Etymotic In-ear-monitors

[MCML]

I have used the ER6i earbuds for a few weeks now and really like them. The customer service department at Etymotic will send you a selection of different ear pieces that you can try (foam and/or soft baffle in different sizes). I am still experimenting to find out which are most comfortable and best at external noise cancellation.

 

[Groo]

Just ordered a set of ER6i's at Buy.com for $78 (free shipping). Hope they work out as well as everyone says!

 

[LiquidSilver]

The fit takes a while to get used to.

Wifey and I both use them through the Autocom, for talking, listening to tunes and taking phone calls.

Great sound quality.

The silicone gets uncomfortable to me after about 3 eight-hour days in a row... but I don't get to do that very often... I didn't think of trying the foam bits... thanks.

 

[todd34]

My only remaining problem is keeping the iPod from locking up.  I bought a RAM holder for it but evidently the frequency of buzz in the handlebars isn't attenuated enough.  I have to keep it in my jacket pocket which eliminates the locking up but also elimanates song skipping, volume adjustment, stopping it altogether, etc.

Anyone else have this problem? I am considering a stem stand for my IPOD but won't bother if it will just lock up. How did you connect the ram mount to the stem stand?

Todd

 

[FJRocket]

OK, I stepped up to the plate and ordered the Etymotic E6i's from buy.com. They are now up to only $89.99. If you want to apply for a Buy.com Visa, you can save an additional $30 on your first order. Too bad I missed the $78 price noted by groo. Dangit. Free shipping from Buy.com on most orders over $25. Just a note on that "budget shipping"- they say an additional 3 - 5 days over normal ground, but the last stuff I odered came priority mail in 2 days anyway! I'd have to be in a BIG hurry to pay for shipping from this site!

Ok, time to go out and ride!

 

[Groo]

Dang Rocket, they must change their sales promotions on a daily basis.... they had a $10 off any order over $75 bucks on their main page just yesterday!

However, given the prices you see these selling for everywhere else... I still think we both got a good deal.

 

[todd34]

After reading the posts here and the eight pages of posts over at STN, I finally stopped being a cheap bastard and dropped the cash on the E6i's.

FJRocket,

Thanks for the word on buy.com.

Todd

 

[kindofblue]

I've got a pair of ER-6s for some time now. The foam plugs come in 2 sizes but even the large one didn't fit me well so I took some Hearos 33 db attenuation foam plugs, cut some holes in 'em and ginned up a tube for the music from shrink tubing. Works for me.

Doc Reid

 

[B12Bill]

another user of the Etymotic Er6is. Love 'em. When I get my Autocom re-hooked up, I will likely get their adapter.

reasonably good at noise blocking and sound great. I can go about 3-4 hours before my ears start to bother me, going to try the foam inserts next.

My only concern is the wire size. I have almost caught it in the zipper of my stich a couple times (ipod in pocket of stich)

 

[boogahboogah]

Bought an MPIO 20GB OGG/MP3 player a few weeks ago (Ebay store $199) and a set of Etymotic 6i phones to go with it (92 from a dealer on Amazon). I've never used earphones or earplugs before.

Observations after a 1400 mile weeked ride are:

1) Noise cancellation with the E6i is great. Takes all of the wind/road noise to the point where it is just noticable. I only run the player at 50% volume & that is plenty loud enough. Also makes long rides less strenous with that reduced background noise.

2) Sound quality with the earphones is very good. Being an ex-audiophile I'm pretty particular about sound quality & these phones are _very_ good.

3) Bass is not especially loud, but I think that may be competition from the road/engine/wind noise, even at a background level.

4) I shift better at speed because I hear the engine better (bone conduction? - less auditory distractions ?)

5) Have to be careful when putting on & pulling off the Nolan flip front helmet, but if I pull the helmet flaps apart with the straps it works just fine.

6) I filled out their survey form to get the one year warranty.

MCL - thanks for the tip on contacting customer service!

:dribble:

 

[todd34]

I just received my 6i's yesterday and rode with them today. They are so sweet. I couldn't believe how well I could hear the music. Simply outstanding.

Todd

 

[FJRocket]

Buy.com foobarred my order, so I'm still waiting for my ER6i's. I went back to cancel my order and re-order the Etymotics. Then I noticed the price went up another $5 up tp $95! You guys must be ordering so many sets that it's a sellers market!

I went to eBay to see if I could beat the price. Sure, they had them for 89.95, but those robbers wanted $10 to ship them. Screw that. Buy.com ships them for free.

Well, I certainly won't have the earphones for the weekend. Perhaps by next if Buy.com actually responds to the three emails I've sent to customer support. Slow as they are, you'd think it's Christmas or something!

 

[Groo]

Rocket,

If it's any consolation, they have screwed up my order as well... it's been "sent to the warehouse" for a week now. Sent them an email, and they said "yep, it's not fulfilled yet, nope, we don't know when it will be", to which I replied "give me a date, or I'll go somewhere else". Still waiting on their response.

 

[todd34]

Sorry to hear that they screw up your orders so badly. I must have been lucky because they shipped mine out right away.

Todd

 

[FJRocket]

Well, I just got an email telling me they are finishing processing my order at Buy.com. Now I'll probably be in line with groo waiting for a backorder. Dangit!

Well, I do have RADIOSHACK in the ear phones to use in the mean time. They work very well (for over two years). I set my XM SKiFi at 4 bars and my ZEN at about 30 to hear well. And yes, that's without a helmet. Under my Symax, I have to turn the volumn down even more. I hope the ER6i's zap the noise and sound even better. They should for freakin $90!

I bought a set of Phillips noise cancelling earphones to try. About $50 through Walmart.com. Gotta love that place. Everything is returnable, even at your local store. Tried 'em, liked 'em, but not enough to keep em. They are open ended and reduce a bunch of ambient noise, just not wind noise. So the wind whistling was not reduced that much. At speed, it was worse than my cheapo RS earphones. Too bad. Was worth a try, though.

Someone commented earlier about not being able to hear with plugs/phones? You can hear, believe me. I was sitting at a stoplight and heard an emergency vehicle coming from behind about 3 blocks away, even through some serious rock&roll. Again, no helmet. But I stil think if I had my lid on, I still would have heard them coming (and certainly have in the past). Tell you what, my Mark 2 eyeballs are my primary alert mechanism. So if I can save my hearing by wearing plugs, I'm gonna do it.

 

[SpeedyR]

I got a set of the ER6i's a few months ago. great earphones. I use the silicon ends but if I do more longer trips (4+ days) I'll try the foam ends..

I use them a lot for work travel as well and nothing beats puting them in on an airplane and having everything dissapear..

as for the problems with the iPod- you have two options

1) I put mine in the top of my tank bag. isolates it enough, plus still allows me to hit the buttons.

2) next up for me is an RF remote control. then I can leave it inside the tank bag or wherever I want to, and use the remote to control the ipod.

Jeff

 

[04 FJR Pilot]

ER6's here too but haven't used them on a trip yet. Still hemming and hawwing over which gps to get and which MP3 player to get or buy a GPS with the MP3 player built in? Decisions decisions.

 

[krue]

I haven't checked out the Etymotics, but a ski buddy of mine turned me on to the Shure 3c's. They're very much on the expensive side ($200+ if I remember right), but I love them.

With no music on whatsoever, I can't even hear the road noise until about 55-60MPH, using an Arai RX-7 helmet (a bit noisy, but a great fit). Compared to the Sony phones I was using before, I can now play the music at about 3 on a scale to 10, less loud than normal conversation, and can hear it fantastically.

The most surprising thing to me was how much less fatigued I was after longer rides. It is amazing how much the road noise tires you out. And, when I had the Sony phones in, I had to crank the music up very loud to hear it and drown out some of the road noise, again causing fatigue. With the music on a very moderate level (again, something like a 3), I can cruise up to 90+ MPH and not be bothered at all by the wind/road noise.

Now, I'm sure this is illegal in good old Cali, but to me its worth it to enjoy my music and save my ears.

I'm also sure there are safety issues, but again, for me, this is managed risk.

Also, FWIW, I paired this with an XClef MP3 player -- a fairly obscure player that's rather large and bulky, but supports an incredible 100GB of space, and acts like an external hard drive when hooked up to the notebook (over USB2). Overall, I'm very impressed. I had an iPod, but couldn't stand the way that virus took over my notebook. The iPod was more touchy-feely, but I like the XClef much more. I also love it because I've got my entire CD collection (2000+) on the device -- no need to figure out ahead of time what I'll be interested in. It fits conveniently in the inner lapel pocket of my leather. Of course this prevents me from changing tunes while I'm riding, but they also sell a device that is basically a wired remote control I could probably run down my sleeve... I don't know -- for me, it's probably better not to monkey with this while riding. Fortunately I like picking an artist and plowing through several albums.

YMMV.

Cheers, Kent

 

[sgoat]

Okay guys, I'm wadin' into this on board music thing for the first time in over 40+ years of riding. Got an XM Roady II, Hoon Hardware mnt., and am expecting my AmpliRider any day now. I've even drawn up a wiring diagram to tie everything together. The only item I've yet to purchase is the earphones. It's pretty much down to the ER6's or ER6i's. Pretty close price wise. I've heard that the 6's are a bit more comfy due to their size, but the 6i's have a little better sound. True? False? Chime in with your opinions! Thanks

 

[Hambone]

The 6is come with a 3 band silicone tip,and the 6s come with a two band.Therefore the 6is need to go a little deeper in the canal.(jump on that perves).You can order and use either tips.The three band tips stay put better when putting on the helmet.I haven't tried the foam tips as the silicones work great for me.

The 6is do sound a little better.They seem to have a little better bass response.It is a small difference.I bought the ER-6 and purchased the ER-6i later for the better sound.

I tried the Chatterbox speakers,the Koss buds,the Sony Fontopia buds before getting the Etymotics.They blow the others away!