[blumenco]

Hey everyone!
 
Its been quite some time since I've been on here, and for the most wholesome of reasons that Head-Fi should be truly proud of...My ER4p's served me really well for almost 5 years!  
 
Over time, I got rid of my HD650s, kept my Grado collection, and have listened and been impressed by many of the high end headphones coming out these days.  What an explosion in this industry!
 
The story on my ER4p's is that they have been in near constant use in my woodshop for 5 years (which is a speaker shop, actually - a business I started from inspiration during my active time on Head-Fi almost 10 years ago).
 
Anyways, let me just say that by now, my IEMs are some of the most important tools in my shop.  I don't think I could get jack squat done in there if I didn't have music AND sound isolation AND absolutely non-fatiguing sound quality for the long work days.
 
For home use, I'm almost exclusively using speakers, but for shop use, speakers aren't really that great all the time.  I've sure had some fun with them, but my various generations of helpers and I haven't always had the same musical taste, and a shop stereo has to get loud enough to overcome the noisy equipment, and gets turned up and then turned down all the time - a real concentration breaker.  So a few years back I transitioned to almost 95% IEM use in my shop.
 
One of the most important functions of my IEMs is that they also serve as an informal baseline for comparison of my single driver speaker designs when I first hook them up in the shop before taking them upstairs to get measured/broken in.  There is some similarity on sonic capabilities of both, and hence, somewhat similar sonic signature.  So good sound is a must.  I need something that errs on the side of honesty, as if to be honest is ever an "error"
 
My ER4p's have had a colorful history.  I've tried all the plugs, foamies, etc. eventually landing on the silicone because of the ease of quick insertion.  I've tried the P->S adapter for a while, and ended up not using it... a little veiled from the extra connection.  This left me still wondering what the real ER4S is like.
 
But anyways, the P's have THOROUGHLY broken in before they broke today and actually it is my feeling that when well cared for (not overdriven) the bass gets pretty good.  Not like the speaker bass I'm used to, but very acceptable and the midrange and overall resolution is fantastic.  I've repaired solder joints in them 4 times, replaced the filters 6 times, and now, it is one of the actual drivers that is busted.  
 
Last year I heard the UE18s while attending at RMAF which really ruined me in a way.  What I really want is THAT sound...they were the closest thing to the Orpheus in an earbud.  But suffice it to say, this purchase comes out of my shop's tool budget, which just doesn't have $1300 to spend on somthin' that ain't makin' some kinda sawdust!
 
 
So in summary:
 
My budget is $100-$400 (and it better be really stinkin' good for $400!)
 
My source is unamplified, I just can't hassle with it.  An old iPod, A new iPhone and an old Creative Zen.  I need them all because of battery life...long hours in the shop some days.
 
My time frame is short (I need them soon - not alot of work is going to get done this week without my IEMs!)
 
*From looking around here, it seems HF5s are a natural choice?*  
 
But I wanted to ask in the context of a woodshop being a uniquely noisy environment and so is the necessity to serve as a casual baseline for comparison of other HiFi things.
 
W3s?  
 
Are ER4p's really any better than HF5s?
 
What about the Grados?  
 
Thanks in advance, Head-Fi members, for all your wonderful input that have carried me through my many blissful years of musical discovery and enjoyment!
 
-Clark Blumenstein

 

[eke2k6]

Here ya go: http://www.amazon.com/Dynamic-Isolation-Earphones-Earbuds-multiple/dp/B005FDXZJU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1329106076&sr=8-1
 
I've worn them for >8hr sessions without a hint of fatigue. I only got up because I remembered I had to eat. They're very comfy, and their sound sig is great for almost any genre there is. Isolation isn't the greatest though. I think the natural choice would be the HF5 since the ER4 served you so well. Or you could just go ahead and get the ER4S since you wanted to hear it, and it would cost about half of what you're willing to spend. There's also options such as the RE272, and W4. You have a bit of catching up to do...

 

[David58117]

What music do you listen to? 
 
I haven't heard the UE18...but you want something natural, flatter FR, clarity in the same vein as the ER4's right?  
 
BTW - RUN TO YOUR LOCAL BEST BUY RIGHT NOW!!!!
 
They were doing an unadvertised clearance of the HF5 for $79.
 
The two local shops near me are both out by now..don't know if people bought them or if they were removed.  But they were sitting on the shelves for weeks.  
 
It's the same Ety sound as the ER4's (the 'S' version in my case), but less about detail retrieval, more bass quantity, and instrument separation is all together better on the ER4s.