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Headphones - the new fleecing tool

I've always wished I could use ''in ears''. I've had so many pairs. I have some Sennheisser's at the moment, but dont use them much.. same problem it's always been.

One ear (of strange design) they just fall out (slightly) but enough to lose all bass in that ear.

Once at a hifi show I went to the Jays stand. They had loads and loads of different sizes of in-ears. I tried them all - I couldn't get a lasting air-tight fit with any of them.. same problem, bass fell out in one ear.

It was at that point I gave up on in-ear headphones and went to overhead types.

I know that some custom made in-ears may have solved the problem - but what a risk!!! - £200-£300, and there is always the possibility that these may have fallen out of my ear too ... less likely but I couldn't dismiss it.. and over the head cans of course never have this problem.

Anyway, back on topic.

I've had loads of cans over the years, but seem to gravitate towards Beyer, Audio Technica and Sennheisser (and Koss too)..

There may be rip off cans now, but you can still get Koss Porta Pro's for nothing,

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00001P4ZH/?tag=pinkfishmedia-21

Audio Technica's ad700's are only about £90 delivered (RRP £150)

http://www.enterplayment.com/openair-dynamic-headphones-p-1057214.html?currency=GBP. A home pair of cans though, they are massive.
 
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Hi,

I love the Etymotic ER4s with custom earmoulds. Proper monitor sound and the noise reduction from a proper bud that really fits is an eye-opener. I've also got a pair of HF5s that I swap the buds on when I want to use them in the gym. The cable on the 4s is too microphonic for that use, plus they're too expensive for that. HF5s are still very good phones though. I've used Ultimate Ears in the past and liked the sound at the £200 mark, but they aren't quite as robust.

Totally agree with you about most of the major manufacturers producing dross at this price point. If you want to use a normal phone with an iPod then the Sennheiser HD25s work very well. Good quality, extremely robust and comfy.

Cheers,
Chris.
 
I've always wished I could use ''in ears''. I've had so many pairs. I have some Sennheisser's at the moment, but dont use them much.. same problem it's always been.

I'm exactly the same, except in both ears. The earbud types all fall out and ear canal types either don't fit at all or hurt. When out and about with the iPod I use a pair of AKG K450 (great price here on Amazon) which tick all the boxes for travel; closed back so some isolation and minimal annoyance for others, they fold up neatly so are easy to store, efficient so sound fine on an iPod and are nice and comfortable.

Tony.
 
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One ear (of strange design) they just fall out (slightly) but enough to lose all bass in that ear.

I know that some custom made in-ears may have solved the problem - but what a risk!!! - £200-£300, and there is always the possibility that these may have fallen out of my ear too ... less likely but I couldn't dismiss it.. and over the head cans of course never have this problem.

An ear mould, for use with the ear buds you choose to use, will cost roughly £80 -> £100 at a hearing aid specialist. Ok, it's still a non trivial sum, but you can choose any earbud type 'phone to use.
 
Igrado a fantastic mp3 headphone.. £44 something pounds

your fleeced as you say by the crap piece of cable which they no wont last no matter how much you look after them your get a moment of lapse concentration on fatal wrong pull the cable breaks at the head phone end its a sealed unit they make it so you an i cant mend it

They could easy remedy this by having a quality lead with a jack both ends that plug into the actual headphone . Not in their interest to though is it not profitable having headphones that last.
 
I needed a closed headphone for on the road and I found that most of the commercially available ones for up to about £120 were terrible. The open ones seemed fairly poor but the closed ones are much worse. The only solution was Sennheiser HD 25 1-11. Generations of DJ's have it right on this one.
 
Those people who are having trouble with IEM phones, have you tried using Comply™ Foam Tips? They are fantastic in use, as long as you remember to compress them before inserting into the ear canal, to give a better fit and greater longevity (available more cheaply on eBay, Amazon, etc.).

You'll also need to check out that you get the right size for the particular IEMs you have.
 
Those people who are having trouble with IEM phones, have you tried using Comply™ Foam Tips? They are fantastic in use, as long as you remember to compress them before inserting into the ear canal, to give a better fit and greater longevity (available more cheaply on eBay, Amazon, etc.).

You'll also need to check out that you get the right size for the particular IEMs you have.


Wow, I have just googled these.

They are twenty quid - the same price as a pair of Koss Porta Pro headphones, with a lifetime warranty.

A lot of money for a centimetre of foam.
 
The Comply foam tips are available on eBay for about £12 for 5 pairs.

Jeeze, do any of you bother to do any research before posting?
 
HI Johnny

I just had a good look.

Incidentally, I just this week imported 3 x ECC83 valves from America to the UK. The total value including postage was £20.

Customs handling charge and VAT added just under £12 to the total price.

Given the link you have is from Canada, the ''landed'' price would be around £25.


Cheers,
Chris
 
No duty is payable on imported goods under £18. The total cost (inc. delivery) is just over half the figure you quoted. (As I wrote earlier, you should do your research!)

Even at £15-16 delivered (from Amazon) for 5 pairs of Comply tips, that gives you a couple of years use of some IEMs for which people here may have spent £150-200, and which are currently unused because they don't fit properly.

And guess what, you don't have to buy them!
 
Try the Koss Porta Pros out(make sure you get a genuine pair).

I picked up a pair of KSC-75 to put in my ski helmet this year as they were far cheaper than the ones made for the helmet itself and I was extremely surprised by how much fun they are to listen to. They were rated in the top 10 on headphone.com which was quite a surprise given the cost.

Apparently the Porta Pros have the same drivers and they are supposed to be very comfortable as well. The look is very retro but I quite like it.

Picked up a pair of Grado SR60i for the missus for a mother's day gift and they are quite good and I found them to be comfortable but the next pair that I buy for the ipod will be Porta Pros.

Plus, they have a lifetime warranty so that is also a plus if you like the sound.

Not a ton of money spent if not.


My vote for PortaPros. The most fun headphones I've heard.
 
I've always wished I could use ''in ears''. I've had so many pairs. I have some Sennheisser's at the moment, but dont use them much.. same problem it's always been.

One ear (of strange design) they just fall out (slightly) but enough to lose all bass in that ear.

Once at a hifi show I went to the Jays stand. They had loads and loads of different sizes of in-ears. I tried them all - I couldn't get a lasting air-tight fit with any of them.. same problem, bass fell out in one ear.

It was at that point I gave up on in-ear headphones and went to overhead types.

I know that some custom made in-ears may have solved the problem - but what a risk!!! - £200-£300, and there is always the possibility that these may have fallen out of my ear too ... less likely but I couldn't dismiss it.. and over the head cans of course never have this problem.

Anyway, back on topic.

I've had loads of cans over the years, but seem to gravitate towards Beyer, Audio Technica and Sennheisser (and Koss too)..

There may be rip off cans now, but you can still get Koss Porta Pro's for nothing,

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00001P4ZH/?tag=pinkfishmedia-21

Audio Technica's ad700's are only about £90 delivered (RRP £150)

http://www.enterplayment.com/openair-dynamic-headphones-p-1057214.html?currency=GBP. A home pair of cans though, they are massive.
At last I have found someone else that has the same problem with all those bloody 'in-ear' plugs allegedly called head phones. I too find they do not fit ...or as well quickly physically irritate - that I have to tear them out of my ears. Luckily I have 2 sets of Stax electrostatic 'traditional' headphone set -ups. Since I do not like 'portable music' ....fine!
 
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You really should get out more, Sony have made some of the best phones ever, same as Audio Technica. The ATH-W1000X are a classic as are the Sony MDR-R10 and the Qualia.

i'm glad that a headphones expert has told me that my day to day sony studio japan cd 900 pro phones are rubbish too....thank god for internet experts.

Then you'll love their SS-M series speakers with paper cones made from "special water" from a stream in Japan that only Sony have access to (remember the ads)?

:eek:
 
At last I have found someone else that has the same problem with all those bloody 'in-ear' plugs allegedly called head phones. I too find they do not fit ...or as well quickly physically irritate - that I have to tear them out of my ears. Luckily I have 2 sets of Stax electrostatic 'traditional' headphone set -ups. Since I do not like 'portable music' ....fine!

What I do like about them is they are small, portable, and dont draw attention to themselves when you wear them out and about.

They do irritate/hurt/etc as you say though. Looks like a noticeable minority have this problem...you, me, Tony to name a few.

I notice the smaller portable closed back Sennheissers come with noise cancelling now.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00079PNTM/?tag=pinkfishmedia-21

I have the big brothers that do this, but they are really not suitable for walking a street, way too big.

One nice thing about this kind of headphone (I mean over the head rather than in-ear) you can audition them before buying them often. You generally can't do that with in-ear types due to hygeine reasons.
 
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