Review: Apuresound-recabled Etymotic ER4P (revised)
Mar 22, 2009 at 10:02 PM Post #76 of 104
I just wanted to confirm that the pins on the APureSound ER4 cable are the exact same size as the stock ER4 cable. You can use a micrometer to confirm. The pins are cut straight instead of to a point like the stock ER4 cable to enhance the amount of contact area inside.

Also, in some ER4's you can a little bit of the pins sticking out and in others you can't. This is due to how the ER4's were manufactured. Some have a larger area for where the pins go in and others have quite a smaller area. I am not sure if this is due to the newer/older ones or if it was just made using different machines which are off by a bit. Either way all the APureSound ER4 cables are made the same.

Thanks,
Alex
 
May 5, 2009 at 8:07 PM Post #77 of 104
Tony, is your cable like nc8000's v2 or was that a special order for him? (just the cable, not the xlr connections) Is yours like the ones on the APS website right now? Or have they changed things? Do you know if there is any way to get a set of er4p cables made from the v3 cable that they are now working with? Would it be worth it? Should I just email Alex and ask?
 
May 5, 2009 at 10:30 PM Post #78 of 104
Tonys ER4 (that he bought from me and has now sold to get a longer cable) is the dedicated ER4 wire Alex has designed specifically for this application to tame the treble and enhance the bass. Mine is made with the full size V2 wire as a one off and another one can never be made as it use the last V2 Alex had. Full size V3 can not be used as it is too thick and unwieldy however it should be possible to make one with the upcoming V3 based portable wire although the sound will likely be different from the ER4 wire.

My new P to S adaptor that I had to have Alex make me to try but unfortunately the only difference I can detect is that it seems to add a little sibilance to some tracks.
p2s.jpg
 
May 5, 2009 at 11:53 PM Post #79 of 104
the problem is that etymotics doesn't have very top frequency extention(while have too much "middle" treble), which means, that by reducing the "treble" you actually cut te top treble first, which is already deficient, and then you tame lower treble.... I don't beilive in such agjustments... but I might be wrong...
 
May 7, 2009 at 2:12 PM Post #80 of 104
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You should try, Lelek. The ER4 might lack top treble over 16kHz, but tjey are moe extended than most iems (in stock form). The wire used here cuts treble from middle to high treble, and it can be felt by having less high treble crispness than, for example, Head Direct RE0, but the overall tone is very wam and lifelike, based on my own experience and maturation as of today. There is more midrange (1-2kHz, peak at 1.5kHz) than we would like over a natural presentation when using foamies, which is cured by using triflanges, which in turn raise the lower treble a bit. I will work on a tip mod in a month or two, when I have more time for audio, since I have already something in mind, and by the first experiment it should work very well.
At the moment, not having tried the um3x, but having evaluated almost any other iem's, the Apuresound ER4P come on top to me. I wouldn't use V2 since it's silver plated copper, while the purpose of recabling this very earphone is to have a cable that filters the middle-top treble peak (without killing it anway).
 
May 7, 2009 at 8:32 PM Post #81 of 104
I personally like the V2 cable better than the "standard" APS Ety cable but too many factors besides the cable changed when I had that cable made so comparison is not fair. Anyway it is a moot question as another one can not be made.
 
May 8, 2009 at 4:59 AM Post #82 of 104
Quote:

Originally Posted by nc8000 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
I personally like the V2 cable better than the "standard" APS Ety cable but too many factors besides the cable changed when I had that cable made so comparison is not fair. Anyway it is a moot question as another one can not be made.


Lucky.
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Your descriptions of the sound in your "extreme er4-p" thread has made me super interested.


I think I'm going to go with the standard APS cable, I'm looking for a mellowing of the sound, while retaining the detail that the etys do so well. I wish it wasn't so expensive though, I'm probably going to wait to see what scholarships/loans I will receive for school next year to make a move. I'm gonna be making pretty good money this summer, but I am SUPPOSED to save it for the next academic year. This head-fi stuff is really making my wallet feel anemic. ($650 in 6 months) And I already know what my next $900 of free money are going. Not including these cables.

Andre
 
May 8, 2009 at 3:26 PM Post #83 of 104
I think with that aim you will be well chuffed with the standard APS cable, just make sure to give it 2-300 hours burnin at least before forming any final conclusions.
 
May 19, 2009 at 3:24 AM Post #84 of 104
Out of curiosity, what does burning in the cables do? What physical property of the cables changes after say, 100 hrs. of 1V, 20mw signal? The balanced armatures themselves are said not to require any break-in.

Phreon
 
May 19, 2009 at 8:13 AM Post #86 of 104
They have more bass quantity than the usual Er4p, which is also helped by the treble reduction. They won't have has much bass volume as Westone 3 if that's what you are looking for. Thr two IEMs have a very different presentation, each own with its advantages and its trade-offs.
 
May 19, 2009 at 10:54 AM Post #88 of 104
Hi, it's pretty great and that's how I use it (iAudio 7). I think it doesn't scale much with amplification, while it loves sources so much that it rivals in many areas the Stax SRX MkIII Pro (almost legendary) monitor when both are out high end sourceslike Museatex Melior Bitstram, although the ApsER4 ultimately loses in midrange neutrality.
 
May 19, 2009 at 5:22 PM Post #89 of 104
Quote:

Originally Posted by Phreon /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Out of curiosity, what does burning in the cables do? What physical property of the cables changes after say, 100 hrs. of 1V, 20mw signal? The balanced armatures themselves are said not to require any break-in.

Phreon



Absolutely no idea, but that was what it sounded like to me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by antonyfirst /img/forum/go_quote.gif
They have more bass quantity than the usual Er4p, which is also helped by the treble reduction. They won't have has much bass volume as Westone 3 if that's what you are looking for. Thr two IEMs have a very different presentation, each own with its advantages and its trade-offs.


Yes I guess that is what I want to convey. It does not turn them into bass monsters but the bass is a lot more present than on a stock phone.
 
May 19, 2009 at 6:06 PM Post #90 of 104
Quote:

Originally Posted by antonyfirst /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Hi, it's pretty great and that's how I use it (iAudio 7). I think it doesn't scale much with amplification, while it loves sources so much that it rivals in many areas the Stax SRX MkIII Pro (almost legendary) monitor when both are out high end sourceslike Museatex Melior Bitstram, although the ApsER4 ultimately loses in midrange neutrality.


I just wanted to add that the Stax was driven by a 252 and it scales very well with amplification
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