Freak Nasty Posted August 2, 2005 Share Posted August 2, 2005 Hi, I was just wandering which one should i buy, i thought they were both the same, but i saw this graph shows that the ER-6i has a 8bd higher in ear output. Now which one would be better, i will be using them with my ipod, but i don't fancy the white too much because they get dirty very easy. Sound is more important, if i have to get the white one then the ER-6i it is. Have a look at the graph. The graph indicates that 6i earphones have 8 dB higher sound output and increased bass compared to the original ER-6 earphones. The dotted red line is the reference response of the open ear to live performances (CD equalization). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codhead Posted August 2, 2005 Share Posted August 2, 2005 I would HIGHLY recommend auditioning these if you have not had the chance to do so (or finding a store that will let you return them). I bought the ER-4P's (see attached pic) and found them to be the worst sounding earphones I've ever owned. These were their "high end" model, and they did not even come close to the stock Apple earphones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcmjrt Posted August 2, 2005 Share Posted August 2, 2005 I'm really surprised to hear someone say something bad about etymotics' sound quality. I have the ER4S earphones and think that they are leagues better than Apple's meager offering. As it happens, I'm selling mine but that's because I'm just not using them as I had thought. I had great intentions of running but that just isn't coming to pass. But I can definitely say that I think the sound quality is wonderful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codhead Posted August 3, 2005 Share Posted August 3, 2005 I tried everything I could think of to get decent sound out of mine. I went as far as getting custom ear molds made, as I thought perhaps I was not getting a good seal with the factory supplied earpieces. Seemed that no matter what I tried, the sound seemed to be highly concentrated in the mids and lower treble - there was no bottom end whatsoever. By the time I finally gave up, I had more invested in these earphones than in my iPod. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sivadselim Posted August 3, 2005 Share Posted August 3, 2005 The dotted red line represents 100% accuracy. The regular ER-6 are the most accurate. the ER-6i are louder. http://www.etymotic.com/ephp/epcomp.aspx http://www.etymotic.com/ephp/er6-hwmra.aspx btw, i've not tried expensive earphones, but the iPod in-ear phones (NOT the stock iPod buds) sound pretty good to me for $39. i'd also like to try these $50 SONYs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stan krajewski Posted August 3, 2005 Share Posted August 3, 2005 I have the model ER6I and they are great. Unless for some reason they don't seat properly or you have a thing about pushing something into your ear, then these are wonderful. I have heard the IPOD phones and they are crap. I'm serious. There is NO comparison whatsoever. The ER6 puts you back a couple more rows then the ER6I. Less efficient. There are other "in the ear" headphones out there which compare favorably to the Etymotics. A co-worker tried almost every earbud & canal phone out there. He is a real fussy dude and he finally settled on a pair of ER6 and a pair of ER6I. He said the ER4p was a little too revealing for him. He wanted a little more lay back presentation. BTW he owns an IPOD and won't even think of using the phones that came with them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted August 3, 2005 Share Posted August 3, 2005 20-16 kHz ±6db does not seem very good for expensive ear plugs to me after all, the driver is located right next to the ear drum seem to me that it should be a lot flatter, 6db difference is lot, that mean mean some frequencies are TWICE as loud as others! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dragonfyr Posted August 3, 2005 Share Posted August 3, 2005 I think I might be able to shed some light on the differences.... Most general playback devices have impedances of 30-50ohms, & up to 600 ohms for some home stereos. The 6 is designed for these devises simply as they are 48 ohm. So they would be optimal if you primary playback devices are CD & DAT players, PCs & laptops. The 6i is designed to accommodate the new generation of miniature devices such as iPods with their lower 16 ohm impedance. Additionally, the included foam ear pads will provide ~6-8 additional dB gain due to the increased isolation over the flanged fittings. Its your choice. But the additional isolation is similar in effectiveness to what is achieved with noise canceling devices. So...which to get... If you go with the 6i, they will play louder for a given signal input on a traditional device due to their lower impedance. But as the gain of the recorded material will not be as great, you may experience a decreased S/N and you will notice the presence of the noise floor. On the other hand if you go with the 6, you will need to turn the volume up more to achieve the same output. If your primary use is for an iPod (or similar), but you also want the flexibility to use them with general purpose devices, you can get the 6i and add their part number 4p-24, a 75 ohm cord that places 75 ohms in series and brings the nominal impedance to 100 ohms, thus making it more suited to the additional devices. Thus you will have a flexible unit suited to the broader range of playback devices. List is $65, but the street price is ~$40. <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wmilas Posted August 3, 2005 Share Posted August 3, 2005 I own the 6i's and i couldnt be happier. I've tried jsut about every headset/plug set around and nothing came close the the 6i's. I use them with a portable flash player (I audio.. plays ogg vorbis plus just sounds a hell of alot better than the ipod i had). Something to note. If you dont seat them correctly they are perhaps the worst sounding things you can imagine. They go in deep. When I say deep, I scared myself the first time I put them in. Really. They go ALL THE WAY in. I prefer the flanges but thats jsut personal taste. I can seat them one handed now, but to start off use both hands, one to pull your ear back to get them in the ear canal. My left ear stays seated tight while my right ear sometimes unseats when working out. Still, by far the best active headphone set I've owned. Oh my doctor also cationed me not to play them really loud. When properly seated there is no where for the sound waves to escape.. so if the sound presure is too great and cant back vent, you will do permanent harm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freak Nasty Posted August 4, 2005 Author Share Posted August 4, 2005 I have the Ipod plug, the Koss Plug, and a few other headphones nothing too expensive just low ends well known brands, beyerdynamics dtx-30, sennheizer pmx-60, koss ksc-55, a few more koss and sony.. etc... at the moment the koss plug and the beyer are the best sounding. I like the nice bass of the Koss plug but can never get it to stay inside my ears.. they always fall out. That's why i wanted to get the Etymotics.. just by looking at them they look like they'd go inside the ear easy. as long as soung quality, i was hoping they are very good due to the fact that i'd be paying Aud$199 and also i've heard quite a lot about the brand. I know though that there is no where else than here on the klipsh forum, that i'd get the best insight. thank you all.. i'll get the ER-6i since i can increase the impedance like Dragonfyr said and see how good it really is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freak Nasty Posted August 7, 2005 Author Share Posted August 7, 2005 I got the Etymotic ER-6i today, they are quite nice, very light and slim fits really well into the ears and isolate extremely well too. Sound quality just a little bit better than the Ipod earplug, for the price difference i think the ipod ear plug is a better buy. Bass is slightly better, i think it's because of the good isolation. If you don't want to be disturbed by any noise they would be the best thing out there. You can barely hear anything once you wear them, if i'm not listening to any music i can even hear my heart beating and my own breathing. Next time i'm flying, they would be of great use. The wires is too thin, they could break easily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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