to be inserted deep enough for their sonic qualities to shine and even then they stick too much out of the ear.

Since it is impossible to try out other canalphones here ( I live in Greece) I would like to ask if there is another IEM that is sonically close to the 'Ety sound' but more comfortable (should I decide to replace them).
My music is mostly acoustical (classical, jazz) and as I stated above, lifelike and accurate timbre reproduction contributes very much to my enjoyment of it. I am using the phones unamped straight from an ipod. Budget is around 400 euros.

Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

 

[nc8000]

Comfort is a very personal thing. I have been using ER4 and now HF2 for about 7 years and I find them to be the most comfortable iem around (used with Shure black olive tips, the triflange I don't get on with).

 

[jinx20001]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nc8000 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Comfort is a very personal thing. I have been using ER4 and now HF2 for about 7 years and I find them to be the most comfortable iem around (used with Shure black olive tips, the triflange I don't get on with).

it annoys me when people rate earphones as the most comfortable earphones they know but then in the same sentence say its only because of a component designed for another earphone, i mean its the same when people review the earphones, just review them with what you get with them man and then score them, dont review them with things you get with other earphones!!

anyway, i too dont like the tri flange as its intrusive and by this i mean very tight seal to the point it causes pain on the inside of my canal. so for me the er4p is one of the most uncomfortable IEM's there is. stock ofcourse. its no good rating them as the best with other tips made by somebody else as this leads people to believe they are comfortable IEM's when they arent.

people rating the triple fi 10 as very comfortable with shure tips annoy me also. i mean they are clearly uncomfortable earphones for 70% of users and are rescued by a rival company's inventions.

 

[mark_h]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jinx20001 /img/forum/go_quote.gif people rating the triple fi 10 as very comfortable with shure tips annoy me also. i mean they are clearly uncomfortable earphones for 70% of users and are rescued by a rival company's inventions.

You really love the Shures!

Try the Shure olive tips and if you can afford the cash get the Apuresound recable for the etys, this considerably reduces the profile and opens up the er4s to their true potential, wich is considerable!

APureSound - Etymotic ER4 Upgrade Cable

(look at the bottom images)

 

[webbie64]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mark_h /img/forum/go_quote.gif You really love the Shures! Try the Shure olive tips and if you can afford the cash get the Apuresound recable for the etys, this considerably reduces the profile and opens up the er4s to their true potential, wich is considerable! APureSound - Etymotic ER4 Upgrade Cable (look at the bottom images)

Although I can accept your points, jinx20001, I want more to focus on helping the op with their concern.

To that end I endorse mark_h's comments. The tips (which are easilly available as seperate items to use with any iems you choose to use them with) will help and the APS cable, though an expensive upgrade, helps with both their in-ear profile and overall SQ (I use the ER4-P version, and just add an 'S' adapter if I want the 'S' sound signature - though I prefer the 'P' sound signature most of the time

)

antk, the next stage I found in improving comfort was going for customs (Livewires T1s in my case). Much improved comfort though slightly less isolation and quite different sound signature.

If you like the ER4Ps then work on 'tweaking' with alternate tips and perhaps the cable upgrade.

 

[jinx20001]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mark_h /img/forum/go_quote.gif You really love the Shures! Try the Shure olive tips and if you can afford the cash get the Apuresound recable for the etys, this considerably reduces the profile and opens up the er4s to their true potential, wich is considerable! APureSound - Etymotic ER4 Upgrade Cable (look at the bottom images)

yeh i love my shures, but it isnt because of this that i rant, its just annoying to see people rating other phones so highly based off another earphones tips. i mean come on, people dont want to go buy earphones and then suffer because they have to buy other tipd not included.

i must admit the shure olives are about the best tip invention since in ears were produced and they do improve nearly every IEM available that fits them but earphones should not be rated based on these tips they should be rated with the tips made for them

 

[jinx20001]

Quote:

Originally Posted by webbie64 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Although I can accept your points, jinx20001, I want more to focus on helping the op with their concern. To that end I endorse mark_h's comments. The tips (which are easilly available as seperate items to use with any iems you choose to use them with) will help and the APS cable, though an expensive upgrade, helps with both their in-ear profile and overall SQ (I use the ER4-P version, and just add an 'S' adapter if I want the 'S' sound signature - though I prefer the 'P' sound signature most of the time ) antk, the next stage I found in improving comfort was going for customs (Livewires T1s in my case). Much improved comfort though slightly less isolation and quite different sound signature. If you like the ER4Ps then work on 'tweaking' with alternate tips and perhaps the cable upgrade.

yeh i agree

i just think people should not boast about earphones being so great fitting but only with tips not intended for them

 

[scrane]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jinx20001 /img/forum/go_quote.gif yeh i agree i just think people should not boast about earphones being so great fitting but only with tips not intended for them

It doesn't seem so much a "boast" as an attempt to be helpful. I can't imagine why accessorizing a product could be annoying. (Except for spoilers on Kia 's.)
Sandy.

 

[TacticalPenguin]

An IEM is a little tiny piece of plastic and metal with some cables running out of it which connect up with another similar thing. An IEM is not an eartip. If you buy a nice computer but use a left handed mouse and keyboard with it, do the mouse and keyboard not work for you, or is it the whole computer?

For some people, a specific eartip makes any phone comfortable. For others, only a specific eartip on a specific phone is comfortable.

I don't see how you can really argue and complain about comfort issues when comfort is a personal opinion and different for each person. When people say _ phone with _ tip is comfortable, it obviously is not fact for everyone but instead is merely what they have found works best for them. What is so bad about an IEM with a different tip when it, for its user, is more comfortable than anything else they have tried?


In fact, why not rate ALL phones with the SAME eartip to improve consistency and fit? Wouldn't that set them all on a level playing field?

 

[AmanGeorge]

I agree with above posters, esp. tactical penguin's great analogy. People value headphones mainly for their SQ - if a $10 purchase of different tips allows a user to enjoy the SQ of a pair of headphones with better comfort levels, then it is totally relevant to say "I really like *X* headphones, especially when using *Y* tips to improve comfort."

From a user's perspective, we don't care if all the components of our rig are made by the same manufacturer, we care that they all work together well and provide the best experience... if one company's headphones combined with another company's eartips combined with another company's mp3 player and yet another company's amp provide the best listening experience we can find, well, then, so be it.

 

[tstarn06]

X3. Don't even understand the rant, period. I am using olives on my pair of Sleek SA6s (not happy with anything else). What difference does it make which sleeve you use, as long as your listening experience is maximized? If the OP loves the ER4Ps, but comfort is his only issue, then by all means, make them more comfortable (and for $20 now and again). Better than buying new IEMs, which also might require some sleeve accessorizing.

 

[tonyep]

There's no IEM that come close to the ER4 sound signature imo.

You can go for a custom sleeves from Westone which what I did to maximize comfort and reduces microphonics. Go for the APureSound P cable upgrade too, they are worth it and changes the etymotic to a whole new level.

Either that, you can get the HF2, they have the er4 sound signature, with more bass response and more weight in it, a little colored signature but a little detailed is loss.

I'm currently using the HF2 with the custom sleeves as I loaned my APS ER4P to a friend and I can live with it.

 

[scytheavatar]

Yeah, the ER4p is already the best it is at what it does, no other IEM comes close (and what it does is not for everyone

). When you are getting another IEM, you are getting a different signature. The SA6 is the closest but even so its more colored, warmer and less punchy presentation makes it a different IEM. But it is more comfortable than the ER4p. If you hate the tri-flanges you should consider getting the sleek biflanges if you can get your hands on them, they are one of the most comfortable tips around.

 

[mape00]

<IMHO Comply foam tips or Shure olives make the ER4 more comfy. I'm very satisfied with my comply tips, as they make it much easier to get a good seal, plus they don't get itchy and make my ears hurt after a couple of hours of usage like the tri-flanges do. As for them sticking out, the APS cable would be an improvement, albeit a very expensive one.

I like iM716 almost as much as I like my etys. They are close to the ER4 in sound signature and maybe more comfortable in some ways. With small comply tips, it takes a couple of seconds for me to get them in deep so that they sound good (they are, however, not as obtrusive as the ER4, which need to go deep even with complys in order to sound its best). Sound wise, they are of course not better than ER4, but the difference isn't as huge as the price might suggest.

 

[toughnut]

Darkkopi, somebody borrowed your apuresound er4p?

That's meant can wait for new review from ClieOS? Haha