[Auditore]

My first earphones in my venture into this expensive hobby. Excellent isolation, and microphonics are solved by wearing it over the ear. 
Very detailed, and a great investment for anyone's first step if they are not a basshead at heart. Hearing things i have never heard before seems to be the general consensus when it comes to this hobby, and this is what i am experiencing. But i most likely will not go to the ER4's line up. Ready to venture more outside of this sound signature : D

 

[jasonCheeseball]

How are these headphones compared to the Shure SE215 or SE215 Special Eidtion? In terms of overall sound and build quality? 

 

[axw]

Quote:

Got the HF3's and had custom ACS tips made. The tips are a very good and an improvement but it took me a few days to figure out how to insert them so they "seated" themselves properly. Once you get this sorted out they are really something special. I got the HF3's on sale and, including the fitting and manufacturing cost of the tips, the whole package was $280. I'm not sure one get  a more complete package of sound quality, comfort and isolation for less. 

 
yes it is possible:
1) rockit R50 for $119
2) custom tips from this guy for $55, christmas sale for $40
 
not only cheaper but sounds better than HF5

 

[ksz210]

Quote:

 
yes it is possible:
1) rockit R50 for $119
2) custom tips from this guy for $55, christmas sale for $40
 
not only cheaper but sounds better than HF5

I dont necessarily agree, granted my HF5 are almost right out of the box (amazaing detail and accuracy) and I have little experience with the R50, the HF5/3/2 are definitely better suited for specific types of genres. Thats my opinion, feel free to disagree
 
EDIT: Since I just got these since I admire accuracy more than bass, what type of amp should i get? (Still new to this stuff xD) i have good things about an attenuator(whats that?) and the cmoy bb

 

[72bug]

Hello all. I got my HF5's (Cobalt) yesterday afternoon from Amazon.
 
I use it with my JDS Labs C5 (have not tried it with the CMOY BB yet) but I am really happy with the way it sounds out of the box. I am a big fan of Grados and my main can is a SR225i. I bought the HF5 based on this thread, so I thank you all for the impressions. I thought I needed something I can bring anywhere and will not bleed out the sound like the Grados. 
 
I have never had the need to engage the bass boost so I think the bass is sufficient for me. I am a guitar player and I listen to a lot of classic rock, avant-garde music and some Mod (Cream to Velvet Underground to Paul Weller). I like my music to be detailed and accurate. I had to watch the video on how to insert the 3-flange (?) tips and that absolutely made the sound quality better - full and tight bass, great texture. 
 
Thank you all again for a great informative thread!

 

[ksz210]

Which shure tips are the best with the HF5, there are a lot of types and I do not want to buy the wrong one by accident. So far loving the sound of these!

 

[Pianist]

I wonder what's up with Etymotic's quality control. I tried two HF2s before - one about a year ago and another two years ago and both came with identical tips and cases to those that come with ER4. Now, my current HF5 that purchased from Amazon just over a month ago (the cobalt colored version for $96.99) came with very different silicone triple flanges (the larger, grey ones), as well as a slightly different case as well. The quality of these new tips and case is terrible - the tips are slightly smaller than the original ones and are clearly made of lower quality silicone that easily disintegrates, while the case is smaller than the original, harder to close and smells like crap.  I should have posted this earlier, but didn't realize that it was a serious issue until yesterday, when I actually put on one of the fake (?) tips for the first time. When I took them off, I saw that some of the silicone inside the opening of the tips peeled off and clogged the filters.

I wonder if all current HF5s and or other HF versions come with these low quality grey triple flanges. The IEMs themselves as well as all the other tips look and feel fine and the sound seems fine, although maybe somewhat muddier than the sound of the other HF2s I heard (could just be placebo). This is really alarming to me - did Etymotic stop caring about quality on their lower end models?

 

[NIVEBL]

Can IP5 or IPC+HP-P1 drive MC5 well?Does it need to add an amp?

 

[quasinova]

Hello, I was just wondering if it is possible to disassemble the HF5 headphones? The reason I ask is I currently own a pair of the ER6's and like the ability of soldering new cables to the buds when the cables break. Is this sort of procedure possible with the HF5? 
 
I have not seen such videos on youtube.
 
Thanks in advance.

 

[Pianist]

It's sad for me to see that the HF series are getting so little attention on the forum. They are one of my favorite IEMs ever and I think are competent with multi driver IEMs costing  2+ times their price. With the Etys around, I see few, if any good reasons for the existence of such IEMs as UM2, DBA-02, SE535, IE8, SM3, W3, UM3X, Q-jays, Triple.fi and a whole bunch of other far pricier IEMs. I listened to all of those extensively and I honestly believe that the Etys provide an overall more natural, honest, detailed, accurate sound than any of those. At their price of under $150, the HF series are an absolute steal compared to the whole bunch of overpriced IEMs currently on the market IMO. And don't even get me started on the value of those $1k+ gazillion driver customs...

 

[Gozzer]

I found it takes time to warm up to the Ety's. Most listens want instant gratification in the bass region seeking quantity over quality. 
Initially I used them for their isolation. After a short time I came to appreciate bass detail and never looked back.  Still one of my favourites.

 

[Pianist]

Quote:

I found it takes time to warm up to the Ety's. Most listens want instant gratification in the bass region seeking quantity over quality. 
Initially I used them for their isolation. After a short time I came to appreciate bass detail and never looked back.  Still one of my favourites.

 
That's right. Once you warm up to them though, they are nearly impossible to beat IMO.

 

[shockdoc]

On sale right now for 79 bucks on Amazon.

 

[FieldingMellish]

Gonzo. Over and done with.

 

[FieldingMellish]

I'm trying out a fit kit from Westone using the recently introduced star silicone, in my case size red. I can insert reasonably deep, not real deep, and obtain a seal. Listening to some original Buddha Bar and there's some rich depth among a balanced sound.