[ratdog]

Anything better that provides good isolation for noisy commutes?

 

[ZARIM]

The HF5 are better sounding and they very detailed in mids, highs with good bass response.....

 

[ProjectDenz]

Quote:

The HF5 are better sounding and they very detailed in mids, highs with good bass response.....

He might not like it's very light bass quantity and overall thin sound.

 

[Jyoof]

For that price range, you can consider Vsonic GR06. Well built, has a great sound and the array of stocks tips is impressive. They have a mid centric sound and also enough deep bass and detail to handle different genres of music. Great value for money.

 

[Mooses9]

i dont recomend the se215, bloated bass, more quantity over quality overemphasized too which is somewhat unusual for shure as they are a more mid centric brand, some people like them, but i would say if those people heard better sounding iem's they would be able to tell the difference between shure's bottom end iem's and their top tier or any other iem's
 
i say save a little and go for a better iem, if your budget is at 100.00 save a little more and go for the tf10 i have seen them on here for 100-130.00 and its more quality iem for the money.

 

[FieldingMellish]

OP, it depends upon how you define value. What does it mean to you? Sounds better than they cost?  How long they last? Ease of use? A specific sound signature?

 

[Gilly87]

They are definitely built for longevity: replaceable kevlar-reinforced cables, housings feel pretty sturdy too. If you are after a sound with emphasized mids and bass and don't care about treble extension too much, you will probably like them. Bass is boosted but not a basshead IEM; mids are about even with the bass and pretty clear and detailed. Treble is just OK. They sound good for $100; not a SUPER bargain sound-wise, but soundrice they are solid for $100, and really good deal when you consider the overall package. AFAIK they are the cheapest IEM available that sports user replaceable cables.
 
Really though it comes down to preference; nothing is a good deal if you don't like the way it sounds. If you like the SE215s, they are a great deal; I am actually going back to them after having owned 4 top-tiers and a bunch of other mid-fi. There's just nothing out there that has the right signature to my ears after hearing the SE215. 
 
YMMV

 

[grapefruit]

Just throwing it out there, the skullcandy titans are an awesome set of cheap buds. The isolation is great (albiet probably not as good as the HF-5's), you have a great warranty, and they look pretty good. In terms of sound quality the titans have great, emphasized, deeply extended bass that doesn't bleed over to the mids at all.  The mids are full and forward, but the highs and thus definition might be a little attenuated for some.   I own some MTPC's and ety ER-4p's that I run through a fiio e17 and I still find myself going back to the titans sometimes(and subsequently wondering why I bought the MTPC's). IMHO the soundstage  is better than the MTPC and on par if not a little better than the ER-4p's.  Timing is kind of slow without an amp, but its no big problem.  If you listen to jazz or classical you might want to steer clear of these but i've found them good for pretty much anything else.  If you like any form of EDM or dubstep these are absolute face-melters.
 
Considering that the SE215's seem to have a similar sound signature to the titans and if you're willing to forgo the detachable cables and over-ear design, I think the titans are one of the best audio values out there.  

 

[Gilly87]

Ok I have to blow the whistle on that...the Titans are a very noticeable step down from the SE215 in terms of sound quality in every area except midbass impact. The treble extension is poor, the sound is grainy next to the SE215, and any respectable level of detail that might theoreticaly exist in the midrange is drowned out by midbass. The build quality is also atrocious; I owned 3 pairs before ever coming to Head-Fi, and each and every one of them split down the crease in the (cheap) plastic driver housing within 3 months of purchase. The $20 Ink'd headsets are more durable, and sound almost the same, with less midbass, but both sport cheap cabling and no visible strain relief except on the jack.
 
The SE215, on the other hand, sports Kevlar-reinforced, user-replaceable cables that are almost as thick as the cord on my PS2 controller and could probably be used reliably to tie a mattress to the top of a car and drive on the highway, with beefy strain reliefs on every connection. The housings are made out of solid, thick plastic molds that make the titans feel positively frail by comparison.

 

[FieldingMellish]

Yup, there's value in them thar cables! Stout.

 

[Uruha]

SKULL CANDY?! X_X This is coming from personal experience, I am not jumping on the band wagon, lol. I owned 1 pair when I was in high school, did their job. I was gangsta-gangsta so i liked dat bass. It broke. I also got one recently as a junk pair since it was only $10. I knew they would sound terrible, so muddy. Anyway it broke. They are made for quantity bass bass-heads, definitely. That is their market and a very good market once you have established yourself.
 
Reading Gilly's post reinforced my purchase of the SE215 that I just placed. Since he is able to like it after trying a few of the expensive ones, I'll take his word. I wanted one for commuting as well sleeping with it on. Earphonesolutions actually has a category for IEMs that you can sleep with, haha. Also they have a discount going on right now, $87 for the SE215 if you pick the cheapest shipping option. Or add $1 more and have it shipped faster.

 

[Gilly87]

Not sure its one I could sleep on personally, but the stem isn't too long and it really isn't capable of going deep, so there are definitely worse choices for that purpose.
 
I wouldn't take my personal choice of the SE215 as an endorsement for everybody; if you like the sound signature a lot, like I did, then maybe there is no point in going further, especially if you don't have gobs of disposable income (part of the reason I am going back to the SE215 ^_^), but I can't say I regret having sampled what's out there, even if my forray into top-tiers wasn't extensive.

 

[Swiftay]

+1 for 215's. Worth looking at, but there are better choices out there as well. All comes down to the kind of sound you want.

 

[kanuka]

Hisound Audio Crystal

 

[Xinn3r]

+1 for the GR06 and the HiSound Crystal, the Crystal's isolates very well, and very very very tiny, did I mention tiny? for a dynamic IEM
-1 for Skullcandy Titan, it's a step down from everything mentioned here
 
Also, although I never heard the SE215, it really has many fans, and for a reason, comfortable, good build quality, coupled with removable Kevlar reinforced cable, all for under 100$, it's a steal IMO