I'm looking for good earbuds

[Beerdude26]

Hey all, I bought a Zen Stone Plus 2GB but I don't like the earbuds that come with it (surprise lol). I'm looking for DECENT earplugs. I usually listen to boomy music like Pendulum and Daft Punk, and sound quality and bass preservation are very important to me.

I got a budget of 50-100 euro (anything around that is good, you can also propose earbuds of 120 euro or the like if you think they're really worth it).

EDIT: Oh and I forgot to say this: I'll use them while jogging / other sporting activities, so any specially designed shens with good sound quality is lovely

Any suggestions?

 

[Tyguy]

think he means some friends for his ears

 

[xombine]

I've owned both of these and they're fantastic:

http://www.skullcandy.com/shop/fullmetaljacket-p-30.html
http://www.sennheiserusa.com/newsite/productdetail.asp?transid=500830

You can find them for cheaper around the web, those are just the links to the sites. I currently use the Skullcandys and wow they are awesome. If you're listening to Pendulum and Daft Punk then they'll blow you away. Plenty of bass, excellent treble. I previously had the Sennheisers but I didn't care for the asymmetrical cord (one headphone cable is longer than the other) and they didn't fit my ears as well. The entire length of the cable is quite short imo as well. But, if you like that then they are also a great choice. I think they have less bass than the Skullcandys but seriously no major gripes about the sound. They've got plenty of thump to make all your music sound great. Overall I recommend the Skullcandys, not to mention they're less expensive, and they also have a nice in-line volume control so you don't have to pull out your player to turn it down, up, or mute it. Both of the earphones come with 3 different earbud sizes, a small, medium, and large so you can fiddle around with them to get the one that's right for you. I have run in both pairs before and both of them did stay in my ears, you'll just have to find the right earbud size. The mediums worked best for me, but i actually lost both of the mediums on the Sennheisers (they slid off when putting it in my pocket and off to oblivion) so I had to resort to using the large earbud sizes and surprisingly I was able to get them to fit well and stay in my ears.

Those are just two choices I can talk about simply from experience, but hey there are loads moar out there to look at. Don't be restricted by these, I'm just letting you know that they're both fantastic choices. Bottom line, i'd say go with the Skullcandys simply for the symmetrical cable, sturdy design, in-line volume, and length of cable. Happy shopping

 

[Tyguy]

you paid over 90 dollars for earbuds?

 

[Viperidae]

In before Vegeta's attack of the in-ear-monitors.

you paid over 90 dollars for earbuds?

olol.

 

[Dynasty]

http://www.sennheiserusa.com/newsite...transid=500830

Amen, have those at the moment. Theyre just a whole new level of 'earbud' headphones.

 

[Beerdude26]

Umm that link's a bit broken

 

[3ssence]

The sennheiser CX300's as mentioned earlier are great budget in-ear headphones, have bought a set of these and so far very impressed, would definitely recommend them:

http://www.shure.com/PersonalAudio/Products/Earphones/SEModels/us_pa_SE210_content

http://www.trustedreviews.com/multimedia/review/2007/04/02/Shure-SE210-Noise-Isolating-Earphones/p1

They come with a range of different sizes of foam and vinyl buds, so you can choose whichever fits best, and once in and sealed in your ear, you can barely hear a thing in the outside world, so no need to crank the volume up just to hear what you are listening too. The notion that there are no good in-ear headphones is rubbish, you get what you pay for, therefore you can't expect run of the mill headphones that you bought for 30-40 bucks to propel you to audio nirvana. Just my 2 cents.

 

[3ssence]

I'm guessing that canalphones is the canadian variant of the word for what i'm thinking of then, in which case i mis-understood you !! Know nothing about skullcandy, but they do seem a little too showy, which does make me slightly sceptical..

 

[3ssence]

Never heard the term used in the UK, hence my not understanding what you meant by that !!

 

[Qonfused]

All ear buds, aka these, suck. There are no, NO, pair of ear buds that sound as good as a pair of $15 headphones. Canal-phones rock, though. Buy a pair of those.

 

[Crushenator 500]

I've had a pair of shure E3c's for a few years now and they're great

I still like regular earbuds though if I'm listening in bed or something where there's no ambient noise, I just find them more comfortable

 

[xombine]

I'm also not sure about Skullcandy. I've only seen them in the last few months, so I don't know if I really trust them, and they have pictures of stupid skulls all over them, so it makes me think "crap for kids and people who hang out on Queen Street" rather than "professional audio solution." The fact that they sell them at Best Buy is also troubling.

No wai. These things do rock for sure, I'm not just imagining this lol. My friend also had a pair of the cheaper Smokin' Buds and they sounded just great for the price too.

you paid over 90 dollars for earbuds?

Like I said you can find them cheaper around the web, I paid like $50 on eBay.

 

[xombine]

I currently own BOTH the CX300s and the Full Metal Jackets and I can tell you that the sound quality is just as good on the Skullcandys. :|

 

[-Psy-]

I want a decent set of headphones. I currently have some Sennheiser DJ thingies. Let me find a link...

Here they are.

I've had these for a while and the only problem I have with them is how crap they sound when the texture of the music starts to become thick. It starts to sound all muddy and boomy. Can HL2.net suggest anything better?

 

[Eejit]

Try here.

 

[Naph]

If you can get earbuds that sit well when inside Earmuffs or resting on a pillow, I'm in.
Otherwise I think I'll stick to my stock ipod earplugs.

 

[DrDevin]

It's true, you aren't going to get good sound out of an earbud design, so IEMs are probably the way to go.

That said, you won't be able to hear any outside noise while wearing them (with a good set, you won't be able to hear vehicles pass you by at only a few meters), so I warn you about jogging in heavy traffic areas.

If you are dead set on an earbud design, the only pair you want to look at are the Yuin PK series. The Yuin PK2 sounds much better than any off the shelf earbuds you are going to find and they don't require an amp.

If you are fine with IEMs, I suggest you check out one of the following:

Frequency Response Graph

Ultimate Ears Super.fi 5 Pro - The UE SF.5P is the most musical of the three. It has more pronounced low end and some treble sparkel. It uses duel drivers and you would be hard pressed to find any sibilance when playing music.

Etymotic ER-4P - The E4P is very neutral. It has a very fast, clean, bass response that extends quite low, however it sticks to the neutrality formula and might be a bit too recessed for some; it definitely isn't an "in your face" feel. The E4P really shines in the highs, which are crystal clear and extend very high.

Shure E4c - The E4c (which has been partially succeeded by the SE420) have a warmer flavour to them. They have a stronger bass presence than the E4P but less than the UE5. The E4c really excell when delivering midrange. Human voice and acousic guitar, among others, is incredibly smooth. The E4c is also quite flat, although it's highs are slightly rolled off.

All three IEMs are easily driven by a portable player but they can also improve with amplification (especially the E4P if you use a P->S adaptor, which adds 75ohms of resistance in the cable). Each company has a great warranty service, Shure and UE being exceptionally notable. You might be able to get better pricing by searching online.

Alternatives to the above include the westone IEM line and the Jays d-jays or q-jays.

 

[Beerdude26]

I was reading some shens on amazon about the Sennheiser PX100 and it seemed pretty damn good (I got a Sennheiser PC151 as my headphones and they're incredibly high quality for such a low price (40 euros))

 

[Cavalry]

I use some AKG earbuds from e-bay
they sound amazing and the bass is great.

here is a link to their site/store
http://www.akg.com/

 

[Viperidae]

I've found for mid-range ($200) headphones, in all my readings the Audio Technica ATH-900's are supposedly the best balanced in terms of sound and reliability, although when it comes to headgear everyone is convinced they know the best. Just my $2/100.

 

[DrDevin]

I was reading some shens on amazon about the Sennheiser PX100 and it seemed pretty damn good (I got a Sennheiser PC151 as my headphones and they're incredibly high quality for such a low price (40 euros))

They are fantastic for the price, widely regarded as some of the best budget earphones around, along with the Koss PortaPro.

 

[Iced_Eagle]

See if you can find the headphones that come with the Zune 80. They are _nice_.

It's the normal wires, covered in some sort of cloth that not only helps protect the wires, but it looks cool too.

They're in-ear buds, so you need to make sure there is a tight seal to keep the sound in. Once you have that seal, the quality is absolutely awesome. Rumbling lows, and nice high's and everything in between.

The backs of each headphones also have magnets so you can clip them together. It's a nice touch.

 

[Vegeta897]

LISTEN ALL YOU MORONS YOU CAN'T GET EARBUDS THEY SU-

In before Vegeta's attack of the in-ear-monitors.

Oh.

And Sea has handled things quite nicely too.

/leaves thread

 

[Saturos]

I don't do earbuds. They get all waxy and nasty when I use them. I think I've even heard some people actually call them, "wax lollies".

 

[xombine]

Hey also check these out: http://www.bose.com/controller?even...t=triport_ie_headphones_index&intcmp=USB06001

My friend just got these for Christmas and they really sound amazing. Pretty much what you would expect from Bose, they're top notch headphones too, and only $100. They are kinda big as you can see but they stayed in my ear perfectly, but I'm not sure about jogging. :/

 

[Viperidae]

And this is why I hate Bose's bullshit.

Hear your music with more range, realism and clarity than with most conventional earbuds. Bose research and engineering are at the core of the remarkable performance of Bose? in-ear headphones. That includes our proprietary TriPort? acoustic headphone structure for greater output of low notes from a small headphone.

Um, ok. Burden of proof, guys. Frequency Range? Graphs? Isolation? Just saying general shit about your product doesn't mean jack. It's like describing a CPU as 'fast.' But wait you say, there are specifications!

Headphones (one side, medium tip): ? 1.30" H x 1.02" W x .59" D ? 33 mm x 26 mm x 15 mm

Weight with cables (two sides, medium tips): ? .64 oz ? 18.1 g

Oh damn, once I've bought these I'm going to go brag to my friends about my new 1.02 inch wide earbuds! Please Bose, for all your technical superiority, at least provide me with an ounce of actual analysis. If I'm to spend $100 on some earbuds (again, earbuds, not IEMs), then at least have the courtesy of giving me some real data on them.

Extensive compatibility Angled plug fits directly into most MP3 players, including iPod? and iPhone models, as well as laptops and portable CD and DVD players.

Ohhhhhh srs? It actually plugs into the standard headphone jack form factor? Good, because I once accidentally bought headphones with RCA jacks.

Bose in-ear headphones are designed to be worn comfortably for extended periods of time. Many people experience discomfort from traditional earbuds. But our engineers have developed innovative, soft silicone tips shaped to rest easily in the outer bowls of your ears, not the pressure-sensitive ear canals.

Great, but...

While doing light workouts I was always concerned about having them fall out - though as note they never did. When the headphone moves out of position in your ear, the sound quality diminishes greatly.

So basically, they just made them softer. So they'd be less tight. And they'd slide around in your ears.

But don't trust me; their site is happy to point out for you some reviews, too!

"We found the best overall performer and best value of the entire bunch to be these Bose ? phones."

The experts on audio equipment!

"... these phones sound great."

Thanks Rich!

How 'bout some more technically inclined reviews:

http://www.geardiary.com/2007/11/20/review-bose-in-ear-headphones/
http://reviews.cnet.com/headphones/bose-triport-in-ear/4505-7877_7-32150146.html

Yes I overanalysed this to death, but it just pisses me off so much, their dick wagging and continual reminders that they're the 'the most respected name in sound.'

 

[Vegeta897]

I love you Viper.

 

[xombine]

Ok then...all I know is that they sounded great.