[The_Blood_Raven]

Hello, I am a long time reader of Head-fi, but never really got into the audio world as much as most people here. That said, I do appreciate good sound and while I despise bad audio, I'm not extremely picky. For example, I currently use some Ultimate Ears Super.fi 5 Pros, decent earphones all things considered (A bit colored for some tastes, but I like the added warmth), but I also use them with an admittedly **** source, a stock Archos 5 without any amplification. That doesn't mean that I don't notice the difference between a **** source and a good one, I do, but I am not picky enough to lug around an AMP and a lesser featured PMP.

That said, a lot of that has to do with my music. I listen to all forms of heavy metal, from classic rock to black metal and even some non-metal tastes like trance techno and industrial. These forms of music tend to have a limited soundstage and they tend to be too fast to let true clarity and detail shine through like Jazz and classical.

All that over with, we have come to the crucial matter. My Ultimate Ears may be on their way out and to be honest, while I love their sound, they are far from the most comfortable IEMs on the market, let alone ideal for all the walking I do with them (I walk a couple of miles every day). I have used them for 2 years now, with an RMA about this time last year. Right now I am noticing a persistent stratchy/staticy sound from the left monitor. I believe this might be the sound of the bud working its way out of my ear, but it might be a problem with the interior components too. Either way, I'm looking for an upgrade in comfort and sound if possible.

I was extremely impressed by the customer support and their care, not to mention their signature colored sound, so I am a fan of UE. I have also owned Etymotic ER-6s and ER-4Ps, which both I found to be too neutral and lacking in the low end for my tastes. I have also sampled some Shure e4c IEMs, but wasn't impressed, they just sounded a bit "confined" for a lack of better terminology. So I'm looking for some new IEMs and there seems to have been a HUGE surplus in options since 2 years ago.

What I want:
-Comfort, they don't have to be great but I need to be able to walk with them on and they need to be better than the Super.fi 5s, an admittedly simple goal. Note that the ER-6 dual flanged tips and the ER-4Ps triple flanged tips worked great for me.
-Price, I don't really want to go over $300, with $350 being the max if I can justify it.
-Sound quality, I'm not looking for a trade-off here, I want atleast a similar level of sound. Better sound is not totally crucial considering my source limitations, but it would be very nice!
-Source limitations, if you know Archos you know their players have restricted volume so low impedance and high sensitivity are crucial.

Here are the ones I am looking at: (note that I am not looking at them solely, they are just the ones I know of)

Ultimate Ears 700: These tend to be well within my price range and they seem to be a huge leap in comfort over the Super.fi 5 Pros, but I'm not sure how they compare sound wise. The impedance, however, is about as high as I'm willing to go.

Shure SE420: They seem nice with their good price and extremely reasonable impedance, but their comfort is questionable. I'm not sure about the sound quality, but I have read that it is somewhere between the Super.fi 5 Pros and the ER-4Ps in warmth over detail.

Westone UM2: They seem to have a reasonable impedance and sensitivity and are supposed to have a similar warmth to the Super.fi 5 Pros, but with more warmth and less of the vocal clarity that is signature to UE. They are also supposed to be far more comfortable. Their problem is the price, its a bit steep.

Sennheiser IE 7: Good sound, though not as warm as I would like from what I read, and good price. The impedance and the sensitivity seem superb for my uses. The comfort seems to be a bit questionable though.

I will be trying my girlfriend's pair of Etymotic ER-6s with my Archos, which have higher impedance and lower sensitivity than anything listed here so I can get a better grip on my needs.

What are your thoughts? Any suggestions or comments are extremely appreciated as I know you all know what you are talking about and head-fi has helped me on many occasions (love my Swan D1080MKIIs!).

Thank you for reading!

 

[The_Blood_Raven]

I tested the Etymotic ER-6s and found them to be JUST good enough, any more power hungry and they wouldn't make it. In light of this, I'm not very worried about it since I know of very few IEMs that have even higher impedance.

Thanks again.

 

[dnullify]

Have you considered low-end custom IEMs, like Alien Ears (hearyourself.com), or Livewires? There are MANY more brands now that do affordable custom IEMs. That's another option, which would probably be the polar opposite of the fit issues you are having with the sf.5 pros.

Also, they tend to have particularly high sensitivity and low impedance. (livewires for example)

That's an option.

you might also look at the head-direct RE0, which are turning into something of a favorite, at least from what i've read.

 

[thepredestrian]

Consider the SE530. They provide a full bodied sound quite similar to the SF5pros i feel

 

[The_Blood_Raven]

The Shure SE530s are a consideration, but somewhat on the high end of my price range.

The customs just don't seem to be what I'm looking for, too much of a pain and I do sometimes share my IEMs.

Oddly enough, both my virus protection softwares, Avast and Nod32, abort connection when going to hearyourself.com.

 

[milford302009]

have you considered second hand ones? i understand IE8s are going at around 200 ish on the forum sales page... so is se530s, there's a 1 day old UM3X for 300....
i personally rather get second hand IEMs that sound better

 

[The_Blood_Raven]

The warranty is somewhat important to me considering how much I use my IEMs, but I will heavily consider it.

 

[The_Blood_Raven]

I'm liking those Sennheiser IE8, but I can't find them for a decent price. Anyone have any suggestions or sources across seas that ship to the U.S.? I really don't want to go over $300.

 

[yinyang]

I know that they may be over and above your budget, but my earphone journey has gone from Sony EX-71 to Ety ER-6i to UE Super.fi 5 Pro to Westone UM3X, and I can tell you that the UM3X is so comfortable compared to the UEs, almost more so than the Etys, even though they were so light. I can (and have) fall asleep with them still in, and they cause no discomfort. I'm using the modded tri-flange at the moment, since i find them much more comfortable than the standard foam tips that come with (wish Westone would include more tips like with the W3!), but may decide to bite the bullet and get the custom UM56.

I think the sound 'signature' from the UM3X is very similar to the Super.fi 5Pro, even though it has an extra driver so from that point of view there isn't going to be too much adjustment.

As for the price difference, my only suggestion is that you look out for any specials or maybe Black Friday sales to get something - if not the UM3X, then maybe the Westone 1, if the reviews are favourable.

 

[The_Blood_Raven]

Thanks guys, I think I will wait for a good price on the Sennheiser IE8s or the Westone UM3x. All the help was very well appriciated, I truely love this forum it is so full of information and helpful people.