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Paulg
Displaced Yooper
Premium Member
join:2004-03-15
Neenah, WI

Paulg

Premium Member

Decent relatively cheap earbuds

Hey everyone, My stock ipod earbuds are killing my ears.

As such, I'm looking to find a more comfortable and hopefully better sounding pair without breaking the bank.

I'd prefer not to spend more than $50 or so.

Suggestions?

Thanks!

Sarah

join:2001-01-09
New York, NY

Sarah

The iPod-style earbud are pretty much the same as far as comfort goes from brand to brand. Would you be willing to try an IEM instead? There's lots of good ones under $50 and they're often more comfortable for people (like me) who don't find earbuds comfy.

Paulg
Displaced Yooper
Premium Member
join:2004-03-15
Neenah, WI

Paulg

Premium Member

IEM are the little ones that go down into your ear?

I didn't realize that was a different category than earbuds

Basically, I'm open to anything that isn't full size headphones.

Sarah

join:2001-01-09
New York, NY

Sarah

Just wanted to make sure before I recommended anything. Some people don't like having something in their ear canal or don't want to block outside noise...

If you like a full/bassy sound, the Thinksound TS01 are supposed to be very comfortable with above-average sound quality.

If you like full/bassy but are hoping for a more mainstream brand or something you can pick up locally - Sennheiser CX280 and Klipsch S2 get pretty good reviews.

If you like a more analytical/cold sound, it's harder to find good IEMs at this price (since that sound signature tends to aim at the big-$$$ audiophile market). The Soundmagic PL50 (which I have) has great sound quality for about $45 (if you order from focalprice) but the build quality is kinda mediocre. The Brainwavz M1 or Head-Direct RE2 are also in this price range, are well-reviewed, and have a more analytical sound signature.

FastEddie

join:2000-12-29
Channel Z

1 edit

FastEddie to Paulg

to Paulg


Try the Creative EP- 630

You can find them cheaper on eBay and they come in a few different colors. I use them for everyday use and find them decent. For the price they sound decent and if they break I toss them and buy another set. Actually I always have a new spare set just in case.


Paulg
Displaced Yooper
Premium Member
join:2004-03-15
Neenah, WI

Paulg to Sarah

Premium Member

to Sarah
Geez Sarah, I don't even know what analytical sounding means I'm not much for heavy bass sounds, so I have a feeling I'd lean more towards it though.

Thanks for a ton of info.

The TS01s look really nice, but are a bit more than I wanted to spend.

I think I may pick up a pair of either the CX280s or the S2's at the local bestbuy so I can easily return them if I don't like them.

Sarah

join:2001-01-09
New York, NY

Sarah

Analytical sound tends to be leaning more towards high and mid frequencies so you can pick out the details of the music better. Whereas other headphones emphasize the bass more to get your foot tapping (or head banging, depending what you listen to ). Probably you'll be pleased with the sound out of any of those after coming from the stock buds.

A friend of mine got the S2s at Best Buy and is very happy with them... Klipsch uses oval-shaped gel-tips that are supposed to be very comfortable. Supposedly they did a study and discovered that most people have oval-shaped ears instead of perfectly round ones like most earphones have, so they shaped them to fit.

Paulg
Displaced Yooper
Premium Member
join:2004-03-15
Neenah, WI

Paulg

Premium Member

I did end up getting the S2's, I'll be wearing them for 8 straight hours tomorrow while on a conf. call, so I'll let you know what I think of them, at least comfort wise.

signmeuptoo94
Bless you Howie
Premium Member
join:2001-11-22
NanoParticle

signmeuptoo94 to Paulg

Premium Member

to Paulg
I have the black version of these, for the price they are amazing, and yes, on the analytical side, but bass comes alive quite well when called upon. Wish I had seen your post sooner.

»www.amazon.com/iM-590-En ··· 02E95P3C

Paulg
Displaced Yooper
Premium Member
join:2004-03-15
Neenah, WI

Paulg

Premium Member

Over the last 2 days, I've worn my S2s for something close to 20 hours, and I am happy to report, that my ears don't hurt a bit

Had to switch to the smallest tips, but other than that they've been fantastic.