The IEM (in ear monitors) Bible thread

[dave_bass5]

1 hour ago, gorandelac said:

Hey I'm just about to get away from my trusty old Shure 215, so thinking of these... what would you suggest.

 

KZ ZS10 PRO X

KZ AS16 Pro

KZ AS10

 

 

Easy to order them all from Amazon and send back the two you don’t like. 

I think you need to clarify why you are changing, what you are looking for etc.  

 

You have probably seen mention of all these so you can gather quite a bit of info from previous posts. No one can tell you what you should get without much more info. Even then, the ideal one on paper may not be the best one as fit and comfort also make a big difference. 

[gorandelac]

1 hour ago, dave_bass5 said:

Easy to order them all from Amazon and send back the two you don’t like. 

I think you need to clarify why you are changing, what you are looking for etc.  

 

You have probably seen mention of all these so you can gather quite a bit of info from previous posts. No one can tell you what you should get without much more info. Even then, the ideal one on paper may not be the best one as fit and comfort also make a big difference. 

I tried KZ from my drummer, not sure if he has ZS10 or some other, but when I tried them and what I read was that they sound way better, specially for bass players. So wanna try by having them.

 

[Greg Edwards69]

3 hours ago, gorandelac said:

Hey I'm just about to get away from my trusty old Shure 215, so thinking of these... what would you suggest.

 

KZ ZS10 PRO X

KZ AS16 Pro

KZ AS10

 

 

I can only comment on the ZS10 Pro X (that I recently purchased). They're good sounding, clear with proper bass extension that doesn't muddy up the midrange. They are however ever so slightly bright in the top end. Nothing aggressive, but you might not be used to that sort of bright treble. As ever, getting a good seal is crucial, and my Comply foam tips work wonders.

 

Now if I could get the same tone as my ATH-M50x headphones give me in an IEM I would be very happy!

[SimBass]

On 02/08/2023 at 14:15, SimBass said:

When my Shure 425s broke about 6 months ago I went on my own 'exploration' of cheap IEM. Here are my 'reviews' from using as IEM (not recreational music listening).

 

KZ ZS10 Pro X: (4BA+1DD) (£30 Aliexpress) A big improvement over my 425s but an 'intolerable to my ears' harshness at 8kHz. My wife loves them for vocals but I can't use them for long periods

TINHIFI T3 Pro: (1DD) (£52 Aliexpress) Better and flatter than the ZS10 and the Shures but not quite the clarity of sound stage from the multi driver units.

KZ AS16 Pro: (8BA) (£40 Aliexpress) These are my go to, all the clarity of the ZS10 but without the 'V shape' or '8kHz harsh' (only down side is they are big) - the fact that 'https://crinacle.com/rankings/iems/' gives these the same 'V-shape harshness' description as ZS10, is frankly bonkers (unless the 'Pro' really makes that much difference?) They are drastically different and are way flatter

 

My conclusion
KZ AS16 Pro are my go to and my recommendation, the only down side is thate are big and bulky and less comfy than Shures or T3 Pro. I love these and they have changed the way I do on stage monitoring

TINHIFI T3 Pro are my permanant backup in my gig bag and I occasionally put them in if I know have a long day of IEM since they are just so comfy

KZ ZS10 Pro: Personally I would pay the extra for something with less harshness (although I'm more sensitive to that than some since my wife loves these for singing)

 

I'm really happy with the AS16 and now have no 'itch' for custom moulds, even though I know they may well be better I can't justify the enormous increase in cost over the £40 ones that I now love

 

8 hours ago, gorandelac said:

Hey I'm just about to get away from my trusty old Shure 215, so thinking of these... what would you suggest.

 

KZ ZS10 PRO X

KZ AS16 Pro

KZ AS10

 

 

There's my thoughts - not tried AS10

[francisabear]

Hi all - please see the attached images, someone is selling these Westone IEMs but they don't know any more about them

 

Are you able to tell the model from these pics? I assume they are the UM2 but not sure...

 

I'm thinking of switching from my Shure 215s to Westone - does anyone have experience of this? Thanks 

[Muzz]

On 13/08/2023 at 22:41, markbunney said:

Had my first gig with IEMs last night, I was using KZ ZS10 Pro X which I picked up for £40.

 

it was a positive first experience using them, and a revelation to be able to hear our lead guitarist so clearly as he is the opposite side of the stage to me. Vocals were distorting quite a bit, but I think that can be fixed as we get more used to the setup and mixer etc.

 

I hate using cables, and so managed to make myself a DIY wireless kit using a Behringer P2 and a Lekato wireless mic 5.8ghz set. It worked just fine, and I didn’t experience any drop outs or pairing issues. I was also using my Boss WL20 on 2.4 ghz, we have a digital desk on 2.4, one of the guitarists has a 2.4 wireless and a gear for music wireless IEM set, so plenty going on but all worked well.

 

I was keen to try IEMs but didn’t want to spend a fortune if it turned out it wasn’t for me, overall I was happy with everything  I had. The P2 and Lekato combo felt quite heavy in my hand, but I didn’t really notice it clipped on my belt, and it was still preferable to a cable. Only downside was the receiver didn’t lock into the P2 XLR but it didn’t ever feel like it would disconnect.

I picked up exactly this setup last week, and after a couple of gigs I can confirm it's the best bang for buck I've come across...yeah, it's a biggish unit, but it clips to the back of my strap just fine, and works a treat. 👍

[police squad]

2 hours ago, Muzz said:

I picked up exactly this setup last week, and after a couple of gigs I can confirm it's the best bang for buck I've come across...yeah, it's a biggish unit, but it clips to the back of my strap just fine, and works a treat. 👍

I take it this is working in mono?

[police squad]

Has anyone tried the Lekato MS-1. I know it's 2.4 but it's cheap and maybe worth a go

[Happy Jack]

 

[dave_bass5]

Had another great night with the IE400’s. So glad I stumbled on these before going all out with customs. Its so nice not to have to keep fiddling with my right ear.

 

One thing id like to ask, how much noise isolation would customs give over memory foam tips that fill the ear entrance? I find im getting enough, and its nice that i can still have a conversation with them in (anlthough its hard to tell if thats from the live mics on stage picking some of the other person up). Are customs more isolating? Its hard to judge as some people say the world disappears once they have them in, but i really cant imagine thats 100% true. 

[EBS_freak]

1 minute ago, dave_bass5 said:

Had another great night with the IE400’s. So glad I stumbled on these before going all out with customs. Its so nice not to have to keep fiddling with my right ear.

 

One thing id like to ask, how much noise isolation would customs give over memory foam tips that fill the ear entrance? I find im getting enough, and its nice that i can still have a conversation with them in (anlthough its hard to tell if thats from the live mics on stage picking some of the other person up). Are customs more isolating? Its hard to judge as some people say the world disappears once they have them in, but i really cant imagine thats 100% true. 

I find them more isolating than tips still, due to the higher volume of density of material in your ear canal. (e.g. customs tend to have a much larger solid amount of acrylic or silicone in the ear canal compared to tips). The best way to approximate what customs sound like in terms of isolation, is to put your fingers into your ears as deep as you can - it's like that (even to the point where if you talk you can hear it resonate in your head).

[police squad]

I've stumbled across this stereo wireless. How do we know if its any good?

https://phenyxpro.com/es/products/ptm-10?variant=44218305183981

 

[EBS_freak]

4 minutes ago, police squad said:

I've stumbled across this stereo wireless. How do we know if its any good?

https://phenyxpro.com/es/products/ptm-10?variant=44218305183981

 

Whether it is or it isn't, it isn't available in the UK shared mic license of free for all license bands.

[EBS_freak]

But this one is. (I thought the Phenyx looked familiar)

 

https://www.gear4music.com/PA-DJ-and-Lighting/SubZero-SZ-IM2-Stereo-In-Ear-Monitoring-System/2D74

 

So looks like a generic rebrand exercise in play. Proceed with caution!

[police squad]

28 minutes ago, EBS_freak said:

But this one is. (I thought the Phenyx looked familiar)

 

https://www.gear4music.com/PA-DJ-and-Lighting/SubZero-SZ-IM2-Stereo-In-Ear-Monitoring-System/2D74

 

So looks like a generic rebrand exercise in play. Proceed with caution!

does that mean, 'don't bother, it's not very good'

[dave_bass5]

47 minutes ago, EBS_freak said:

But this one is. (I thought the Phenyx looked familiar)

 

https://www.gear4music.com/PA-DJ-and-Lighting/SubZero-SZ-IM2-Stereo-In-Ear-Monitoring-System/2D74

 

So looks like a generic rebrand exercise in play. Proceed with caution!

My singer has this (or at least a variation on it from G4M a few years ago).
It was a bit unreliable, but now one of our guitarists has it. He has no issue with it so far. Just running it’ mono. I keep meaning to try out the stereo part of it. 

[paul_5]

Just got some sonic foam tips for my zs10s - much better now.

[EBS_freak]

43 minutes ago, police squad said:

does that mean, 'don't bother, it's not very good'

I guess it means when it comes to products marketed in this way, the results often match the price point, not what you would wish for. There are however, some exceptions. In comparison, Sennheiser, Shure and Lectrosonics cost what they do, because they perform exceptionally well.

Edited September 6, 2023 by EBS_freak

[police squad]

6 minutes ago, EBS_freak said:

I guess it means when it comes to products marketed in this way, the results often match the price point, not what you would wish for. There are however, some exceptions. In comparison, Sennheiser, Shure and Lectrosonics cost what they do, because they perform exceptionally well.

agreed. My touring Americana band leader is talking to a contact at Sennheiser about using their gear.

Ultimately I'll go that way I think.

[Phil Starr]

If @EBS_freak is happy could we have this moved to the new PA section please and then Pinned 

[markbunney]

19 hours ago, paul_5 said:

Just got some sonic foam tips for my zs10s - much better now.

Where did you get them from please?

I was looking to get some for my ZS10 Pro but couldn't figure out tips would fit them.

[EBS_freak]

3 hours ago, Phil Starr said:

If @EBS_freak is happy could we have this moved to the new PA section please and then Pinned 

I wouldn't say IEMs are exclusively PA but I'm not really bothered where it sits.

[paul_5]

3 hours ago, markbunney said:

Where did you get them from please?

I was looking to get some for my ZS10 Pro but couldn't figure out tips would fit them.

Here's the compatibility table for the Sonicfoam tips - I got them from Amazon. SF1s seem to fit all of the KZ range.

 

 

 

[dmc79]

For Shure IEM users: Is there a knack to removing the earpieces from the cable without breaking them? I feel a bit silly admitting this (but I really don't think I was being heavy-handed). . . as the left earpiece of my SE215s was cutting out frequently for a while, and getting worse, I decided to remove it, with the idea of putting one on from a spare set at church. As I gently squeezed, twisted & pulled the detachable earpiece away from the cable, the 2 plastic halves separated and kind of snapped, with bits flying out. If my earpiece wasn't broken already, it certainly was now! Fortunately church provided a new set, I mean I guess these things have a shelf life, and I'd used them regularly for 4 years or more anyway. Something I still want to do though is try out all the different sizes of earpiece, to really see which works best for me.

 

So I thought I'd have a go with the remaining earpiece of the broken set. The exact same thing happened. As I gripped the black foam sleeve (which turned to mush as I did so), to pull it off the earpiece (trying to be even more careful this time), the clear earpiece just broke apart. So, both earpieces broken. But at least I have a spare cable now! The thing is, now I'm scared to pull the black foam sleeves off the new set in case it happens again, yet I could really do with fitting smaller sleeves on them. It's frustrating that these things are so delicate. So, what is they key to removing the black foam sleeves (or whatever your chosen sleeve is) from the earpieces, and removing the earpieces from the cables on Shure SE215s, without breaking them?! 

 

Also, as I like the sound of the SE215, but am not keen on the chunky ear loop part of cable when listening in bed, I've just bought some Shure SE112 earphones (solely for listening to music, not for playing bass through), I haven't read up on this yet but I presume it's just the grey silicone earbuds that come with them, that fit this model. I even feel scared to pull those off to try the different sizes! Thanks. Oh, and please tell me that someone else has broken an earpiece trying to take one off the cable, or take a sleeve off an earpiece! 

 

[markbunney]

2 hours ago, paul_5 said:

Here's the compatibility table for the Sonicfoam tips - I got them from Amazon. SF1s seem to fit all of the KZ range.

 

 

 

Thanks!