[willentrekin]

Hey everyone.

I've been a lurker here at headfi for a while now, since not long after I bought a pair of SR80s and fell in love with them. I'll admit straightaway I'm no phile; I just like to listen. Some of you will groan when you hear the details of my question, but that's where the "I don't notice" comes in.

So, my question. I just bought a 160gb iPod classic a little while ago, and I'm looking for IEMs for it. I've been using a pair of Sennheisers I believe may be CX300s with them, and I prefer their sound paired with the iPod to the Grados. I'm fairly sure I probably needed an amp for the Grados with the iPod. It sounded really weak. I think I've narrowed my options down to the Ety ER4Ps or the Super.fi pros, but I'm stuck between them. I've noticed people say the Super.fis sound warmer, but the ER4Ps generally are the ones that get the "iem of the year" or somesuch awards. I like clarity and details, certainly, but not for the sake of sacrificing warmth (I'm not sure what warmth is, exactly, but my point is, I don't necessarily want music to sound perfect as beautiful).

I have 22,000 songs on my iPod, which should tell you about both the compression and the collection. I don't do lossless; I like lots of music, and I've tried higher bitrates and not noticed any differences. I might have congenital hearing problems (my father does), so it's no biggy (I think there might even be a few frequencies I'm physically unable to hear, or at least discern detail at). My tastes range all over the place, but my favorite artists are Roger Clyne, Better Than Ezra, and Beethoven. I love classical like Vivaldi and contemporary classical like Vanessa Mae and Bond, but I'm a Jersey boy at heart and love to rawk with some Def Leppard and Bon Jovi (and even Journey). I dig electronica and love Eminem, but there's really no genre I favor over any others. I'm pretty sure I'm not a basshead, but, then, I'm still new enough that I'm not sure if some of you might believe I am.

When I listen to classical, I set the EQ to classical. When I listen to just about anything else, I use jazz (or, on my iPod, lately, Pop). I rarely set it to rock (that does sound bass-y to me). Also, when I listen via my laptop, I have a Creative X-Fi I like a lot. I don't listen loud, because I'm worried about further hearing loss.

So anyway, that's my set-up, and I'd like to hear what you guys think of how I might spend my money. I've done some research and it sounds like the two I mentioned outperform the same level Shures, although I've heard some things about qjays (though I'm not sure what a kr is, nor how they compare with USD, so I don't know how much they are) and atrio.

Thoughts?

Finally, my SR80s gave out last month, after just about three solid years of wonderful use. I was thinking of upgrading to the SR125s (much beyond that is out of my price range for now). Any thoughts there?

Thanks in advance. And thanks for having a new member.

Cheers.

 

[willentrekin]

Anybody?

 

[ataraxia]

If you liked the Grado sound, you may come to enjoy the FutureSonics Atrio M5--they both share the "fun" quality in its sound signature.

I will say outright that it contains more bass than most sound signatures of IEMs, however; but that may simply be a matter of leaving the EQ untouched.

 

[LaBreaHead]

Your iPod should power the Ety ER4's and the Future Sonics Atrio M5s well, without need for an amp -- two IEMs to strongly consider.

The ER4's should be especially nice for classical and acoustic guitar, while the M5's have a fuller, more fun (less detailed/analytical) sound than many in-ear earphones (they come closer to sounding like "real" headphones than many -- if not most -- earphones do).

I have the M5s and like them for long-term listening sessions ... I think that for an IEM they would make a pretty good "everyday" earphone. I have the Ety ER6i's -- not the ER4s -- and have come to like the Ety sound signature, even at the lower rung of the audio ladder represented by the ER6i vs. the ER4. The ER6i is surprisingly pleasing when you get a good seal, and the ER4's are supposed to be significantly better.

I would say that the Atrio sound would be easier to adapt to (especially coming off the Sennheiser canal phones), while the ER4's would represent a different sonic approach. I personally would consider foamies for both of these options.

There are many other good 'phones out there, as well -- hope you get something you really like.

 

[willentrekin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ataraxia /img/forum/go_quote.gif If you liked the Grado sound, you may come to enjoy the FutureSonics Atrio M5--they both share the "fun" quality in its sound signature. I will say outright that it contains more bass than most sound signatures of IEMs, however; but that may simply be a matter of leaving the EQ untouched.

Actually, now doing more research, and seeing some reviews, they sound very much like a sound I'd be interested in. I don't need huge clarity of detail; I especially like the "open" sound (the note that they produce a soundstage better than other IEMs makes them very attractive).

Thanks for the heads up.