[jjmai]

There's a saying here at head-fi: "welcome to head-fi, sorry for your wallet."
Buying headphones is such an addiction for many of us.  We just keep craving to try the newer and better thing.
So what was the IEM that got you hooked, like a gateway drug that led you to harder stuffs?  It isn't necessarily your first IEM. It may be something that first got you into the audiophile territory.  Or it could be the first IEM that made wonder if you are spending too much.
 
My gateway drug was Altec Lansing UHP336, even though I already had a few other IEMs before that.  It wasn't because I enjoyed uhp336, but because how different it sounded from my other mainstream IEMs. I did not like its fit or lack of bass, but it made me realize how varied IEMs could be.
 
 

 

[-y0-]

Mine was Monster Beats Tours and it broke in a month. I realized then it was junk and how the sound is overrated after I got the Klipsch S4i. It was $50 less and sounded better. I kept trying different earphones to see how different they sound after that. Now I know what I've been missing with the IE8i but wonder about BA earphones.

 

[PinkysBrain]

Some Sony IEMs in 2000 which I had for about 5-6 years. Bought them at that time together with my MiniDisc player - ahhh, the good ol' days. I can't remember the model number so it's hard to provide any pictures 

 
Had wire problems and I didn't know at that time, that I could have repaired them myself...

 

[ubercaffeinated]

shure e2c's - the wire cracked, forcing me to get something else. then came the ety mc5s. and then i got addicted to the ety sound signature and tried the er-4p/s and i've been hooked ever since.

 

[ebjred]

sennheiser cx 300
still the only item I had that didn't break after a few months (this is after trying different, and more expensive iems, including more expensive sennheiser)
 
only reason I dont use it anymore is because I lost it

 

[Shubar]

New to this audiophile business, would have to say the Sony MDR EX90PL Bought them because my stock apple earphones kept falling out of my ears so i decided to go for IEMs (also got them for very cheap). Was blown away by the music quality compared to the stock apple earphones. Been trying to upgrade on sound quality ever since (such a bad and costly habit)...
 

 

[DanielofDenmark]

The Westone 3's got me hooked on IEM's, as it gave me an insight to high end portable audio. I had the IE8's, and felt they were "fine", but that they still sounded like any other IEM I had ever heard, but the Westone 3's sound "more" like full-size headphones, than they sound like IEM's. I now know what IEM's are capable of.

 

[sterob]

triple fi 10  from the  sale 2 years ago 
 
clip+ was  my first dap when i started with portable audio. The guy who sold me that clip+ (yeah it was only available in singapore through mass order route) also sells several entry-level IEM like pl30, fisher ertena... but  their sound either were not engaging enough or the vocal is . The next week TF 10 sale @ $99.5 Then i started audition those above $300 IEM. So i ended up with custom TF 4 driver  (i broke the cable socket leaving the pin inside the driver so the only choice is for custom since i dont like the cold sound of w3 or um3x) 

 

[bubsdaddy]

I first bought the Shure E2c and while I didn't like the sound I loved the isolation. I then bought the Creative EP-630 and the JVC Marshmallow. I was hooked. I am up to the Triple-fi 10 now but I like my Turbines just as much.

 

[Soaa-]

For me, it was when I decided my Shure SE210 were just inadequate. Trebles were just bad on this thing. I got a Sennheiser HD 202 after a short audition, which I found to be quite nice for its price.
 
After that, well... my dad gave me his K 240 DF, I got a Sennheiser HD 428, Beyerdynamic DT 48, and going back to IEMs recently, I got the Ultimate Ears 500, 600 and now 700. Quite happy with my latest acquisition.

 

[goodvibes]

SF3. When the ear jack came unglued, I tried and turned very quickly the SF5. Went directly to the se530 which I preferred to the TF10. Now with GR10.

 

[Freefallr4545]

Oh Man what a question. For me it was 48 years ago listening to those little portable type record players with the internal speakers. Over and Over again Cherry Bayayaybie. Then it was 8 tracks, cassettes, Albums Burhoe Speakers, Tubes and Fuggettaboutit!!

 

[mastershake2393]

Mine all started with some cheap Sony buds, then went from there up to the, pause, Bose IE *sighs*
 
After having that for around four months, I bought a pair of SE110 at Best Buy because I thought those would be awesome due to the reviews on CNET <----lol. Finding the SE110 weren't what I wanted, I upgraded to the er-6i about six months later. Those I found were very accurate, but I didn't like that they didn't have a lot of bass quantity (being my first foray into the Ety sound, I had no idea what I was getting into.)
 
A year later and with one of the right-side channels not working on my er-6i, I saw that J&R was selling the HJE900 for $80, so I sprang for those. I liked them a lot compared to the er-6i, but the sibiliance was to much for me. Sold those, then moved onto the TF10 while simultaniously buying a pair of Turbines. The TF10 sounded great to my ears, but hurt the hell out of my ears. As for the Turbines, the driver flex was enough to put me off, so I returned them.
 
Once I traded the TF10 for some IE8, I felt like I was starting to get to know what sound-signature I preferred. I then traded the IE8 for a pair of MD Tribute, which were the best sounding IEM I had ever heard, but deep down I felt like I still wanted something more. This brought me to selling the MD Tribute and buying the FX700 which are now in my ears 

 
It has been a long journey, but I think the FX700 will prevent me from thinking about buying anymore universals... Well, maybe I need the EX1000 when the price drops 

 

[barleyguy]

Mine was the Klipsch X10s.  Way better than anything I had tried at that point, and though it seems to have relatively little buzz nowadays, it's still a great sounding pair of IEMs.  (Though arguably less great from a durability standpoint.)
 
My main IEMs at this point are RE0s.  I can say that a couple years ago when I got my X10's, AFAIK there weren't $79 earphones as good as the RE0.
 
 

 

[Omnirai]

The RE0s for me. It was like I found a whole new world