New MP3 player means new earphones

[Sol]

I think that although the bass "isn't great" in some peoples opinion, that it is perfectly fine for me. Like I said before, if your used to the crappy EX71s bass then the quality of the bass will sound weak on the Shures, if you use the Foam earbuds I think it helps makes them a bit better. I think they are perfect for on the move and listening to a wide range of music excluding dance and hip hop or something. If you want alround excellent sound then you need a proper pair of headphones imo, not just earbuds.

A certain auction site sometimes has cheap shures so investigate there. I bought mine for going on holiday (lol some excuse that was) for the plane at around £100 and I don't really regret it at all. Could try for the E4s I suppose if you can get them at a good price.

There are some phones that I can't remember the name of but they are supposed to be really good. They are some kind of studio monitor earbuds that are pretty cheap but sound quality is up there. You can get them moulded for your ear too for extra...these ring any bells for anyone?

Sure I saw them while searching for Etymotic/Shures before in google. They are skin coloured with foam earbuds, look really basic...

 

[Bigsy]

E2C bass is terrible!!! Very muddy imo, the mids and tops actually aint bad once you pull the plastic washer type wax guard out.

e4c's are deffo the best shures unamped, as the e5c's are too power hungry.

Anyways best top end in ear for the money, no question, are the superfi 5 pros, you can get them for £140 in this country which is a bargain for some dual driver fun..... I have a set and they are simply amazing.

westone's um2 are arguably on a par but will cost you more, imo e4c lag a little behind, but considering they are single driver phone they do do well.

 

[danceMB]

I dont need to invest in any in-door headphones as I already own Sennheiser HD600's, and the Gigaworks S750 for my surround sound, the only place I havnt spent money is in my MP3 earphones, and seeing as I spend more time listening to my MP3 than I am sing headphones at home, I think its worthwhile to have a look at all the options.

After asking, there seems to be some very hi-tech ones around that are better in quality than my previously owned Sony EX71's and my currently owned JVC FX55's.

Depends what price bracket I go for as I really dont have a clue about the kind of price should be my ceiling limit

 

[TooNice]

I don't see how the E5 would be more power hungry than the E4 to be honest.

I have tried both the UE Super.fi 5 Pro and the Westone UM2 and prefered the later, but only with a good seal. Never tried the E4 though, its supposed to be more bass light than the other two, but I reckon all three are in similar class. After all the UM2 has more to do with the E5 than the E4 by design, yet those two are supposed to sound different rather than one being superior to the other (E4 was released after the E5).. single driver or not.

Still, overall, I do find IEMs to provide poor bang for buck compared to alternatives. Go for it by all mean if thats what you need of course.

 

[danceMB]

Whats the best earphones, in a bang-for-buck sense?

 

[TooNice]

If it doesn't have to be "in ear", then I would say the Koss KSC-75. I prefer those to £100 up IEMs... if isolation is not an issue.

 

[danceMB]

I much prefer the in-ear to anything else TBH, because after I tried the EX-71's and how comfortable they are, I wouldnt ever go back to anything else

 

[TooNice]

The MD-33 is supposed to be good bang for buck. I've not tried the CX-300, but for their cost, I suspect they'd be good value too.

I have a harder time recommending the mid-high range of IEMs because none of them made me go "wow" so far. I've not tried the top of the line custom UE/Westone/Sensaphonics to comment on those, but at their price, I guess they can't be "bang for buck" either.

 

[Vegetarian]

The UM2's are in a different league to the e4c

I found the e4's to be bright and lacking in bass... The UM2s have got all the treble detail of e4s yet got great bass!

I got my UM2s for £140 shipped from USA... best buy Ive made in a long while.

 

[danceMB]

Your not the 1st that has talked about these Westone UM2's, which does give me some hope that these might actually be a very good buy. But I cant seem to find them in the UK for any less than about £200, hope the price has not gone up.

If you bought them from a non-competitions site, then do let me know

 

[toucam]

I don't see how the E5 would be more power hungry than the E4 to be honest.

I have tried both the UE Super.fi 5 Pro and the Westone UM2 and prefered the later, but only with a good seal. Never tried the E4 though, its supposed to be more bass light than the other two, but I reckon all three are in similar class. After all the UM2 has more to do with the E5 than the E4 by design, yet those two are supposed to sound different rather than one being superior to the other (E4 was released after the E5).. single driver or not.

Still, overall, I do find IEMs to provide poor bang for buck compared to alternatives. Go for it by all mean if thats what you need of course.

I found them worth every single penny, block out all the noise on train, bus, people talking on mobile phone (and shouting too) and they sound amazing. I used to own E3 and now E5, it's definitely worth it. Don't go for E3 as you will be disappointed with the lack of bass, with E4 you will need a good head-amp to get good bass. Between E5 and UM2 it's kind of difficult to decide but E5 can take up a lot of abuse, the thing is built like a tank! I prefer the sound of Shure anyway. If budget is tight then UM2 is the choice as it's cheaper than E5.

 

[TooNice]

Oh yea, thats what I mean by "if that's what you need": the isolation is the sole reason I got an IEMs. But for home use, the UM2 brings little more to what I already have with my Grado/AKG which is cheaper and slightly more expensive respectively. Obviously, I would not be taking those when I am traveling/at the gym etc., but I do find them to provide better sound for the buck. Well, I guess there is a price to be paid for something so small.

 

[danceMB]

Exactly! I have the perfect & expensive enough home setup, but I spend more hours out listening to my MP3 player than I do listening to music indoors, which is a back-to-front way of looking at things, which is why I suddenly realised I have spent money in an area I spend the least of my time, and currently only have £25 JVC FX55's to give me sound.

Its the kind of best you can get from a high street store, and I know that I need to go online if I am to get these special earphones. I might be able to go for them next month, which is why I need to know now so I can be ready for them

 

[Mulder]

I bought myself some Shure E2C's today from Tottenham Court Road and they are just incredible! Sound isolation is great and I can't notice anything wrong with the bass.