Need earphones recommendation from all you audiophiles
I am investing in $120~240 (CAD) in-ear monitors. I'm not an audiophile, but I'm currently being lured into that route for as far as my process of seeking for a good ass reliable pair of IEMs goes.
I currently have a pair of [url=http://www.head-fi.org/products/sony-mdr-v55-br-dj-style-headphones]these[/url] and they sound very nice for a pair of headphones that cost me 70 bucks. The bass is solid, and makes me regret buying [url=http://www.head-fi.org/products/sony-mdr-xb30ex-b-black-in-ear-extra-bass-headphones-japanese-import]these[/url], but I was really curious of how the bass sounded for this pair of IEMs since the packaging literally said "Extra Bass" and it was on 50% sale (I think) so I was like why not. The audio quality is mediocre for its original price and the bass is kinda wack, but the build is def worth it since it's tangle free and seems very sturdy. It's kinda awkward to wear around the ear cuz of its wire. But it's light and I find it very comfortable to wear. But yea, that's it for the IEMs.
I even feel like these could even be on par with Beats Studio headphones (price-wise they're obviously much better). Overall I think Sony mostly makes pretty decent headphones that are under 100 dollars but these are the best pair of Sony headphones I've ever bought, and most of my previous headphones were from Sony, but they were all IEMs. They all kinda broke (cept for the one I've already mentioned) between the jack and wire area since they're like less than 30 buck in-ears and I didn't take care of them carefully cuz I was a stupid kid back then. It's almost always because one of the ears had lost sound completely. But I still liked them while they lasted.
The reason why I wanted to buy a pair of new IEMs is because I simply do not like on-ear headphones. Over-ear headphones are considerably better than on-ear in my book but IEMs are the most compact and I don't have to wear them over my head. That's why I think they're the best.
I care about audio quality a lot. I dislike the flat and muffled sounds and I do prefer if the IEMs goes well with electronic, dance pop/j-pop, light (not deep; I don't rly know the terms to describe it) vocals, and classical music. Best if it has decent soundstage. I don't listen to country tho. Various styles of rock, I do.
I'd prefer if they last for a long period of time, but not under harsh circumstances such as stretching the wires with force, accidentally ran over by a bicycle, accidentally put in the washing machine, and etc., since I don't want them to suddenly break within five years of use even though I took great care of it, and it's happened to a lot of people according to various reviews. I won't be carrying them to wherever I go and I'll mostly likely to be using them for home use, in a long ass car ride, or at someone else's house. So I do prefer at a somewhat good noise isolation at least, because the inside of a car can be pretty damn noisy, especially on the highway and driving in high speed. But if that's not possible, then fine, but it better be a good ass pair of IEMs.
lol ok thats it. I'm sure you guys have some good suggestions. I know this isn't an audiophile forum but I've seen some audiophiles on here before.
Too bad I can't bump my threads. I fear this isn't gonna get any replies.
Notes: Yes I do like bass. It's pretty addictive. I don't like overly sibilant sounds. I prefer a very balanced sound, or at least something that goes good with most music styles.
10 Comments • Newest first
@LeeKwangSoo: I would rather spend that amount of money on headphones. But that is just me.
There are great iems for only $20 to $50. Like the Xiaomi Pistons
[quote=mmorpg]For $200~ try something from Dunu. But honestly, I would not spend $100~ on IEMs.
If you're looking for a budget yet really good earphone, try the Xiaomi Pistons 2.0 or 3.0.[/quote]
I'm guessing the replying notification don't work when I'm editing the reply into a post. Or you just ignored me. But thats ok. May I ask why you wouldnt spend $100~ on IEMs?
Dunu seems nice (and I found one below 200) but the ATH-CKR9 is also a good find and it's below 200. I might get those, or the ATH-CKR10. The 10 is slightly warmer but their audio quality seem to perform very similarly according to reviews so I feel like I should just get the 9 since it's about 40~50 dollars cheaper.
http://www.head-fi.org/products/audio-technica-in-ear-headphones-ath-ckr9-japan-import
http://www.head-fi.org/products/audio-technica-ath-ckr10-in-ear-headphone-titanium-sonic-pro-dual-push-pull-drive-syst
I miss the pre-Beats days when you could buy a decent pair of headphones for less than $100. 8 years ago I bought a Sony MDR-XB500 for $65 at Best Buy, now they sell for $300 on Amazon (Thankfully they're still going strong)
I'm not really a fan of in ear, but if I were to splurge I'd get a decent pair of noise-cancelling ones like Bose
[quote=ShammyShakes]I gotchu:
Don't waste $250 on earbuds.[/quote]
Thx for nothing man
I gotchu:
Don't waste $250 on earbuds.
[quote=Kazzooey]Edit: Nvm you're talking about earbuds.
I do have some Sennheiser earbuds that were like 80-90$ and they're amazing. Though you're a bass lover so I can't recommend them as they are mostly treble. I'm not too fond of bass though because it somewhat muffles the fine sounds from what I've noticed. That and it always gives me listener's fatigue. I dunno I just like a more clear sound personally.
All I can tell you is stay away from Beats. That crap is the iPhone/Galaxy of earbuds and is nothing more than a $50 pair of earbuds with a $100-200 price tag.[/quote]
I do prefer balanced but it wouldn't hurt if it has a bit of enhanced bass.
@mmorpg
What about this?
http://www.head-fi.org/products/dunu-dn-1000
If you could find Sennheiser IE80s within your price range, they might be worth looking into. I found some for $250 a couple years back and they've been really good to me. The only problem will be getting them for a good price. They're crazy durable (with a replaceable cable) and definitely bass-heavy... Plus they're well-known for having a really wide soundstage.
For $200~ try something from Dunu. But honestly, I would not spend $100~ on IEMs.
If you're looking for a budget yet really good earphone, try the Xiaomi Pistons 2.0 or 3.0.
The only IEMs I've had that have lasted for over a year are Soundmagic E10's. I'm still using them and I bought them last May. But they're ~$40 which is around the price of all the IEMs I've tried in the past 8 years. I've gone through about 15 pairs because they break so often.
So I guess you can just try Sennheiser IEMs, maybe like Etymotic Research. Just look on [url=http://theheadphonelist.com/headphone-list/?model_search=&headphone_price1=100&headphone_price2=150&average_rating1=0&average_rating2=10&sound_rating1=0&sound_rating2=10&build_rating1=0&build_rating2=5&isolation_rating1=0&isolation_rating2=5&comfort_rating1=0&comfort_rating2=5&microphone_rating1=0&microphone_rating2=5&accessibility_rating1=0&accessibility_rating2=5]here[/url] that's how I figured out to buy the magical Soundmagic E10.
Edit: Nvm you're talking about earbuds.
I do have some Sennheiser earbuds that were like 80-90$ and they're amazing. Though you're a bass lover so I can't recommend them as they are mostly treble. I'm not too fond of bass though because it somewhat muffles the fine sounds from what I've noticed. That and it always gives me listener's fatigue. I dunno I just like a more clear sound personally.
All I can tell you is stay away from Beats. That crap is the iPhone/Galaxy of earbuds and is nothing more than a $50 pair of earbuds with a $100-200 price tag.