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Axo1ot1 · May 16, 2003, 01:52 AM

I was listening to my new iPod with my etymotic ER-6 earbuds and shopping for headphone amps while cringing at how poor the bass was in the music I was listening to. For the sake of experimentation I pulled out the headphone jack and plugged into the base station. Damn it's so much nicer sounding! The only problem is that there is no way to control the volume and the default is slightly higher than I think is probably safe with sealed earbuds like these. Someone needs to make an attatchment for this or something!

aaanorton · May 16, 2003, 09:05 AM

I've been considering a pair of those ER-6's. Do you REALLY, REALLY, REALLY like yours? Are they comfortable? Do they need an amp or do they sound just wonderful directly from the iPod? Any info appreciated.
Cool news about the dock. I wonder why this isn't advertised... I'll check this out later, but thanks for the tip.

Axo1ot1 · May 16, 2003, 12:23 PM

I really really like mine. They take a bit of getting used to, and as I understand it many people hate the way you have to wear them, but if you find them comfortable nothing sounds as good for the price. They sound reasonably good with the iPod, but I think an amp will make them sound way better as a lot of the low end stuff is getting mutilated due to their relatively high impedence. They sound really good through the dock, but a bit too loud.

These earbuds are good for sitting in your house or riding in cars or airplanes. They are not good for walking around in public etc. because they cut out so much of the sound around you. I'm thinking of getting a pair of Grado's for this purpose.

exa · May 16, 2003, 12:41 PM

Of course, with Grados you'll get the opposite effect of letting everyone else hear the music more than you can. Not very comfortable either with those pads.

Also if the ER6's tips are anything like the ER4's, then they will get softer/more comfortable over time, but are extremely comfortable after this break-in period (most comfortable earphones I've used? maybe).

Producer · May 16, 2003, 07:08 PM

is it possible to wear the etymotics while working out? I heard the er-4s? but they were through some **** player and they sounded really bad... I'll check again since now I own an ipod...as far as amps go...yes they make a huge difference... if y ou are gonna use the earphones while sitting down you should invest in one for sure

Axo1ot1 · May 16, 2003, 10:35 PM

Originally posted by exa:
Of course, with Grados you'll get the opposite effect of letting everyone else hear the music more than you can. Not very comfortable either with those pads.

I like the pads on the grados. They're good cans for outdoor urban use. I want to have good music quality, but I still want to hear what's going on around me.

exa · May 18, 2003, 02:06 PM

Originally posted by Axo1ot1:
I like the pads on the grados. They're good cans for outdoor urban use. I want to have good music quality, but I still want to hear what's going on around me.

Then you have Grado ears, heh.

is it possible to wear the etymotics while working out

Etys never felt right when I worked out, so I use some cheap headphones while doing that.

AlphaQuam · May 23, 2003, 01:59 AM

The sound coming out of my dock kinda sucks... I get a lot of hiss and background noise which seems to be coming from the drive mechanism in the iPod itself... anyone else experience this?

Steve · May 23, 2003, 02:56 PM

Originally posted by Axo1ot1:
I like the pads on the grados. They're good cans for outdoor urban use. I want to have good music quality, but I still want to hear what's going on around me.

An extremely popular mod to any Grado is to swap a set of Sennheiser pads into them . They are usually considered to be much more comforrtable, and on my Grado SR-80s, they definetly make a difference between stock.