• The move to the new server is done. There are some software and database maintenance updates in process. This has us passing the hat around to help out. We appreciate any donations. Seriously, even a dollar helps. The payment page may be found here - https://www.audiokarma.org/support.html

What earphones do you use?

Romeo Wolf

Romeo Wolf

Super Member
Generally we speak of Headphones here, but what about Earphones or In-Ear Headphones (IEM's)? What's your favorite pair and why do you like them?

I use the earphones that came with my Galaxy S9. They're Samsung EO-IG955's tuned by AKG. There's tons of fakes & Chinese clones out there, but if you can find a genuine pair, they're superb.

Here's one of my favorite audio reviewers putting these against a pair of very typical Apple Earpods :)

My AKG/Samsung earbuds have been used and abused for nearly 2 years straight, but they still work like new. They also don't make me look like a weirdo (unlike on-ear Headphones), and they're pretty sensitive...93.2Db/mW, 32 Ohms.
 
Register to hide this ad
I prefer over-ear for comfort reasons. That being said, when I’m on the go and listening to podcasts I just use the AirPods Pro with Dekoni Bullets foam tips. They don’t go all that deep in your ears by design, which is probably why they work for me for casual use.
 
I use these: 1 More Triple driver and they are the best sounding ear or headphone I have, including my Sennheiser HD600's. I put them on Keepa.com for $50 about a year ago and after a month I got them for $45 or so. I really resisted buying an ear phone, but I was needing something that had a little less noise, and after the complete failure of the B&W PX wireless noise canceling, I really wanted something to listen to while I went around the house cleaning up the dishes and whatnot after my wife went to bed. Anyway I was pretty astonished at how good they sounded from my Note 8, streaming or playing from my NAS. These are the 3 way model, with very clean bass. They make a 4 way as well but considerably more money.
 
Shure SE-215

I like them because they don’t have a built in mic or song changer button on the cord. Every other brand that I have tried that is the first thing to fail. I also like them because they are noise blocking which means not having to turn them up to insane levels to hear the music in a noisy environment. Finally the drivers are separate components from the cord which means once the cord gets nasty you can buy just the cord and plug it into the same drivers saving cost. I’m on the same set for 5 years now but on my third cord set. Oh and they sound pretty good to me.
 
Sennheiser IE-80. The bass is fantastic. I once owned the 1moretriple driver's mentioned above, but think the Sennheisers are much better...as always ymmv. Has anyone heard any Westone offerings? I wonder about them sometimes.
 
I use the MDR-E804yla ear buds from my old Sony Walkman. From the moment I put them in I was shocked and very pleasantly surprised... so much so that I bought three more pair at $11 each so they'll last me the rest of my life.
Good thing I did because they're NLA. They sound great on my Walkman and my Yamaha integrated.
 
Although I've managed to collect a half dozen pair of "earphones", the only one's that get any use are the Monolith M-300 In Ear Planars. They are used exclusively with an AGPTek Rocker 2 playing FLAC files. For walking and commuting around the city they are perfect for me.

FWIW: My go to headphones are also Planar as are my mains.
 
Alobar said:
I use these: 1 More Triple driver and they are the best sounding ear or headphone I have, including my Sennheiser HD600's. I put them on Keepa.com for $50 about a year ago and after a month I got them for $45 or so. I really resisted buying an ear phone, but I was needing something that had a little less noise, and after the complete failure of the B&W PX wireless noise canceling, I really wanted something to listen to while I went around the house cleaning up the dishes and whatnot after my wife went to bed. Anyway I was pretty astonished at how good they sounded from my Note 8, streaming or playing from my NAS. These are the 3 way model, with very clean bass. They make a 4 way as well but considerably more money.
Click to expand...


I have a pair of those and they can be startling in their immediacy.

The main IEMs I use are Jaybird X2s which are Bluetooth. I have three pair of them and a pair of X3s which are a bit higher tech and very tweakable but I like the sound of the X2s a bit more.

They were a bit over $100 back in the day but they can be found NOS or refurbed with a short warranty for around $30 these days.
 
I own 3 pairs of Sennheiser headphones. I don't own any ear buds. I have no use for them because I can't stand them in my ears.
 
A couple of years ago I bought a pair of KZ ZS10 Pro IEM. I am quite impressed with them. Well worth the money I spent, and that were not a lot of money. Great for portable listening. When I am home and I want to use headphones I have a pair of Focal and Stax.

Hc706bb4da79f4249b32066026d828b900.jpg
 
Last edited:
Mangird Tea and 7Hz Timeless IEMs are my current favorites of the sets that I own. For wireless I use Moondrop Sparks IEMs. Also have a pair of Senn. HD 600.
 
Last edited:
I’ve got a pair of KZ ZST colorful and KBEAR KS2 IEMs. I wore one of them every day for about a year until my iPhone recently started having issues with the lightning port, thus wired IEMs. Both pairs have a similar sound. Very good for the money. Solid bass, nice mids and highs. Never fatiguing and they are the most comfortable earphones I’ve ever worn. Detachable cable, with or without the mic. Highly recommended even for those who say they can’t stand IEMs. For $20, you can’t really complain.
 
Shure se535s with Sensaphonics custom sleeves.

shure535.jpg
 
AKG's and recently a pair of Afershock bone conducting headphones. I like the Aftershocks because I can still hear what's going on around me.
 
For wireless listening I have a pair of Master & Dynamic MW07+, they are some of the best sounding BT earbuds I have ever heard.

For wired listening I have a pair of Tin HiFi T2+. They took a good bit to break in but once they did they are quite impressive for $40.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom