Which in ear headphones

[Leif]

I have some Sennheiser HD600 headphones which I use when listening to foreign language podcasts. I find it harder to understand the podcast when I listen on good speakers. And I can use the headphones in bed. Unfortunately the headphones are big and the cable is long, both of which are annoying, especially in bed where I’d like to lie on my side while listening.,

What would I need to pay to get similar or better quality from an in ear headphone? Which models should I be looking at? I know absolutely nothing about them.

I like the Sennheisers, as the sound is balanced with no unnatural bass boost which seems to the craze these days. Even some expensive headphones (B&W P7) have an artificial bass boost. It would be nice to improve on the Sennheisers but I suspect that would be expensive.

 

[Doodski]

Do you have a Samsung cel tel? If so the Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Pro earbuds sound great and are very compact. The operation of the earbuds can't be easier. Remove the earbuds from the case and the audio automatically starts playing in the earbuds and stops when taking the earbuds out.

 

[Leif]

Do you have a Samsung cel tel? If so the Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Pro earbuds sound great and are very compact. The operation of the earbuds can't be easier. Remove the earbuds from the case and the audio automatically starts playing in the earbuds and stops when taking the earbuds out.

What is a Samsung cel tel?

 

[charleski]

The current favourite is the $55 Truthear Red with a long thread here. Both it and the Galaxy Buds 2 are tuned with a Harman bass shelf, but this is a lot more restrained than the usual big broad hump you get with dynamic drivers. If you want an iem which is flat in the bass you could try an etymotic er2se ($100) or, for something really cheap, an LZ Z05A (worth a punt at ~$16).

If you’re listening from an Android phone I’d highly recommend getting the Wavelet app, which lets you apply EQ.

 

[Doodski]

What is a Samsung cel tel?

A Samsung cellular telephone.

 

[Leif]

The current favourite is the $55 Truthear Red with a long thread here. Both it and the Galaxy Buds 2 are tuned with a Harman bass shelf, but this is a lot more restrained than the usual big broad hump you get with dynamic drivers. If you want an iem which is flat in the bass you could try an etymotic er2se ($100) or, for something really cheap, an LZ Z05A (worth a punt at ~$16).

If you’re listening from an Android phone I’d highly recommend getting the Wavelet app, which lets you apply EQ.

Thank you, I will check those out.

I use an Apple iPhone X and Apple DAC dongle.

 

[Doodski]

Thank you, I will check those out.

I use an Apple iPhone X and Apple DAC dongle.

I suggest the Apple Airpods. They are wireless so you won't be tangled in wires and they are compact in the ear.

 

[Leif]

I suggest the Apple Airpods. They are wireless so you won't be tangled in wires and they are compact in the ear.

I was about to add that I don’t want wireless, that is an immediate sound downgrade. Plus you pay more for a given sound quality.

 

[Joachim Herbert]

I was about to add that I don’t want wireless, that is an immediate sound downgrade. Plus you pay more for a given sound quality.

It is not. Not for your usecase. And yes, the price of convenience.

 

[Dunring]

My favorite pairs are the Sennheiser ie600 and Seeaudio Yune which is tuned Harman 2020. Different price points, but they both deliver the fun factor and I'd use both as daily drivers or buy them again.

 

[staticV3]

What would I need to pay to get similar or better quality from an in ear headphone?

$20-50 roughly.

Which models should I be looking at?

Truthear Hola, Truthear Red, Truthear Hexa is where I would start.
The brand is kind of rocking the IEM market right now with unprecedented value.

 

[Leif]

It is not. Not for your usecase. And yes, the price of convenience.

Ignoring the SQ for speech, I would want to listen to music too, and I assume the sound would be degraded. I have a Tidal account.

 

[Joachim Herbert]

...I would want to listen to music too...

There are more affordable models in the Sennheiser IE range. I own a pair of IE300, but I see positive reports on their entry model IE200, too.

Having said that I really prefer a Bose QC35 for use with my mobile for the lack of cables. I cannot complain about SQ with these. Wireless Inears
with modern codecs should work even better. But then, this is my assumption.

 

[threni]

A Samsung cellular telephone.

Ah - you mean a mob pho!

 

[Misguided]

+1 for Truthear. just bought the Hexas and I am very pleased, great value!

 

[Leif]

Thanks all. I’ve done a little research and the Sennheiser IE200 is inexpensive and might be okay as it has a fairly neutral sound. The IE300 is quite a bit more, and the IE600 is pricey. Does anyone know how these compare soundwise with a HD600? Is the difference between the IE600 and the others obvious? Is the IE300 noticeably better than the IE200?

I have a Bose QC25, and I don’t like them, the sound is unnatural compared to the Sennheiser HD600. Hopefully that gives an idea of my tastes. I suppose I either want cheap and okay (IE200) or not cheap and as good as or better than the HD600.

It’s a pain that I can’t try out a pair in a shop.

 

[charleski]

Ah - you mean a mob pho!

No, I think he means a handy:

 

[Soandso]

... I find it harder to understand the podcast when I listen on good speakers ... in bed where I’d like to lie on my side while listening...

Podcast clarity being relatively poor via speakers versus headphones indicates some hearing loss in frequencies relevant to speech.

Lying on the side for me pushes the small IEM body uncomfortably into the ear canal.

I find when lying down loosely placing extra ear pads that encircle the ear temporarily over my regular headphones existing ear pads creates a nest for the ears to lay inside. Below are illustrative pictures of extra old ear pads' foam (I glued a leather top on to the foam) which I can slip on and off the headphones, or just place between the headphone ear cups and my ears like a layer held in place by the headband clamping force. [These are not glued onto the headphone so I can reposition them if any foam sector is too flattened.]

This way any head pillow's passive pressure is not occurring directly against the outer ear and I can find some position for my head that I can even fall asleep in. [I find that the configuration of a headphone's support band makes a big difference in finding a comfortable head position on pillows. And that headphones with ear cups that can be freely rotated are ideal for getting the cable out of the pillows and offering options for tilting forward the connecting head band up and away from pillows.]

For your intention of using IEM's my presumption is you'll have better comfort by using them with a large ear pad that encircles the ear(s) while the IEM is in place. Unless you are lying on ear directly down you'd need to wrap some fabric completely around both ear pads to hold them in place.

 

[pablolie]

I have 2 pairs of Sony WF-1000XM4, which indicates I am very happy with them. They sound pretty great (not as good as cabled Shure SE535, but more convenient). The microphones suck in loudish environments though (I am surprised reviews never mention that and always just shower them with praise). For far less money, I also have Jaybird X3. I love my cabled Shures, but newer phones no longer support then directly, and bluetooth has come a long way (I used to disregard it for a long time).

 

[Oso Polar]

Get Etymotic ER2XR/ER3XR/ER4XR depending on your budget. IMHO they have a very pleasant sound signature and certainly don't have boomy exaggerated bass. IMHO very comfortable for bed but YMMV. In any case expect IEMs to sound differently then full size open headphones, this is just inevitable.