[mgpyone]

TDK BA200 - the flat cable design and built quality is under per. 

 

[PMAP]

Fischer Audio Tandem: uncomfortable - when wearing cord-down, the cable is really noisy. Cord-up the noise disappears but the protuberant vents cut into the ear :-/ Only for inside use then.

 

[MattTCG]

The ie80 has no "big flaws" for me. The real flaw might be the stock tips. There's plenty of them and I don't like any of them. 

 

[Kaffeemann]

IE8 - mid bass bloat, not enough details
TDK BA200 - treble is too laid back, flat cable
EX1000 - very low isolation
brainwavz B2 - too bright and aggressive

 

[AstroTurf]

NRB Mod needed here.
 
See my Sig, Jim
Quote:

I have a pair of HF5 which i am really satisfied with,nice pair of accurate iem's,but sometime i would like to hear some more prominent response on the bass region,both with triflanges and shure olives tips.

 

[pspivak]

I love this thread!  A great chance to complain.  Too bad none of the manufacturers ever read this.  After all this is where the money is.  We are the guys who collect these things and are seeking Nirvana.
 
Etymotic ER-4p: Good highs, some OK low frequency information but not very weighty.  The mids never sound anything like "real" to me.  Excellent isolation - tune out the world!  Sounds better with an amp.
 
Etymotic ER-6i: As above but more rolled off at the frequency extremes.  Sounds better with an amp than without.
 
Klipsch S-4i: Bloated bass,not very natural sounding from top to bottom (much better than a particular fashion statement headphone that all of the kids wear to look cool, you know doctor...doctor... oh what do they call that guy?, never mind).  I gave the S4i to my wife, she likes them!
 
Stock TF-10: OUCH to wear.  I didn't care how great they sounded compared to almost anything else. OUCH!
 
TF-10: Fisher Hearing remold: Oh, so that's what they sounded like.  Really benefits from a better cable!  Not the bargain I thought they would be.  $150 for the phones, $50 for the impressions, $10 to ship, $130 for the re-mold, $70 for the cable. Voided warranty.  Channel imbalance so I needed an amp with a balance control.  So over $650.00 for a pseudo-custom iem with an amp.  {I have ordered a set of real custom iem's just to find out.  I hate this hobby}
 
Stax SR-003: OUCH again.  Even the designer could wear them only for a few minutes.
 
Stax SR-003 with custom ear molds from Starkey: These are really good, almost perfect in terms of sound BUT.... you need a driver (amp with the necessary bias voltage, I have a battery powered one, alright - I have two - I can't have just one but it uses 8 C-cells or AC wall wart so it ain't portable), uses an "almost" proprietary connector, the cable is too short and the extension cable is too heavy.  No isolation to speak of.
 
If there was a perfect iem we would all have them and have no need for this forum. 

 

[Loquah]

Quote:

I love this thread!  A great chance to complain.  Too bad none of the manufacturers ever read this.  After all this is where the money is.  We are the guys who collect these things and are seeking Nirvana.
 
If there was a perfect iem we would all have them and have no need for this forum. 

 
Agree that this is a great thread, but for me it's more about understanding the "dealbreaker" issues for each IEM. One person's dealbreaker won't worry me in the slightest (and vice-versa) so it's a great way of helping me to decide which IEMs to sample in the future and which ones to steer clear of.
 
Until they invent that perfect IEM, I am stoked to hear what might cause a new purchase to feel like a waste of money for me - I can save myself the trouble and spend the money on something else.

 

[GN-0015]

Quote:

 
Agree that this is a great thread, but for me it's more about understanding the "dealbreaker" issues for each IEM. One person's dealbreaker won't worry me in the slightest (and vice-versa) so it's a great way of helping me to decide which IEMs to sample in the future and which ones to steer clear of.
 
Until they invent that perfect IEM, I am stoked to hear what might cause a new purchase to feel like a waste of money for me - I can save myself the trouble and spend the money on something else.

I think the best solution for sound signature is the UE's Reference Monitor because you can tune it they way you like it. But some people can't be friends with customs, so maybe perfection is beyond unreachable for some people. And if "price" can be a con to some people, then they won't reach perfection too. I do think this hobby is expensive, but I won't say "price" as a con directly, it's all about getting what you paid for, the law of diminishing returns. Think about Phonak PFE232 and RE0, big difference in price but do the PFE sound like it's $300 better? Maybe not but it's the only way of such a sound is possible to be achieved so I think it's worth the money... for now.

 

[bimadz]

JH16: Sibilant...

 

[skyler]

UE600: Poor strain reliefs near housings and no strain relief near plug (problem with most universal UE's AFAIK). Causes cable-snaps near plug and some cable tearing near housings and Y-splitter.

 

[kmhaynes]

Ety ER-4P -- by itself, needs some bass body/weight;  (but, ER-4P + Cowon J3 EQ -- perfect to me!).
 
Philips SHE3580 -- not quite enough isolation for me (otherwise, cheapest good fun sound around).

 

[pspivak]

I respect what both Loquah and GN-0015 had to say.  
 
As I am not a musician and simply a music lover I do not take all this equipment stuff too seriously. That being said, YES - I have been bitten by the bug.   With the exception of a few very inexpensive ear phones, most of the better things that I have heard are very capable of playing satisfying music.  I agree with Louquah that it is good to be a consumer from an informed perspective but I remind you that this forum is all opinion.  With the exception of some expensive devices that were uncomfortable to wear for any length of time I have been satisfied in some way with everything that I have owned.  My "nit to pick" may or may not be a deal breaker for another person.  Only you can decide if you want to pay the price of admission to find out for sure.
 
And, for what it is worth GN-0015 (and this is just my opinion so please do not take offense), I do not believe that the UM reference monitor is the final word in IEM's. No, I have never heard it, but if there is one thing that I have learned in this hobby after over 40 years it's that every time someone comes out with "the best", it is superseded in short order by something better.  I have also noted that the target of music and sound that is satisfying to me is being approached asymptotically, and the curve is getting pretty flat.  In other words there are lots of great things out there for all sorts of varying amounts of moolah (money).
 
Again, I totally respect and agree with what you both have said.
 
Best wishes, PETER

 

[gnarlsagan]

Quote:

 
And, for what it is worth GN-0015 (and this is just my opinion so please do not take offense), I do not believe that the UM reference monitor is the final word in IEM's. No, I have never heard it, but if there is one thing that I have learned in this hobby after over 40 years it's that every time someone comes out with "the best", it is superseded in short order by something better.  I have also noted that the target of music and sound that is satisfying to me is being approached asymptotically, and the curve is getting pretty flat.  In other words there are lots of great things out there for all sorts of varying amounts of moolah (money).
 
Again, I totally respect and agree with what you both have said.
 
Best wishes, PETER

 
I've heard the UE reference monitor and I agree. It definitely lacked coherency, which I would describe as a mash of sounds from having too many drivers. 

 

[GN-0015]

Quote:

I respect what both Loquah and GN-0015 had to say.  
 
As I am not a musician and simply a music lover I do not take all this equipment stuff too seriously. That being said, YES - I have been bitten by the bug.   With the exception of a few very inexpensive ear phones, most of the better things that I have heard are very capable of playing satisfying music.  I agree with Louquah that it is good to be a consumer from an informed perspective but I remind you that this forum is all opinion.  With the exception of some expensive devices that were uncomfortable to wear for any length of time I have been satisfied in some way with everything that I have owned.  My "nit to pick" may or may not be a deal breaker for another person.  Only you can decide if you want to pay the price of admission to find out for sure.
 
And, for what it is worth GN-0015 (and this is just my opinion so please do not take offense), I do not believe that the UM reference monitor is the final word in IEM's. No, I have never heard it, but if there is one thing that I have learned in this hobby after over 40 years it's that every time someone comes out with "the best", it is superseded in short order by something better.  I have also noted that the target of music and sound that is satisfying to me is being approached asymptotically, and the curve is getting pretty flat.  In other words there are lots of great things out there for all sorts of varying amounts of moolah (money).
 
Again, I totally respect and agree with what you both have said.
 
Best wishes, PETER

Well, I didn't say that it's truly perfect, but as of now, it could be the closest since you can tune the sound the way you want it. Of course, there are weaknesses of the IEMs, like gnarlsagan said, it lacked coherence. I haven't heard it myself, doubt I ever will due to me living in a country with a weak currency compared to the America. My goal is to get the UM Miracle, which is said by many people as the best sounding IEMs in the world. If UM offered a customizable sound signature feature like UE, it'd be awesome.

 

[Loquah]

I'm looking to buy the UM Miracle too. Would love to hear if it has any flaws we should know about (other than the getting the fit right)