[Had Matter]

I'm sure y'all get posts like this all the time. I tried to dig around as I thought surely I'm not the only person who has looked for this, but I couldn't find any one post matching all criteria I'm interested in.

My first attempt at a decent pair of earphones were Sennheiser CX-300s. I have to say, I hit it pretty good on my first try. I pretty much jam electronic music of various flavor non stop, so the self boasting "bass driven sound" was a perfect fit. And the excellent noise isolation lent a meditative trip to gym time. If you're looking to spend $50, they're awesome! But I wanted to go a bit better next time 'round, and am looking to spend about $100. My research has pretty much left me torn between two choices, and if anyone could weigh in here, I'd appreciate it:

Ultimate Ears Super.fi 3
Westone UM1

Ultimate Ears are supposed to be really good and seem to be widely respected, but I will say the UM's are looking a lot more comfortable; like they fit in your ear nicer. They'd probably be more stable during a run, too. I know neither are specifically "bass driven," but does that mean my thumpin' beats are going to sound terrible?? Perhaps with EQ tweaking? And I know all about those UE Super.fi 5 EBs sitting right there outside my budget. If this next pair turn out to be total duds, then I might justify trading up for them.. or nabbing me another pair of Sennheisers!

Of course, I'm still up for other suggestions, too. Noise isolation, solid/snug fit, and thumping lows (say: compared to the CX-300s) are my priorities.

 

[FrederikS|TPU]

Westone UM1 is the king of comfort in my opinion. You should also look into Head-Direct RE2s, they are really nice and available as a group buy for only $80!

I think the RE2s are awesome, but they are no were near as comfortable as the UM1s. Though call between the two in my book. Sound wise I think the RE2s are a bit better, but the comfortable fit of the UM1s is so nice especially when you are on the move.

Cheers,
Frederik

 

[Matteman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Had Matter /img/forum/go_quote.gif I know neither are specifically "bass driven," but does that mean my thumpin' beats are going to sound terrible?? Perhaps with EQ tweaking?

The SF3s will sound pretty terrible since you are used to the bass of CX-300s. The SF3s will be decently clear but with a serious lack of bass. EQ isn't the way to go either with single armature drivers. Sadly, the SF5 line is out of your price range, so you have to look elsewhere (not UE).

 

[DKaz]

Take a look at the Denon C551. great bass, but not be as comfy as the Westone's. Running could be a problem to since they weigh a little bit mroe because of the aluminum housing. They are a great phone though.

Denon AH-C551

 

[skeptic]

Many head-fiers hate them for their lack of detail, but the Bose Triport IEM's are bass heavy and very comfortable.

When walking the dog, etc...I pick these up far more often than my Etymotic ER-6i's b/c for most genres of music, I can't deal with the complete lack of a bottom end in the Ety's.

 

[deviationer]

if you want slightly over done, flabby bass, and "fun" than the vibes......but of course I like my vibes

 

[high_life111]

are the bose iem's better than etymotics er4p in term of bass and overall quality?

 

[Had Matter]

Wow. Got a bit of input, here. I have some questions, though..

Ok. I get it. The UMs are comfortable. They curl right up in your ear and gently suck on your earlobes while you jam. The question is how do they sound?

Matteman. The idea of spending $150 on headphones seems crazy to me, but let's talk crazy. Would you not recommend them? Why the "definitely sold" on the EBs in your sig?

You know, my roommate has the Bose Trips. I tried them on. Honestly, I can't tell you how they sounded, though, because as soon as I realized they didn't seal, I stopped paying attention. I enjoy my noise isolation. But I respect Bose. They get me with those crazy store demos where they "throw sound around"; speakers in front of you sound like they're at your sides! Crazy!!

I like the look of the Denons and the V-Modas. They remind me of my Sennheisers, whose head got so negligently riped from his body (by myself.) Anybody got a comparison on how they stack up to the Sennheisers as far as sound and bass? If I understand impedance correctly, they block out the same amount of sound.

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone. I really appreciate the advice. Although I don't know much else, I do understand that finding the perfect pair make all the difference. And in the interest of learning - for 500 bonus points and a chance to win it all - the wild card question of the day is: what is frequency response? Does it give a clue as to how well a pair of headphones perform bass? Like, the lower the frequency range, the better the bass?

 

[voicemaster]

Denon AH-C551 FTW

 

[Matteman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Had Matter /img/forum/go_quote.gif Matteman. The idea of spending $150 on headphones seems crazy to me, but let's talk crazy. Would you not recommend them? Why the "definitely sold" on the EBs in your sig?

Ok, let's talk crazy!

No but seriously, normally I recommend the Pro's over the EB's unless you want a CRAZY bass responce. The Pro's themselves are quite heavy on the bass, and the EB's have that and then some. The reason I wrote definitely sold was that as soon as I got the SF5 Pro's, the EBs sounded muddy, muddy enough for me to never use them for a year. However, it looks like if you are willing to pay a little extra, I think the EB's (or maybe the Pro's if you want to sacrifice some bass punch for superior clarity) are good for you.

Quoting from an advice i gave high_life111 in his thread:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Matteman /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have owned the EB's for two years now, and the Pros for a year and a half. The EB's are pretty clear sounding., but the crispness is there in the background (they use a good armature for the mids + highs, same as the SF5 Pro's), and who wants the details in the background, drowned out by that nasty 13mm bass driver?? The thing is that when you use them for some time, say two weeks, you get accustomed to their sound signature and they sound almost neutral to you. BUT if you use a more neutral phone you get completely shocked when switching back to the EB's again. It sounds like you have cotton in your ears, and I could never have gone back to the EB's after getting the Pro's.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Had Matter /img/forum/go_quote.gif what is frequency response? Does it give a clue as to how well a pair of headphones perform bass? Like, the lower the frequency range, the better the bass?

The frequency responce tells you how loud (how many decibels) each frequency is playing. Only the numbers (like 18hz- 22000hz) tell you pretty much nothing, however a frequency responce GRAPH can give you a hint of the sound signature on the headphone, but it will never tell you anything the sound quality. Less rolled off in the extreme left on a frequency responce graph gives you the deeper bass. The louder the bass is on the graph, the bassier the headphone is.

If you want to compare graphs by yourself, looky here: Headroom Build-a-Graph

 

[Had Matter]

Hey everybody! Matteman's an info piñata! Let's whack him with our sticks 'til his yummy knowledge falls out!! [size=xx-small]... I did not mean for that to sound quite so dirty.[/size] Gotta tell you, though, Matte, you're falling well short of the intended goal of this post. "Spending $150 on EBs a bit outta your reach? You should consider spending $200 on Pro 5s!" [size=small]HA!![/size] However, your sig does give me an idea. Maybe I can bring the EBs closer to my price range buy grabbing a used/refurbished pair. There's an Amazon subsidiary that lists a pair of refurbed EBs for $115 [I call dibs]; although buying used always makes me nervous.

Also, thanks for shedding some light on frequency response, and for the link to that graph at headphone.com. According to this, the Vibes are definitely out. They go Bear Stearns on the left! The Bass Freqs however, look like they hold their own; going even heavier on the bass than the EBs. But I wander if at some point the bass becomes too overpowering. ........ Hm, ok, that graph site was working for me earlier, but now it's having problems... or I am - WITH IT!! A) chances are there isn't even a graph here at all, since they seem to come and go, and B) I wanted to display a different graph here than this one if there is. I wanted to show the Super.fi 3s. If memory serves [size=xx-small](it so rarely does)[/size] it pretty much flatlined along the zero. Maybe it was a little higher, but either way it looked boring.

Unfortunately, there is no Westone option to be viewed here. A quick search elsewhere for a graph on the UM1s came back empty, but I'll try to dig around a bit more later.

 

[smaJ]

hey,

I bought the EB's for $115 from amazon. Due to arrive on friday - i will let you know what i think

James

 

[Matteman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Had Matter /img/forum/go_quote.gif "Spending $150 on EBs a bit outta your reach? You should consider spending $200 on Pro 5s!" [size=small]HA!![/size] However, your sig does give me an idea.

Heh, actually I was just like you two years ago. I thought I was crazy spendin $200 on a pair of EB's (that's what they costed then). Now I have spent $2000 and counting.

However it's a hobby that I love, but still I hope you never get there...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Had Matter /img/forum/go_quote.gif But I wander if at some point the bass becomes overpowering

It's all relative. Back when I bought the EB's, I wasn't that impressed with the bass, since I was listening to my home built 12" sub. Now when I listen to them, they sound like I'm at a db drag race.

Anyways, I know the SF5Pro's have been on Amazon new for $140 and the EB's for less, so figured that if you were willing to spend $100, you might as well stretch to 140 and have a pair that you are very satisfied with.

Oh and please don't buy the V-moda bass freq's. They are terrible.

 

[Had Matter]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Had Matter /img/forum/go_quote.gif And I know all about those UE Super.fi 5 EBs sitting right there outside my budget. If this next pair turn out to be total duds, then I might justify trading up for them.. or nabbing me another pair of Sennheisers!

Change of plans.

So yesterday I see that the price of EBs, all around, came down on Amazon. They dropped ten bucks new, and used are now $110. Couldn't ask for more in my price range than that!! Plus, I had a REALLY good day at work yesterday; made a bit of cash. [size=medium]Ok, Universe, I get it!! You want me to have these!![/size] God's, like, "Want I should carry them from the warehouse to your place myself??" I'm just trying to figure out if the refurbs still carry the 2 year warranty. Can you shed some light on that, J? If it doesn't, I'll spring for newbies. And if I find the bass to be a little much, I can exchange 'em for Pros. The red ones look so nifty!!

LOL

Matte, what have you done to me?!?