Travel Technology - Etymotic ER6 isolator are junk

I was excited today to get my brand new Etymotic ER6 isolator headphones.
The testing conditions and general environment:
72F, limited humidity. no sunlight streaming through the windows.

NPR Market place streaming through the speakers (sound level is 25)

MP3 Player : Samsung YP2 loaded with all legally acquired music.

Unpacked the ER6's, located the directions and properly inserted the ear buds. Plugged the jack into my MP3 player and found the first radio station.

Before I found the radio station, I noticed that the purported passive noise canceling wasn't canceling NPR out so much...or at all. After tuning into a classic rock station, I could still hear NPR droning on in the background. Now, this is sitting my my office with minimal background noise. I can not imagine that the test would be better if i was sitting on noisy AA metal doing a 3 hour flight.

Before giving up, i took off the ear flanges and swapped on the foam ear buds. Slightly moistened and rolled to a tight tube, i placed them in my ears and waited the proscribed 5 seconds for the foam to expand. it actually cleared up the sound on NPR a little and didn't cancel anything. Turned on the radio (which is still at 25 on Windows Media volume level indicator) and could still slightly hear the radio. BUT I could still hear the radio!! This leads me to believe I would still hear the engine noise.

So, does anyone want to buy a slightly used (<5 minutes) ER6 isolators? i'll let them go for what i paid for them and ship for free to the continental US.

Of course i could have done something wrong...even though i read the directions. Anyone have these? Anyone who has these and loved them want a back up set? (see above).

I'll wait for feedback. thanks.

No offense - but either your ears are too big, or you are not wearing them correctly :)

The ER6's are in my opinion one of the best noise isolating headphones out there.

Make sure you insert them all the way, and tilt them up a little to make what I can only call "a vacuum".

If you purchased them with the expectation that they'd block anything and everything from around you, you'll be disappointed. NO noise isolating OR canceling headphones are THAT good.

Also, the noise isolation is usually rated for much lower frequencies, like that of a jet engine. Don't give up on them just yet, and try them on your next flight, also practice a little more inserting them in your ear.

when i pull them out they make a popping noise, like they were stuck down in there. i'll try them out in the car tomorrow. i know...i know. dangerous. but it could be closer to low rumblings like on a plane, no?

i guess i'll give them another shot.
Thanks for the advice.

Also, the noise isolation is usually rated for much lower frequencies, like that of a jet engine. Don't give up on them just yet, and try them on your next flight, also practice a little more inserting them in your ear.

And noise reduction (both passive- like these, and active- the battery-powered options) don't do well with voice. In the passive case, it's a frequency response issue. In the active case, it has to do with the tracking and cancellation algorithms- much better suited to "white" (pink) noise sources.

Cheers.

BUT I could still hear the radio!! This leads me to believe I would still hear the engine noise.


NC phone, active or passive, aren't magic. Nor are earplugs/muff. THere are too many paths to the human eardrum outside of the ear canal - don't expect all external noise to just disappear.

Even the best purpose made earplugs only have an NRR of 33 - 30-40db of sound attenuation at the middle frequencies. And earphones, requiring a path to allow the sound from a source to reach the ear, can't get close to the best earplugs.

A radio playing at typical listening volume in a room is probably 70-75dB, so you should hear 30-40dB of sound from the outside radio - a moderate whisper of sound. Turn your mp3 player to a decent listening level - again, 70-75db at your ears, and there's no way you should be able to hear the external radio.

Of course a jet engine is closer to 90db in the cabin. The only specs I've been able to find from Bose and other "active" NC 'phones is 22-25dB attenuation, so if the ER-6's don't do it for you, neither will anything else.

Pick up a set of foam ear plug in the store - $1-2/pair. If they are low 30NRR, the sound you head with ER-6's, Shures, or any other passive NC should should be 4-6db (2x) louder. That's all you're going to get.

Be sure they're inserted correctly - reach over your head with the opposite hand and pull your ear up and back. Insert the compressed earpiece and hold it until it expands. Open your jaw as you're doing so to create the maximum opening and thus the maximum seal when you let go.

I must disagree - I have both the Ety6 and Ety6i and they work like a charm.

Etymotic claims 34-36 dB (!)* noise isolation, so on this measure they leave the Boses in the dust. On planes I am surrounded by blissful silence (a few seconds after insertion) I use the plastic flange thingy, not the foamies. As they are small, I can sleep with them inserted on intercontinental flights.

Sound quality is also the best I've heard so far (I like their precise reproduction of sound), admittedly I have no experience with high-end gear.

Inserting them properly is a main issue, if incorrectly done, you'll lose on the bass.

* http://www.etymotic.com/ephp/epcomp.aspx

NC phone, active or passive, aren't magic. Nor are earplugs/muff. THere are too many paths to the human eardrum outside of the ear canal - don't expect all external noise to just disappear.


AMEN. BINGO. VOILA!

You'd think this was common sense! :eek:

I've had my Ety 6i's for about 3 years. I use the 3-flange earpiece. I can't hear a blooming thing when they are inserted properly, except the music from my mp3 player. Etymotic tells you to moisten them, twist them slightly while pulling up the top of the ear - it opens up the canal.

It took some practice getting them in, and some time to get used to them. Now I don't even have to think about it, and I frequently wear them while sleeping on planes.

The only way you will be able to hear while these are inserted is if they are not fully closing the canal. Either you have a large canal or they aren't pushed in far enough. If you have a very large ear canal, they make a 2-flange replacement ear tip in large size.

Seriously, I can't hear the flight announcements, the screaming baby, anything.

I have the Ety6i's and find them to work quite well with respect to sound isolation. I couldn't fit any of the included tips into my ears far enough for a good fit. After a phone call, they sent me a pair of blue triple flange tips that fit OK. I still can't tolerate them in my ears for more than 2-3 hrs but for that period, they're fine. Longer flights get the QC2's

I found their phone support to be quite helpful. Have you tried them?

If you want maximum noise isolation and high quality enjoyable music reproduction, you should definitely go for the 4p. With the foam earbuds, it's actually a dangerous idea to wear it on the street or even on the train because you will not even hear your cell phone in the shirt pocket blasting at full volume.

One great thing is that you can enjoy your music at much lower volume level because you don't have to battle with background noise. I tried ultimate ears and shure but eventually still chose the cheaper ety's, which beat all of them overall, imo.

But the ety4 is unfortunately a whole different price range :(

The only thing I can add is that there are several different foams, flanges, etc. that can be fit to the Etymotics. Every ear is different, so those supplied with the ER6 may not be the best fit for your ears.

IMHO, the ER6's are great earphones, have good sound quality and excellent noise reduction. They were my first foray into ear canal phones, and the beginning of my journey to ER4, Shure E5 and now Shure SE530. All have similar noise "blocking" capabilities, but their sound quality differs.

Another thing to try as a benchmark is to buy some earplugs at a local drugstore and use them to see what particular noise attenuations "sound like".

Watch the video if you haven't already: http://www.etymotic.com/ephp/epinsertvideo.aspx

Also, contact CS, as maybe they have some different flange sizes you can try out.

Some people have much more sensitive hearing than others. way above normal hearing ability. some people have very sensitive hearing in a particular range.

maybe 40db attenuation is just not enough. the next level solution is probably professional grade active noise attenuation. i don't know which ones. sennheiser only has 40db.

Use the ety's and put on also industrial mufflers :)

I've got the ER6 isolators. I find them less comfortable than my Bose QC2s, but a bit better at attenuating the noise. Bass response is somewhat reduced, but midrange and high-end have better definition than the QC2s. I'd hardly describe them as junk, particularly at their price point (I got mine for $75 or so).