Klipsch Image S2 Comfort-Fit Noise-Isolating Earphones
Posted on 18. Oct, 2010 by Office Fit Outs in office interiors
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Posted on 18. Oct, 2010 by Office Fit Outs in office interiors
© 2010 Office Fit Outs. All Rights Reserved.
Internet Marketing by ireally
David Pearlman
18. Oct, 2010
Review by David Pearlman for Klipsch Image S2 Comfort-Fit Noise-Isolating Earphones
Rating:
Another day, another new set of in-your-ear headphones. Virtually unknown a few years ago, this is now an increasingly crowded segment of the headphone market. Basically, this type of headphone sits in your ear like an ear-plug (thus noise reducing, just like an ear-plug).
There are several quality (and price) tiers in this market. At the high end, and basically the original manufacturers who originally redefined this type of headphone in audiophile terms, are manufacturers such as Shure and Etymotic. Their products are undeniably good, and also undeniably expensive.
At the bottom end are a plethora of no-names, fashion names, knock offs, cast offs and cheapos produced with an endless array of labels, both famous and not. Most of these retail for $20 or less, and sound like cr-p.
Then there’s the middle ground: Quality that rivals at least the lower reaches of the high end, but at a more reasonable price. The set that really defines this segment, and the set to beat, is the Altec Lansing UHP336. These are essentially relabeled Ultimate Ears SuperFi 3s, but at an everyman price (they’ve been available for as little as thirty bucks on sale). The Altec Lansings are very accurate, the bass is very tight, and the overall sound is just plain very very good. The UHP336s are WIDELY considered the best earphones available in their price range–and for good reason.
The only thing wrong with the UHP336s is that they are relatively uncomfortable. Despite being packaged with an array of different sized rubber ends to fit “all” ears (standard for this type of headphone), they are, at best, tolerable, and at worst intolerable…
So that’s the target for these headphones, which are retailing for roughly a similar price.
How do they do?
Well, in terms of sound, comparing them to the UHP336 headphones…they come up short. The high end is a bit limited–not as well separated or distinct as I would prefer–and the midrange seems a bit muted. They come off best with the bass, which is reasonably tight and good for most music. I suspect those who like a booming bass line will be disappointed, but they suit me fine in this regard.
If sound were the only criterion, I’d say that it isn’t really close and the UHP336s win.
However, there’s something else: Comfort. As mentioned, the UHP336s, while great sounding, are not all that comfortable.
In contrast, these Klipsch earphones are probably the most comfortable in-the-ear earphones I have EVER used. I went with the second-smallest rubber tip adaptors–finding that gave the best fit. I inserted them in my ears and…very quickly forgot about them. Which is the highest praise I can give for earphones. I love love LOVE the fit and comfort of these earphones. In fact, I would go so far as to say that at times I will forgo the quality of the UHP336s because these are just so much better feeling. The one caveat I should add is that the wires to the earphones are light and not stiff at all; they can’t be used to keep the earphones in place under stress (e.g. when working out). In contrast, the UHP336s feature a stiff cord that wraps around the ear and holds the earphones in place even under duress.
That, however, is, in terms of fit, the only place where the UHP336s win.
So do you choose sound, or do you choose comfort? It’s a tough call and I think there’s no single answer for all situations. On a plane, with something in my ears for 6-7 hours? Comfort wins, no question. Mowing the yard? I’ll take comfort. For critical listening at home? Then I’ll take a little pain to hear the music better and sound wins.
Probably, in the end, it’s best to say I’m happy to own both sets. You’ll need to decide whether you’re as much a glutton as me!
E-Diddy
18. Oct, 2010
Review by E-Diddy for Klipsch Image S2 Comfort-Fit Noise-Isolating Earphones
Rating:
I bought these because I lose/break in-ears like changing socks. Well, eventually I lost them after having them for only a few months, but they made such an impression that I had to buy them again.
Pros
-By far the most comfortable in ears I’ve ever had. This was probably the number one factor in my buying them again. After the initial break-in period, I found that bass response was adequate, but not overwhelming. Mids were clear and the highs were defined without getting ‘tingy’. All in all, if you’re looking for a well balanced sounding set of in-ears, these are the best for this price. I’d even go so far as to say they give a fair challenge to in-ears twice the price.
-Sound isolation is almost to the point of sound cancellation. Being a college student, I study religiously. I found it’s almost impossible to find quiet places, so having these in-ears are a blessing!
-The left ear and right ear cords are the same length. The last couple in-ears I’ve owned had that weird feature where the left ear cord is shorter than the right cord. I guess it kinda makes sense, you’re supposed to loop the right earphone around the back of your neck yada yada – I just don’t care for it. I like them the same length, so thank you Klipsch!
Cons
-The cord, connections, and earpieces [seem] a little on the flimsy side though they never broke, warped, or spontaneously combusted. Compared to the high-end in-ears I’ve used on stage, there is a noticeable difference in the quality of the cord and the construction of the earpieces. This is what dropped the product down a star.
-Not so much a con, but a warning. Due to the sound isolation, be careful using these in circumstances where it would be wise to have your hearing (i.e. biking, driving, gorgeous girl trying to get your attention)
-Cord noise. This is kind of normal and more of a con for pretty much all in-ears, but it’s like the whole connecting two cans with a string – though I realize the current generation of kids may have absolutely no idea why people would do such a thing. Basically, friction with the cord causes noise to travel into the earpieces.
Worth noting
-I’m sure you’ve seen the $200+ in-ears and wondered,”Man, I’m sure those sound even better.” I would say, not necessarily. Unless you’re rocking full sound quality as in uncompressed, unadulterated, straight up tracks from the studio hard drive; the more expensive the headphones, the more unforgiving they are with lower quality tracks. So for a casual listener not insisting on 256kbps as a minimum threshold for sound quality, these are actually the best bet.
Bottom line
These are a great pair of balanced sounding in-ears and I would highly recommend them.
Bradford Schmidt
18. Oct, 2010
Review by Bradford Schmidt for Klipsch Image S2 Comfort-Fit Noise-Isolating Earphones
Rating:
Headphones and ear buds are tough to review. The problem, of course, is that different people like different sound qualities. For example, I like the flattest, most natural response possible. I used to be a recording engineer and producer, so hearing something as close as possible to what the musicians end engineers intended is important to me.
By that standard, the Klipsch S2’s are not my first choice. While at first listen they sound quite good, I found them to be a bit bright with some content, and at this price point the Altec Lansings I have sound a bit better. But don’t let that dissuade you; for the most part there’s very little to complain about, and there are other important factors to consider.
Like comfort: the S2s are extremely comfortable, and I can wear them for extended periods of time with no problem. They come with three different sized ear tips to fit most ear canals and provide the tight seal so critical to good bass response, which the S2s deliver admirably.
Other relevant factors include labeling: many ear buds or in-ear monitors are not clearly marked right and left – the S2s are. They also seem to be very well constructed, less noise is transmitted down the headphone wires than with other headphones of this type, and they come with a convenient snap open soft bag to carry them in.
Overall, these are a very good choice. If you don’t mind giving up a bit of accuracy to get an extremely comfortable set of headphones that still sound quite good, give the S3s a long look. You’ll be glad you did.
J. Curtis
18. Oct, 2010
Review by J. Curtis for Klipsch Image S2 Comfort-Fit Noise-Isolating Earphones
Rating:
Ear buds are a funny thing. There are so many manufactureres and so many horrid sounding products. Even the ones that should sound good often don’t. Recently we tested a pair of super expensive noise isolating buds that sell for over 400 dollars but they didn’t sound any better than our 50.00 pair. In fact they didn’t even sound as good in some frequencies. So here comes the Klipsch buds and they seemed worth a try. After demos with the Voda-don’t waste your time, Shure-way too costly, and the Bose-decent but too expensive for what you get, the Klipsch seemed like a decent bud to try and we wern’t disappointed. They come neatly packaged, easy to access. There are three sizes of fittings small, medium, which worked the best, and large. Sizing the pieces is the key to sound quality, fitting, and comfort. They’re easily driven and provide good quality sound even at low levels. Bass, mid, and upper range are all superb, easily exceeding most other products costing much more. The high freq cuts off over 10khz quickly so if you like super high highs, the Klipsch buds will come very close but other makers may exceed these but at a cost. Then there’s the claimed noise suppression which is also superb. You can hear ambient sounds but they’re sufficiently muted allowing the audio to be played at low levels if desired. In the lab, they performed slightly above the claimed spectrum. In the ears, they sounded wonderful. The only issue, and one common with this type of bud with free hanging cable, is noise transmitted from brushing against you. Moving the adjusting band helps a lot. The wiring is rugged and compact but should be kept close to the body away from potential snags. Overall, we loved them and their great sound quality and can easily recommend them. Klipsch has a strong tradtion of great sounding products, next to Sennheiser, and these uphold the tradition.
D. Brinkman
18. Oct, 2010
Review by D. Brinkman for Klipsch Image S2 Comfort-Fit Noise-Isolating Earphones
Rating:
I love these.
I searched for a long time for comfortable ear buds. I must have the world’s weirdest ear canals, or something, but I always found ear buds to be very uncomfortable and make my ears hurt so much I could only wear them for a short time. The other thing was that a lot of ear buds (sure I tried some cheapies), sounded terrible. I’m no aficionado, but these others sounded terrible. By the way, I tried JVC, Altec Lansing, Sony, and Skull Candy.
I use these almost exclusively for running with my Sansa Clip. They do not fall out at all. I put the Sansa Clip on my collar, so the 1 meter cord is a little bit too long for that, but not a big deal. Especially if I run the cords off the back and up under my arm to my neck. Frankly, I could use a 12-18″ cord for my arrangement, so judge accordingly.
So, first off: comfort
The S2’s have a long, skinny barrel. In fact, they easily bottom out in my ear canals. I can’t tell you they get to my ear drums, but they do get just as deep as I dare to push a cotton swap. They go way in there. At first I tried the medium ear gels, and they go right in, but I wasn’t getting much of a seal. So I went with the large ones. They make my ear feel a bit stuffed, but I get a good seal, and because most of that stuffing is from the soft silicone, they don’t hurt.
The seal I get is tight, so they do provide good outside noise rejection. In the winter, I run a lot on a paved trail that happens to have been landscaped next to a new freeway, so this matters to me. They are working good for that.
So, for comfort, not perfect, but they are the best I’ve ever tried and they don’t hurt.
I’d like to get around to trying the Comply tips, but we’ll see. There are several barrel sizes for Comply, and to get the Tx-100’s, you would have to get them from Comply’s web site. Amazon and Radio Shack only carry the tx-400s.
Sound Quality
Wow! They sound like they should. What that means is clear sound and flat response. I don’t ever hear any distortion out of these any volume level. It is always clear and smooth. And, after I get a good seal, the bass is strong, but not too strong. And the mids are clear. The cymbals are crisp and nice. I happen to prefer even beefier bass, so I use the EQ on my Sansa Clip to “make it so.”
Klipsch makes a big deal out of the fact that their ear gels are cast oval. That seems superfluous to me. They aren’t very oval. And as soon as you touch them at all, they deform from oval to whatever. So, starting out oval doesn’t seem to matter much. My ear canals aren’t perfectly circular, and I doubt they’re perfectly oval, either. But isn’t that why they make them out of silicone rubber?
By the way, I bought these off of eBay for $23. They were an open-box return. But I haven’t had any problems with them in the weeks I’ve had them.