Earbuds / Headphones choice

[iceman]

Hi guys

Just wondering what your preferred choice of earbuds/headphones are for your portable mp3 players.

In particular i'm interested in hearing from people who exercise (eg: jogging) while listening to music.

I'm having trouble finding earphones/earbuds that I like - that feel comfortable and that stay in place while jogging around (especially when you get sweaty).
I had some clip over the ears ones that seemed pretty good from memory but they broke a while ago. The current ear buds i'm using just don't stay in my ears.

I also want something that can clip the cord to my shirt so the cord doesn't fling around side to side while i'm jogging (and contributes to pulling them out of my ears).

Cheers

[TrevorW]

The only ones that you may get that will clip to your shirt more suitable for mobile phones

http://www.sennheiser.com/sennheiser/home_en.nsf/root/private_headphones_portable

I prefer the buds myself less cumbersome and if you get ones with small buds will fit snuggly

Cheers

[Omaroo]

My younger bro uses Shure E2c earphones when he goes jogging Mike. They're designed for musos and stage hands, and are pretty good apparently. Bit pricey depending where you get them. They are an in-ear design, but are slimmer than most average ones and hold in place better so I believe. They have been discontinued by Shure just recently, but they have others.

http://store.shure.com/store/shure/DisplayCategoryProductListPage/categoryID.12165500

Some of them accept their triple-flange silicone earbuds which are pretty good at stayng where they were put.

[Astro78]

Second the Sure brand but be careful if you choose the beat cancelling one's (forget the proper name) as can seriously block out all other noise/cars etc. Perfect for planes but

[dpastern]

mmm, I can't offer any suggestions for jogging and mp3 players. I suspect that headphones would not sit very well with the movement and earbud types are probably better suited for that purpose.

If you don't mind headphones, then Sennheiser's PX100 units are very good, nothing better at the price point (just over a hundred dollars from my memory). I find that ear buds are very uncomfortable and I hate using them. I prefer open, supra-aural style headphones. This page explains what I'm talking about:

http://headphones.com.au/FAQ/#9

they sell all sorts of headphones online, not sure how good their service is.

I use the aforementioned Sennheiser PX100 units for my mp3 player, and they are *very* good imho. I use Sennheiser HD540 gold references at home (Sennheiser's top of the range headphones from the late 80s and NOT cheap, retailing for over a grand at the time). If I was going to buy headphones again, I'd be considering the Grado SR325is, or possibly the reference series of units:

http://www.audiophile.com.au/product_grado.html

A word of warning - in the ear style buds are VERY dangerous. They channel all of the sound energy into the ear canal. For this reason alone, they should be banned imho. Most audiologists will agree with me hear - we're in for a large wave of adult deafness in the next 20-30 years because of these style of headphones. The ear is designed to have sound hit the pinna, and it helps distribute the various frequencies into the ear canal.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinna_(anatomy) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinna_%28anatomy%29)

http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/12/29/0055249

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/12/20/electric_earbuds/

Dave

edit: take good care of those ears Mike - when you lose your hearing it's not easily gotten back. I spent my late teens and mid 20s listening to music at far too high volumes and now I'm paying for it with ringing in my ears. I also had a perforated ear drum in my right ear, which has resulted in a 50% loss of hearing at around 5khz (which does affect talking to people on my Right hand side). Even going on an airplane now is very painful for me as my Right ear doesn't decompress properly anymore. The last time I ended up being in excruciating pain, and lost hearing in my Right ear totally for around 36 hours after landing. Was not fun...

another thought about in ear buds - bacteria. Yes, fungal and bacterial infections will increasingly happen with these styles of units. There's plenty of information on the web, go research!

[sheeny]

I have some Sennheiser ones, can't remmber the model though. They are the slim ones that go into your ear canal rather than the standard buds that jam into your outer ear and fall out easily. One of the best $80 I've spent:thumbsup:. I don't believe I'd have any problem with them falling out while jogging... the cables are very light.

Al.

[mithrandir]

Like Dave, I also can't stand the ear buds. I have the Senheisser PX200 model and they are very comfortable for extended listening.

The closest I ever get to ear buds are my Bluetooth earpieces.

[dpastern]

I've heard good things about the PX200, bass is apparently better - deeper and more accurate and articulated. My PX100 units are falling apart - the foam has rotted away, and the cables outer sheath has been cut by the folding arms. Nearly time for a replacement. I'm tempted on the Grado SR60i, which has *very* good reviews, but it's bigger and heavier than the PX100 units.

It must be hard to get decent options if you're playing sport etc, especially something like jogging. Do modern mp3 players have issues with shaking, or is that a thing of the past? I presume the SSD players are not worried by shaking?

Dave

[troypiggo]

If you do choose the wrong pair and end up with hearing problems, my wife is an audiologist! We'll have you patched up and hearing again in no time! :thumbsup: :lol:

Actually, she'd kill me for saying stuff like that, even joking. :scared3:

[dpastern]

Sorry, Troy, what did you say, I couldn't hear you :P

Dave

[troypiggo]

You must be blind, not deaf. Optometrists are over that way ---->

[iceman]

Thanks for your suggestions.

I ended up going with some SkullCandy ones that clip over the ears:
http://www.skullcandy.com/shop/chops-black-chrome.html

I didn't want to spend too much money, and these were $44.95 from JB Hifi.

They feel good - I can still hear stuff around me (important when jogging!) and most importantly they don't fall off.

I got a clip off my old phone earphones that can hold the cord and clip onto my shirt, so the cord doesn't swing about and get caught on stuff.

I think i'm set now.

Cheers

[iceman]

No, you're right. The SSD devices don't have any problem with shaking etc.

I remember that issue with my old CD walkman LOL!

[dpastern]

Looks a good choice Mike. And yes, it's important to be able to still hear your surroundings - safety first.

My mp3 player is still a hdd based one (Creative Zen M60). I'll eventually get a iTouch probably...

Dave

[gary]

Stereocilia are the bundles of hair like fibers in the ear that pick up mechanical
vibrations and via their associated cells convert them to electrical energy
which the brain then perceives as sound. They are incredibly tiny, in the order of 5
microns in length.

The bad news is that in mammals, once damaged, they don't regenerate.

Over a life time, they deteriorate. The outer ones, which are involved in high-frequency
hearing, tend to go first.

Through mechanisms not entirely understood, the auditory cortex can try and
compensate and turns up the gain and in some individuals they perceive a
constant ringing, referred to as tinnitus. Since the advent of MRI, researchers
have shown that tinnitus originates within the brain.

Now that fun gadgets such as MP3 players have become ubiquitous, some
professionals have suggested that unfortunately we will see a rise in the number of
individuals who suffer from hearing loss and tinnitus, as the generation
of people who adopted them begin to age.

Since tinnitus and hearing loss can be permanent, non-repairable conditions,
turning down the volume is good advice. :thumbsup: