[rroseperry]

If you're looking for a cheap alternative, I've been listening to Hisound Crystals on loaner tour. They're quite detailed, don't require an amp, and have more bass than the etys. Though to be honest, I have no idea where you'd buy them. Google didn't turn up anything in a perfunctory (I admit) search.

 

[mhcarlos]

@rroseperry - I Googled the hisound crystals and they're not easily found as you said.
 
I did find this HF thread about the ck10. Looks interesting. The thread starter described them as Ety-like but smoother, etc.
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/467576/audio-technica-ath-ck10

 

[David58117]

My God you sound just like me!
 
I listen primarily to classical, and I love my K701s as well.  
 
Except I have the ER4S's and mine are still going strong.  
 
If there's a direct upgrade to the Etys I would be very interested.  K701s in an IEM would just blow me away.  
 
Let me know what you end up with and how they compare.  

 

[mhcarlos]

Quote:

My God you sound just like me!
 
I listen primarily to classical, and I love my K701s as well.  
 
Except I have the ER4S's and mine are still going strong.  
 
If there's a direct upgrade to the Etys I would be very interested.  K701s in an IEM would just blow me away.  
 
Let me know what you end up with and how they compare.  

 
Hey David58117 -- do you use your ER4S with a portable amp? Yeah, I wish there was such an IEM that sounded like the K701, even with decreased soundstage (understandable for any closed headphone).
 
 
 

 

[David58117]

 
Quote:

 
Hey David58117 -- do you use your ER4S with a portable amp? Yeah, I wish there was such an IEM that sounded like the K701, even with decreased soundstage (understandable for any closed headphone).
 
 
 

 
When I use to take them out of the house I would just use a Fiio E5.   

 

[ianmedium]

I have the ERS which I use with the rig in my signature. Been looking not necessarily for an upgrade just something with a little different sound, perhaps a tad more bass and a little more overall warmth. Tried the triple.fi 10's and just found the sound too muddled, also have the victor fx500's which are great for the price but a little too boomy for my liking but at the price a bargain I feel. I also had the Senn ie8'S but found them a little too muddled in sound as well.

So now, after reading a lot of reviews and thoughts I have ordered a set of Final Audio Design Heaven S's in the hope that they will give me the bass I am looking for but not at the expense of the clarity I like. I will see, some recommended the c or a models but after reflection I think the S's may be more to my liking. I will let you know when I get them, they are back ordered at the moment but hopefully the wait won't be too long!

 

[mhcarlos]

Quote:

I have the ERS which I use with the rig in my signature. Been looking not necessarily for an upgrade just something with a little different sound, perhaps a tad more bass and a little more overall warmth. Tried the triple.fi 10's and just found the sound too muddled, also have the victor fx500's which are great for the price but a little too boomy for my liking but at the price a bargain I feel. I also had the Senn ie8'S but found them a little too muddled in sound as well.
So now, after reading a lot of reviews and thoughts I have ordered a set of Final Audio Design Heaven S's in the hope that they will give me the bass I am looking for but not at the expense of the clarity I like. I will see, some recommended the c or a models but after reflection I think the S's may be more to my liking. I will let you know when I get them, they are back ordered at the moment but hopefully the wait won't be too long!

Thanks ianmedium! Please let me know how it goes with the Final Audio Design Heaven S (never heard of that one). I was considered the triple.fi 10's and IE8 as well, but for now, I'll just send in the ER4P for repair.

 

[jpelg]

ianmedium, are you using the ER4S' with a cable balanced for the RSA SR-71B?
 
If so, how does the balanced output affect the Ety's signature?

 

[imackler]

I can not recommend the Grado GR10 strongly enough to the opening post...and to all the subsequent ones that said they wanted the same thing. Extremely transparent, brilliant for classical, so much more comfortable than the ER4 and fantastic noise isolation.
 
 

 

[jpelg]

Quote:

I can not recommend the Grado GR10 strongly enough to the opening post...and to all the subsequent ones that said they wanted the same thing. Extremely transparent, brilliant for classical, so much more comfortable than the ER4 and fantastic noise isolation.

I've read a one or two reviews that said something similar.
However, the FR graph for the GR10's are nothing like the ER4's.

 

[ClieOS]

Though I haven't heard GR10 myself, but having own two other IEM with the same family of BA driver (e-Q5 and e-Q7) by the same Japanese OEM, I find it hard to believe GR10 could really be the 'better ER4'. The difference in FR curve certainly doesn't support that theory either. Guess I have to audition it sometime.

 

[Aizura]

I think the only upgrade from the ER-4P is the ER-4S. I can't imagine an IEM sounding even better than the ER4-S does when fully amped on a high end system. I haven't heard that many IEMs, but I did compare the ER-4S with the UE TripleFi 10 (which I think is comparable in SQ to the ER-4P) on a Violectric V200 amp and the Etys were a completely different league when it came to detail, speed, separation and realism.
I really believe the only way to upgrade after ER-4S is to upgrade the system around it. Get a high end amp and DAC for them and prepare to be blown away.

 

[ianmedium]

Thanks ianmedium! Please let me know how it goes with the Final Audio Design Heaven S (never heard of that one). I was considered the triple.fi 10's and IE8 as well, but for now, I'll just send in the ER4P for repair.

ianmedium, are you using the ER4S' with a cable balanced for the RSA SR-71B?
 
If so, how does the balanced output affect the Ety's signature?

mhcarlos. i would not even consider the other two you mentioned, have owned one and have the other and neither of them come close to the clarity or emotion that the ETY's deliver, they just sound wooly and muddled in comparison to my ears!

jpeig. I have considered running them balanced but it means sending them away for a complete re-cable. The sonic differences I hear when running my LCD2's balanced or single ended has convinced me that though worthwhile in the home environment where there is absolute silence so as to be able to enjoy the differences I personally feel the gains would be not as great in the outdoor environment where I listen to my IEM's.
Even the ETY's don't block all the external noise and I feel that the small gains in running balanced (increased headroom and space around the notes in my experience) would be not worth the cost of the cable change. I like the single ended sound enough, it is still comparable to my ears to when I was using the Stepdance.

One of the things that attracted me to the Final Audio's is a greater soundstage so that should take care of the balanced issue for me whilst also adding the things I want that running the ETY's balanced still would not give me.

I want to emphasize though that this is not an upgrade from my ETY's. I love their sound and having listened to a great many more expensive and so-called better IEM's and customs (admittedly with universal tips which lower the sound quality a touch) I don't think there is much out there to touch the Etymotics especially at the price. I have no fascination with customs and from what I have heard multi-driver iem's seem to clutter the sound and complicate it to my ears. I think this is why the Final's fascinate me, they are also a single driver.

 

[rroseperry]

I don't know about the GR10, but the GR8, though a really fine phone, is not as detailed as the ER - 4S, though it is (imo) an improvement on the 4P.

 

[robm321]

I keep coming back to the ER4s. Accuracy is hard to beat with excess bass or coloration. Sounds good for a bit - but I always come back to neutral. 
 
My suggestion would be to get ER4s and a good amp unless you want to spend $1K+ on JH13s. OR keep the Etys, and get a fun (read: colored) IEM to compliment, so you can go back and forth.