[dosley01]

Was anyone here around for the Monster Turbine thread about two years ago? I'm feeling a bit of deja vu.

 

[Gilly87]

Oh God, I really hope not...I have faith though, people are comparing them to UM3x and IE8...*sob*
 
Quote:

Was anyone here around for the Monster Turbine thread about two years ago? I'm feeling a bit of deja vu.

 

 

[miow]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gilly87 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
though people are comparing them to UM3x and IE8...*sob*

There are valid reasons for people (myself included) to do so.
 

 

[Gilly87]

*wrings hands*

 

[Selenium]

As someone who doesn't have a horse in this fight, I thought it was pretty funny.

 
Quote:

I thought that was pretty funny.  Oh well.

 

 

[vwinter]

I don't know how you can use the word valid in regard to something this subjective with no qualifiers. I respect you opinion, but not that you pass it off as fact.
Quote:

There are valid reasons for people (myself included) to do so.
 

Edit: maybe I should just stay away from this thread for my own mental well being.

 

[eke2k6]

lol. Chill out guys, it's superbowl sunday!

 

[pack21]

 
May The Force Be With You!

 
What will be tomorrow? The return of Jedi or Revenge of the sith? hope it's not the attack of the clones....ehehehe
 
 
 

 
 

 

[miow]

 

[tienbasse]

Quite sad to see a thread derail that much, people are being extreme.
Just a few things since I sort of "launched" this with a (innocent) review:
 
 
1) I compared EPH-100 with whatever I had in stock at that time (UM3X, FX700, SE420, IE8 and then later SE535SE). And other people added more comparisons. What is wrong with doing proper A/B-ing ? Do comparisons "by memory" with IEMs you had 2 or 3 years ago seem a more valid approach?
 
For the record, top-tier doesn't mean better sound than all lower tier IEMs. A "top-tier IEM" with a sound signature that you don't like is certainly not a top-tier for you. And while I could imagine that 20$ IEM will have difficulties matching 400$ IEMs performance, the manufacturing cost of most universal IEMs is not so high that 120$ IEMs could not compete at all with the 400$ ones...
Too many people here judge IEMs solely by price, and try to convince themselves that every additional spent $ means added performance. In the end, this is a personal call to think that you spent too much or you made a bargain.
 
 
2) If some people have enough cash to buy all micro-driver IEMs, or all similarly priced IEMs, good for them. I have the cash, but I don't want to buy stuff I'm not interested in keeping, just for the sake of testing for others.
I just find this "fair comparison" mindset narrow-minded, especially when it is used as a childish / snobbish argument to discredit various comparisons.
 
People should be free to compare with whatever they want, regardless of the price, because this is how you help new people to chose, not by making absolute statements, seriously or for fun, since some old timers felt compelled to do so.
 
 
3) I usually don't "enter the arena" when people come and give their opinion about sound since all taste are in nature (less than 10 posts within the 50 pages). What I really don't like are people coming and throwing neutron bombs without any explanation, especially when it concerns aspects of IEMs which can be objectively assessed/explained, like build quality for example.
 
As a material scientist myself, I feel confident saying that the Yamahas can take a lot of abuse. I'm not afraid of having them fall, since the driver is sitting right under the tip so they don't risk any dramatic shock. Strain reliefs are long and soft so they should play their role nicely. The cable may be a bit "springy" but still feels tough and it doesn't harden when exposed to "polar" temperature (tested at -10°C on Friday, then I skied at -25°C yesterday, and my only concern was the aluminium feeling a bit cold in my ears, certainly not the cable).
 
What the Yamahas can't sustain is the same as any IEM out there: being tossed in a crowded pocket with other metallic objects (keys...), being dragged upon concrete (fall during cycling...), being chewed by a wild dog... 

These are the things that I imagine when I see the horrendous EPH-100 picture shown earlier.
 
So yes, although I'm a calm person, reading that the Yamahas "feel cheap" made me angry (please note the word "feel", very typical of unexplained statements). You can "feel" when it comes to sound, but you don't "feel" build quality, you assess it.

 
 
Sorry fo the wall of text, my last post was 10 pages ago, so I had to summarize my thoughts (and I'm not highly efficient at this exercise).

 

[archy121]

+1

Tienbasse there is a good reason why you are the most respected Head-Fi member for me.
 
Thanks for all your sense, logic & impartiality in your postings.
 
Quote:

For the record, top-tier doesn't mean better sound than all lower tier IEMs. A "top-tier IEM" with a sound signature that you don't like is certainly not a top-tier for you. And while I could imagine that 20$ IEM will have difficulties matching 400$ IEMs performance, the manufacturing cost of most universal IEMs is not so high that 120$ IEMs could not compete at all with the 400$ ones...

Too many people here judge IEMs solely by price, and try to convince themselves that every additional spent $ means added performance. In the end, this is a personal call to think that you spent too much or you made a bargain.

 
I have been trying to argue the same point for a while & good to see you do a better job.

 

[lostid]

Well, I'll repeat this:
 
The Yama is simply felt CHEAP stuff in my hands based on my assessment of the build quality (not the sound or price). My assessment is based on my GUT feeling instead of any non-destructive testing usually performed by material scientists using sophisticated equipment.
 
P.S. I am NOT responsible for your being angry from reading the above statement.

 

[whitefroded]

Quote:

 My assessment is based on my GUT feeling instead of any non-destructive testing usually performed by material scientists using sophisticated equipment.
 

 
As a scientist myself, comments like this make me cringe. This attitude is what sent us into the dark ages, literally.

 

[kidcharlemagne]

lostid, it may help if you would elaborate on why they feel cheap. Is it because the earpieces are light? They feel solid to me, and look like they could take some abuse. Only thing im worried about is the cable, but even then it's better than some of the other iems ive had. To me, the Yamahas dont feel cheap, just simplistically designed I guess.

 

[lostid]

Quote:

 
As a scientist myself, comments like this make me cringe. This attitude is what sent us into the dark ages, literally.

I can't deal with your problem.