Dreven Posted January 21, 2008 Share Posted January 21, 2008 I've loved you guys for years (Klipsch) so here's a brain dump - maybe there's something of value in my head. I have bad spelling and an a lazy proof-reader so forgive me. ----- I've been wanting a new pair of quality canal's for a long time now. Here's what I have: -Bose -Sennheiser MX-300's -Assortment of $10-50 pairs (Sony, Philips, etc). The Sennheiser MX-300's I use most of the time. When I first bought them, they were $99. I think they're around $59 now. My main issue with them is getting a good seal. Even if I get a good seal (it seems like), the seal will "break" with the smallest of movements and they'll start pulling out (with all tips). Also, they never seemed to have good base and I usually go with (Ipod) a base boost EQ setting. However, with or without that (and I'm no audiophile at all) there is a really "muddy" sound to them. The Bose I have a love/hate relationship with. The obviously sound twice as good as the MX-300's - both in base response and fine detail. From the moment I got them, I felt like a sucker that just had $100 stolen from him though. The connector on them must be a full inch and is bulky and straight. So, you have this massive straight plug sticking out about an inch from your MP3 player. The silicon ear pieces of the Bose are very comfortable and sound really good without a great seal (almost seems like no seal really). But, they fall off the ear very easily and they also slip right off the tips with the slightest pressure. I've gone to sleep using them several times, only to be crawling around on the floor the next morning (or in the sheets) looking for the ear pieces. Also, the Bose have no sound isolation at all, and people can hear what you're listening to in a queit room easily. Although no sound isolation comes in handy at work if someone starts talking to you (no need to pull them out to have a conversation). ---------------- After looking at canal headphones for days, I decided there wasn't a chance I was going to go for the $599 Shure tripple driver canals ($375 on Ebay though although not an authorized reseller). I didn't like (at all) the metallic chrome look of the tripple driver Ultimate Ears either. I finally decided for under $400, what I really wanted was a set of something known for extreme comfort during long-term wear, and something that wasn't bulky. The Klipsch Image canal's seemed to be the best one's for these requirements even though there is hardly any information out there on them (professional, and reader reviews). Giving up some sound quality for comfort, fit and small size seemed like a really good decision. So I ordered a set yesterday (Newegg.com). I tossed and turned over this all night. $349 for a set of Canal's is just so insane really. Canal's or Earbuds are the only two products I can think of that you can't really demo or touch before buying them. It's such a major sized blind purchase. When I woke up this morning, I just couldn't take the stress and canceled the order. It wasn't about the money - but about what I was getting for the money (if that makes sense). Then went to look at the details of them again and was shocked. Over night while I was sleeping, the price had gone down $100 to $249! (instant rebate). That was exactly what I needed to go through the order without feeling horrible about the whole thing. So, I remade my order for $249. I'm sure I'll like them but will they really sound 2.5x better than a $100 pair of Shure's or the Bose? I can't see how that's possible but I'm hoping the size and comfort will make them seem worthwhile. I'm not too hard to please. ----------- I don't mean to be rude or anything (really ) but here's just things on my mind from this ordeal (it's really stressful looking at spending this kind of money on something that seems almost insignificant and something you can not test drive in any way): -I don't know how new these things are but there is a serious lack of any real reviews on these. There's only one quality review of them that I found. For example: PCMag.com has one of the best selection of headphone reviews I've stumbled across. Why don't they have a Klipsch Image review? They don't have reviews for any of the Klipsch headphones at all (http://www.pcmag.com/category2/0,1738,1638421,00.asp). How is hardly anyone going to buy these when there is so little information about them out there? -$100 drop overnight? Either they were seriously over-priced or maybe the R&D just got paid off? - The name "image" is stupid (sorry). They need a model number. "Image" is another word for "picture" and makes it insanely hard to do proper Internet searches to find information on them. Why do companies neglect to think about people researching their products on the Internet when naming them? - The forum here is nice - somewhat rare for a corporation to have one. Being able to read and get feedback Klipsch employee's that know a lot about the products is priceless. - Klipsch should have given away a few sets of the headphones to a few select forum memebers here in exchange for honest and detailed reviews in the forums. There's really only 2 review posts about them that I saw here. -I have a large monitor (22" WS LCD) and have my IE font size set to "Larger". I don't know if that's what's doing it, but some of the text on all the Klipsch.com pages over-scrolls into other areas of the screen making it undreadable at times. This is what your front page looks like to me (and most other Klipsch.com) pages: http://img136.imageshack.us/img136/4154/klipschsa3.jpg -Couldn't Klipsch do something like have an application for a "test drive" where you put a hold on a credit card for the price of a set of sample headphones (+ a sample set of $5 tips the user keeps) that could be sampled for a week and mailed back? I don't see that happening but it's worth a suggestion. UPS 3-Day shipping - maybe I'll get the Image's on Thursday. I'll be sure to post a review on Newegg.com about them (since there's only 2 reviews of them there) and here. Wish me luck! edit: here's the direct link to the Newegg product page. It was sometime between Sunday Night and This morning when the price went down $100 to $249. No idea how long that will last!http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826779001 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baglunch Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 Well, that was quick, a day later and they are back to $350 now. sigh. I'm in the same boat you were.... really interested, but heistant about the lack of professional or consumer reviews out there (by googling: "klipsch image" review). The cheapest I'd found them was an amazon storefront merchant for $285, but now they are already up to $295. And if I'm hesitant, my wife (who isn't the audio enthusiast I am) is downright grumpy about it. I can't find any stores in my area that sell them, and Klipsch's customer support was pretty token (multiple canned responses that weren't relevant to my query). But the few comments out there are very postive. Just wish there were more of them. And I wish there was a "test drive" like you mentioned. Wouldn't that be cool? If I could find them for $250 like you did, I'd probably go ahead with the purchase, too. Good find. At one point, I had a pair of Shure E4c's, and I just didn't like them. Mostly due to the trouble it took to insert them, and discomfort once they were in. Pretty much gave up on IEMs. But it sounds like these may have overcome those problems.... if these really get to feeling like you aren't wearing anything, I might even stop looking for sales. I wear my headphones at work anywhere from 4 - 12 hours a day. I wear glasses and you get pretty tired of having your glasses pressed into your ears with regular headphones, even really comfy ones like my Senn595s. So I'm looking for a replacement, looking at these. I'll keep scrubbing this forum and head-fi.org and google, hoping to find more exposure for these. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dreven Posted January 22, 2008 Author Share Posted January 22, 2008 Yeah - that was totally weird! I saw the price had gone back up today at work! Yesterday was a holiday (MLK)... could that have had something to do with it? I'm sorry you missed it. [:'(] I hae to just give an image line - inserting it gets the prices clipped off.http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/8465/orderkj3.jpg (OK, I paid an extra $5 for UPS 2-Day and an extra $3 for rush processing. [*-)] ) Just today I was making home-made soup before my wife got home and cleaning the kitchen up (the mess I was making, doing the dishes etc). I was in the kitchen for a couple of hours and had my Bose In-Ear headphones on. When I was done, I yanked them out - my right ear was actually hurting. Maybe I only noticed that more now because of all the reading and thinking I've been doing about IE's the last few days. And, BTW - for some reason the Bose sounded really "muddy" to me today. The base on them is excellent (really 'thumps') but the mids and highs get a weird muffled sound to them IMHO. They still sound much better than the Sennheiser MX-300's to me though. My best reference for goot sound is my Sennheiser HD-555 open cans. I got them about 3 years ago I think. At the time they were going for $170. Looks like you can get them for $99 now. I'm surprised they model hasn't been retired after 3 years... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826106392&Tpk=HD-555 Anyway, my guess is those shipped out in the later afternoon today because even though they were listed as shipped when I got home at 3:00PM CST, there still is not an order number. So, my guess is they'll arrive Thursday. As soon as I get them - I'll probably try wearing them at work the next day for a very long time and then post my impressions of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baglunch Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 Great, I look forward to your thoughts, especially how the Images compare to the sound of your Senns! I really like the highs and mids, staging and resolution, even the overall comfort of my Senns, but I'm not content with the bass... there's just not enough of it. And I can't wear them more than a couple hours without a rest. They're really good.... but not good enough. So, please post your initial thoughts, and then follow up in a week or two with any follow-up thoughts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dreven Posted January 22, 2008 Author Share Posted January 22, 2008 Yep, I will. I'm really wanting to set them down right next to my Bose, Sennheiser and Sony in-ears too - just to see in person how small they reall look next to some common cheaper units. I'll stick up a picture of that as well. Someone did that here in another thread but it was next to a pair of Etymotic Research ER4S's - at least the Red/Blue color thing looked like Etymoic's. I think that's the other brand/model that also claims to be "the smalled" IE's on the market. PS. If you have a Fry's Electronic's in your area - they carry all the Shure IE's in store - up to the $499 tripple driver's. Although they add another $100 to the price over their online (outpost.com) price. Also, if you have a Guitar Center (guitarcenter.com) store near you - they carry a little higher end IE's than retail stores like Circuit City or Best Buy (who seem to end their selection range at the $99 Bose). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Amy Posted January 22, 2008 Moderators Share Posted January 22, 2008 And I wish there was a "test drive" like you mentioned. If you purchase from us and do not like them, there is a 30-day money back guarantee! We do have units out for review...more should be popping up soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dreven Posted January 23, 2008 Author Share Posted January 23, 2008 Yeah I missed that and your price is the same as Newegg's. You know, I only started looking a few days ago and didn't notice until last night exactly how new these headphones were! The "now shipping" press release is from December 18th. Complaining about a lack of reviews seems stupid now (pardon myself). BTW - that press release has a type-o. It says "December 2008" not "December 2007"http://www.klipsch.com/news-center/press-releases/details/klipsch-unveils-image-world-s-smallest-lightest-in-ear-earphones.aspx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Amy Posted January 23, 2008 Moderators Share Posted January 23, 2008 Thanks for the heads up on the typ-o, I fixed it [] And yes, these are very new for us--they are just getting out of the gate! Do let us know what you think... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baglunch Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 My complaining about a lack of reviews comes more from a "squirming in my chair eager" but still hesitant buyers perspective, and not from a disgruntled or skeptical perspective. I know more reviews will appear as time rolls on, but you know.... me me me, now now now. Amy, thanks for your info. Unfortunately, I'm in Canada, and Klipsch.com only sells to the US. This is where my customer service troubles with support@klispch.com comes in. Ultimately, I'm left with ordering online from resellers with various return policies, and generally restocking and reshipment fees. So I'm looking for all the information I can get before making the plunge. And looking for a deal. [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Amy Posted January 23, 2008 Moderators Share Posted January 23, 2008 My complaining about a lack of reviews comes more from a "squirming in my chair eager" Understood! Unfortunately, I'm in Canada, and Klipsch.com only sells to the US. This is where my customer service troubles with support@klispch.com comes in. I understand that as well. I wish we could sell direct into Canada, but sales channel conflicts prevents us. If I can help in any way with finding a dealer, please let me know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dreven Posted January 23, 2008 Author Share Posted January 23, 2008 I'm really wanting my set to come in. UPS drove by a second ago and got me all excited - it's tomorrow though. Looking around: Sensitivity: 110 db Impedance: 50 ohms Weight: 0.353 oz / 10 grams Sound Pressure Level Recommended Maximum Exposure Per Day 90dB ______ 8 Hours 95dB ______4 Hours 100dB _____2 Hours 105dB _____1 Hours 110dB _____30 Minutes Manual:http://www.klipsch.com/media/products/owners-manuals/ImageOwnersManual.pdf ----------------------------------------------- You know the manual says they come with 10 tips. I've seen it listed as 5 in 6 tips through various sellers (guess I'll find out tomorrow). Hmm... these have a 50 ohm impedance By comparison the Shure E2C's have a 16 Ohm impedance, the Shure SE530PTH's have a 32 ohm impedance, the Bose In-Ear have a 42 ohm impedance, the ultimate Ears Tripple.fi 10's have a 22 Ohm Impedance. I guess 50 ohms isn't horrible, the white cheap buds that come with Ipods have a 32 ohm impedance. I have no idea how much impedance really effects ipod battery life though - I wish I could find a chart where someone tested it out. This is interesting though (a plus for the high 50 Ohm impedance, aside from the fact that higher impedance usually means better sound quality?): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPod The third generation iPod had a weak bass response, as shown in audio tests. [38][39] The combination of the undersized DC-blocking capacitors and the typical low-impedance of most consumer headphones form a high-pass filter, which attenuates the low-frequency bass output. Similar capacitors were used in the fourth generation iPods. [40]The problem is reduced when using high-impedance headphones and is completely masked when driving high-impedance (line level) loads, such as an external headphone amplifier. The first generation iPod shuffle uses a dual-transistor output stage[citation needed] rather than a single capacitor-coupled output, and does not exhibit reduced bass response for any load. Weight: Having trouble really comparing. The Shure E4C's say 34 grams, the Bose 64 grams (if I'm seeing that right). Even compared to the Shure's - these seem like they'll weigh half as much. The Etymotic Research ER4P only say "less than one oz." which probably means they weigh at least twice as much as the Images. Looks like these should be really light - and that should mean some great comfort. You still have the cable weight pulling on them though since these aren't the ear-wrap type I suppose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baglunch Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 Ha-ha, Dreven, I'm looking forward to your Images coming in, too.[] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dreven Posted January 23, 2008 Author Share Posted January 23, 2008 This is everything I could find with a half hour of goofing off. Funny thing was this guy "I listened to prototypes of these phones this summer" seems to have posted the same thing in so many different places. I smell a plant. hehe On some places there's a user account and the last activity date will be the date he made his review/post: "Last Activity: Sep 6, 2007 09:13 AM" The reviewer that said "...when we turned the volume up to the maximum setting on the iPhone, we could hear the driver sputtering, the bass apparently too much for the little speaker" --- Yeah I'm going to test that out for sure and I have a theory that's BS. All other comments I've seen go the other way. I could use the same comment about the Bose In-Ear too. With the Bose it seems like the average db level has a major effect on if this happens or not. Now that I've been looking at it, the ripping and encoding seems to have a lot to do with it. I wish I had something besides an Ipod so I could get raw WAV's onto an MP3 player. I don't even have a portable CD player anymore. Although I do rip all of my own CD's at 320kb/s (Lame) as a long term storage (quality) pre-caution. Hehe... I have a lot of toys (my own "man room" with a 360, PS3, LazyBoy and 32" LCD) but this is the only exciting thing I've had to look forward to this week. And really quality IE's/Earbuds are something I've never gotten and always wanted. Professional (?) Reviewshttp://www.cdrinfo.com/Sections/Reviews/Specific.aspx?ArticleId=21960&PageId=0 Everything I threw at these earphones was handled beautifully. The intangible that is hard to describe here is the soundstage - the effect of being able to visually place each instrument and vocalist in and around your head (especially when you close your eyes.) Granted, it always seems easier to do this with a good set of earphones than with traditional speakers - but the sound stage created with the Klipsch IMAGE earphones was just remarkable. http://www.infosyncworld.com/news/n/8540.html ...when we turned the volume up to the maximum setting on the iPhone, we could hear the driver sputtering, the bass apparently too much for the little speaker. This was incredibly disappointing for a couple reasons: First, we’ve never heard a pair of high-end (Read: over $150) earphones sputter. Ever. Normally, the impedance is low enough that when listening to a low-amplification device (like an iPhone or any other personal media player), we are able to get to the max volume with full clarity, and still feel like we could go higher if the device was capable. Second, on high-amplification devices, like a computer or a home stereo, we are usually unable to get much farther than 50 percent volume before it becomes too loud for our ears to take. But the clarity remains a constant, something that was not the case with the IMAGE earphones. http://www.thestreet.com/funds/goodlife/10393941.html Customer Reviews:http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductReview.aspx?Item=N82E16826779001 "I've cranked it up and they play clean to volumes I can't stand more then a second"http://www.amazon.com/review/product/B000WAHFBK/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?%5Fencoding=UTF8&showViewpoints=1http://www.hawkee.com/shop/prod/2718851/reviews/http://newwebmakers.com/bookstore/index.cgi?item_id=B000WAHFBK&search_type=AsinSearch&locale=us Forum Talk:http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f4/klipsch-image-impressions-280503/http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f95/klipsch-image-earphone-review-269922/http://www.podcentral.ph/viewthread.php?tid=4724http://forum.lowyat.net/topic/593319http://www.ipmart-forum.com/showthread.php?t=184080 Reader Comments (mostly the same 6-Set of reviews recyled - I think the originals were copied from Amazon.com?)http://www.ubergizmo.com/15/archives/2007/09/klipsch_unveils_image_inear_earphones.htmlhttp://gadgets.fosfor.se/klipsch-image/http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/30/klipschs-image-earphones-deemed-worlds-smallest/#commentshttp://www.puters.biz/B000WAHFBK/Klipsch_IMAGE_Noise_Isolating_Earphone.htmlhttp://www.ipodbible.com/index.php?c=ipodshuffle&n=13825671&i=B000WAHFBK&x=Klipsch_IMAGE_Noise_Isolating_Earphonehttp://www.advancingwomen.com/electronicshop/?Operation=ItemLookup&ItemId=B000WAHFBKhttp://www.buyzillion.com/B000WAHFBK/Klipsch+IMAGE+Noise+Isolating+Earphone.htmlhttp://pdalaptop.com/laptopaccs-172630-B000WAHFBK-Klipsch_IMAGE_Noise_Isolating_Earphone.html Votes (no review):http://hifi-ring.com/2007/11/11/klipsch_image_worlds_smallest_earphones_now_shipping.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professor Thump Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 Wow Dreven! You have really done your homework. It seems like you have found a lot of reviews since you realized that they have just been released. Good for you! I can't wait to hear your reviews once you get a chance to stick them in your ears! From one of your links there was an especially nice review that makes my day. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826779001 "Review Summary (read all 2 Reviews, write a review) 5 ===========100% 4 0% 3 0% 2 0% 1 0% Product Rating: Total Reviews: 2 Awesome Reviewed By: DG on 1/4/2008 Tech Level: somewhat high - Ownership: 1 week to 1 month This user purchased this item from Newegg.com Pros: These things rock. They are small, very lightweight, and produce some amazing sound. I've used a variety of IEM's and these are the best by far. Comfort is amazing, I'll forget they are in my ears. These put to shame my studio monitor headphones. I heard things from these headphones where I haven't in others. They bring out the details amazingly. The highs are bright and crisp, the bass is tight and hits hard, gives you that pounding feeling within your head. I feel like I'm at a concert. Cons: Some line cord noise if your walking around...but thats like any IEM if they don't wrap around your ear. Other Thoughts: Some might think they are a little bright, but it's most likely from not really hearing a good set of speakers before. If you hear distortion from these, your headphone amp is too weak to drive them properly. I've cranked it up and they play clean to volumes I can't stand more then a second. " Nuff Said... Enjoy your Klipsch headphones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baglunch Posted January 24, 2008 Share Posted January 24, 2008 Well done Dreven! I can see this thread becoming a "must see" waypoint for people looking for additional Image info. I hope this forum allows search engines to crawl it. Perhaps I should contribute something meaningful for posterity? Well, once I get my pair, I will. [] In addition to your thoughts and comparisons, I'll be able to toss in my impressions compared with Senn595s, Grado SR60s, Koss KSC75s, and my memories of the Shure E4cs, from my computer with and without my DAC and amp, and from my PMP (Cowon A2). Can you just see my wife's eyes rolling already? Audio geekery makes me happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dreven Posted January 24, 2008 Author Share Posted January 24, 2008 Thanks. Well, I got them. I'm gonna make a new thread for this in just a sec. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLSamuel Posted January 27, 2008 Share Posted January 27, 2008 This is everything I could find with a half hour of goofing off. Funny thing was this guy "I listened to prototypes of these phones this summer" seems to have posted the same thing in so many different places. I smell a plant. hehe ... Dreven, That could've been me as I posted in a couple of different sites. Also could've been somebody else as I've seen some other posts by people who tried the prototypes and I'm not sure I posted in more than 2 to 3 sites. I wouldn't call it a plant as I have no real incentive. I've been a big fan of Klipsch for years, and was just blown away by the IMAGE prototype I was able to try The Custom 1 prototype was also amazing. Very few new products are as exciting. AWESOME sound and INCREDIBLE comfort in an insanely tiny package. It was also really cool and a lot of fun to listen to Professor Thump explain what they were trying to do for a product not yet on the market, or even announced to the market. How many companies show new stuff to their fans before it's announced? Not many I'm sure. Naturally we all signed a non-disclosure agreement but it's still amazing they have that much trust. It was hard not to tell people about such cool new stuff. I ended up getting the Custom 2 when they first became available... probably would've got the image is my budget would've allowed but the Custom 2 is a good compromise. The closest to the sound of the IMAGE and probably the closest to the comfort. The IMAGE wins out for absolute comfort and ease of use. Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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