Okay... I'm an idiot

[jmt391]

Hey guys, so first off, I read the headphone FAQ and now I feel like an idiot because I own a pair of $100 bose in-ear headphones. They seem great to me, but then again I came from a few years of using the ipod ear buds so I'm sure anything would've sounded good, but apparently I could've blown $100 on something MUCH better.

So, before I go asking which models are good and blah blah, I need to ask: where do I listen to all of them? Before I make an investment I a) need some comparisons because I obviously made that mistake with this purchase and b) have to find out what to do with the headphones I have now.

I use them for my IPOD, so they have to be IEM for portability and have great quality sound for enjoyability. I'm willing to spend about $100 as you see, especially if it's a smart $100. Where do I start with all of this?

[Tsnowflake]

i'm personally a huge fan of creative's ep-630s for my ipod
great sound quality and you can find them for < $40 if you want to save some money

not sure what to compare them to though...

[jmt391]

Well I'd just need to compare them to the BOSE ones I currently have. I need to know WHERE I can go that will let me listen to the headphones before I buy, or has a return policy good enough so I can use them before deciding.

Another random question: How much does file format influence sound quality on an IPOD? I'm currently experimenting with .AIFF and .MP3 (using river past audio CD ripper) and I can't tell the difference. Keep in mind I am using onboard sound with logitech x-230 2.1 speakers. I Understand my ears aren't trained and whatnot, but I would like them to be.

[chadrh]

I've been using a pair of Livewires (http://www.livewiresforyou.com/index.php). I got a few months ago. They're way better than the Shure earbuds I was using before and light years beyond the bose. Unfortunately they're custom made so there's no such thing as listening before you buy.

[jmt391]

Those look really nice, but I'm not willing to spend $250 on a pair of headphones for my ipod. Nice design on them though.

[Dapper Dan]

guitar center had an awesome deal the reg. $200 shure's were on sale for 59.99 for a few days ... to me the best headphones i've ever owned (including those bose pos's) were the headphones i got when i ordered my laptop. free from dell. however i lost them a few months back =( .... LUCKILY i found a website that sells them for like 9 bucks. pm me for details if you want. Creative Labs EP-630 Noise Cancelling Earbuds were the name of them.

[chadrh]

Those look really nice, but I'm not willing to spend $250 on a pair of headphones for my ipod. Nice design on them though.

They sound better than they look. The custom fit really blocks out ambient noise. If you'd like something in the <$100 range that sound good check out the Ultimate Ears Super Fi 3. Good sound for the money. I had a pair for a long time and it's hard to beat their bang for the buck. You can get them on Amazon for around $75.

Personally I prefer in ear monitors that seal well over "noise canceling" any day. With the right tips a good IEM will block more noise than active noise canceling headphones will and will sound much better as well.

If you really want to overwhelm yourself with info and recommendations on monitors check out Head-Fi (http://www.head-fi.org/forums/). There's a ridiculous amount of info there. I'm a relative ignoramus on monitors when compared to most of the other members.

[Smitty209]

Westone um1's are the best single driver buds I have ever used. They can be had usually for about a hundred bucks. I picked mine up from an ebay store for 60.