[dougoftheabaci]

Until recently I had a rather nice pair of Sennheiser PX200s but I have since managed to damage them and am now looking for a replacement pair. After much searching (both on Macworld and elsewhere) I've heard a lot of great and not so great things about IEC (in-ear-canal) headphones. So I'm here to ask some questions and so forth.

First, for those who have had them for a while and those who are new to them, how did you find them to be comfort wise? This is my first concern as comfort is an issue since I'll be wearing them for extended periods of time and a great amount of the time. I'm a web designer and I can't always play music over speakers, especially when in a studio. I understand I might not find them entirely comfortable the first few times I wear them but how quickly do most of you adjust?

Second, in all honesty is the sound quality as good as I've heard? I've heard some decent headphones (Sennheiser HD-25 II are what I call amazing) and since I have a bit of money to spend on some headphones I'd like to buy a pair that will, if at all possible, blow my mind.

Third, can anyone make any recommendations, both for brands and models? I've heard some great things about the sound quality of Ultimate Ears but some not so great things about the product quality. Likewise I've considered Shure and Skullcandy, my brother having a pair of the latter and he swears by them.

Mostly I'll be listening to these on my iPod or MacBook Pro. Price range is anything up to $200.

[albloom]

Doug, go to the Apple store and search "headphone." Neither of us can stand
Apple's earbud's, but Apple's in-ear model ($40) made us smile. For comfort,
the in-ear model comes with four sleeves to fit your canal. I wouldn't be
surprised if the Bose model ($100) sounds better. But I always stop at Good
Enough.

[Dan Frakes]

Doug, be sure to check out our primer:

http://www.macworld....analphones.html

[dougoftheabaci]

I did before posting this, actually. It's what got me thinking about buying a pair in the first place.

Since posting this I've decided on a pair of Ulitmate Ears Super.fi 4 EICs. They should be here Monday (they'd be here sooner if Amazon actually shipped stuff to you based on what shipping you paid for...) and I'm really looking forward to them!

One question I have is how worth it would it be to just get a pair of foam tips? UE recommends a company called Comply Foam who make replacement tips specifically for my headphones. I've seen around a few places that foam tips can provide a better seal and tend to be a bit more comfortable. A set of three is about $15 (plus shipping). Since I have nothing to base this decision on I was wondering what you (or anyone else) thought about the idea.

I was hoping to get my headphones today so I had the weekend to test them out and decide by Monday as I leave the country yet again on Friday and getting them after that will become much harder.

Since I can afford them would they be worth getting? I'm debating just getting them anyway but they'll probably be about $25 when I factor in shipping and I'm not sure if it's necessary. But if I'm going to get a better experience out of my headphones I'm happy to do that.

Thoughts?

[dougoftheabaci]

My UE Super.fi 4's arrived yesterday (they actually came with the foam tips I'd ordered on Friday) and I gotta say I'm really glad they did. They take a bit more finagling but once they're in they're more comfy and get a much better seal and isolation, thus better sound. To anyone who has IECs I highly recommend picking a pair up if you don't have some.

Otherwise, the headphones rock! They take a bit of getting used to in my ears but once I'm used to it they're fine. I've got a flight coming up in a week or so and these are going to be great for that!

[Dan Frakes]

dougoftheabaci said:

One question I have is how worth it would it be to just get a pair of foam tips? UE recommends a company called Comply Foam who make replacement tips specifically for my headphones. I've seen around a few places that foam tips can provide a better seal and tend to be a bit more comfortable.

I highly recommend Comply Foam tips. They are indeed comfortable and in my experience provide a better seal than the silicone tips. You can get them in bags of 5 or more pairs, which is good, as foam tips do wear out more quickly.

[Alan]

I agree with the article link Dan.

I have a pair of the Shure ones. Not sure (sorry for the pun) of the model, they were around 100 dollars.

They sound absolutely fantastic. One problem I found with them is that you should be careful when crossing railway tracks because you won't hear it coming.
I even use them as hearing protectors if mowing the lawn etc. I put an over the ear hearing protector headset over them and I can enjoy tunes rather than the mower.
I use them in my Miata to block out the road noise.
I tried the foam ones out (that come with the headset) of curiosity as I was using the rubber ones and I found a significant reduction in volume. I do notice that you have to be a bit careful removing them as it feels like you haul your brains out if you remove them too quickly. If I use the smaller sized ones they fall out.
An interesting side effect is that if you leave them in there without sound on for say 1/2 an hour before an audiogram is taken on your ears, you will find that you can hear a fly fart at 40 yards. I need an audiogram periodically to keep my license.

[dougoftheabaci]

I actually almost bought a pair of Shures. But right now I'm extremely happy with my Ultimate Ears. Though I think I've started a vicious cycle... These are fantastic but now I know I can spend a relatively small amount and get brilliant headphones.

For those who are curious, the first week or so of using IECs they were a bit odd in my ear and took getting used to but after wearing them a lot it's to the point now where I put them in and completely forget they are there. Then I get the benefits of brilliant isolation and amazing sound quality.

Also, I highly recommend both Comply Foam and Ultimate Ears as companies. Originally I had a very close departure date when I went to buy the tips and I called later in the afternoon, apparently a few minutes before they closed. I called to ask about shipping times and they helped me decide which one but the only way I was going to get it is if the order was processed that day. They actually offered to stay a few minutes late to make sure my order went through (I get the feeling they're a smaller company). Anyway I made the order right then and 20 minutes later I received shipping information.

As for UE, I had ordered through Amazon and Amazon had messed up my order by sending me the wrong package (right headphones but the wrong accessories that were supposed to come with them) and UE sent me the missing extras free of charge.

I love good customer service. My next set of IECs are almost certainly going to be Ultimate Ears after this.