Decent ear buds for the wife

bpape · « **on:** 17 Nov 2009, 03:07 am »

My wife got an iPod touch that she absolutely loves. Looking for something better in ear buds, comfortable, and not silly expensive. Maybe $150 or less.

TIA

Bryan

roscoeiii · « **Reply #1 on:** 17 Nov 2009, 03:20 am »

I've gotten the Denon AH-C751, which I love. List is $199, but they can often be found for under $150 new. And the aluminum construction means that they are pretty bombproof, and important factor in my portable gear.

You could also look at Playback Magazine's free headphone guidem which is a free PDF download:

http://www.avguide.com/buyers-guide/avguides-playback-headphone-buyers-guide?src=Playback

iLounge.com is another good place for headphone and other iPod/iPhone related reviews.

ecramer · « **Reply #2 on:** 17 Nov 2009, 03:43 am »

Westone 1 Earphones
Shure SE210-K

these fit your budget with good sound

if if you want to put a big smile on her face these will do it

Westone 3 True 3-Way Triple Driver Earphones
The Westone 3 has set the bar pretty high for the competition. This is the FIRST TRUE 3-way triple driver earphones and what Westone did with the sound signature is simply amazing. This is the best universal fit earphones money can buy. They have just been released on November 2008. Comfort and fit are unbeatable. The achieved clarity AND warmth is a first in the industry. If you have $399 to spare, these are unbeatable. Clearly better sound than the UM2 and SE530. It comes with a 2 Year warranty (you need to mail the warranty card in with the Earphone Solutions' proof of purchase). The crossover on these earphones does an incredible job in distributing and controlling the frequency ranges among the 3 different drivers. The SE530 and Triple.fi in contrast have a 2-way configuration with 1 driver of one kind and 2 identical drivers opposed to Westone 3's first 3 driver, 3-way which has a specific driver to handle highs, one for mids and one for lows, each with their individual characteristics. Simply amazing combination of art and technique. The sound is simply on a different league of its own only achieved before by custom in-ear earphones that cost $850 plus.

$399
Westone UM2 Dual Driver In-Ear Headphones Black
The Westone UM2 dual driver in-ear earphones provide perfectly balanced output with a very musical sound. We also like their superior designed cables and the outstanding customer service Westone offers?extremely fast and responsive. Both the UM2 and the UM1 are made in the USA.
UM2BLACK
$299

ED

a1p1 · « **Reply #3 on:** 17 Nov 2009, 04:26 am »

Look into Etymotic Research earphones. I have the ER6i and they are great for use with an iPod while flying. Well regarded sound quality and have excellent noise isolation that lets you listen at lower levels. Can be had at a good discount from Amazon.

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

mbakes · « **Reply #4 on:** 17 Nov 2009, 01:49 pm »

If you are looking for earbuds, consider the Yuin PK-1: http://www.head-direct.com/product_detail.php?p=2
Something else to consider with earbuds is can be found at https://www.yurbuds.com/Default.aspx
I use them with my apple earbuds for running or casual listening and they work great.

mca · « **Reply #5 on:** 17 Nov 2009, 04:25 pm »

On the front page of www.avguide.com there is a Playback headphone buyers guide. Lots of good reviews and they cover ear buds also.

nature boy · « **Reply #6 on:** 17 Nov 2009, 05:17 pm »

Quote

Look into Etymotic Research earphones. I have the ER6i and they are great for use with an iPod while flying. Well regarded sound quality and have excellent noise isolation that lets you listen at lower levels. Can be had at a good discount from Amazon.

+1

NB

TheChairGuy · « **Reply #7 on:** 17 Nov 2009, 05:45 pm »

I have the Westone UM-2's....they are really fine sounding.

I think if you search on ebay you can find them for a bunch less than list.

I bought them from some dealer in Cincinatti for $220 or so with shipping. So, closer to your budget goals.

Westone isn't well known to many audiophools...they seem to keep to hearing aid and engineer/musician markets. But, they're good even if one hadn't heard of them previous to these posts.

John

Russtafarian · « **Reply #8 on:** 17 Nov 2009, 08:20 pm »

Search Amazon.com for Altec Earphones. Great deals on rebranded Ultimate Ears phones. I picked up the $40 UHP336 ($130 retail) and they work very well with my son's ipod and my portable CD player.

Russ

bpape · « **Reply #9 on:** 17 Nov 2009, 08:29 pm »

Thanks for all the ideas. Completely outside my area of expertise. Never been a headphone guy. Lots of research to do. Keep 'em coming

Bryan

woodsyi · « **Reply #10 on:** 17 Nov 2009, 08:56 pm »

Only the best for your wife: iDiamond Headphones Are Forever, Sparkling on Your Wife's Earlobe.

\

Slightly over your budget.

mbakes · « **Reply #11 on:** 17 Nov 2009, 09:06 pm »

If you are including IEM's (inner ear monitors) as part of your consideration then the Ety ER-6i's. I would also consider the products offered by Sleek. They had some initial problems with their cable but I understand they have been resolved.

Mike Dzurko · « **Reply #12 on:** 7 Dec 2009, 06:03 pm »

Russ, saw your mention on the Altec $40 UHP336s at Amazon. Read quite a few reviews and ordered a pair, got them on Sat. First listen was promising and I'm now burning them in. When they have about 40 hours I'll get serious about trying the different ends to try to get the best fit. Will report back. If they are as good as I think they might be, for $40 they could be killer . . .

mark@marktwain · « **Reply #13 on:** 7 Dec 2009, 06:56 pm »

Bryan,

Give these Sennheiser's a try, I use a pair with my sansa and I'm pretty happy with them especially for the price. They originally sold for 80 bucks I believe. Oh, I think I saw a pair in pink also though they were priced a bit higher.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Sennheiser-CX300-II-Black-Earphones_W0QQitemZ280432966758QQcmdZViewItemQQptZOther_MP3_Player_Accessories?hash=item414b1b7c66

Mark

jcoat007 · « **Reply #14 on:** 7 Dec 2009, 08:58 pm »

I have been using these for working out and traveling and I think they are great. Seals out noise, good bass, and the neckstrap design keeps the cords from being a nuisance.

http://www.amazon.com/Sony-MDR-NX1A-Neckstrap-Soft-Earbud/dp/B000B9P4HE

Comes with three sizes of earbuds and I find them oh so comfortable.

Toka · « **Reply #15 on:** 10 Dec 2009, 04:43 am »

I am very happy with the NE-7M from AC member NuForce. They have a model which is identical in sound but without the microphone:

http://www.nuforce.com/hp/products/ne6/index.php

The sound is simply very clear and open...great soundstage, detailed but not obnoxious. With the right foam ear-tips (they come with a few different sizes) the bass was satisfactory. Not big in any sense, and I've heard others with more "big" bass but at the expense of other things. Overall I found the balance here to be better and at the price it was an easy choice.

konut · « **Reply #16 on:** 10 Dec 2009, 04:57 am »

I got the Ultimate Ears Metro.fi 200
http://www.buy.com/prod/ultimate-ears-metro-fi-200-noise-isolating-stereo-earphones/q/loc/101/207685048.html
They sound very good.

funkmonkey · « **Reply #17 on:** 10 Dec 2009, 09:01 pm »

Most of what has been suggested are canal phones or IEMs (in ear monitors). If you are looking for the "ear bud" form factor, like the standard iPod buds, you should state it clearly. My wife hates anything actually inside her ear. So for her I had to stick with ear buds. Someone mentioned Yuin PK-1 a few posts up. Those are quite possibly the pinnacle of what is possible for the "ear bud" form factor. That model however is best suited for use with a headphone amp. If she will be running directly out of an iPod/MP3 player, then Yuin PK-2 (about $70) may be the better solution.

If she is okay with having her earphones actually in her ear canal, then you should look at the qJAYS as well. very small, and comfortable with excellent sound.

Good luck.

you also might want to check Head-Fi.org for more info...

bpape · « **Reply #18 on:** 10 Dec 2009, 11:18 pm »

She'll be primarily using them straight from an iPod. The buds that come with them are just not comfortable to me nor to her for longer periods like airplane trips. I can handle them about 20 minutes at most before they bug me to the point I have to take them out.

I'm looking for something easy, comfortable, and decent sounding. They don't need to be SOTA. I'll check out some of the recommendations

Bryan

Headphone_Guru · « **Reply #19 on:** 19 Mar 2010, 05:44 pm »

There are also hybrid design in-ear/earbud headphones if she doesnt like the fit of earbuds, which she doesn't seem to givin the fact you say that the ipod ones are uncomfortable. The hybrid designs allow some of the noise isolation of the full blown IEM's and a slightly different fit then say the eymotics that tend to stick way out of your ears.

Check out the Maximo iMetal iM590, they come in black or white. If interested, there is a consensus review of them at http://www.best-headphone-review.com/MaximoiMetaliM590.html

I hope this helps.