ATH-CK7 >>Forged Titanium Body<<

[Zephyron 0]

UM2 is not for me, I like balance sounding headphone, and to my ears, UM2 bass masks the midrange and the treble. The midbass sounds muddy and a bit boomy, and soundstage is narrower compare to CK7. UM2 bass is just too much and out of proportion to my ears. UM2 is really not for those who like vocal. Clarity, balance, and bass quality, CK7 wins. While CK7 is a bit too bright to my ears, minimum EQ adjustment made it sounds right.

 

ER6 is something like EC7, very weak bass, with nice midrange and treble. I like bass, so again, eventhough CK7 mid and high not as nice as the ER6 and EC7, but it is more balance overall.

 

So now I'm a happy CK7 owner

Hmmm, your opinions for the UM2 and ER6i as compared to the CK7 are somewhat similar yet rather different from my experiences with them.

 

From what I've experienced

 

UM2 (tested with modified Bi-flange tip) and CK7:

Whilst I agree that the UM2 has simply too much bass, I would disagree that the CK7 as better bass quality as compared to the CK7. IMHO, the soundstage of the UM2 makes the soundstage of the CK7 sound puny in comparison, but the overpowering (although clean, unlike the flabby MDR-EX51/71/81) bass makes me prefer the CK7 over the UM2.

 

Though I find that the CK7 has a narrower, if not puny, soundstage as compared to the UM2, the instrumental separation was much, much clearer, perhaps no thanks to the UM2's overpowering bass.

 

From what I tested, the CK7 has very punchy bass, but more often than not, its bass lacks 'humming presence' that is present in my current Cresyn LMX-E630 (I think of it as the 200Hz EQ adjustment in my iAudio U3).

 

ER6i (Using a modified Shure Gray single flange tip)and CK7:

Balancewise though, I think that the ER6i is more balanced as compared to the CK7, since the CK7's bass can be very punchy, and its treble is very enhanced IMO, and the ER6i's bass extension extends deeper as compared to the CK7. On the sound graph, I find that the ER6i is almost flat all over, whereas the CK7 has a heightened bump in-between the 200Hz-1000Hz (I tend to think of it as the bass punchiness area) region, then flat throughout until it starts to shoot up slightly in the 3000Hz region all the way up to the 16000Hz region, whereafter I can't pick-up anything else. Its mids sound a very slight bit bit recessed as compared to the ER6i.

 

Wouldn't call the ER6i weak in bass, its bass is very sweet and mellow (At my custom EQ for it). Not as punchy as the CK7 of course, but after some EQ adjustments on my U3, t sounds very nice and pleasant. Almost heavenly. The presence of its bass is better tan that of the CK7 IMO.

 

However, the ER6i has some problems that plague me a bit when testing: Microphonics. I didn't move around with them a lot when testing them, but somehow, I think it woud be even worse than my current ATH-CK5 in terms of microphonic problems (I've had it bad with the ATH-CK5).

 

CK7:

Bass is VERY punchy, its midrange is clear, but sounds cold at the same time, and its treble is very very crisp, if not a bit sharp to my ears. I tried turning the 3kHz and 16kHz bars up in my U3, and ouch, it started scratching.

 

On normal EQ, its bass resence left me wanting, but the problem can be resolved with a bit of tweaking on the 50Hz, 200Hz bars and the M3Bass feature of the iAudio player.

 

Planning to get the CK7 too, and I'm probably going to use the Ultimate Ears Super Fi Bi-flange tip on it to increase bass presence and reduce the treble sharpness... Though I need to think up of how to counter its mid-range mufledness that will be caused by the tip. The 1kHz bar is what I really hate touching the most.

 

Extra note, regarding my ATH-CK5:

To my ears, the UE Super-fi tips increased the bass presence of my ATH-CK5 and balances its very strong mids and a bit of a harsh treble. Did nothing to the bass punchiness though, which is something the ATH-CK5 is a little weak in at the first place (I've mine burnt it for 48 hours straight in a row with my PCDP, an then with my old Muvo plugged onto the power socket for almost 3 days straight, and then altering it back to my PCDP again + Some testings and ormal usage). All in all, the burn in process for the CK5 takes an exxagerated almost 200hours

 

Bonus pics:

My current portability rig:

 

My UE's Bi-flange tip when I tested them with Creative's EP630:

[bpribadi 0]

Well I guess ER6 and ER6i have different sounds characteristic. I didn't try ER6i, only ER6 And to my ears ER6 bass is very weak, not sure of the 6i.

 

Maybe what caused me feel narrow soundstage with the UM2 is the bad vocal and instrument separation which related with clarity. I hear better clarity and instrument separation with CK7, therefore the stereo image and soundstage is better to my ears.

 

A bit boomy bass from the over volume bass of UM2 maybe will give the 'in hall' feeling, but for me that is not soundstage. My ATH-EW9 and Grado RS1 have much wider soundstage than CK7, but to my ears UM2 is even narrower than CK7 due to the lack of clarity.

 

Well anybody has their own taste Feel free to tell us your opinions

 

Your Cresyn LMX-E630 looks nice, where you got it from?

Edited February 16, 2006 by bpribadi

[Zephyron 0]

Your Cresyn LMX-E630 looks nice, where you got it from?

I got my Cresyns for 49.90 down at the Apple Centre in Sim Lim Square.

 

Finally gave in today... Got the CK7 from Stereo Electronics a few hours ago and comboed them with my UE Super-Fi Bi-flange...

 

The result was heavenly... even before the burn in

 

I'm glad I took this risk despite being having tested and finding its treble very sharp (not harsh), and now with the bi-flange... things can only get better. Nice soundstaging, 'humming presence' is now there, trebles and mids are just nice and very enjoyable.

 

Tested them at 'Normal' EQ, BBE 2, M3Bass 0, MP Enhance On and 3D Pan 2, volume 22

 

And now, my 'upgraditis' syndrome is finally gone... and I can save money once more!

 

Here's some pics:

Focusing on the player

 

Focusing on the earphones:

 

I'm loving this

[heady 0]

I joined the "herd" and bought one from Douglas down at Hung Bros. The price isn't too bad compared to Stereo Electronics and SLS is much nearer than Woodlands. After burning in >24hrs, the verdict is, with the treble cut it sounds very clean and exciting but where's the bass?

 

I am using the largest sleeve or whatever you called it and it feels like it's tight but the bass isn't exactly loud nor noticeable. Hmm, looks like I have to find other way of fitting this to my extra-large ear canals. :-(

 

[Zephyron 0]

^ You might want to try the UE's Bi-flange tip. In helps bringing the isolation and seal up, very important in getting a good bass response.

 

Using them on my CK7 made them sound bassy enough right off the bat

[heady 0]

^ You might want to try the UE's Bi-flange tip. In helps bringing the isolation and seal up, very important in getting a good bass response.

 

Using them on my CK7 made them sound bassy enough right off the bat

Thanks but where and how much to buy the bi-flange tips?

Edited February 16, 2006 by heady

[ahdui 0]

those bi-flange tips!! im so attracted to it

where u get them? and whats the price?

[afbug 0]

He got them from me. I still got a few left. PM me if interested. They need a little mod to fit perfectly. But they dun fit all ears just to let you know.

[bpribadi 0]

I am using the largest sleeve or whatever you called it and it feels like it's tight but the bass isn't exactly loud nor noticeable. Hmm, looks like I have to find other way of fitting this to my extra-large ear canals. :-(

 

I think it is not really fit your ears As and indication, ask somebody to talk to you, normal volume, while you wear it. If the isolation works, you won't hear him speaking to you. If you still can hear him, that means it doesn't fit, and no isolation. No isolation means no bass for this type of in ear buds

 

With the isolation, you will also hear 'microphonic' sounds from the cable when you walk around, or shake the cable. A bit annoying, but not bad with CK7.

 

Try to plug it in, deep into your ears, maybe it will help

[heady 0]

Try to plug it in, deep into your ears, maybe it will help

Thanks Bram for the advice. Yah, it is not fully sealed as I can hear wind whistling when the fan blows at me. I have pushed them so far in, they hurt and when I remove them, the rubber cup become inverted.

 

I have also tried the tri-flange tips with my Koss sparkplugs and pushed those really deep in before I get a seal. When I tried to remove them from my ears, the tips detached from the drivers and I have to use tweezers to pull the tips out.

 

Things I do....

 

[bpribadi 0]

Thanks Bram for the advice. Yah, it is not fully sealed as I can hear wind whistling when the fan blows at me. I have pushed them so far in, they hurt and when I remove them, the rubber cup become inverted. ohmy.gif

 

I have also tried the tri-flange tips with my Koss sparkplugs and pushed those really deep in before I get a seal. When I tried to remove them from my ears, the tips detached from the drivers and I have to use tweezers to pull the tips out.

 

[heady 0]

Ok, the saga continues....

Having burned in the CK7, I listened to them with my Sony MP3 player as source. AND, not exciting leh, something missing.

 

Listened to my modded Koss Sparkplug and hey, sounds just as good, if not more exciting. Hmm, what's wrong with my ears? I think the wiser and more experienced headphoners must be shaking their heads at this point.

 

I then listened to my Panasonic CT710 CDP with my CK7 and then it hits me... this phone needs a GOOD source. Give it good clean music and it rewards you with clean clear sound, solid imaging and good bass to boot. Give it MP3 and you get .... ok you got the idea.

 

So for ordinary MP3 I rather use my Koss, it doesn't reveal the flaws in the music. For critical listening, the CK7 like Bram says "the best bang for the buck"

 

[kkx2 0]

I got myself a pair from Stereo Electronics too and mainly listening to it out of my ipod with a 47 ohms impedance adapter-cable (to counter the ipod's distortion issues with headphones lower than 32ohms). Wonder how much the sound is going to change with time, even tho i have 20+ hrs under it.....

 

Ok... heady, u r not alone. It sounds dry and uninteresting to me. Details are very good for such a price, but that is about all there is to offer. Issues that I can easily overlook are the recessed mids and a lack of bass texture, though it is very present (but rather inconsistent since it comes in torrents at times while it's light on other times, though it can never be considered tight, nor is it flabby). What really destroyed my listening pleasure was the muddy highs in this pair of bright earphones.

 

Compared against HJE70's 2 (to my ears) prominent peaks in the highs that may sound piercing, CK7 has an a rather uniformly accentuated high frequency range that doesnt have many glaring peaks but, to me, sounds rather undefined and even saturated at times when handling fast continuous cymbals and the likes. Soundstage is compressed as usual (I almost always feels this way with in-ears so far). I have run it through lossless music files too but the impression still holds. And afbug may refute the following remark: I thought this sounded really similar to the HJE50s, especially in sound signature (HJE50 probably is at least 85-90% of CK7, with HJE50 losing out mainly in details, high-end extension and low-end quantities.) Overall, it's of a similar class of performance as the HJE70, just that I enjoy HJE70s more.

 

Maybe, i was expecting too much... Or maybe, the in-ears really aren't for me...

[Zephyron 0]

kkx2, I think the CK7's sound signature isn't for you. Its nearly flat throughout the sound spectrum to my ears, with the exception of a very slightly emphasized treble much like the ER6i, which is why I like it lots

 

I haven't tried the HJE70 OTOH, but phones like the EP630, which is basically one class below the HJE70, are the ones not according to my taste because according to people, they sound more 'fun' (aka coloured sound, usually from higher bass output to more forwarded mids). People who like the EP630, HJE70 and such usually will like musical phones better I guess, finding phones like CK7, ER6i etc boring, but some of us here prefer analytical listening and have fun picking out details in the music rather than just 'listen' to the music, which is I don't really like phones like the EP630 because of its 'funness' I guess (Its strange perhaps, but true ).

 

20+ hours isn't nearly enough though, I had mine burnt in near continuously for almost a week, a minimum of 72 hours is recommended I believe. It'll sound a bit dry at first, but the harsh treble will settle down, the mids will fill in slightly and the bass will become slightly more prominent and tighter after burn in is completed, becoming what I'd call 'flatter' in the sound spectrum. One thing that the CK7 does only 'decently' on the bass is however, bass detailing, which loses out to the ER6i by perhaps 20% or so as far as I remember.

 

PS:To rate the HJE50 at 85-90% of the CK7 is a tad bit too much I'd say. My ears tell me 65-70% or so, same reasons as yours, but the HJE50 sounds harsher to me in the low and mid-highs and its clarity falls below the CK7 by quite a margin.

Edited February 28, 2006 by Zephyron

[kkx2 0]

Zephyron,

 

U are absolutely right in that I love 'fun' sounding headphones, since I come from the Porta-Pro(for portable listening) and Grados sound. That aside, I also would like to add that I have tried Etymotic ER4 and Beyer DT880 each for a few days, both of which were highly regarded as rather neutral sounding in many reviews (especially those on head-fi). Hence, those are the yardsticks for me when it comes to uncoloured sound. And I have no reservations about saying that those 2 pieces gave fantastic presentations, though I still preferred the sound signatures of my own headphones.

 

IMO, CK7 is rather far from ER4 or DT880 in terms of neutrality n balanced sound. But I would be nitpicking if I were to compare them up against cans that are 3 times more in cost.

 

Coming to the reasons why I have rather unfriendly remarks for CK7. They did sound alright to me at 1st and it did the details very good, considering its pricepoint as an IEM. But when I reach "Dogfight" by J-electrorock group Move (Initial D Best Song Collection Disc 2 track 25), the sound became unbearable. That was the track where I heard a really serious issue with the cymbals i mentioned above, where I heard a long indistinguishable, almost flat, saturated stretch of CHHHH sound in place of distinct rhythmic strikings of the cymbals. After a few more tries with the same track, I remembered remarking to my friend that these sounded like "cheap speakers" (No offence involved, sorry). If not for that, I could have easily lived with the occassionally unnatural and enhanced highs. By the way, I don't usually listen to rock stuff but the Initial D tracks were an exception. And as a side issue, I have my doubts as to how burn in could change the treble muddiness.

 

Yeah, and sound is subjective, so Zephyron, ur views may be right too. I hope I have not offended CK7 lovers when my remarks sounded like I was bashing it.