In Ear Monitors

  • Hi all,


    Could anyone recommend decent, but cheap IEMs? I have no experience with them, but gig regularly and rehearse at least twice a week with different bands. We always have monitors at the moment and mixing desks to go FOH etc. I don't really know how 'cheap' they go and of course it's a relative term anyway, but any suggestions please? I did a quick search in the 'Other Gear' threads but nothing came up under 'IEMs'


    All the best


    Sam


  • "Decent" and "cheap" don't go together with wless in ear kit. If you need them to be reliable you'll need to go with the Sennheiser stuff or something of a similar level. For the actual in ears themselves you can get away with stuff at the lower end like the shure se215(what i use) or Westone um1.

  • For me, its importent that they got a good isolation and that i don't loose them while moving around.
    I got the Shure SE535 (399€) and the Shure SE315 (158€). I like both. Builtquality and comfort is the same, only sound differs.
    Shure SE215 (99€) are also same housing and cable only with different sound. didn't tried them yet but maybe they are good enough for you.

  • Hey, thx for replies guys. I understand that quality and cheapness don't really go together, but like most things in life, there needs to be a compromise somewhere. I can't really justify £400 or so on IEM. The 1964 ears seem to be around $400-$600 and that's just the ear monitors;) I'd love to get those as I bet they are fantastic! Thx for the advice all, think I got a lot of reading up to do about the actual wireless units etc too.

  • The Shure PSM200 is around $500 retail in the US. But they are not solidly made and only offer 8 preset channels or so to sync your transmitter and receiver and they tend to be a little noisy. That said, they do have a pretty easy setup where you plug a cable (not sure if it is only XLR) from your guitar rig or mic into the front and then another XLR out that goes to the board and then plug in a second feed that has the rest of the band and you can adjust the over all volume as well as your guitar volume in relationship to the second feed. Our bass player tried them for a while but finally went back to stage monitors and I went to a PSM900 which are solidly made and very clean but are twice the price.

  • At winter NAMM, this past January, I tried every IEM displayed - 6 different brands. Everyone was doing free ear molds at the show, so that cost wasn't a consideration (plus everyone had "show" discounts of varying amounts).


    I ended up with 1964 ears. Mine were above your budget at around $800 after discount, including options. I like the fact that they offer "soft" ear canals, as opposed to the hard plastic ones that most others had....they are very comfortable.


    There IS a pretty significant difference in sound between them all. Some are pretty mid-focused, some are very bass heavy (I didn't want that for guitar, IMO). I wanted balanced sound so that I could accurately place my guitar into the mix.


    The very top of the heap were the JH Audio IEMs....the 1964 Ears V6 Stage were a very close second, IMO.


    Another thing I wanted was extreme isolation. I can always dial in some ambient/stage sound; but I can't get rid of it if it's already there. That's where the custom ear-molds come in.


    Since getting them, I have found that I love using them. I can hear myself clearly - including nuances that were lost in the stage rumble - but not in the FOH (I've listened to live recordings). I play more confidently because I can hear the way I dig into notes, add vibrato, etc. Also, as our stage volume is approaching zero, the FOH is getting better and better (not everyone has IEMs yet).


    There are many who have purchased the Atomic CLRs as stage monitors...because they wanted the best representation of their actual guitar sound. At around $1,000, they aren't cheap. Unfortunately, the best sounding IEMs aren't cheap either...go watch the videos of the build process on the 1964 Ears website, and you'll understand a little better how much labor goes into making them (for any manufacturer). I chose to spend the big bucks on the IEMs rather than an expensive stage monitor that would just further destroy the FOH.


    I hope this helps. :)

  • Thanks Dlaut, that does put things into perspective tbh and it's a very good point that I'd probably be willing to spend more on a monitor solution than an in ear one. Thanks for relating the personal experience too, all very helpful:)

  • I will be criticized for this, but expensive and good sound quality are NOT mutually exclusive. I use wired IEMs since I have to have a cable for 13 pin guitar anyways. There are plenty of commercial earbuds that, to my ears, sound as good as the purpose built and generally overpriced IEM stuff. Guys, if you spent the money and like em, more power to you. I'm just making a personal observation. My mid priced Titan earbuds from Skullcandy have been in use for 4 years now and I have tried various high quality loaner IEMs but none are any better for me. Some where actually worse. They weren't accurate at all.


    That's my .02. To each their own.

  • I just did check my 1964 ears (I have my kemper since saturday). I'd say: perfect. For me there have been two possibilities: Get some "cheap ones (like the mentioned SE215) or get fitted ones. After being used to fitted hearing protection for more than 15 years I went for the 1964 ears. Something like the SE535s would have been my second choice. And they aren't cheap as well. So I went for having fun with V6s... Have them since two weaks...

  • I just did check my 1964 ears (I have my kemper since saturday). I'd say: perfect. For me there have been two possibilities: Get some "cheap ones (like the mentioned SE215) or get fitted ones. After being used to fitted hearing protection for more than 15 years I went for the 1964 ears. Something like the SE535s would have been my second choice. And they aren't cheap as well. So I went for having fun with V6s... Have them since two weaks...


    Does 1964 just make the ear phones or the whole setup (transmitters and receivers)? At NAMM did you try anything by Ultimate Ears? I am using the UE 900 buds (non custom) right now with my Shure PSM900 (transmitter/receiver) and really like them. As someone else mentioned though, you don't have to use the most expensive out there - seems that The Edge of U2 uses $300 Etymotics.

  • Most people seem to only be including responses about the actual in ears and omitting the actual transmitter/receiver units, which are almost certainly going to be the expensive part, assuming you want wireless.


    IMO if you only have £400 to spend (again assuming wireless) then you don't have the cash to put together a reliable system.


    Its true you could potentially get away with any kind of earphone if you stand perfectly still on stage. I'm in a prog metal band and we're all over the spot on stage, even our drummer has problems with his iems falling out.

  • I use the Audio-Technica M2.. they're cheap on eBay. You can blend two audio feeds together on your receiver which is great for personalizing... instead of depending on the sound man.

    Gettin' funky up in here..

  • Does 1964 just make the ear phones or the whole setup (transmitters and receivers)? At NAMM did you try anything by Ultimate Ears? I am using the UE 900 buds (non custom) right now with my Shure PSM900 (transmitter/receiver) and really like them. As someone else mentioned though, you don't have to use the most expensive out there - seems that The Edge of U2 uses $300 Etymotics.

    They only make the InEars. Just look at their homepage. As a Preamp I use "Fischer Amps" which is not wireless. I would use that device anyways...


  • Does 1964 just make the ear phones or the whole setup (transmitters and receivers)? At NAMM did you try anything by Ultimate Ears? I am using the UE 900 buds (non custom) right now with my Shure PSM900 (transmitter/receiver) and really like them. As someone else mentioned though, you don't have to use the most expensive out there - seems that The Edge of U2 uses $300 Etymotics.


    I tried the UE IEMs at NAMM, along with all of the others. They were ok...


    Jerry Harvey of JH Audio started UE and then sold the company. After his non-compete agreement ran out, he started JH Audio. UE hasn't done much innovating since he left - but they're not *bad*. They are not in the same league as the JH Audio, IMO.

  • I don't know how others feel about IEM sound quality when using the Monitor Out or Main Out from the Kemper, but my results have always been they sound like cab emulation is off even when it's definitely on. It's a ratty sound.


    I discovered a night and day difference by using the Headphone out jack to send to my Carvin EM900 unit. It gets the best monitoring sound from the Kemper IMO.

    The key to everything is patience.
    You get the chicken by hatching the egg, not by smashing it.
    -- Arnold H. Glasow


    If it doesn't produce results, don't do it.

    -- Me

  • I don't know how others feel about IEM sound quality when using the Monitor Out or Main Out from the Kemper, but my results have always been they sound like cab emulation is off even when it's definitely on. It's a ratty sound.


    I discovered a night and day difference by using the Headphone out jack to send to my Carvin EM900 unit. It gets the best monitoring sound from the Kemper IMO.


    I don't find there to be any difference?? Did you have space active on the headphone out and not the main/monitor out