Hey everyone. I was a headphone audiophile before I got into stereo systems more. I own a pair of Grado/Alessandro MS-1 ($100), which was my first introduction to real audiophile quality sound. I love them to death. But they are open ear, which has 0 isolation. I wanted to listen to music at school in peace so I got these in-ear monitors, which are the only IEMs ive ever heard. I originally wanted the ER4b, since Im a fan of ultra flat frequency response. But I got a good deal on these Etymotic Hf2's. Supposedly, they are based on the ER4 series, so I said what the heck.
These things isolate damn well. With music on lowish volume, a classroom full of 15 blabbing students becomes almost completely silent. The eartips supplied with them all isolate very well. I use the smaller blue tips because they get a slightly better seal.
They sound quite flat indeed. Bass extends very low and even. Even though people say these lack the punch, I find it actually quite controled and there is just barley enough punch to make any audiophile happy (unless your a bass spl nut). The mids really, really shine. The voice is natrual and dialouge is easily heard fluently. Guitars are fast and clean. However, there seems to be a small notch in the middle of the soundtage which makes voices sound 2 sided sometimes. The detail and resolution is presice and ambient sounds are heard perfectly. Having good sound isolation is a big culprit in having good detail. Treble sounds nice and even, but it dosent extend as far as my grados. Soundstage is about as wide as the grados, but the grados have better imaging. Its still a pretty close call.
Id say that these are just as detailed as my grados, just because of the isolation. The grados have a big edge on treble in comparison. Midrange is very similar to the etys. But I kindof like the bass better on the etys.
Overall, Im very impressed with these. They are servicably comfortable, handy, build quality is good (not great), and the sound competes with my grados, yet the cost isnt much more ($179). I highly recommend these for someone who is on the go and wants to enjoy great sound while blocking out annoying noises.
Etymotic, keep up the good work. If I upgrade to a better iem, it will be another Etymotic.
