Quick Comparison of 63 IEMs (Spreadsheet)

[Hodgie]

Ok I am stuck what to buy.

I have the sennheisers but i dont like the j cable and i know you can make it to a y but its just easier to buy new ones. The MylarOne XB's have good reviews but i cant find them anywhere in britain. What other would you suggest under $100??

Thanks

[WalkGood]

Originally Posted by Hodgie

...The MylarOne XB's have good reviews but i cant find them anywhere in britain...

You won’t find them in Britain, Jaben is the only distributor I know… http://www.jaben.net/shopping.html they use PayPal and offer free shipping world wide. A nice touch is that they undervalue the package so you do not have to pay any customs or taxes

[Hodgie]

Also whats the cord length and what what accessories come with them both?

The x3's look nicer and more confortable but i might be wrong.

Also jaben x3s come with other earphones too.

[Hodgie]

ask if they can exclude the phones that come with the x3 and ask if they can replace the with the xb then maybe you can get the xb and x3 together.

Thats what i am thinking of doing??

Thanks

[WalkGood]

Originally Posted by Hodgie

Whats the cord length and what accessories come with them both?

From the iem to the plug it’s 53 inches (4.5’). They have Y connector and come with 3 black silicon tips, a clip to attach cord to your clothes, a gay round pinkish red case, and a rubber dongle to wrap your extra cord with. You can see some Pictures of the X3's on this post.

Originally Posted by Hodgie

Also jaben x3s come with other earphones too.

IMO, the XB’s are superior to the X3, no need to get both, save your money for your next toy

Originally Posted by Hodgie

The x3's look nicer and more confortable but i might be wrong.

They’re both comfortable after you get use to having something inserted deep in your ear...lol...but when it comes to looks, they're both fugly, would be way cooler in all black

[MusicOnly]

So how would the Shure E2s fit into that chart? (I know you don't care for them, but it would be a useful comparison.)

[dfkt]

In that price range, you can get some better IEMs...

[Hodgie]

What do people think of the ultimate ears fi2.

They are clost to the XB price?

Thanks

[MusicOnly]

Originally Posted by dfkt

In that price range, you can get some better IEMs...

OK, rather than start yet another "which IEM" thread, what would you recommend?

I have a pair of Shure E2's that I was quite pleased with until the intermittent wire break on the left channel. Specifically, the E2's always sounded clean, with the plastic sleeves they're very comfortable (I once fell asleep wearing them), and they block external noise well.

The most important factor is that I absolutely cannot stand mushy sound (which seems to be an issue only with the bass). I have tried the Creative whatevers and found them unacceptably mushy (they were also a little to small to be a good fit for my ears).

I don't need perfect sound isolation, but it needs to be pretty good.

Among the widely-recommended phones there seems to be a pretty big gap between the $50 range and the $200 range--not much in between. $200 is a little steep for me, but I can certainly go to $100 or a little over.

Thanks to anyone for recommendations.

[dfkt]

If you're happy with the sound of the E2c, you could upgrade to the E3c, they're well within your price range.

Or you could get some Mylarone X3's - which I find to be less anemic sounding than Shures or Etymotics. They're very precise and have really good clarity. Soundstage should be bigger than on the E2c or some of the more expensive balanced armature IEMs.

[dfkt]

Added the q-JAYS to the spreadsheet... Does anyone have some ketchup? Guess I'm gonna eat my own words about multi-armature IEMs.

[irizen]

Originally Posted by Hodgie

What do people think of the ultimate ears fi2.

They are clost to the XB price?

Thanks

Do you mean the metro.fi 2s? I have a pair and they have a great synergy with my ZV:M.

I used to use the 'higher' super.fi 3s... good with my old h10, but on the ZV:M, the midrange sounded a bit harsh and I really noticed a bass roll-off. I then went down to my old ep630s for a while and got tired on their muddiness (again).

IMO the metro.fi 2s fit nicely in between... they have a fun sound with a punchy bass, without the muddiness of lower canalphones. A definite upgrade from ep630s.

[Hodgie]

Originally Posted by dfkt

Guess I'm gonna eat my own words about multi-armature IEMs.

LOL you should just pretend that they are "average"

How to they compare to the Futuresonics M5/8?? I know your chart ranks them similar about from the bass and the microphonics.

[Defiler]

Just ordered a set of XBs this past Friday. Can't wait to try them out. Don't shoot me but I've been using Sony x51's for over a year now, still better than any crap stock phones, but I just can't wait to hear how much better the XBs will be. Thanks for this thread.

[ZenChick]

Sony's X51's are actually a very respectable set of IEMs, particularly for the price. I had to buy a pair after my oldest son disemboweled by V-Moda Vibes, and I've actually been quite impressed with how good they sound with my Zen Vision:M! They're a little bass-heavy, but still lively and not very muddy at all. These are one fun set of IEM's!

[ZenChick]

Originally Posted by dfkt

dfkt, I was wondering if you still have that set of Sony MDR-EX51's around and would consider rescoring them. I had to buy a pair a couple of months ago after one of my kids destroyed my V-Modas, and have found the sound quality to be highly dependent on placement in the ear, more so than with other IEM's. With optimal placement, I'd score them as:
Bass (Quantity): Plenty
Bass (Quality): Medium
Mids: Good
Treble: Medium
Soundstage: Medium
Clarity: Medium
Isolation: Medium
Comfort: Good
Ease of Insert: Medium (positioning is more critical than with other IEMs)
Microphonics: Bad
Build Quality: Medium (Sony appears to have addressed the "dissolving insulation" problem on these things)
Value/Price: Medium
MSRP: $40

[DJ Shred]

Originally Posted by WalkGood

As I promised some follow up pictures...the X3's XB's rock

I know its sad that I just noticed this, but thats a nice batman band-aid

[yuki]

the ex51 "fontopia" were my first iem's then moving to cx300

I completely agree with the reviews on both, the ex51 sound like blasting a boom box with a sub in a bathroom. The cx300's are very muddy to say the least. Though i wounder if the ex51 series sound better in earlier revisions given sony and cost cutting.....

i would give the cx300's the best value for the money given i found them at sears of all places for $29.99 because they were in the wrong play on the shelf ^^ and they honored the price

the new ex 82 pack ins that come with the a810 series players sound unbelievable given that they come packed with the player

[youliang]

i bought my mylarone X3 for RM130.. around $37 dollars?

[dfkt]

Added the new MylarOne X3i and XBi to the list in the first post.