IEM confusion

[aj.jain]

hi guys,
i am new here but have image that guys are helpful here.
I need to buy new IEMs for my iPhone 4.
I live in gurgaon, India.
I like balanced sound and have zeroed down to etymotic HF5, apple IEMs and klipsch s4i written in order of priortity.
I like very balnced natural sound.And as far as i have heard etymotics are best in the price band for naturality and insane clearity- the soundstage clearity D)!!
So my favourite choice is etymotic HF5 but the constraint is availability.
Etymotic Research HF5 Portable In-Ear Earphones (Cobalt) (Imported) . Buy Best Etymotic Research HF5 Portable In-Ear Earphones (Cobalt) (Imported) at Lowest Price Online
I found this link but also found that these are out of stock.
black one are selling for 8350 on same site but again out of stock.
I would be very grateful if someone could help me in buying those by pointing me to a seller in NCR region or by pointing me to an online re-seller who is trustworthy enough that i can buy.
my max budget is 9-9.5k.


If am not able to find them then i also wanna choose between klipsch and apple.
According to what i know klipsch has fitting issues for some people and if they dun fit they sound crap.
Also apple can be bought directly from apple stores which have 30 day return policy.
I dont know about their respective SQs because i havent heard any of them.
also klipsch has a lot of durability issues.
So am currently favouring Apple IEMs but still need help.

If anyone can help with buyng etymotic HF5 then that would be *the best*!!!

Please reply ASAP

regards,
and thanx in advance

 

[vktyagi]

Why duplicate post ?

 

[esanthosh]

My confusion was which of the two posts to reply to

Anyways, Etymotic HF2 / HF3 / HF5 all have the same drivers, but only differ in the mic portion and phone compatibility. I would never pay nearly 10K for Ety when it's available for under $100 on head-fi used forums. Even with shipping and likely customs, it would still be cheaper to buy. For example, this listing - Etymotic HF3 (w/ iPhone compatibility)

You can find cheaper HFx from head-fi at $70 odd (I think it was a HF2)

If bought for under 6K, then yes! HFx are very good value for money - light on bass, not much of a sound stage depth, but excellent mid range, treble, separation, details. It may take sometime to get used to the deeper insertion with tri-flanges, but it would give you good isolation. Instead, you can use other tips too!

 

[aj.jain]

Sry fr the two posts but at first i dint get the moderator permission dialogue and post dint get posted so posted agn dint knw dey will get posted twice.!

@esanthosh..thnx fr d listing
I actually couldnt find listings

What are your views about the odr two options??

 

[esanthosh]

Apple IEM and Klipsch?

Apple ADD IEM from what I've read is not bad at all. If it's the one you are referring to, you should be getting decent SQ out of it provided you can find them under 3K. I've not heard them, but here's Joker's opinion

Sound (6.4/10) The sound is analytical and highly detailed. The dual armatures can really dissect a piece of music into fine details and still manage to maintain coherency. The clarity is outstanding for the price and the whole signature is a bit relaxed. I really like the sound these put out the treble and upper mids are very crisp, the bass is fairly tight and doesnt creep up, and instrumental separation is good. The mids are nowhere near as liquid as those produced by the other budget BA phone in my possession the Soundmagic PL50 and soundstaging is pretty average. They might sound a little thin to some but thats inherent to the signature for an analytical signature on a budget I cant find much fault with them.

Value (8/10) At the MSRP there are certainly other options out there. However, at the common ebay price of ~$35 these are an excellent earphone to be had. They make a lot of the competition sound muddy and congested but at the same time arent cold enough in tone to turn off the average listener. The well-thought-out, tiny housings make these a pleasure to use and the functionality doesnt lag far behind the ergonomics.

Klipsch has many models, S4 being the popular one. There are some who like S4, but I do not. I don't know about the fit issues considering that S4 is highly recommended for smaller ears (where other normal IEMs are uncomfortable) and their gel tips being comfortable. If you are referring to any other model, I have not heard them. But you can check out if Joker has reviewed them.

As for Etymotic, you just need to wait if you can't find any more deals. Unless you want it tomorrow, no point in spending 9K when you can get a used IEM for much less including shipping. Or you can also try ICCWorld / forwarding service to get it directly from Amazon - less hassle, but you'll be charged duty + shipping charges which might bring it closer to flipkart price (might be around 7-8K), but still cheaper by a couple of thousand.

http://www.amazon.com/Etymotic-Research-Portable-In-Ear-Earphones/dp/B000XP8DJC/

 

[venkatcr]

Sry fr the two posts but at first i dint get the moderator permission dialogue and post dint get posted so posted agn dint knw dey will get posted twice.!

@esanthosh..thnx fr d listing
I actually couldnt find listings

What are your views about the odr two options??

'odr' mean what? 'Other' or 'Odour' - I give up. Frankly this is sheer nonsense. Even on SMS, using my Samsung Y, I use regular English.

Jain, do NOT use SMS language here. If you cannot type English properly, keep away from the forum.

Cheers.

 

[iaudio]

+1 to what Venkat has said, jain please refrain from using sms language, it is a pain to read and comprehend!

I am not sure you will get a balanced sound signature from Klipsch s4i as far as I know. You could look at the Vsonic Gr07 for your budget. The sony ex600 is another good bet.

 

[aashish351]

If you cannot type English properly, keep away from the forum.

Cheers.

That's a little harsh... It is OK till asking him not to write in SMS language. Sends a wrong message to people who genuinly are a little constraint in English, but can still learn & contribute.

 

[aj.jain]

'odr' mean what? 'Other' or 'Odour' - I give up. Frankly this is sheer nonsense. Even on SMS, using my Samsung Y, I use regular English.

Jain, do NOT use SMS language here. If you cannot type English properly, keep away from the forum.

Cheers.

You could have said that like a normal person!
And i am a heavy texter and am used to writing this way.
If you do not like not my problem but you have no right to tell me to be away from the forum..and scribble this in your head!
Thanx for reminding me the rules but be a proffesional like esanthosh!!
Thnx fr suggestion guys.!
I am getting 3250 inr final price for apple IEMs and these are new and will ship with cash on delivery.!
Is that justified for them?

Also etymotic hf5 are not available in india much.!
I thougt of amazon shipping but the price of black ones is cropping upto about 8.5 k!
And for cobalt its coming at 7k.!
Are they worth that?


Also, because of them being in-ears i was thinking of avoiding used ones!

 

[esanthosh]

Is it 'value for money'? Somewhat difficult to say considering US prices and plenty of choices available. Whether HF5 is 'worth' at 7K? I'd think yes with some qualifications.

HF5 is almost the best Ety. No doubt ER4S is the best, but it's also described as 'thin, cold, analytical' and people say HF5 is much more textured, has a little more bass and basically has the same signature. Apart from having to shove that tri-flange deeper into the ears, it is worth it.

Why do you think 'used' == the damn thing was inside someone else's ears? I find it as a good way to save money as long as you methodically clean ear tips and the IEM itself. I soak the tips (silicone ones) in a solution of Savlon + water + a few drops of waxonil for a few hours (typically over night / day long), clean them, dry them and then use them. Some of the fresh tips from new Chinese IEMs have looked worse than some of the used sets I've bought / was loaned. As long as you know the seller (in my case, I bought HF2 from ljokerl, who has as much or worse OCD than me regarding IEMs and tips), it should be fine. But, I agree that it's not applicable in all cases.

Apple IEM looks just about ok at 3250 new. If you have a way of someone buy in the US and bring it over here, you can get either of them for much cheaper. Otherwise, go for Ety (read: I need someone else to feel the same pain of inserting tri-flanges as far as they can into their ears )

 

[ShutterX]

hi.. just a suggestion. but, why dont you try Sony XBA-3 triple driver IEMs? they are new and are loaded with tech. i have auditioned them and frankly loved them. plus they are pretty comfortable.

id suggest you research them a bit. they are available for try at most Sony Centers.

cheers

 

[esanthosh]

Thanks for the info. I did not realize that XBA-1 and XBA-3 are available in India. The prices are good at 4K and 8K.

 

[ShutterX]

Thanks for the info. I did not realize that XBA-1 and XBA-3 are available in India. The prices are good at 4K and 8K.

yup. they just launched few days back. heard both of them and really liked the xba-3... its a far cray from their typical mdr lineup

 

[Adi30]

Hi AJ,

I have Dr. Beats in ear Headphones for sale if you would be interested. They have not been used.

Regards

Arvind

hi guys,
i am new here but have image that guys are helpful here.
I need to buy new IEMs for my iPhone 4.
I live in gurgaon, India.
I like balanced sound and have zeroed down to etymotic HF5, apple IEMs and klipsch s4i written in order of priortity.
I like very balnced natural sound.And as far as i have heard etymotics are best in the price band for naturality and insane clearity- the soundstage clearity D)!!
So my favourite choice is etymotic HF5 but the constraint is availability.
Etymotic Research HF5 Portable In-Ear Earphones (Cobalt) (Imported) . Buy Best Etymotic Research HF5 Portable In-Ear Earphones (Cobalt) (Imported) at Lowest Price Online
I found this link but also found that these are out of stock.
black one are selling for 8350 on same site but again out of stock.
I would be very grateful if someone could help me in buying those by pointing me to a seller in NCR region or by pointing me to an online re-seller who is trustworthy enough that i can buy.
my max budget is 9-9.5k.


If am not able to find them then i also wanna choose between klipsch and apple.
According to what i know klipsch has fitting issues for some people and if they dun fit they sound crap.
Also apple can be bought directly from apple stores which have 30 day return policy.
I dont know about their respective SQs because i havent heard any of them.
also klipsch has a lot of durability issues.
So am currently favouring Apple IEMs but still need help.

If anyone can help with buyng etymotic HF5 then that would be *the best*!!!

Please reply ASAP

regards,
and thanx in advance

 

[esanthosh]

yup. they just launched few days back. heard both of them and really liked the xba-3... its a far cray from their typical mdr lineup which is available in India

Fixed .

EX-600, EX-800 aka MDR7550 and EX-1000 are actually much, much better. Just like the X series of their walkman, Sony does not launch their top of the line products in India .

The local Sony center does not have the XBA series. Otherwise, I'd have bought both of them today . Sony also has no plans to launch their iPod compatible line-up (XBA-1ip etc.,) or the other two (XBA-2 and XBA-4) in India at this moment (based on what Sony HO told me).

@aj.jain,

You can try XBA-1 and XBA-3 if you can. I've heard good things about XBA-1 (almost at the level of the best single drivers like PFE, HF5 etc.,) from head-fi friends. May be you can try them yourself and decide.

 

[aj.jain]

[IMG2][/IMG2]

Hi AJ,

I have Dr. Beats in ear Headphones for sale if you would be interested. They have not been used.

Regards

Arvind

Very warm regard and thnx for the offer.!
Which model do you have and what is the quote??


@shutterX..
Thanx for the suggestion
Can you tell where can i try these??

@esanthosh
Haha..nice one about the tri-flange buds.!
Actually, my i wanted to buy and a friend is going for a us trip in 2 mnths and i was gonna wait but my current apple earphones(the one supplied with iPhone4) recently lost their sound.!
So currently i am actually without any earphones
So thinking not to wait for the friend and order from amazon. Just need someone to help me in payment through credit card(dont have one ).!
By the way, how is the sq of sone XBAs and where can i try them??

Also, if because of some reason i am not able to order HF5s(credit card issue still in between ;( ) then should i go for apple IEMs or klipsch s4i or sony ones(in case i can find them)??

 

[ShutterX]

[IMG2][/IMG2]

@shutterX..
Thanx for the suggestion
Can you tell where can i try these??

the model has JUST launched. the stock is being transfered and will take a while to reach all locations. so you should find them for demo at the nearest sony center by weekend i guess.

cheers

 

[ShutterX]

Fixed .

EX-600, EX-800 aka MDR7550 and EX-1000 are actually much, much better. Just like the X series of their walkman, Sony does not launch their top of the line products in India .

The local Sony center does not have the XBA series. Otherwise, I'd have bought both of them today . Sony also has no plans to launch their iPod compatible line-up (XBA-1ip etc.,) or the other two (XBA-2 and XBA-4) in India at this moment (based on what Sony HO told me).

rightly said, the japs prefer not to launch risky (expensive) stuff here.

and bbtw, i have heard all of them, the xba1, 2, 3 and 4. frankly, i found the xba3 the best. but these were all running unamped off the A series walkmans (which sound pretty ok)

 

[aj.jain]

the model has JUST launched. the stock is being transfered and will take a while to reach all locations. so you should find them for demo at the nearest sony center by weekend i guess.

cheers

I am in gurgaon but can easily roam to delhi or noida.!
Any idea which store can be helpful for me??

 

[aj.jain]

rightly said, the japs prefer not to launch risky (expensive) stuff here.

and bbtw, i have heard all of them, the xba1, 2, 3 and 4. frankly, i found the xba3 the best. but these were all running unamped off the A series walkmans (which sound pretty ok)

Seriously companies should realise indians also need stuff!!

Any of these have iphone controls just in case??