[elnero]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ra97oR /img/forum/go_quote.gif It kinda filled the mid range hole and tighten the bass. Overall, much better mid range and less but tighter bass. It made the TF10 far more neutral.

Pretty much mirrors my thoughts on the Null Audio cable I have as well.

 

[chinesekiwi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by average_joe /img/forum/go_quote.gif Does this mean you think the FX500 is top tier after modding? I have not modded the FX500's I have in hand as they are not mine, but can imagine that they could be up there if the mids could be brought up and the treble knocked down. But the treble, while sharp, still is a little lacking in detail and clarity to my ears. I am not sure if foam would help that aspect. I am using UE bi-flange and have tried a multitude of tips.

The mids are easily bought up with tips such as the Koss Silicone Earcushions or even better, the Head-direct bi-flange tips (the smaller all black or all white ones). Also the foam mod helps the treble. Defiltering it definitely helps the sound quality as well as otherwise it is quite hindered by the mesh.
As for 'top-tier', I do not know as I havn't owned anything higher. I've tried the IE8 and really didn't like the mid-bass hump (the FX500 has better quality bass tbh on all regards) but soundstage was definitely good.

 

[grokit]

So the HiFiMAN 252 makes the grade and the Klipsch Image X10 does not? I like most of this effort quite a bit, but that would seem to go against the overall consensus. Not that I've heard either one

 

[james444]

Quote:

Originally Posted by grokit /img/forum/go_quote.gif So the HiFiMAN 252 makes the grade and the Klipsch Image X10 does not?

^ I have both and concur with that ranking. The RE252 are very refined IEMs and certainly among the best I've heard, while the X10 have one of the worst bang/buck ratio out of my phones. When I compared them to the $50 Soundmagic PL50 I could not pick a clear winner.

 

[average_joe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by grokit /img/forum/go_quote.gif So the HiFiMAN 252 makes the grade and the Klipsch Image X10 does not? I like most of this effort quite a bit, but that would seem to go against the overall consensus. Not that I've heard either one

Thanks for bringing up the question, and thanks james444 for answering it...that is the conclusion I have come to also, but only from talking with others that have owned the X10. And I know the RE252 competes. This chart is designed to help people with the choice for the top-tier, and while the X10 is very nice (and I almost bought one a year ago), it doesn't fall into that tier based on my data collection.

 

[grokit]

Good to know, just a bit surprising I guess but a very good reason to have a list like this; the PL50 sounds like a "second-tier steal"!

 

[chinesekiwi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by grokit /img/forum/go_quote.gif Good to know, just a bit surprising I guess but a very good reason to have a list like this; the PL50 sounds like a "second-tier steal"!

Yep, the PL50 has insane, I do mean it, insane imaging for the price.

 

[StereoIntegrity]

hey average i do support the Golds as being a top tier....

 

[ben4345]

Quote:

Originally Posted by chinesekiwi /img/forum/go_quote.gif Yep, the PL50 has insane, I do mean it, insane imaging for the price.

Makes me want to try out the PL50's

 

[knubbe]

I support the Miles Davis.

 

[playingwithfire]

average_joe, I may have missed it but what didn't you like about the UM3X? Maybe I am just getting used to them now but right now the soundstage doesn't sound too bad, the frequency is pretty flat besides a bump in the vocal range(not as forward as the W2 though) as well as having very good texture, cymbals and guitars both sounds realistic. I was just wondering what your gripe with it was...?

Also, while we are at it, I'm getting the Monster Turbine Copper soon, what tips would you suggest? My problem with the gold was that they don't go in deep enough(I have shallow ear canal, which does fine with most phones) and are prone to falling out or losing seal.

Thanks

 

[germanturkey]

i support ATH-CK10. reasons to come after i can throw a few thoughts together.

 

[average_joe]

Some minor updates to the chart in post 1. Trying to spend as much time possible doing my Copper comparison review, comparing with the IE8, CK10, CK90Pro, FX500, RE252, TF10, and WM2 silver.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alec E /img/forum/go_quote.gif I thought about starting a new thread for this question, but I was going to ask that people pick their answers from average_joe's table, so I'll ask it here. Which of these are "true" IEM's? I realize how much ambiguity there is now about the terms IEM vs canalphone, but I would be curious which of these, if any, are definitely IEM's as opposed to canalphones. The ER4S/P is the only one that I'm certain would qualify.

I would say the rest are canalphones.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pianist /img/forum/go_quote.gif =843&graphID[1]=1303&graphID[2]=783&graphID[3]=603&graphType=0&buttonSelection=Compare+Headphones]http://www.headphone.com/learning-center/build-a-graph.php?graphID[0]=843&graphID[1]=1303&graphID[2]=783&graphID[3]=603&graphType=0&buttonSelection=Compare+Headphone s Where do you see forward mids on there? Maybe SE530 can be said to have forward mids and bass, but not just mids. And BTW, I think that the recessed treble on the SE530s actually makes them sound more natural. If anything, it's the IE8 that has very forward low mids.

Charts are nice, but they don't tell the whole story as I don't think frequency response chart show spatial location information. Can you tell how wide a soundstage is from that chart? IMO same thing...how upfront and personal are the mids? And I thought it the IE8 mids were widely known to be laid back, not forward. I can see a peak in frequency response, which does play into how we hear things, but I don't know how to go from A to B.

It sounds like we may be having semantic issues

As far as fit goes, I tried 6 different tips and know I had a great seal with foam tips, so I did have bass.

Quote:

Originally Posted by playingwithfire /img/forum/go_quote.gif average_joe, I may have missed it but what didn't you like about the UM3X? Maybe I am just getting used to them now but right now the soundstage doesn't sound too bad, the frequency is pretty flat besides a bump in the vocal range(not as forward as the W2 though) as well as having very good texture, cymbals and guitars both sounds realistic. I was just wondering what your gripe with it was...? Also, while we are at it, I'm getting the Monster Turbine Copper soon, what tips would you suggest? My problem with the gold was that they don't go in deep enough(I have shallow ear canal, which does fine with most phones) and are prone to falling out or losing seal. Thanks

My personal gripe with the UM3X is the soundstage width when I compared them to the W3 and IE8. Sure, they have a good 3D presentation, but there is a lot of my music I feel is presented just too small. But of course that is my opinion and others don't necessarily agree.

Quote:

Originally Posted by StereoIntegrity /img/forum/go_quote.gif hey average i do support the Golds as being a top tier....

Quote:

Originally Posted by knubbe /img/forum/go_quote.gif I support the Miles Davis.

Quote:

Originally Posted by germanturkey /img/forum/go_quote.gif i support ATH-CK10. reasons to come after i can throw a few thoughts together.

StereoIntegrity, knubble, and germanturkey, please let me know:
- What IEMs you own on the chart
- What IEMs you have previously owned on the chart
- What IEMs you have auditioned on the chart

 

[iponderous]

Hi average_joe, I'd appreciate it if you would include me as a supporter of the IE8 for top-tier status. Thanks.

 

[cn11]

@joe-
The MD's should be top of the heap if you're going by the comments of those supporters you've noted. They've both said the MD's sound noticeably better than the other two.