johanwahlberg
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Nov 16, 2012
- Posts
- 7
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- 0
Hi!
I've spent the last weeks rolling around in reveiws and Head-Fi posts on $100-150 (~€100) IEMs...
I'm a big fan of Audio Technica M50 which i use at home for electronic music producing and critical all-genre listening.
I need a new pair of IEMs, mostly for critical listening at my noisy office and for mobile production. Since I don't want to buy multiple pairs I would like them to be at least a bit rugged so I'm not afraid to use them at the gym, although in the end, noise isolation is probably more important than ruggedness...
I previously used the Apple In ears (ADDIEM) for all this, and I enjoyed them a lot and was thinking of buying a new pair but then I thought I should try a step up in sound quality in regards of detail and clarity. I believe i like the sound of a dual balanced armature, but that might just be a tech thing i picked up reading too many reviews. Isolation is ok but not enough for airplane.
I have also used Sennheiser CX300 but they have too boomy and undetailed bass and overall more focused on the lower part of the fq spectrum. The highs exist all the way up to the highest fq but not very loud or distinct enough. Isolation is a bit better than ADDIEM but not enought for airplane.
I have also used the a-Jays 4 but I think they are quite like the CX300, but with boosted rather than more detailed highs. V-curve kind of... They might have a bit more detail in the bass but over all I believe they feel like a loudness button been pressed. Isolation is worse than CX300 and ADDIEM.
I've been looking at Shure SE215 but I'm afraid I might lose analytic detail compared to the ADDIEMs. I've also been looking at Etymotic HF3/5 but I believe they will have to harsch highs for me. I once bought and returned a pair of Grado SR60's due to the harsch (but detailed) highs and don't want to make the same mistake. Is there a dual BA (for detail) out there with bass (ADDIEM bass amount is ok), well isolated and highs that wont make your ears bleed? Yet ~$150…… Perhaps not…?
Or is it my misconception that I need a dual BA to get the analytic sound i want?
On isolation btw; my experience is that I usually get a good fit with most standard silicone plugs so the noise isolation must be dependent on the shell/construction of the plug itself.
Thank you for your time.
PS. Other IEMs that caught my eye:
Head direct RE0
Brainwavz M4 (or are they just a step down in SQ?)
Klipsch S4 (or are they too just a step down in SQ?)
Audio Technica CKM50
Edit: I might actually stretch to ~$200.
I've spent the last weeks rolling around in reveiws and Head-Fi posts on $100-150 (~€100) IEMs...
I'm a big fan of Audio Technica M50 which i use at home for electronic music producing and critical all-genre listening.
I need a new pair of IEMs, mostly for critical listening at my noisy office and for mobile production. Since I don't want to buy multiple pairs I would like them to be at least a bit rugged so I'm not afraid to use them at the gym, although in the end, noise isolation is probably more important than ruggedness...
I previously used the Apple In ears (ADDIEM) for all this, and I enjoyed them a lot and was thinking of buying a new pair but then I thought I should try a step up in sound quality in regards of detail and clarity. I believe i like the sound of a dual balanced armature, but that might just be a tech thing i picked up reading too many reviews. Isolation is ok but not enough for airplane.
I have also used Sennheiser CX300 but they have too boomy and undetailed bass and overall more focused on the lower part of the fq spectrum. The highs exist all the way up to the highest fq but not very loud or distinct enough. Isolation is a bit better than ADDIEM but not enought for airplane.
I have also used the a-Jays 4 but I think they are quite like the CX300, but with boosted rather than more detailed highs. V-curve kind of... They might have a bit more detail in the bass but over all I believe they feel like a loudness button been pressed. Isolation is worse than CX300 and ADDIEM.
I've been looking at Shure SE215 but I'm afraid I might lose analytic detail compared to the ADDIEMs. I've also been looking at Etymotic HF3/5 but I believe they will have to harsch highs for me. I once bought and returned a pair of Grado SR60's due to the harsch (but detailed) highs and don't want to make the same mistake. Is there a dual BA (for detail) out there with bass (ADDIEM bass amount is ok), well isolated and highs that wont make your ears bleed? Yet ~$150…… Perhaps not…?
Or is it my misconception that I need a dual BA to get the analytic sound i want?
On isolation btw; my experience is that I usually get a good fit with most standard silicone plugs so the noise isolation must be dependent on the shell/construction of the plug itself.
Thank you for your time.
PS. Other IEMs that caught my eye:
Head direct RE0
Brainwavz M4 (or are they just a step down in SQ?)
Klipsch S4 (or are they too just a step down in SQ?)
Audio Technica CKM50
Edit: I might actually stretch to ~$200.