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Earbuds for my kid


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My 14 yr old daughter asked me, as a stocking stuffer, for a pair of earbuds (for her "i-whatever it is" playback device). I'm not going going to buy her a high end pair of Spectrasonics (for the reason of both cost and the probablility of her loosing them :-).

She has pretty good ears and I thought I'd introduce her to a step up in audio quality over the standard cheapo stuff on the market (something semi-pro). I did want something with different sized, replacable, memory foam inserts. I'm thinking under $50.

Any suggestions? I've looked at Yamaha & Allen & heath so far. Anybody have any favorites?

Thanks

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Quote Originally Posted by JRBLE View Post
I thought I'd introduce her to a step up in audio quality
Buy her a turntable! smile.gif

I have and bought my daughter a pair of the Yamaha's and we both liked them. I'd been flying with my Shures and was really afraid of losing them and my daughter was notorious for losing and/or destroying things but she's gotten much better the last couple of years so she convinced me (the complete pushover) to let her spend a little money for a better pair.
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Klipsch S4's are some of the best ear buds I have ever bought. They list at $80, but I think I paid ~$65 for my pair. The only thing I don't like about them is the relatively low (high?) gauge of the wires that makes them seem a bit delicate, but I haven't had any problems in their 2 years of life so far. You can even get them in iWhite to match the iWhatever.

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I looked at the Etymotic stuff and it looks interesting but nothing in my price range. I'll look at the M-Audio ones as I really like that company (usualy bang for buck is high). I'll also look into the Klipsch ears as I've seen good reviews elswhere. Shures low end buds start at well over $100 a pair (again to over budget for a forgetful teenager (I can't tell you how many phone & laptop chargers I've bought for her :-)).

The problem is, other than some high end Shure's & Sennheiser's (which were rentals), I don't get a chance to listen to IEMs that often. If I'm mixing monitors for IEMs, I like to have a pair so I can cue up the exact same mix as the artist if needed.

Tomm's got it right. Purely for listening pleasure, I way prefer AKG K240Ms or Grado headphones but for a kid it's a matter of portability.

Thanks for the suggestions.

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Quote Originally Posted by NUSound View Post
Klipsch S4's are some of the best ear buds I have ever bought. They list at $80, but I think I paid ~$65 for my pair. The only thing I don't like about them is the relatively low (high?) gauge of the wires that makes them seem a bit delicate, but I haven't had any problems in their 2 years of life so far. You can even get them in iWhite to match the iWhatever.
Coincidentally enough, last weekend I mixed from stage in my band and acid-tested the whole wired-IEM idea seriously on the cheap, using a couple of pairs of Klipsch s4 earbuds for me and the rhythm guitarist and the sound pretty amazing. Mind you, this was an experiment so I DID NOT go out and buy buds specifically designed for IEM's at least not yet. All I used was a couple of Rolls PM351 heaphone amplifiers, a couple of Elite Core Bodypacks and a couple of Elite Core Headphone Extension (1/4" to XLR to go from the headphone amp into the bodypack) as well as a mic stand clamp for the rolls PM351 for easy access and "more me" functionality.

There were some problems, mostly due to my inexperience, but the sound quality even without ANY kind of custom-fitted ear inserts or without any high end earbuds was absolutely amazing. It was crystal clear, and the Klipsch s4's are pretty decent at cancelling ambient noise, contrary to what I expected without any custom fitted inserts. I did use a pair of Comply Foam Tip Replacements for my buds, and I like them, but the rhythm player was fine with the stock silicon tips.

Oh and the Klipsch s4's are now only $49.99 on Amazon, which is an AMAZING price. I would actually wait if you want them, though, because last week, for the entire week, they were $39.99 which is sick. I am sure that if the OP watches Amazon that sometime before Christmas they will come back down to the $39.99, but even if they don't, fifty bucks for those buds is pretty awesome too!
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Quote Originally Posted by srp72ee

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I bought a pair of the M-Audio for my wife and daughter, no complaints from either (only referring to the ear buds)! wink.gif

 

Up until I got to the parenthesis, I thought "Damn, it doesn't matter what the price is. If they can do that, it's a great deal". thumb.gificon_lol.gif
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