Need some new earphones for my MP3 player.

[KeithTalent]

I searched around the forums a bit to see if there was anything recent about this type of thing, but it seems the search is even worse now than it used to be! :Q

So what I'm looking for are replacement phones for my Shure E2Cs to use with my Toshiba Gigabeat S. These phones did an ok job, but something happened with the cord behind my ears; it split a bit, and now I have to put tape on it all the time (the tape keeps coming off and it gives me a nice little shock to the back of my ears :frown: ).

Can anyone recommend an adequate replacement set? My budget is probably <$150 and I prefer inner-ear, noise cancellation types. Something with a nice, plyable cord that will not split and if they are decent for jogging/running, that would be a bonus. Oh and of course something with decent sound. 😀

Thank you all in advance for your help. 🙂

KT

General Hardware -> Audio

-Schadenfroh

 

[AmberClad]

I have inner-ear earphones, and while the sound quality of those types of earphones are amazing, I'd never be able to jog in them. The airtight seal in my inner ear would make me too disoriented to run in a straight line. It also causes really noticeable thumping/reverb whenever the cord slaps against something.

Plus, it's kind of dangerous to wear sound-isolating earphones when you jog, methinks...

Anyways, I have pretty inexpensive Creative ones, I think $15 AR. Sennheiser also makes nice ones, I hear.

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: AmberClad
I have inner-ear earphones, and while the sound quality of those types of earphones are amazing, I'd never be able to jog in them. The airtight seal in my inner ear would make me too disoriented to run in a straight line. It also causes really noticeable thumping/reverb whenever the cord slaps against something.

Plus, it's kind of dangerous to wear sound-isolating earphones when you jog, methinks...

Anyways, I have pretty inexpensive Creative ones, I think $15 AR. Sennheiser also makes nice ones, I hear.

Not sure why it would be dangerous to jog in them, but your first two points may be valid. My biggest problem is with the headphones falling out when I run, which is very annoying.

I'll take a look at the Sennheiser's, I wasn't aware they made earphones. I love my headphones form them, but they are huge and not practical for running. 😀

KT

 

[AmberClad]

Originally posted by: KeithTalent
Not sure why it would be dangerous to jog in them

You're not familiar with DC area drivers, I take it 😀...

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: AmberClad

Originally posted by: KeithTalent
Not sure why it would be dangerous to jog in them

You're not familiar with DC area drivers, I take it 😀...

Haha no, fortunately not. Where I jog I really only need to worry about being hit by other joggers. 😛

KT

 

[fredhe12]

Originally posted by: AmberClad
I have inner-ear earphones, and while the sound quality of those types of earphones are amazing, I'd never be able to jog in them. The airtight seal in my inner ear would make me too disoriented to run in a straight line. It also causes really noticeable thumping/reverb whenever the cord slaps against something.

Plus, it's kind of dangerous to wear sound-isolating earphones when you jog, methinks...

Anyways, I have pretty inexpensive Creative ones, I think $15 AR. Sennheiser also makes nice ones, I hear.

My experience exactly. I have Sony inner ear buds that do a great job of noise canceling, but you're right about the reverb with the cord. Also, any outdoor activity near cars (if you jog on the road), is potentially dangerous if you can't hear what's going on around you.

 

[KeithTalent]

Ok, solved the running issue, I bought some Sony sport earphones that sort of clip onto my ears for $25. I'll be trying them tonight.

So with that out of the way, does anyone have any other recommendations for decent earphones (not for running) to replaces my E2Cs? I looked for Sennheiser at my local store, but did not see anything by them. I saw ones by JBL and Harman Kardon, neither of which I have heard of.

Anyone have some more recommendations? Again, the budget is around $150 and I want inner-ear phones.

thanks!

KT

 

[magreen]

www.headphone.com

 

[Ultralight]

Originally posted by: KeithTalent
Ok, solved the running issue, I bought some Sony sport earphones that sort of clip onto my ears for $25. I'll be trying them tonight.

So with that out of the way, does anyone have any other recommendations for decent earphones (not for running) to replaces my E2Cs? I looked for Sennheiser at my local store, but did not see anything by them. I saw ones by JBL and Harman Kardon, neither of which I have heard of.

Anyone have some more recommendations? Again, the budget is around $150 and I want inner-ear phones.

thanks!

KT

KeithTalent, I really would love to hear how you made out with your Sony sport earphones because I am in the market myself to replace the earbuds that came with my Creative MuVo V100 flash based MP3. It is great little device while working out and the earbuds sound decent but they hurt my ear cannals.

As I have been searching for replacements I keep coming across people who run into the issue of reveberation through the wiring anytime the wires are moved or brushed. Thanks.

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: Ultralight

Originally posted by: KeithTalent
Ok, solved the running issue, I bought some Sony sport earphones that sort of clip onto my ears for $25. I'll be trying them tonight.

So with that out of the way, does anyone have any other recommendations for decent earphones (not for running) to replaces my E2Cs? I looked for Sennheiser at my local store, but did not see anything by them. I saw ones by JBL and Harman Kardon, neither of which I have heard of.

Anyone have some more recommendations? Again, the budget is around $150 and I want inner-ear phones.

thanks!

KT

KeithTalent, I really would love to hear how you made out with your Sony sport earphones because I am in the market myself to replace the earbuds that came with my Creative MuVo V100 flash based MP3. It is great little device while working out and the earbuds sound decent but they hurt my ear cannals.

As I have been searching for replacements I keep coming across people who run into the issue of reveberation through the wiring anytime the wires are moved or brushed. Thanks.

So these are the speicifc ones I bought: Sony MDR-J11G h.ear Sports Headphones and apparently I got ripped off because I paid $25 all-in. :frown:

Anyway, I tried them out last night and they worked very well for me. It was a very rainy and windy night, so I could still hear a bit of the wind when I had the volume lower, but I just turned it up a bit and I never noticed it again.

The best part for me was they did not even move on my ears, they stayed perfectly still, even when I was sprinting the last kilometre.

As for the cord bumping, I did not notice any reverberation from the wire hitting me, however I was wearing 2 shirts (a technical long-sleeve with a light t-shirt over that) and the cord was sitting in-between them, plus my t-shirt was dripping wet from rain, so both of these factors may have caused the cord to not really move at all, and therefore no reverb. Alternatively it could just be because these are not really inner-ear, noise-cancelling earphones.

Overall I would recommend them, and for the price listed on Amazon, they seem like a pretty darn good deal. 🙂

KT

 

[AmberClad]

Glad you found some good jogging earphones.

As far as the cord-slapping reverb, I've never had that issue with earbuds either (or headphones for that matter). It might only affect canalphones...probably similar to the effect of being underwater and hearing the sound waves traveling through the water.

Anyways, in case you're still looking for non-jogging canalphones, here are the Sennheiser ones:
CX300B
CX300S

For anyone else who's reading this and are cheapskates like I am, here are the cheapo Creative-made knockoffs I have :laugh: :
EP630
I think I got when Buy.com had a promo with a Google Checkout discount + Creative rebate, so it's not such a hot deal anymore.

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: AmberClad
Glad you found some good jogging earphones.

As far as the cord-slapping reverb, I've never had that issue with earbuds either (or headphones for that matter). It might only affect canalphones...probably similar to the effect of being underwater and hearing the sound waves traveling through the water.

Anyways, in case you're still looking for non-jogging canalphones, here are the Sennheiser ones:
CX300B
CX300S

For anyone else who's reading this and are cheapskates like I am, here are the cheapo Creative-made knockoffs I have :laugh: :
EP630
I think I got when Buy.com had a promo with a Google Checkout discount + Creative rebate, so it's not such a hot deal anymore.

The Sennheiser's look decent, but I'm a little concerned by this in the comments section

Cords are too stiff

because that is the problem I had with my Shures and why I think they split.

I am going to try and see if I can find them in a store somewhere around here so I can actually get to see them in person.

Thanks again for the links and information. :thumbsup:

KT

 

[JDub02]

I went from a set of Shure e2c's to the el-cheapo JVC Marshmallows ($20 at wal-mart).

I actually like the JVC's better than the shure's. While the shure's do function well as a monitor and provide accurate sound, the JVC's are much more full for just listening to music.

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: JDub02
I went from a set of Shure e2c's to the el-cheapo JVC Marshmallows ($20 at wal-mart).

I actually like the JVC's better than the shure's. While the shure's do function well as a monitor and provide accurate sound, the JVC's are much more full for just listening to music.

Hmm, that's very interesting. I was about to pull the trigger on the Sennheiser 300s since I found them for about $69, which I thought was a decent price, but maybe I don't even need to go that expensive...

KT

 

[Ika]

From what I've read (and I've read a lot about this), the CX300 sounds nearly identical to the EP630 (assuming both are genuine, that is). The only main differences are branding and the style of cord (one of them has a J-style cord and the other has a Y-style).

I have a pair of JVC marshmallows, Altec Lansing iM716s (which supposedly have the same drivers as the Etymotic ER4), and Koss KSC75s, and have tried E4Cs and EP630s. I prefer the iM716s for the clean sound they have, but they're not always ideal for the occasion. Marshmallows are definitely a good value, but I'm not a fan of the sound. I definitely prefer EP630s/CX300s. However, if you don't necessarily need isolation, the Koss KSC75s are the absolute BEST value you can get in a headphone - for $15 or so on Amazon, you can get yourself a pair of clip-ons that sound absolutely great (I sometimes use them over my Grado SR60s when I don't want to attract too much attention).

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: Aflac
From what I've read (and I've read a lot about this), the CX300 sounds nearly identical to the EP630 (assuming both are genuine, that is). The only main differences are branding and the style of cord (one of them has a J-style cord and the other has a Y-style).

I have a pair of JVC marshmallows, Altec Lansing iM716s (which supposedly have the same drivers as the Etymotic ER4), and Koss KSC75s, and have tried E4Cs and EP630s. I prefer the iM716s for the clean sound they have, but they're not always ideal for the occasion. Marshmallows are definitely a good value, but I'm not a fan of the sound. I definitely prefer EP630s/CX300s. However, if you don't necessarily need isolation, the Koss KSC75s are the absolute BEST value you can get in a headphone - for $15 or so on Amazon, you can get yourself a pair of clip-ons that sound absolutely great (I sometimes use them over my Grado SR60s when I don't want to attract too much attention).

Thanks for all of that, it's very interesting and informative. :thumbsup:

I really do prefer to have isolating earphones, because I prefer to keep the volume a little lower, and I hate to have to try and listen to my music over traffic and whatnot.

It seems as if the CX300s are the way to go for me, though I may need to look at the EP630s first.

KT

 

[AmberClad]

Originally posted by: Aflac
From what I've read (and I've read a lot about this), the CX300 sounds nearly identical to the EP630 (assuming both are genuine, that is). The only main differences are branding and the style of cord (one of them has a J-style cord and the other has a Y-style).

Just for clarification, I think Aflac is referring to the fact that fake CX300s and EP630s tend to crop up on eBay, so buyer beware if you're not getting them from a reputable eTailer.

As far as the CX300/EP630 being identical debate, I've heard opinions both ways. But if you look at the technical specs on NewEgg, they're not exactly the same:

Sennheiser CX300
Frequency Response: 12 Hz - 21 kHz
Sensitivity: 112 dB

Creative EP630
Frequency Response: 6 Hz - 23 kHz
Sensitivity: 106 dB

And as Aflac mentioned, the plugs are different. The cord on the EP630 is slightly longer, and the plug on the end is a gold-plated straight plug, instead of the right-angle one.

In any case, if you're going to pick a brand to make a knockoff from (and I'm not saying for sure that Creative is doing this), hard to argue with picking Sennheiser 😎.

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: AmberClad

Originally posted by: Aflac
From what I've read (and I've read a lot about this), the CX300 sounds nearly identical to the EP630 (assuming both are genuine, that is). The only main differences are branding and the style of cord (one of them has a J-style cord and the other has a Y-style).

Just for clarification, I think Aflac is referring to the fact that fake CX300s and EP630s tend to crop up on eBay, so buyer beware if you're not getting them from a reputable eTailer.

As far as the CX300/EP630 being identical debate, I've heard opinions both ways. But if you look at the technical specs on NewEgg, they're not exactly the same:

Sennheiser CX300
Frequency Response: 12 Hz - 21 kHz
Sensitivity: 112 dB

Creative EP630
Frequency Response: 6 Hz - 23 kHz
Sensitivity: 106 dB

And as Aflac mentioned, the plugs are different. The cord on the EP630 is slightly longer, and the plug on the end is a gold-plated straight plug, instead of the right-angle one.

In any case, if you're going to pick a brand to make a knockoff from (and I'm not saying for sure that Creative is doing this), hard to argue with picking Sennheiser 😎.

Ahh, ok, thanks for that. I'm not a big fan of the straight plug, I find that I always end up damaging them somehow. It does not appear the differences are too significant otherwise, so I guess I'll just go with the right-angle plugged CX300s. 🙂

KT

 

[0roo0roo]

Originally posted by: KeithTalent

Originally posted by: AmberClad

Originally posted by: KeithTalent
Not sure why it would be dangerous to jog in them

You're not familiar with DC area drivers, I take it 😀...

Haha no, fortunately not. Where I jog I really only need to worry about being hit by other joggers. 😛

KT

and mugged by psychos!

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo

Originally posted by: KeithTalent

Originally posted by: AmberClad

Originally posted by: KeithTalent
Not sure why it would be dangerous to jog in them

You're not familiar with DC area drivers, I take it 😀...

Haha no, fortunately not. Where I jog I really only need to worry about being hit by other joggers. 😛

KT

and mugged by psychos!

Ever since they arrested the pig farmer, the number of psychos in these parts was reduced to almost none. 😉

KT

 

[DangerAardvark]

Do they make one ear only headphones? I usually only use one side when I need to be listening for something or someone, but the other earpiece hanging is freaking annoying.

 

[AmberClad]

I know they have them for cell phones, both the earbud and the clip-on variety. Those usually have miniplugs, but there might be a few cell phone ones that have the regular 3.5mm plug instead.

 

[Ika]

Originally posted by: DangerAardvark
Do they make one ear only headphones? I usually only use one side when I need to be listening for something or someone, but the other earpiece hanging is freaking annoying.

Since you brought it up, I thought I should mention it - Shure's Push-To-Hear technology is pretty interesting, and it should work well for your needs. While they're not cheap, they're a cool accessory to have and makes isolating IEMs or canalphones viable in more situations. I'm not sure if Shure sells them separately, but I know a bunch of Head-Fiers sold their PTH modules when the E500 came out. I'm sure they're on eBay, too.