EP-630 or EP-830?

[bloggerbloggerplasma]

Hello..I am looking to buy a good pair of IEM's and came across the ep-630 and ep-830, two variants from Creative.I would like to know which one is better,in terms of sound quality(bass,mids,highs,soundstage).I read a lot of reviews,half of which said the ep-630's were better than the 830's and the other half otherwise.
The source is a Creative Zen portable mp4 player.My collection is entirely mp3(320kbps). I am from India and listen to mostly Indian film soundtracks(A.R.Rahman's,to be precise.So most of my music is like Slumdog Millionaire's soundtrack). I am looking for good isolation and good bass(with no compromise in treble).
Thanks

[desiibond]

Forget about both and get Sony MDR-EX35LP

[k4ce]

i wud go for ep630

[j1n M@tt]

MDR-EX35 is better than EP630 and 830

[desiibond]

also, there are couple of Sennheiser's earphones that are better than EP-x30

[j1n M@tt]

^^but will cost above 3.5k

[desiibond]

There was one model right? CX-100 something which was avialable for some 1.5k. not remembering the model number.

[j1n M@tt]

Sennheiser entry level models cost a premium price b'coz of their brand value, not due to high performance. So I bet MDR-EX35 will be better than CX-series. Its the same with HD201...MDR-series headphones and Philips SHP2xxx series is always better than that, even though Sennheiser fans would disagree this.

[george101]

my vote goes for Sony MDR-EX32

check this out

[bloggerbloggerplasma]

Thanks a lot for the suggestions!
I haven't come across the Sony MDR EX- series so far. Sony's site lists the prices between 1090-1300 so price is ok. I would opt between the Ex-35, Ex-33 or and the Ex-32. I see no difference between the 35 and 33 in the comparison chart. Which is better? And are all 3 same when it comes to the sound quality?

[Tamoghno]

I owned ep630 , used 830. The difference is not very noticeable unless you're in a very very quite place and using very high quality cd rip. I would never ever buy cheap /midrange sony . Ex35 sucks in midrange and sounds artificial .My vote goes for senn. If you find at right place you may get decent sennheiser well under 2k which'll blow away sony.

If you need the best sound in that range , go for philips shp2700 excellent clear sound with very very balanced treble and midrange. But they aren't portable enough and made for indoor use only.

[bloggerbloggerplasma]

Originally Posted by Tamoghno

I owned ep630 , used 830. The difference is not very noticeable unless you're in a very very quite place and using very high quality cd rip. I would never ever buy cheap /midrange sony . Ex35 sucks in midrange and sounds artificial .My vote goes for senn. If you find at right place you may get decent sennheiser well under 2k which'll blow away sony.

If you need the best sound in that range , go for philips shp2700 excellent clear sound with very very balanced treble and midrange. But they aren't portable enough and made for indoor use only.

I was looking for the Sennheiser as well, but a good pair costs around 2.2k..As my budget is a max of 1.3k, I've to stick to models like the ep-830.
I've heard about the shp2700, but I travel a lot so that option won't suit me.
My friend has just bought a Dell lappy, and he's got a ep-830 with it.I'll test it out today and post the results.
Thanks for the suggestions.

[utsav]

Sennheiser blows the competition away. They seriously rock big time . The CXL 400 i own beats ep630 by a huge margin in performance and also price .ep630 costs 800bucks while sennheiser CXL400 costs 4.8k nothing beats ep630 in sub 1k range iem's . So make your decision wisely. Acc to me the sony ex35 is ur best bet

[bloggerbloggerplasma]

Originally Posted by utsav

Sennheiser blows the competition away. They seriously rock big time . The CXL 400 i own beats ep630 by a huge margin in performance and also price .ep630 costs 800bucks while sennheiser CXL400 costs 4.8k nothing beats ep630 in sub 1k range iem's . So make your decision wisely. Acc to me the sony ex35 is ur best bet

Yup I know. Sennheiser is one of the high-end players in the audiophile world. 4.2k?? That's light years away from my budget!
BTW,I tried out the earphones that came with a Dell laptop a friend bought. I think they were the ep-630(or the ep-830). The sound quality was superb, the isolation was near perfect. But they seriously lack bass big time. I was looking forward to buy something like Sony's HPM-82 walkman IEM(which comes along with Sony walkman mobile phones). Listening to music with the HPM-82 is like having a subwoofer inside your head. The ep-630/830 was nothing compared to the HPM-82 in terms of bass. I only hop that the Ex 35 has bass like the HPM-82.

EDIT: I later realised that I hadn't gotten a good seal so thats why the bass was probably low.

[uppalpankaj]

EP-630

[utsav]

Originally Posted by bloggerbloggerplasma

Yup I know. Sennheiser is one of the high-end players in the audiophile world. 4.2k?? That's light years away from my budget!
BTW,I tried out the earphones that came with a Dell laptop a friend bought. I think they were the ep-630(or the ep-830). The sound quality was superb, the isolation was near perfect. But they seriously lack bass big time. I was looking forward to buy something like Sony's HPM-82 walkman IEM(which comes along with Sony walkman mobile phones). Listening to music with the HPM-82 is like having a subwoofer inside your head. The ep-630/830 was nothing compared to the HPM-82 in terms of bass. I only hop that the Ex 35 has bass like the HPM-82.

Actually those dell laptop earphone is ep630 and maybe the sound output wasnt configured properly thats y you didnt felt the bass of ep630. EP630 is known for its deep bass. Its really very high.

[bloggerbloggerplasma]

Originally Posted by utsav

Actually those dell laptop earphone is ep630 and maybe the sound output wasnt configured properly thats y you didnt felt the bass of ep630. EP630 is known for its deep bass. Its really very high.

But I was using my Zen to test it. I'm pretty sure there was nothing wrong with the settings. I borrowed the HPM sony walkman earphones shortly after that, and the effect was..mindblowing as usual. The songs I used for testing were : Liquid Dance(Slumdog Millionaire) , I Stand Alone(Godsmack), Aye Udi Udi(Saathiya)- all 320kbps mp3.
Have you by any chance used the IEM's that come with Sony walkman mobile phones like W810i or W910i?

[VD17]

^ I'm surprised as well, though. Cause when it comes to bass, the EP630s are really very good. The same subwoofer-in-your-head analogy, i'd say. There's a chance that the IEMs your friend got from Dell are defective. The first pair i got died on me in 8 months, although it was used pretty roughly. The first replacement they sent got fudged in 2 weeks and now i am finally using the second replacement pair Dell sent me. These ones are good and quality is as consistent as my original ones.

[bloggerbloggerplasma]

Originally Posted by VD17

^ I'm surprised as well, though. Cause when it comes to bass, the EP630s are really very good. The same subwoofer-in-your-head analogy, i'd say. There's a chance that the IEMs your friend got from Dell are defective. The first pair i got died on me in 8 months, although it was used pretty roughly. The first replacement they sent got fudged in 2 weeks and now i am finally using the second replacement pair Dell sent me. These ones are good and quality is as consistent as my original ones.

That could be a possibility. I seriously wish I get another pair to test. If the bass is alright, I'd go ahead and get one. The MDR_EX35 looks good, but there's no way to know about its bass.
BTW, if the EP-630 are that prone to damage, is it really worth buying?

[uppalpankaj]

The EP-630 is really gud..I bought myself a Dell Studio Laptop recently with which I got an EP-630. They r really wow.

[utsav]

Originally Posted by bloggerbloggerplasma

That could be a possibility. I seriously wish I get another pair to test. If the bass is alright, I'd go ahead and get one. The MDR_EX35 looks good, but there's no way to know about its bass.
BTW, if the EP-630 are that prone to damage, is it really worth buying?

Am using the ep630 from the last 18 months very roughly and they r working perfectly fine. You get 1 year warranty too so y worry? And i guess you r not expecting it to work lifetime

[bloggerbloggerplasma]

Originally Posted by uppalpankaj

The EP-630 is really gud..I bought myself a Dell Studio Laptop recently with which I got an EP-630. They r really wow.

Goo to hear that. I am going to try out another pair and see if the bass rocks.

Originally Posted by utsav

Am using the ep630 from the last 18 months very roughly and they r working perfectly fine. You get 1 year warranty too so y worry? And i guess you r not expecting it to work lifetime

Of course not. I'd be happy if they last for 2 years,considering the rough conditions I tend to put them in

[mayanksahni]

Go for ep630

[VD17]

well, i wouldn't say that the EP's are very prone to damage... one of the most frequent way i use it is to put it on and then wear a helmet so that i can listen to music while riding... i think the first failure was cause because of the helmet... but the second one was simply of inferior build. But anyway, you're getting a warranty. So if its inferior build, you can replace it. Btw, if its portable music players then i suggest you have a look at ep-635 as well... same quality but the cable is more suited for outdoor use...

[bloggerbloggerplasma]

Originally Posted by VD17

well, i wouldn't say that the EP's are very prone to damage... one of the most frequent way i use it is to put it on and then wear a helmet so that i can listen to music while riding... i think the first failure was cause because of the helmet... but the second one was simply of inferior build. But anyway, you're getting a warranty. So if its inferior build, you can replace it. Btw, if its portable music players then i suggest you have a look at ep-635 as well... same quality but the cable is more suited for outdoor use...

I see.. However I don tend to use it while riding a bike..I travel 100 kms a day by bus, so probably the only way I can expose it to damage is by crumpling the IEMs inside my pocket. Durability is indeed an important factor. I think IEMs are more durable than street-wear earphones. I had a Creative EP-240 and Sennheisser MX-460; in both, I lost the buds that cover the earphones and that resulted in loss of bass. Thats way I decided to go for an IEM. I ll give some serious thought to the EP-630,635 and Sony's MDR-EX35. I'd love it if someone could compare the bass of the EX35 with the Sony walkman earphones(the HPM-82 that comes with their mobile phones).

[themadman]

ep630 is great I've been using them for a few months already. The only minus point is(well if you consider it a minus) that when you walk along the road with them on and a motorbike is honking you dont hear it. When I am in the underground metro I dont hear the metro at all. It can be a little dangerous thats all.

[bloggerbloggerplasma]

Originally Posted by themadman

ep630 is great I've been using them for a few months already. The only minus point is(well if you consider it a minus) that when you walk along the road with them on and a motorbike is honking you dont hear it. When I am in the underground metro I dont hear the metro at all. It can be a little dangerous thats all.

Thats definitely not a minus for me! Any idea how much the Ep 630 costs?

[Tamoghno]

Around 800+ shipping in most online store. And ep830 around 1100. Check out techenclave. There are some really nice earphone on sale .

[bloggerbloggerplasma]

Originally Posted by Tamoghno

Around 800+ shipping in most online store. And ep830 around 1100. Check out techenclave. There are some really nice earphone on sale .

Both'd fit in nicely with my budget. Yup I found several online traders at Techenclave. However, as I live in chennai, I'll make a trip to Richie street first;I can save the shipping charges. I still haven't decided between the ep-630/ep-830/mdr-ex35 though. I'll test out all 3 before making a purchase.Think I'll most probably go for the ep-830 though. I ll post again once I ve made my purchase.Thanks a lot guys for all your inputs,they have been invaluable!

[uppalpankaj]

Whatever u buy do tell us ur hands on experience after using them...