Klipsch S4 or Shure SE115

[D4 UNC]

Hello,

having recently moved from a Sony Walkman mp3 player to a new ipod nano i have found the sound considerably quieter. I had been looking at an iBasso amp, but the budget won't stretch that far, so have settled on the FiiO, which does a reasonable job of increasing the volume slightly & warming up the overall sound.

Now its time to upgrade my Sennheisser cx300's, the Klipsch S4 look a good buy in the 50 - 100 quid bracket and now i see that you have several Shure models reduced, esp the New SE115 and SE210. Or maybe an "Ultimate Ears" option...So, what to go for?

It would be nice to have the overall dynamics raised with a bit of punch to the bass, would i be right in thinking that a lower impedence makes the phones easier to drive?

I'll be generally using these out & about, maybe in the gym.

cheers

[ShaunG]

Both the Klipsch S4 and Shure SE115 would be good choices. I'd say the Klipsch has the edge over the Shure for clarity of sound, with the SE115 being a little bass heavy. The cables with the Klipsch S4 are really designed to drop below the ear, so may not be the best choice for the gym. Earphones with cables running over the ears work best, due to reduced microphonic noise from the cable and also because they stay on your ears securely.

I'd recommend taking a look at the Phonak Audeo PFE 012 and 022 (with microphone) These earphones have really excellent sound and come fitted with replaceable acoustic filters that prevent sweat damaging the earphone. The sound is also really very impressive - you'll hear details in high quality MP3s you simply can't hear with lesser earphones.

Another alternative you may also want to consider is the SoundMAGIC PL50 (due to be available in the UK next week). This earphone has been getting rave reviews on Head-fi.org and we can't wait to hear how it sounds. If it's anything like the PL30 it's a sure winner. The PL50 is a balanced armature earphone (think Klipsch Image X5 and Sleek Audio SA6), which makes it impressive that it will be priced around the £50 mark.

See the following links for some reviews of the SoundMAGIC PL50:

Soundmagic PL-50 Review - Head-Fi: Covering Headphones, Earphones and Portable Audio
My review of the SoundMAGIC PL50 - Head-Fi: Covering Headphones, Earphones and Portable Audio

[Smartguy]

I have a question similar to this so I'll just put it in here

Im looking to buy something over ebay up to 100$ and I thought it will be klipsch S4i. Anyway now I found this forum and expanded my horizonts

So whats the best between these 3? Im looking for some clear basses and clear sound. Im listening to rock,r'n'b most of the time.

Second question is the difference ill notice between some of these and Creative EP-630, and is it really worth a 100$?

thx

[ShaunG]

If you're looking for clarity of sound, with balanced, well defined bass response then the Phonak Audeo PFE 012 or PFE 022 are well worth checking out.

You will notice a BIG difference between these earphone and the Creative EP-630!

[pcandyhk]

I am looking for a earphone with in-wire control and mic for iPhone, and I found this thread useful.

I have gone to the shops and compared these two models, here is my comment:
sound quality: similar, with shure heavier bass, S4i better on clarity
price: Shure more expensive, so S4i with better C/P?

It is difficult to decide... and I have found conflicting comments about their durability.
With ppl saying both, their wires can be broken in a few months. (which is not good news...)

so anyone knows, which is more durable?

and also wt about the Sound Quality of the mic of these two?

Thanks.

[ShaunG]

In our experience the Klipsch S4i and Shure SE115m have similar levels of build quality. The Shure has slightly better made cabling in my opinion. Cabling is always the weakest point with in-ear headphones, so best to make sure they get carefully stored away after use.

The feedback we've had from customers is that both Shure and Klipsch mics are good.

As mentioned before I'd consider the Phonak Audeo PFE 022, as this has a mic and call answer button. The fact that the Phonak doesn't also have a volume control means there is less bulk on the cable.