Probably a good idea to make an 'earbud vs. insert' distinction. Do you want something hanging off the ear on the outside (earbud) or something that seals itself within the canal (insert).

The aforementioned Sennheiser CX-300 are inserts and IMHO get a good bass response.

So my trusty Koss headphones died today (well, the right side did), so I thought I'd check here for some recs.

I feel old for doing this, but I thought I'd share in case anyone cares. I've heard before that earbuds are more damaging to your hearing than traditional over-the-ear headphones. Here's a link to one of many articles that came up in my quick google search.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/12/051216191834.htm

anyone have any experience with these?

great price at 14.99 seemingly.

http://www.compuplus.com/insidepage.php ... id=1008653

creative ep-630

That is a bunch of BS. Just like guns, earbuds don't cause hearing damage, people cause hearing damage, or, more accurately, just plain stupidity causes hearing damage. And, like the article suggests (using noise cancelling headphones - but those are a total waste of money, just buy in-ear headphones,) I use my in-ear headphones at WAY lower volumes than I have ever used any other headphones. They block out outside sound and have a much higher sound quality level that negates the need for higher volume to hear all the sound. I never feel the kind of ear fatigue that I used to feel with regular headphones and the volume at which I had to use them.

But, really, most people who turn up the volume do so because they just want things loud. Loud=better, naturally.

Ding!!!

Saint: No personal experience with the Creative, but their other models haven't been rated too highly by Consumer Reports. Just a heads-up.

that's really interesting, I didn't realize the difference in volume needed with in-ear headphones. I'm about to order the Sennheiser CX300-Bs.

I just ordered a pair of Etymotic er6's, since they're pretty much universally reviewed above Shures in that price range. I never had a complaint about my sony in-ears, but the cord's giving out.

Creative has introduced some much better headphones recently, but these aren't one of them - Reviews I've read state that while they have big booming bass, that they lack midrange and treble and generally sound pretty muddy.

I got the Etymotics last night and I'm pretty disappointed with them. The bass response is incredibly weak. My Sonys cost half as much but had a much fuller sound. They also had replaceable rubber covers, but since the Etys don't, I'm stuck with them because they've already been in my ears. I know nothing about EQ settings, and maybe I could get better performance out of them if I did, but out of the box I don't think they're worth the price.

Haq,
Everything that I've heard about the Etys says that in order to get any bass with them you need to make certain that you get a really good seal on the headphones - additionally I've been told that they really benefit from the use of a Headphone Amp. Having said that this is the reason that I ended up going with the Ultimate Ears Super-fi5.pro as they have better bass due to using 2 drivers instead of 1 like the Etys.

love the buds, but the ones I just bought are completely fucking useless. The sound is good, but the wire catches on EVERYTHING and is just short enough to send them flying from my ears every 4 minutes.

There are some IEMs out there (like my Ultimate Ears as well as most of Shure lineup) that loop over your ear and as such aren't as easy to yank out if the wire catches......

yeah, you really gotta jab them in your ears.

Hey Chrome,

Have you compared the Super-fi5.pro's to the Shure E4C's? I have the latter on my wishlist as a potential upgrade and have no experience with either brand. My current lineup is all Sennheiser (CX-300, PX-100, HD-595), and I'm planning to get myself a Headroom Micro Amp (Desktop Module) this summer.

ear jamming, eh?

Not directly Sketch - My wife has Shure E3C's and she really likes them but I find them to be a bit lacking in bass....I researched IEM headphones extensively before opting for the Superfi.5.pros ..Everything that I have read about the Shures is that if you like bass that you will probably find any of the single driver Shures to be a bit lacking - HOWEVER, sonically the Shures are considered to be more accurate than the Superfi's - The bass is more prevalent in the Superfi's but the midrange considered to be slightly recessed.

To kind of sum that up - I think that if you get a chance to listen to the E4Cs and like them then I don't really think you will go wrong with them - My personal preference is for a bit more bass though and that is why I went with the Superfis. I will caution you if you did elect to go the Superfi route NOT to do the "EB" (Extra Bass) - everything I've heard about these iis that the Bass is huge but everything else is muddy and that they aren't worth it.

On a related note, from what I hear the new Triple Driver headphones from Shure(E500), Ultimate Ears(Triplefi.5.Pro) and Westone(Westone3) solve a lot of the issues that many of the single driver IEMs have with excelling in one or two areas but lacking in others....of course they do that at a price(only the Shures are out right now but I believe they retail for about $500)

As for your current collection, it is hard to go wrong with Sennheiser by the way - if you saw my post earlier you will see that 1/2 of my collection is Senneheiser

As for a Headphone Amp - I'm holding out for a Ray Samuels Hornet M or Tomahawk as I want something that is a little more portable

Here's a pic of the Hornet M compared to a credit card:
[img][650:432]http://www.raysamuelsaudio.com/images/products/hornet/DSC_0008.jpg[/img]

And here's a pic of the Tomahawk in comparison to the Hornet M:
[img][650:432]http://www.raysamuelsaudio.com/images/products/tomahawk/DSC_0021.jpg[/img]

I would rather have them yank out of my ears than damage the wires. (I've found the ones that loop around your ear are a lot more difficult to untangle.)

if i'd actually read the materials that came with the etymotics, i would have seen a bright yellow card about getting a proper seal. Part of the reason I haven't been able to, though, is that the rubber was all squished out of shape when i opened the box, and they haven't got much better.

Using my portable CD player: Sennheiser PX-100

Using my home amp: Sennheiser HD-595