The Joy of Listening

I own 4 Ipods, mostly due to being suckered into buying the latest technology when available. I listen to them mostly when working out or when on an airplane. Will post later about what I listen to, but the music ranges from rap to rock to country to spiritual. Podcasts range from sports to news to health to sermons. And, on my Ipod touch, I watch movies and a few select TV shows (Saving Grace, set in my birthplace, Oklahoma City).

I have tried a variety of headphones. I use only the earbud style. I find the over ear style to be too large to carry around and not really comfortable when working out.

My current favorites are Klipsch. I have 3 models: Custom 1, Custom 3, and X-5. All can be purchased on Amazon or EBay for less than $200. The Custom 3, with multiple drivers and the best response across the spectrum, are awesome. Highly recommend.

For cheap sets, I recommend either the Skull Kandy Ink'd Buds (Target) or the VModa Bass Frequency (Best Buy or Amazon). Both are less than $30. They both provide good bass, but are a little tinny on the higher frequencies. For use while exercising, though, they sound great. The VModa's in particular sound much better to me than the better known and pricier ($100) VModa Vibes.

All of the above buds include flexible tips in several sizes. The buds are designed to insert part way into the ear and thus provide "noise isolation", not "noise cancellation" as with the over the ear styles. In order to get the best sound, you have to experiment with the various sizes of tips and use a set that seals as tight as possible to your ear.

I have tried the Bose in-ear buds. They sound awesome, but are not designed to provide a seal to keep out ambient noise. So, for the cost of $100, I prefer the Klipsch Custom 1's.

I have also tried the low end Shures (Ec3) and Etymotics (ER6). The Shures never felt comfortable; during extending listening they just plain hurt. I bought the Etymotics at B&H in NY for $90, intending to then take them to an audiologist for custom fit Sensaphonics ear molds. But, the ER6's sounded awful; very thin and tinny on the highs and very flat on the lows.

Comply Foam sells soft, pliable ear tips that are designed to be compressed by rolling between your fingers before insertion. They then expand to fill the space. Very comfortable and pretty cheap ($12 or so for a set of 3). Have used with a set of Apple in-ear phones (not the standard ones that come with an IPod) and the JBuds J2. They improved comfort and sound quality immensely.

It's not easy to find the perfect headphones. Fit and sound quality are highly individualistic, so ordering online is alway somewhat of a crap shoot. Buying in a store isn't much better since retailers rarely allow you to try before you buy.

Many airports have a store called Airport Wireless. They have demos of most of the high-end buds; I have idled away excess wait time on several occasions in their store in Newark. Have never felt ostrasized for trying and not buying. The Bose company stores also will demo all of their products, including the in-ear model.