The left earbud on my current headphones has just crapped out (abot 12hrs before I’m on a 24hr flight as well ), so I’m on the market for some replacements. As per usual it seems to be the wire breaking inside the casing near the insertion into the the earbud itself.
I’ve used the Etymotic er-6is (several times) and they broke in exactly the same fashion, so I was considering getting some where the cable is replaceable, to try and stop having to buy new headphones all the time.
I’ve spotted that the westone UM2 have a removable cable, but are there any more models I should be looking at?
I did a lot of searching for IEMs and in my search I didn’t happen to come across any other detachable monitors. I did however buy the UM2’s and I LOVE em. Great sound quality (at least for someone who has not used high-end listening device before) thats not over bearing. The bass really loosened up after the wear in period (100hrs) and sometimes i’ll mix just w/ the UM2’s over my KRK’s.
The last pair of decent in ears I had are the Jays q-Jays - first double driver pair I’ve had, and I’m not going back to a single driver, as I’d miss the detail. As they’re under a year old, Amazon are refunding me their price (as they’re not sold anymore)
Shure sells a few different models at various price points, the only other manufacturer of good IEM with detachable cables is Ultimate Ears (TripleFi 10 have removable cables), though they are owned now by logitech (don’t know how that will effect quality). Also, the MSRP on the triplefi’s is $400 so they are a bit steep for most.
Get the Shure SE215. They cost $99 or less but are SO good sounding. The SE215 should be illegal in that price range due to unfair competition.
I got the HDJ2000 and the sound signature is pretty close.
Try 1964 Ears, made in Portland, Great customer support! I have the Quads and I would never imagine using anything else. Once you tried Custom IEM, you will never ever put stock IEM in your ears, sound is stunning, fit and comfort is unbelievable. Price is steep but it is really worth it. I used them every day and every day I think it was the best thing I bought this year.
Neither the triplefi nor the um2 have detachable cables. Personally, the most I’ll pay for IEMs/Earbuds without detachable cables is about $10.
I’m probably getting a set of se215s (depending on amazon’s return policy) to try and keeping them if I can mix with them…if not, I’ll try a dual driver model. But considering that I could mix in pretty loud environments with the Etymotic ER-6 (not i, the non-i was flatter) I think they’ll be fine.
And you can always add custom molds after the fact. There are even kits you can buy to do it yourself if you don’t mind sticking things in your ears and a little bit of work to make things sound right.
I am not sure they’re the entry level model, but the Shure 315’s I have are certainly good enough to work with: solid build, very very well isolated (at least for me) and excellent sound quality. Bought mine to replace Etymotics I lost in Paddington station. Looking back I’m glad I did.
Slightly OT since the headphones I’m about to talk about don’t have removable cables, but still relevant:
I have had two pairs of Shure SE530 (originally around $500 MSRP) and on both of them the strain relief separated from the drivers, which makes them a pain in the ass to put in and out of your ears. Also, on one of the two pairs the strain relief cracked a bit after about 6 months of relatively gentle use. The extension cord on them also gave out and had to be replaced. They also don’t have memory wire sections to help them stay on your ears. The sound quality was really nice, but the oversights in build quality make me question the wisdom of using other Shure IEMs for DJing.
I know you said $700 was expensive, but just as another option… On the higher end of things, you could check out Ultimate Ears’ UE10 or UE11. I believe Laidback Luke uses the UE11. They’re custom molded/custom made, great quality, detachable cable, etc… granted they’re also $1150. Or there’s their bigger brother, the UE18 which comes in at $1350.
Do you like using IEMs for DJing? I haven’t used mine for DJing, but the idea of putting them in and out of my ears over the course of a set… They wouldn’t last long.
), so I’m on the market for some replacements. As per usual it seems to be the wire breaking inside the casing near the insertion into the the earbud itself.