ear phone

[pyiteac]

As posted below in the earbud thread; I have been totally blown away by my Shure SE530's.  They are above your budget but are worth every penny.  When listening to a high resolution or 16 bit source there are things you can distinguish that you never thought was there.  Absolutely amazing.  Just my 2 cents.

[jlykos]

Check out www.headphone.com for a pretty extensive list of in-ear monitors available.  I personally use Shure's SE530's and love them.

I got some ultimate ears superfi 5pro from here based on their description that I am happy with.

I also use and like the super.fi 5 pro earphones from Ultimate Ears very much.  Upgraded from Westone UM-1 and the Westones are more comfortable with better isolation, while the Ultimate Ears sound better.  Liked them both, but use the Ultimate Ears every day and have the Westones for backup.

[javertim]

A few months ago I had to make the same decision, albeit with about twice the budget (college graduation money ).  I was going to save up a little extra and go for the Shure SE530s but decided to be a little more thrifty and went for the SE420s instead. ... I love them! I may eventually try the SE530s, but I am certainly not making that a priority as I am absolutely thrilled with the performance of the SE420s.  Apparently the difference is 2 microspeakers (SE420) v. 3 (SE530).  Well, if 2 sound this good, I can only imagine what 3 sound like.

[bhoy]

Can anyone point me to a website that would sell the Etymotic's as a custom molded set of earplugs?  I have custom ear plugs that I bought from E.A.R. Inc. at an AES Convention a few years ago.  I use them for lawn work and for concerts and they are very comfortable.

I also have the original mold that they used to make my plugs.  Would there be a place that I could send my ear impressions to, buy the headphones and have them insert the headphone into the mold?  Are there other brands that can be inserted into custom molds that I should consider?

Bill

[nickgregory]

I got my ear plugs made at the local ear,nose and throat doctor, and he used the ety filters for them.  Allows me to swap out different filters, or the ety plugs and use it for my headphones...

[George]

A few months ago I had to make the same decision, albeit with about twice the budget (college graduation money ).  I was going to save up a little extra and go for the Shure SE530s but decided to be a little more thrifty and went for the SE420s instead. ... I love them! I may eventually try the SE530s, but I am certainly not making that a priority as I am absolutely thrilled with the performance of the SE420s.  Apparently the difference is 2 microspeakers (SE420) v. 3 (SE530).  Well, if 2 sound this good, I can only imagine what 3 sound like.

To my ears, the se530's sound midrange sounds border-line electrostatic which means the midrange is very smooth and fun to listen to.  

[Gutbucket]

I'm more than happy with my Etymotic ER4s that I've used for years, but at the national Head-Fi meet last spring held locally, I was very impressed with the Sleek Audio in-ears.  They sounded very good, as did the better Sures and UltimateEars but have little tunable ports to adjust the bass and treble response that I really dug.  They also have easily detachable cables and can be made to custom molds if desired and all the models.  If I was in the market I'd serious consider them. Worth checking out.

[live2496]

Can anyone point me to a website that would sell the Etymotic's as a custom molded set of earplugs?  I have custom ear plugs that I bought from E.A.R. Inc. at an AES Convention a few years ago.  I use them for lawn work and for concerts and they are very comfortable.

I also have the original mold that they used to make my plugs.  Would there be a place that I could send my ear impressions to, buy the headphones and have them insert the headphone into the mold?  Are there other brands that can be inserted into custom molds that I should consider?

Bill

Hello Bill,
I have been using the ultimate ears superfi 5 for a good while and I find them to be an accurate sounding in ear monitor. I have considered getting a set of their custom molded ones. I know that Ultimate ears will make a set from your impressions.

There is an address on this link.
http://www.ultimateears.com/_ultimateears/products/custom/audiologist_instructions.php

You could also try calling Eymotic's customer support # and see what they say.