macdef's Full Review: Etymotic Research ER-4S Consumer Headphones
The Ety ER4S are, hands-down, one of the best headphones in the world. They are accurate, involving, and they playback the music the way it was recorded -- good or bad.
The two caveats about the ER4S are:
1) They need (not prefer... NEED) a separate headphone amp to sound their best. A portable player or the headphone jack on an audio component CANNOT drive them properly. If you don't have a headphone amplifier, do NOT get the ER4S. Etymotic makes another model, the ER4P, that is designed for use without an amp (it's pretty amazing, too).
2) They are very difficult to insert/seal properly for some people. Without a good seal, the bass is lacking and the sound is fairly lifeless.
However, if you have an amp and a good seal, there are few headphones in the world that can beat these gems, and those that can are more expensive.
Another point that should be made about the Etys is that they are NOT lacking in bass. They have some of the tightest, most extended bass of any headphone in the world. The difference is that on full-size headphones, you FEEL the bass because the driver sits outside the ear canal and moves significant amounts of air. However, because of this, most full-size headphones do not extend very low. Etys, on the other hand, extend VERY low, but you won't get the visceral "feel" of the bass -- you'll simply hear it they way it *sounds.* In fact, I have a $4000 headphone rig with various sets of headphones, but the Etys are easily the best at organ music (which has the lowest bass of any music).
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