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IEMs for the Frugal Audiophile

IEMs for the Frugal Audiophile

Old May 28, 2014, 9:05 am
  #1  
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IEMs for the Frugal Audiophile

Looks like I may have left my Shure SE215s on an airplane...

I had those IEMs for two years and they never let me down. Before that I had a pair of EC3s that lasted me five years.

So I'm looking for a replacement... I am way past picking up a pair of $5 Maxell earbuds at the airport newsstand, but I have no illusions of being an audio purist. I will be connecting these things to my Nexus 5 and my MacBook Air, nothing high end.

The selling points of my Shures were, in order:

1) Bulletproof build quality
2) Flat and flush monitor casing
3) Optional triple-flange silicone tips for total sound isolation

I bought my Shures on Amazon for $99. I'm not looking to spend a whole lot more than that. If there are any other models that can compare and are in this price range, I'm game. I trust the experts on this forum than almost any other.
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Old May 28, 2014, 3:18 pm
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I was very happy with Shure for quite a long time, occasionally jumping over to Etymotic. But the last time I lost mine, I did rather extensive research and ended up very happy with the VSonic GR07 - they're more, but not crazy more ($160 at Amazon).

Here's a thread with reviews/comments - Vsonic GR07: Perfection

head-fi is a good place to research - it's been 3 years since I bought them so there may be new stuff out there. I'm sure there's a recent "what should I buy for $100" in the forums somewhere.
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Old May 30, 2014, 4:37 pm
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Originally Posted by YYZC2
Looks like I may have left my Shure SE215s on an airplane...

I had those IEMs for two years and they never let me down. Before that I had a pair of EC3s that lasted me five years.

So I'm looking for a replacement... I am way past picking up a pair of $5 Maxell earbuds at the airport newsstand, but I have no illusions of being an audio purist. I will be connecting these things to my Nexus 5 and my MacBook Air, nothing high end.

The selling points of my Shures were, in order:

1) Bulletproof build quality
2) Flat and flush monitor casing
3) Optional triple-flange silicone tips for total sound isolation

I bought my Shures on Amazon for $99. I'm not looking to spend a whole lot more than that. If there are any other models that can compare and are in this price range, I'm game. I trust the experts on this forum than almost any other.
I was considering getting a pair of the Shure E215s myself. They are still about $99 on Amazon. Any reason you aren't just replacing them?
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Old May 31, 2014, 8:20 am
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Originally Posted by GadgetFreak
I was considering getting a pair of the Shure E215s myself. They are still about $99 on Amazon. Any reason you aren't just replacing them?
No, I would repurchase the 215s in a heartbeat. I just wanted to test the waters.

Two caveats about the 215s, though...

The monitor attaches to the cable with a coax-like connector. This is handy if either the monitor or the cable gets broken as you only need to replace one or the other but on occasion I get static if the monitor is jostled at the connector juncture. Rare but annoying.

The cables on the 215s sturdy but very prone to twisting and catching on itself. Also because the monitors hook around your ear those hooks then get tangled up as well and I find they take longer than any other pair I've owned to go from package to ear.
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Old May 31, 2014, 2:27 pm
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I love my Etymotics ER-7 in-ear headphones. They're the cheapest Etymotics with the microphone and song skip button at about $70.

The earbuds fit so far in your ear that you really can't hear a thing with them on. Almost as good as active noise reduction. To make up for this (say if you're biking) they have an app for your phone that uses the microphone to pipe-in outside volume if you desire. Settings tunable for static and level. Pretty cool.

Sound of course is mind blowing as you'd expect from Etymotic.

The Bose IE2 headphones are now under a hundred, but don't have a mic or button for skipping songs. Seems all the headphone companies conspire to add $20-$30 (or more!) to the cost just to get that feature.
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Old May 31, 2014, 4:54 pm
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I loved the sound of my Etymotic HF5 and even had the custom ear molds made which were super comfy. Unfortunately the cable started to short out after only a year or so.

I went with Bose QC20i this time. The active noise canceling is phenomenal. Now if only I could get custom ear molds made for them ...
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Old Jun 1, 2014, 11:16 am
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I've had many in ear monitors and buds, and without a doubt the best quality and sound for me are the westone audio series for consumers. The chords are high quality, good service, and as comfortable as you can get without going custom. My father used to sell custom ear pieces (monitors and hearing aids) for westone and they have the technology and history. I believe they also make some of the other brands..
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Old Jun 1, 2014, 12:18 pm
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At an even lower price point, I suggest looking at Meelectronics.

I tend to break or lose a lot of IEMs so I went downmarket to avoid the angst when I leave them on the plane.

Last edited by lensman; Jun 1, 2014 at 12:31 pm Reason: grammar
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Old Jun 3, 2014, 12:47 am
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The Etymotics with the FOAM in ear buds are the best that I've used.
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