[i2ehan]

Thank you my friend, I appreciate your insight! Personally, I think it's that very lush and thick signature which many fall in love with, but as you said, I too feel that it's very susceptible to change based on ones music preference. This is the very reason why the W4, thus far, has been the absolute "safest bet", if you will, to anyone who's an all rounder, and listens to much of everything. Contrary to what my profile says, there are times when I listen to many different genres of music, especially on long drives/trips. While I'm seated and studying daily however, be it home or at the library, I exclusively listen to trance/progressive tracks, as they keep me awake and oriented all day long. Not to mention, I love the sound of trance. With the W4, I've never found myself in a position where I'd say to myself, "this track would have sounded so much better had I brought such and such instead." I can't say the same for any other earphone I've heard to date, and that's why the W4 sits atop the throne. Not to mention, I find it borderline ridiculous to have to wait out 50-100+ hours before an IEM I've spent $300+ sounds "acceptable" to my ears. IMO, it should sound great right out of the box (ie Westones), and if anything, should sound even better as it's being burned in. Otherwise, I don't feel the need to bend over backwards hopelessly to convince myself that the sound will adapt to my ears over time; rather, I'm more a believer of ones ears adapting to the sound of the IEM, and not vice versa. We've practically beat this over the head countless times now, so needless to say, to each his own.

 

[KaliKot]

I personally havent heard the W4s yet because everyone is hesitant to buy it because of the costs 

 What you said resonates with people who have them though but the problem with them is that they are dangerously close to Customs pricing territory. I am happy that it should at least be worth it on paper if it's better than anything else you've heard so far. 
 
The pedigree of these top tiers you've been reviewing so far makes me giddy Keep up the great work. I wish I had the priviledge of doing what you just did. Purchasing all the top tiers and picking out a winner seems like a hell of a good time
Quote:

Thank you my friend, I appreciate your insight! Personally, I think it's that very lush and thick signature which many fall in love with, but as you said, I too feel that it's very susceptible to change based on ones music preference. This is the very reason why the W4, thus far, has been the absolute "safest bet", if you will, to anyone who's an all rounder, and listens to much of everything. Contrary to what my profile says, there are times when I listen to many different genres of music, especially on long drives/trips. While I'm seated and studying daily however, be it home or at the library, I exclusively listen to trance/progressive tracks, as they keep me awake and oriented all day long. Not to mention, I love the sound of trance. With the W4, I've never found myself in a position where I'd say to myself, "this track would have sounded so much better had I brought such and such instead." I can't say the same for any other earphone I've heard to date, and that's why the W4 sits atop the throne. Not to mention, I find it borderline ridiculous to have to wait out 50-100+ hours before an IEM I've spent $300+ sounds "acceptable" to my ears. IMO, it should sound great right out of the box (ie Westones), and if anything, should sound even better as it's being burned in. Otherwise, I don't feel the need to bend over backwards hopelessly to convince myself that the sound will adapt to my ears over time; rather, I'm more a believer of ones ears adapting to the sound of the IEM, and not vice versa. We've practically beat this over the head countless times now, so needless to say, to each his own.

 

 

[RADI0HEAD]

Compared to my Ortofon's everything else I have is "veiled". Very sharp treble response. I am a bit sensitive to higher frequency response, goes back to the titanium versus silk dome tweeter days for me. The treble clarity in these is unlike any other I've heard. Compared to those the SM3 are veiled indeed. But as far as the soundstage conversation, I already assumed it was being used as an alternative meaning. UM3's do not have a wide soundstage in the accepted definition. 
 
Funny how the "pinnacle" or best at any one category (or even many) is not necessarily the one that wins out to the individual listener. 

I thought the W4 sounded "veiled" compared to the CK10 when I first heard them.

Which Ortofon do you have? How do they compare to the CK10?

 

[i2ehan]

It sure is one hell of a good time. To prove my point across, my older sister walked in yesterday (not the one to whom I gave the DBA-02) and she absolutely hates me bringing up anything headphone/earphone related, because as of late, it's all I ever do! 

 So, she noticed me listening with my EX1000 (I go back time to time and enjoy each one throughout the day, just to reassure I won't ever hold any regrets), and I was finally able to have her sit down and listen to one of her favorite tracks, a very well composed one I might add. And so, I gave her the Sony's while I listened in as well with the W4, via my Headstage amps dual phones jack (bare in mind all settings on the amp were off). the track begin playing and her face just lit up, as if someone had offered her a promotion! The expression remained on her face throughout the length of the entire track!

 I then pulled up another song she and I both enjoy, and this time, I gave her the Westones (bad decision). Not only did her face light up this time, she looks over at me and says "what the heck did you give me those for if these are so much better?" And I give you my word, I didn't tell her which one is which, nor does she know what Westones are to begin with.

 Long story short, she left the room with my W4's, and I didn't see her until around midnight, when she handed them back, only to say "those are mine." I asked her to describe to me why she preferred the W4's, and what she likes better, and all she said was, "I don't know, everything! They're much more comfortable and I can't hear anything when they're in. Everything sounds live." Enough said.

 

[i2ehan]

Thought I'd mention, my Tributes came included with an extra pair of comply T-400 tips that I had failed to notice until just last night, which the seller was kind enough to throw in. They exceed the fit and comfort of even my Westone comply's, and have earned the title for absolute best fit and seal for my ears, period! These are the ones I'm referring to:

If it were up to me, I'd buy the Monster eartip adapters (skip to 2:45) and use the T-400's with every IEM I own. I may just relisten to each with the T-400's, as they aren't at all thick and really open up the sound coming into my ears.

 

[goodvibes]

We should have more women giving impressions. I've always found them to be less analytical about the sounds, more into how the music happens as whole and not letting the trees obscure the forest. That type of listening for the message and not the sound is much more important in relating to the art. Of course general descriptions of character etc are important to a review but less important to an IEMs overall appreciation. This is something Joker gets and why I like his reviews. He doesn't let a sig get in the way unless it's significant enough to create a problem and no I'm not saying he's a girly man.

 Yes, men and women aren't the same. I understand this is stereo typing to some extent and what I said isn't universal. Deal with it and viva ls difference.

 

[Anaxilus]

Quote:

We should have more women giving impressions. I've always found them to be less analytical about the sounds, more into how the music happens as whole and not letting the trees obscure the forest. That type of listening for the message and not the sound is much more important in relating to the art. Of course general descriptions of character etc are important to a review but less important to an IEMs overall appreciation. This is something Joker gets and why I like his reviews. He doesn't let a sig get in the way unless it's significant enough to create a problem and no I'm not saying he's a girly man.

 Yes, men and women aren't the same. I understand this is stereo typing to some extent and what I said isn't universal. Deal with it and viva ls difference.

I agree w/ main thrust of that.  I prefer a phone where the whole is greater than the sum of it's parts rather than the inverse.  I think many top-tier phones can be broken down into these two camps.  I guess I'd consider some to be Frankenphones, having great technical aspects point for point but somehow just miss the overall picture.    
 

 

[i2ehan]

While it's all broken down in the impressions, what draws my ears towards one IEM versus another is it's overall signature. Otherwise, It'd be impractical for any listener to sit there hours on end deciding, "well the SM3 would sound good here, but the W3 would sound good here..." etc. It's a tough call, since no 2 IEM's sound exactly alike, and no 2 listeners will hear the same exact thing, but in the end, I always keep the bigger picture in mind; which signature are my ears most accustomed to? So long as I'm content with the signature as a whole, I'm sold.

 

[DaEMoNteNTAcLe]

so lets say you pick your most preferred signature.
what if your preference changes after sometime?
what if you got tired of your signature? since a lot of iems got their own signatures.. its bound to affect everything you throw at it.
some people want things that isnt bassy to have less bass. some want it to have more. but switch to another song, it messes up the other one. eventually all songs will sound similar, they all have same character, have same signature. this is what happens when i own eterna v1. it was nice, but its not right. eventually everything i listen sounds 'fun'.. bassy, wide, boomy.. all in a good way.. but i got tired of listening to cute female vocalist having bassy voice. i got tired of instrumental songs that have too much boom in the strings.. they all sound similar. well, that's a case of serious coloration anyways.. but its no longer fun. upgraditis sets in... >_<
 
problem is when people compares a lot of iems, headphones, earphones, etc... they will be spellbounded by the one superior character of the thing, and place a high value over it.
eventually they'll end up keeping several sets, one for rock, one for metal, one for jazz, one for classical.. etc.
why not settle down for one iem that does everything well, compare to a lot of iem that only do excel at one specific thing?
 
Quote:

While it's all broken down in the impressions, what draws my ears towards one IEM versus another is it's overall signature. Otherwise, It'd be impractical for any listener to sit there hours on end deciding, "well the SM3 would sound good here, but the W3 would sound good here..." etc. It's a tough call, since no 2 IEM's sound exactly alike, and no 2 listeners will hear the same exact thing, but in the end, I always keep the bigger picture in mind; which signature are my ears most accustomed to? So long as I'm content with the signature as a whole, I'm sold.

 

 

[Kunlun]

interesting thread

 

[i2ehan]

I'm not nearly as picky as it may seem my friend. As I've mentioned a few times now, I owned the IE8's for nearly 2 years, without any complaints. The only reason I let them go was because the right earpiece completely stopped working, and I had to send them in for warranty. While they were sent out for service (which took nearly 3 weeks before I received a brand new replacement), I decided to see what's what here on head-fi. Thus, I discovered |joker|'s thread, and I was simply in awe. The more I tried to narrow down to what's best for my taste, the more indecisive I became. And so I went with my only sure-shot guaranteed option, to buy and try for myself. There isn't a day where I don't go back and listen for all the IEM's, to reassure that my current pick is here to stay. I agree wholeheartedly that I'd end up keeping seperate sets for different genres, but in my case, that's not an issue. My Sennheisers met my expectations through and through because I listen exclusively to trance & progressive. Sure, every now and then I'll enjoy other genres, but it's barely noteworthy. Hence, I have no trouble living with a decision I've made, once it's final, for years to come. Besides, I have yet to find a sigle track, nay, a single genre, with which the W4's don't do my ears justice. So if anything, I'll have the W4's to fall back on, when all is said and done. Nonetheless, my preference rarely ever changes, and even if I were to encounter a track where I know a different IEM would have sounded better, nothing's perfect my friend. If you're on the quest to perfection, you'll never settle, because our senses are just as dynamic as our thinking, and sooner or later, something "better" or more "appealing" is bound to cross our way.

 

[i2ehan]

I received my Altec Lansing BackBeat Plus UHS206 earphones today, ordered from NewEgg for $10. It sounds like a subwoofer in my head! I can't believe what I'm hearing from earphones of this value; they've got as much impact as my Monsters, I kid you not! Obviously they are no comparison in terms of SQ, but they're a hell of a lot of fun and I bought them primarily for the microphone. I'm impressed, to say the least; very impressed!

 

[CantScareMe]

i2ehan,
 
Don't the inside of your ears hurt by now?
 
You've tried all these earphones, and if it were me, I'd be in some discomfort.
 

 

[i2ehan]

Indeed my friend, one would think so. In truth, the comply foams are to my ears as music is to my iPod, they go hand in hand.

 

[i2ehan]

After some time spent A/B-ing both the Copper's and Tributes, I've come to the following conclusion:
 
Treble: The Tributes are a tad brighter than the Copper's (to my ears, YMMV), and thus are ever so slightly more prone to sibilance. Sibilance on the Copper's is next to nonexistent, though it's rarely ever an issue with the Tributes. I personally prefer the Tribute's slightly more prominent and pronounced highs, as it's not at all excessively bright (neither one is of course) and only adds life to the track.
 
Midrange: This is where there's a clear distinction to my ears between the two; the Tributes are significantly more revealing than the Copper's. Detail and clarity is much better appreciated with the Tributes, than on the Copper's, to my ears; especially with regards to mid-vocals. I strongly prefer the Tributes with regards to the midrange, as it's also slightly more forward than the Copper's, and thus better exposed.
 
Bass: The impact is monstrous in regards to both, though the Tributes impact is noticeably greater than that of the Copper's and only adds to the excitement; it's much better felt, while heard equally well in regards to both. Again, detail and clarity are much better appreciated with the Tributes, owing to better all around imaging.
 
Soundstage: The width is slightly larger with the Copper's than the Tributes, while the depth is also slightly different between the two, owing to the Tributes more forward signature. The imaging, however, is significantly better with the Tributes than with the Copper's. When in direct comparison, the Copper's may sound a tad darker, but it's not to say that the Copper's sound signature is overall dark. Regardless of which track I heard, the Tributes carried much better overall "feel" than the Copper's, giving the listener a more intimate overall sound.
 
Conclusion: From the impact, to the slightly more forward, and overall better "feel" and imaging, I'd say the Tributes easily earn my preference over the Copper's. Busy tracks requiring great detail and imaging sounded much more pleasant with the Tributes, while the Copper's just couldn't keep up, though this only holds true when in direct comparison and the Copper's are just as much deserving as the Tributes. I've grown quite fond of the Monster line of IEM's, and can fully appreciate why they're considered top tiers. The Copper's won me from the moment I received them, and the Tributes only made my experience that much better! While the Tributes are quite obviously my preferred choice for listening, the Copper's don't fall short of expectations, and are equally praise-worthy in their own right.