[Vimes]

Hi
 
I've been browsing various audio forums on and off for a couple of years and have bought a couple of iems based on reviews and recommendations off of them.
 
Now the first pair of iems I purchased were the Panasonic rp- hje900. They are probably the favorite pair i owned.  A really nice clear sound, decent bass and wide soundstage. Thing is they were fairly expensive and after a few months one ea rbud just suddenly stopped working. I got a replacement pair , and the same thing happened. And I know it wasn't the cables as you could unscrew them and switch the actual earphones around, so seemed to be a build flaw.
 
So I did some more research and found the soundmagic e30s. These I found to be great as well, not quite as nice as the panasonics but very close. I had one of these for quite a while but again  one earphone went after about 6 months. So I got a replacement as they were still under warranty but this pair  started cutting out after a few months, and had to tweak the wire to get them working. I tried repairing it but with not much success.
 
And most recently I got tired of spending £30+ on a  pair of headphones to have them fail after a few months so I went with the monprice 83020s for £5. Now for the money they were very good, once you get the right tips to fit them and eq my mp3 player. But out of the box I wasn't that impressed, and still even with a lot of tweaking around they are good but, for certain types of music they can be quite muddy and in general they just aren't as good as the soundmagics.
 
So basically i'm looking for a replacement for monoprice/ soundmagic iems. What's most important it seems is build quality, I don't mind paying a little more if they have a warranty and a good chance of lasting at least 2 years. I can't be spending loads of money replacing headphones all the time. That's why for now the monprice are a good in between, but they aren't something I want to stick with in the long run.   Now in general I am very careful with how I treat the headphones, but I do use them mainly for listening in bed, and that means I'm normally lying on the side of my head when listening to them, so i don't know if that's effecting them. I occasionally fall asleep with them on but 9 times out of 10 I'll take them out before that happens.
 
I'd buy another pair of soundmagics preferably but i know they wont last. So unless anyone can give me some tips on making them last longer somehow (whilst still being able to wear them in bed), then what I'm looking for is some iems with a similar sound profiles in the £30-100 range that will last a couple of years most likely. Anything up the higher end of the scale preferably needs some kind of warranty or something.
 
Thanks for taking the time to read, I've been reading a lot of different reviews around here but there's so many conflicting opinoins and headphones about it's hard to know whats right for me. Hopefully if you've had a similar experience you can help me out.
Cheers.

 

 

[kimvictor]

Quote:

Hi
 
I've been browsing various audio forums on and off for a couple of years and have bought a couple of iems based on reviews and recommendations off of them.
 
Now the first pair of iems I purchased were the Panasonic rp- hje900. They are probably the favorite pair i owned.  A really nice clear sound, decent bass and wide soundstage. Thing is they were fairly expensive and after a few months one ea rbud just suddenly stopped working. I got a replacement pair , and the same thing happened. And I know it wasn't the cables as you could unscrew them and switch the actual earphones around, so seemed to be a build flaw.
 
So I did some more research and found the soundmagic e30s. These I found to be great as well, not quite as nice as the panasonics but very close. I had one of these for quite a while but again  one earphone went after about 6 months. So I got a replacement as they were still under warranty but this pair  started cutting out after a few months, and had to tweak the wire to get them working. I tried repairing it but with not much success.
 
And most recently I got tired of spending £30+ on a  pair of headphones to have them fail after a few months so I went with the monprice 83020s for £5. Now for the money they were very good, once you get the right tips to fit them and eq my mp3 player. But out of the box I wasn't that impressed, and still even with a lot of tweaking around they are good but, for certain types of music they can be quite muddy and in general they just aren't as good as the soundmagics.
 
So basically i'm looking for a replacement for monoprice/ soundmagic iems. What's most important it seems is build quality, I don't mind paying a little more if they have a warranty and a good chance of lasting at least 2 years. I can't be spending loads of money replacing headphones all the time. That's why for now the monprice are a good in between, but they aren't something I want to stick with in the long run.   Now in general I am very careful with how I treat the headphones, but I do use them mainly for listening in bed, and that means I'm normally lying on the side of my head when listening to them, so i don't know if that's effecting them. I occasionally fall asleep with them on but 9 times out of 10 I'll take them out before that happens.
 
I'd buy another pair of soundmagics preferably but i know they wont last. So unless anyone can give me some tips on making them last longer somehow (whilst still being able to wear them in bed), then what I'm looking for is some iems with a similar sound profiles in the £30-100 range that will last a couple of years most likely. Anything up the higher end of the scale preferably needs some kind of warranty or something.
 
Thanks for taking the time to read, I've been reading a lot of different reviews around here but there's so many conflicting opinoins and headphones about it's hard to know whats right for me. Hopefully if you've had a similar experience you can help me out.
Cheers.

 

I recommend SE215 and here is why:
1. Very durable. The housing is indestructible and cable is replaceable.
2. 2 Year warranty from Shure. Shure, imo, is one of the companies with best customer service. They will fix almost any thing for free if you are under the warranty.
3. They are over ears, which makes them easier to sleep with.
4. Overall solid sound quality.

 

[Vimes]

Thanks for the reply. These sound really good, the warranty is great, and generally good reviews, though I see some varying opinions on the reviews here  (but isn't there always?)
They are definitely at the pricier end but the 2 year warranty would make me a hell of a lot more comfortable spending that much.
 
i guess my question is, is the sound quality a massive leap from the sound magic or monoprice headphones. One half of me thinks I should stick to the monprice headphones and experiment with more earbuds (though i've already tried sony hybrids on them which are supposed to be great sounding, and they are good but don't blow me away). Even if the monoprice break I could buy years worth for the price of those shure headphones.
 
But if the sound quality difference is really noticeable and they are likely to last then it's definitely worth the investment, I mean replaceable cables and a good warranty is an ideal scenario, so I'm certainly considering getting these.
 
I mainly listen to electronic music (daft punk royksopp type stuff) which is why I like a clear crisp sound,and clear vocals too. Would the sound profile of the shures be best for that?

 

[kimvictor]

Quote:

Thanks for the reply. These sound really good, the warranty is great, and generally good reviews, though I see some varying opinions on the reviews here  (but isn't there always?)
They are definitely at the pricier end but the 2 year warranty would make me a hell of a lot more comfortable spending that much.
 
i guess my question is, is the sound quality a massive leap from the sound magic or monoprice headphones. One half of me thinks I should stick to the monprice headphones and experiment with more earbuds (though i've already tried sony hybrids on them which are supposed to be great sounding, and they are good but don't blow me away). Even if the monoprice break I could buy years worth for the price of those shure headphones.
 
But if the sound quality difference is really noticeable and they are likely to last then it's definitely worth the investment, I mean replaceable cables and a good warranty is an ideal scenario, so I'm certainly considering getting these.
 
I mainly listen to electronic music (daft punk royksopp type stuff) which is why I like a clear crisp sound,and clear vocals too. Would the sound profile of the shures be best for that?

Shure's have really good vocals as well, so that's a plus. I personally liked the SE215 for it's great bass and awesome mids. Shures are good for pop, acoustic, folk, and vocal/bass driven genres.

 

[Vimes]

I'm definitely close to buying these. I'm wondering if anyone else has something else to suggest? Would be nice to hear if anyone else agrees or has other suggestions?