[xguntherc]

The soundtube on the hf5 are small like the er6i right??

 

[CENTRAL]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeTrun /img/forum/go_quote.gif Indeed, so I've already sent an email, but they haven't responded yet. What should I do when it arrives again, tomorrow? Well, I won't be at home, but my older sister will. Should I tell her to just ignore the bell or something?

She should tell them she can't receive them for you and that you will contact them to give further instructions in my opinion. Then when you know what Ety sais you decide...

I shure hope it all works for you...

 

[episiarch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by xguntherc /img/forum/go_quote.gif The soundtube on the hf5 are small like the er6i right??

Identical to ER-4 soundtube, from what a gent from Etymotic told me. He said that when the hf2/hf5 was designed, they tried out all the previous sound tube designs and had people in the company vote on what was most comfortable. ER-4 won, so the hf2/hf5 duplicated that design.

And FWIW I have moved one pair of my ER-4 custom sleeves to an hf2, and they fit perfectly.

 

[xguntherc]

well I want the HF5 now.. lol.

 

[bcpk]

I wonder if Etymotic have any new earphones scheduled for release soon :|

 

[ksu06]

So I finally got the P to S adapter and tried it with the HF5 ... not much change to be honest. I pretty much like the HF5 sound unamped as I do not really hear a difference with an amp, with the impedance adapter, etc. (The only plus is I can use the HF5 with my desktop rig and use the impedance adapter to reduce hiss since I do not have closed headphones otherwise)

 

[tnmike1]

I use my Ety4P with the new Comply tips with the filters--thus avoiding having to change the little Ety filters so much--and the Ety/Comply combo delivers a wonderful sound. Also using MiniboxE+ as am amp. This amp was designed around the Etys. Huge soundstage, wonderful presence.

Now I'll probably buy the HF5 just to see how it sounds compared to the 4P

 

[pekingduck]

Lately the bass of the hf5 has grown on me. It might not have the impact of other IEMs but the quality is really really good. I am enjoying mine a lot!

Anyone using custom tips?

 

[episiarch]

pekingduck, I'm using custom tips. Mine are the full-shell Westone tips, but I will probably get some ACS tips soon. Do you have questions about customs?

 

[Kawa Design]

hey,
i currently own monster turbines, and felt it was time to upgrade. i was initially planning on buying westone um3x since the sound sig seemed to really suit my likes, but i was given advice not to upgrade too much, too quickly, so i searched around looking for a IEM not too pricey but offering good sound quality, and the hf5 seemed pretty good, i was wondering if someone could, like, confirm my choice, to make sure i'm making the right choice

the two most important aspects for me are vocals and detail. and btw, i'll be using them with p series comply tips, are those as good as shure black sleeves?
thanks people!

 

[DaeO]

I am a week long owner of some HF5s - saw them on Amazon for £71, bargain.

Love the overall sound, and am tempted to upgrade next year to the er4p (when my wallet recovers!)- I know the difference between the S and P, but what does the adaptor do? Does it increase or decrease the impedance?

 

[Bina]

It increase impendance.
But I don't hink it is great plan to upgrade to ER-4p, some people even prefer HF5 to er-4p.

 

[DeTrun]

So yesterday I received my HF5. I wanted to listen for a day, so I could adjust to the sound signature (mental burn-in

).

When I received them, it looked nice. But because I've paid €170 to get them, I definitely was having buyers remorse. I kept thinking: it might have been a better idea to get the PFE again, I could have saved €60.

So I opened the box. I noticed most accessories were there. Idd, most accessories. I thought there were also those glider tips, but I haven't received them. But it's not really bad.

I saw there were triple flanges, small and regular. I really like the look of the small triple flanges

I've never tried triple flanges, so I was wondering if I would have problems with it.
So first, I looked which size fitted. These go deep. So deep, that I had to cut off the smallest flange of each triple flange, because it would touch and hurt a sensitive part, all the way down in the ear canal. I ended up with listening to the HF5 with the small bi-flanges. I didn't try out the foam, as I dislike foam. The life span of a foam tip isn't very long.
(I've put the smallest flanges, which I've cut off, on the nozzle first and then I've put on the eartips. Without the smallest flanges, the filter would be exposed, because the length of the bi-flange wouldn't cover the whole nozzle)

Source: Creative Zen V Plus, PC soundcard.
I compared with the PFE from memory. So I did not have the PFE to compare. But I've listened extensively to the PFE's with gray and no filters, so I'm confident that I've got a pretty good idea of their sound. (For example: When I received my replacement PFE, they sounded exactly the same as I remembered my first PFE.)
So here's my first impression: "The treble's cut off. A bit too thin. The sound reminded me of a speaker. The PFE are better, no doubt."
I'll explain: The treble's cut off, I think at 15 kHz. As I'm still able to hear up to 19 kHz, I didn't hear the highest treble. (And the PFE's could reach 19 kHz)
The speaker-like sound: I don't really know how to explain it. I remember that mvw2 described the ER4S as not listening to the source, but to a reproduction of a speaker. This comment immediately came to my mind, when I pressed the play button. I guess this is because of the dynamics, which clearly was limited, compared to the more effortless sound of the PFE in my mind. The dynamics definitely surprised me, I thought they were about the same level of the PFE. So my conclusion of my first impression: I'm underwhelmed. I'm always underwhelmed when listening to new earphones/headphones, but I was very sure the PFE were better earphones. I like the look, the eartips, the packaging and the sound signature (which is what I expected: on the bright side, no overwhelming bass, forward midrange. The bass was a bit too much on the lean side, though.)
The soundstage/headstage was as usual: small. Separation = nice.
I also bought the HF5 because I've read many times that Ety's have great isolation, which I like. This is definitely true. I like the isolation, I almost hear nothing.

The day after that first impression, which is today, I started to experiment with the foam tips. I inserted them deeper than the bi-flanges, as they'd hurt the sensitive part of my ear canal. I heard a improved sound signature. Bottom end was more defined, noticeable. No leanness. There's enough bass for me. Midrange became clearer and the dynamics were a bit better (but still limited). Treble was more balanced, but still bright and still with a cutoff at 15 kHz. Also, the volume has increased quite a bit.
So I was wondering why these sounded better. I found out it's because I inserted them deeper. Proximity and a good seal are the key to unleash it's full potential.

So I took my small bi-flanges and pushed them all the way in. It actually touches/hurts the sensitive part in my ear, but after a while I get used to it. It still hurts, though. It also takes a while before I get them inserted properly, as a small difference will result in having the sound I had at my first impression. Basically, I got the same sound as I've got from the foams, but the bass was a bit less prominent.
So I have a problem: The foam gives me the sound I like the most, but they won't last long. The small bi-flanges give me a sound that closely resembles the foam-signature, but touches the sensitive part in my ear, which hurts and it takes a while to get a good, deep seal. It takes too much time. The regular bi-flanges do not hurt, they are comfortable. The only problem is that I'm not able to insert them deep, so the sound isn't as good as the sound with small bi-flanges or foam.
Also, the HF5 excels in vocal + instrument or orchestra. I've heard subtle details I haven't heard before. But only with those genres. The other genres (JPop, JRock/Metal, Trance, Techno, etc) were also impressive, but the HF5 did not perform much better than the PFE. I guess the HF5 have just a little bit more detail than the PFE.
So is the HF5 better than the PFE? I'm pretty sure they aren't, SQ only. (Even when having the deeper insertion, although it would close the gap between them a bit more)

Conclusion: If the HF5 would have the comfort level and the dynamics/treble extension/effortless sound of the PFE, while keeping the other aspects of the HF5 (for example: looks, isolation, detail), it would be a nice improvement for this nice IEM. I'm not saying that the HF5 are bad IEM's, they're not. They're very nice IEMs, but they aren't better than the PFE, SQ-wise. So I like them. But I'm not overwhelmed. I just like them. (Just to avoid confusion, the PFE are not much better. The difference isn't big. If the dynamics would be fixed and the treble would be extended, it probably would be quite similar to the PFE, I think)

I hope you enjoyed reading my impressions and didn't mind if I made some grammatical mistakes.

Oh. I didn't expect this to become so big. Oh well.

 

[PaulF]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeTrun /img/forum/go_quote.gif I hope you enjoyed reading my impressions and didn't mind if I made some grammatical mistakes. Oh. I didn't expect this to become so big. Oh well.

Thanks for the review (y)

I have had the HF5's for a few months, and at first I was having the same tip problem as you. Flanges irritated e me after about half an hour, foams were great but didn't last (and living in Mexico, i can't get foam tips too easily).

Until here on Head-Fi someone recommended Klipsch Gel tips. I sent an email to klipsch asking them where I could buy a pair of their tips, they sent me a couple sets free! (I'm not even a customer of theirs).

These gel tips, slide in incredibly easily give me almost the same isolation as the flanges (a tiny bit less...but its barely noticeable. I drum with these things, and they both block out tonnes of cymbals/drums). Great sound quality, and best of all. I an keep them on for hours and hours and feel no pain at all

I highly recommend you try them!

 

[Bina]

I have best sound with Klipsch and shure olives(but olives have much more better isolation, so I use only olives).

I compared them with my PFE and I also found PFE better(in treble and airness mostly). If you dont need great isolation, I think PFE will be better buy.