[astroid]

I have the Klipsch custom 1s and 2s and the custom 1s are very impressive in comparison to the dual amarture of the custom 2, i think the 2s only really add some more warmth and a little more detail at the top end.
My shure 110s are really poor in comparison to the Custom 1s with a sound i can only describe as lifeless and almost completely devoid of bass.
I understand the potential limitations of using a single driver to present a full frequency range without distortion and i feel the custom 1s do this well but what would you consider to be the best?

I think maybe the ER4P?

 

[Spyro]

It's personal preference. There is no best. Sure ER4P is certainly no slouch and some will say it is probably the best...but others may say the only reason the mids and highs come through so clear is because the bass is so anemic and that it's a terribly unbalanced, cold and sterile presentation. (not totally my opinion by the way)

 

[astroid]

Do you even think its possible to make an accurate single balanced armature that presents a full frequency response without cutting bass?
I have the s-jays (£35 in costco at the mo) and they have a full deep bass but they are NOT balanced at all as the mids and highs are recessed.

 

[Nocturnal310]

Any specific reason why u asked or just for informative discussion?

because Single balanced armature doesnt usually shine on the high range..best example is UM1...highs were just missing.

 

[walkingman]

Why do you want a single BA phones? If it is because of costs, there are plenty of reasonably priced dual BA IEMs.

The Image X5, X10, ER4P and Phonak Audeo PFE are all well regarded single BA IEMs.

edit: also the SA6.

 

[astroid]

Just wanted to stimulate discussion on the technical limitations of SBA drivers really, i like to read about this stuff and just wondered who has managed to balance one the best (when i say best i mean most accurate without blooms and recessed freqs).
Any links to any good white papers on earphone engineering?

 

[Nocturnal310]

checkout SF5 V2....its single driver based and sounds better than SF5 pro in many ways which is a dual driver.

its also cheaper & looks cooler

 

[mark2410]

id say prob ety er4 or shure se310

 

[Spyro]

I would say Ety ER4 but ONLY if juiced with a nice warm EQ'able amp. Pretty darn amazing sound!

 

[average_joe]

From what I have read, the Phonak Audeo PFE due to the bass response as they don't lack in any part of the spectrum. Even with the grey filters there is extended, deep hard hitting bass. It is just somewhat recessed compared with the black filters. If I didn't have the IE8, which has incredible bass, I would still have the PFEs.

And there are people that prefer the PFE over the ER4, but not everybody mind you.

You are not going to get 1 single answer. You may get a majority for 1 IEM, but you will never get everyone to agree, even if everyone listened to all the same IEMs under the same conditions.

 

[astroid]

Quote:

Originally Posted by average_joe /img/forum/go_quote.gif From what I have read, the Phonak Audeo PFE due to the bass response as they don't lack in any part of the spectrum. Even with the grey filters there is extended, deep hard hitting bass. It is just somewhat recessed compared with the black filters. If I didn't have the IE8, which has incredible bass, I would still have the PFEs. And there are people that prefer the PFE over the ER4, but not everybody mind you. You are not going to get 1 single answer. You may get a majority for 1 IEM, but you will never get everyone to agree, even if everyone listened to all the same IEMs under the same conditions.

Earphone testing is very tricky, volume matching is important and by the time you have got it matched its practically impossible to remember what the last one sounded like. The only way i have been able to a-b a headphone is to concentrate on specific instruments within a piece and make notes.
I think big differences become apparent over time.

 

[TheMarchingMule]

Quote:

Originally Posted by astroid /img/forum/go_quote.gif Earphone testing is very tricky, volume matching is important and by the time you have got it matched its practically impossible to remember what the last one sounded like. The only way i have been able to a-b a headphone is to concentrate on specific instruments within a piece and make notes. I think big differences become apparent over time.

Okay, what are you getting at here. You prompt a question to start this thread, and when people reply, you start to lecture them?

 

[VoLTaG3]

Balanced Armature drivers always will share the same drawback. They can only excel either in the HIGHS or the LOWS. An example is if a driver does really good with BASS it will not do that great with HIGHS. It's like trying to make subwoofers play classical music or trying to make tweeters run BASS tests. The most you can do with one driver is get it where the whole sound spectrum is played at a decent level where no one frequency excels another.

 

[astroid]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheMarchingMule /img/forum/go_quote.gif Okay, what are you getting at here. You prompt a question to start this thread, and when people reply, you start to lecture them?

wooooaaaaa tiger, wasnt trying to "get" at anything, lecturing? I was just thinking out loud , what are you getting at?

 

[tstarn06]

To me, Phonaks rule on this front, with the SA6s also a fine phone, along with the X10s. I owned the ER4P/S (had the 75 ohm cable), and they are really a specialized phone for very specific tastes. The PFEs are more balanced, based on my listening experience. I think whatever Phonak did, there is no sacrificing any part of the listening experience with their single armature driver. Just my two cents. I admit, I haven't heard any Shures, but I have heard some of the best, in my view.