Home > Consumer Reviews > Etymotic Research ER6i Isolator In-Ear Earphones (White)

The white wires suggest Etymotic Research wants a bigger piece of the iPod upgrade market. But rather than simply giving the black-wired ER-6 a cosmetic makeover, they designed the ER-6i from the ground up to work around portables' puny output. Thus, they offer higher sensitivity (more sound for a given volume setting) and boosted bass response.

But despite their light weight and sporty appearance, these phones are optimized for home listening, commuting, and plane trips; applications where sound isolation is a benefit, not a hazard. Compare them, therefore, to active noise-canceling headphones, not conventional earbuds.

FIT & COMFORT
Because these phones go in your ear canal and require an airtight seal, proper fit is essential. Without it, you will get no bass at all. None. I prefer the disposable foam ear tips to the 3-flange ones (both kinds are included). Your results may vary.

Here's the trick: After you compress the foam and insert them in your ears, it takes several seconds for the foam to expand. Focus on available background noise. When the sound drops suddenly over a second or two, you know a seal has been formed. Conversely, with music playing, you should notice the sound suddenly fill out, first in one ear and then the next.

The foam ear tips may feel uncomfortable for 2-3 minutes, but you quickly get used to them. This naturally depends on ear geometry and other factors, but be aware that you wouldn't buy these phones on comfort alone.

SOUND DAMPING
Properly inserted, the foam ear tips provide 34-36 dB noise reduction (the triple flanged ear tips are a few decibels less effective). To put this in perspective, this is even better than the 29-31 dB NRR (Noise Reduction Rating) provided by better-quality shooting ear muffs. They also quiet more than active noise canceling headphones (which feature feedback circuitry that noticeably degrades the sound).

With this level of damping, you may be aware that a TV is on in the same room, but just barely. You will also save your hearing because you won't feel the need to turn up the volume to drown out environmental noise.

The downside of this isolation is that you will miss doorbells, telephones, etc. Common sense argues strongly against using these jogging, bicycling, or even walking around city streets. You're giving up a sense entirely. The "look out, you idiot" you don't hear could be the "look out, you idiot" you absolutely, positively needed to hear.

SOUND QUALITY
Putting these phones through their paces with music I'm familiar with, the first thing that stood out was their neutral-to-bright balance. These are slightly more "forward" sounding than the more "laid back" or "polite" German headphones you might think of.

The second thing I noticed was that they get the midrange right. Without the response peaks, valleys or ripples that so often mar the critical 1,000 Hz. region, you will hear singers sound more "present" than with the vast majority of headphones (and most audiophile speakers for that matter).

If you are a bass junkie, you will find the bass lean. This is difficult to say, but it's not the headphones. It's you. You are addicted to heavy one-note bass (it's an epidemic - note how rental cars always have the bass at +10). Go cold turkey and listen with these for a week, however, and you will discover that there are actually, ahem, different bass notes.

As for treble, there are conventional open headphones (usually more expensive) with more "air" at the top end, but the ER-6i's treble extension is as good as sound-isolating headphones go - certainly better than the Bose. There's a minor response notch at 7 kHz, but nothing I really noticed.

BTW, don't be alarmed by their funny-looking frequency response curve. Remember, because they're in your ear, they are voiced to compensate for the missing frequency shaping ordinarily provided by your outer ear.

The sound damping has another beneficial effect: You will hear things in familiar recordings you have never heard before, even with high quality open headphones. Not just fingers over guitar strings, but sounds way, way down in the mix.

DESIGN & BUILD
These fingernail-sized phones are white with transparent side panels that reveal wires and the metal flanks of their balanced armature transducers. There is a small port topside, presumably for audio tuning, but perhaps also to reduce negative pressure caused by yanking the phones out (not a good idea - always remove them slowly). The front-facing side has the model number with a red dot separating the ER and 6i. The backs feature an oversized L and R, just like your first pair of sneakers.

The wires are lightweight, which is a more important factor on canal phones than with ear buds that allow the outer ear to bear the weight. The cord is a bit longer than some joggers might like, but then again, you shouldn't be using these jogging. The 1/8" headphone jack termination is gold-plated for long-term corrosion-resistance.

The removable shirt clip (included) should be used when practicable to avoid the sudden pressure on your eardrums that might result from yanking them out.

CONCLUSION
The ER-6i offers exceptionally involving, neutral sound for the money, with accurate bass and a commendably smooth midrange. I am also not aware of any headphones that provide better isolation from environmental noise. Recommended.

I normally use Koss PortaPros for travel, and Sennheiser HD580 at home. I bought the ER6i primarily for its noise isolation and sound quality. Koss PortaPros are great but they're not very useful in loud environments like trains and airplanes.

The ER6i's have really good sound clarity all across the frequency range. With a range of 20hz - 16 khz, I was expecting muddled highs. Not at all. Instead though, I found the bass somewhat lacking. While Etymotic claims that the 6i version has an 8db bass improvement over the original ER6, I can't imagine what the original ER6 sounds like, because at low volume levels, the bass is virtually non-existent! At moderate listening levels, you can hear the bass but it's light and a little less than I'm used to (more like 60hz at the lowend instead of 20hz according to the specs). The manual says to insert the plug even deeper into your ear for greater bass response, but I doubt this will do much good.

I also don't like in-the-ear plugs so I was expecting some period of comfort adjustment, but I was surprised to find that these earphones are very comfortable (using the foam tips). But despite the comfort, I don't think these are good for long periods of use because the seal prevents air from going into your ear canal and after a while your ear feels somewhat clamy.

In a nutshell, if you're a bass head, then you'll be severely disappointed. I found the bass lacking, but the sound clarity and good isolation makes up for it. The price is more expensive than its worth, but decide for yourself.

*** UPDATE ***

Using a supermacro amp with opa134 opamps *signficantly* changes the sound of the ER-6i. Before, they sounded bright and shrill (even brighter than Grados!) and at low volume sounds very tiny. Using the amp, the bass is *perfect* and the highs are significantly warmer and the shrill-ness is completely gone. They sound much like the Sennheiser HD580.

By the way, these earphones do not have a flat frequency response (just look at the graph from etymotic research) so they do not sound the way the studio/artist intended to be. If you think Grados are too bright, then this is not the earphone for you.

Also, if you use the foam earplugs you will need to replace them about once a month, because after a while they lose their elasticity and fall out easily. They are not cheap!

A previous reviewer noted the lack of bass response in the ER-6i's, and he's probably right that if you're someone who cranks the bass on your home stereo you're likely to be disappointed in these phones.

If like me, however, you like a clean, flat frequency response - you will LOVE the ER-6i's. I'm a composer and recording studio owner and I work all day in front of industry standard studio monitor speakers. In recording sessions I use the best professional headphones. So my standards are pretty high, even when listening to compressed MP3's and AAC's on my iPod. I WAS using the Sony Fontopias, and liked them pretty well, even though the bass was too exaggerated for my taste. (If you're an aforementioned bass lover, you'll probably prefer the Sony's.) I just received a pair of the ER-6i's for a Christmas present, and I am in earbud heaven. To me, the bass response is clean and natural (despite Etymotic's accentuation of the low frequencies vs. the ER-6's.) More importantly, the mids and highs are clean and un-hyped. When it comes to music I've composed, arranged and produced - I KNOW what it's supposed to sound like. For in-ear phones, these reflect my mixes better than anything I've heard so far.

I like ER-6i's SO much, in fact, I suspect I'll even use them for work when I want to shut out the outside world and have nothing but the music inside my head.

Bravo, Etymotic! I may even start saving up for a pair of those ER-4's!

Fred Story
Charlotte, North Carolina

I received the Etymotic ER6i earbuds. about 2 hours ago. I'm using the ER6i on a Creative Zen Xtra 60gb (way better than Ipod, but that's for another review). I had been using the earphones that were provided by Creative with the Zen. I thought they were fairly adequate but I longed for a little more clarity- thus the er6i purchase.

After plugging in and playing with the EAX settings on the Zen for a while, I decided the EAX was de-enhancing the bass and making the highs too tinny. I cut the EAX off and sat back to dig some sounds.

Man! I was blown away! Phoebe Snow with Jeff Golub "Baby I'm Yours" (128kb 44100hz Joint Stereo). Man, I never heard Jeff's fingers sliding on the fretboard before. I never heard the slight laughter at the end of the piece either! Maybe...maybe I knew there was an organ scatting in the background...but I never heard it so clearly.

I'm no audio expert, and I haven't tried any of the other competing $100.00 plus phones out there, but I know when my senses are rocked. Hell, I could hear musician's feet patting on the floor in time.

On song after song I was suddenly hearing "all" the instruments and so much more accurately. On Orchestral pieces I could close my eyes and place each instruments position on the stage.

I've read a lot of ER6i reviews by Ipod users who claimed that the bass was lacking with ER6i's. I would venture to say that the limitation there is more likely with the Ipod. If the bass got any lower on my Zen, it would be muddy. For example I have an over bassed mp3 that I always use to test bass response on speakers: Modern Jazz Quartet with Laurindo Almeida - One Note Samba from the album "Collaboration" -(128kb 44100hz Joint Stereo). For some strange reason studio mixing of the upright bass on this cut is damn near at the bottom of the audibility range. This usually makes the bass very muddy on poor quality speakers. The ER6i kept the bass clean and distinct!

Want to know about isolation? After about an hour of listening, I looked up to see my wife in the doorway holding two fingers up and moving her mouth....I removed the earbuds, she was saying, "I called you on the phone two times......didn't you hear me?"

Uh-oh guess that's a "con" or at least a caution.

If you can afford to spring for better quality,
I'd say do it.
I hope this lay review is helpful to non-audio experts.

While I admit that I am no audiophile, I didn't clearly understand that these were noise isolating headphones, NOT noise cancelling--just wanted to warn anybody who is confused by the terminology. I believe in audiophile parlance this is referred to as passive noise reduction. If you are looking for noise cancelling headphones that block out noise even while you are not listening to music, these headphones offer little more than regular earplugs. Turn on some music, however, and you will be ASTOUNDED how little environmental noise comes in, they are truly fantastic.

I live in New York City and am a daily subway rider. I also fly quite a bit. For several years, I have had Brookstone's noise-cancelling headphones (which by the way, are cheaply made and hardly work--not worth it!). When riding the subway or flying, the etymotics (remember, while listening to music) are vastly superior to any noise-cancelling headphones out there including the $300 bulky Bose ones. You will not believe it!! The subway is reduced to vibrations only, I cannot hear a single person talking even if they are right next to me. (Now if etymotics only made smell-cancelling products, I would be all set on the subway!)On airplanes, the difference is more than just a noise-break for your eardrums. I know this sounds crazy, but I could swear that with the headphones in, my ears "pop" less with altitude changes. Also, I just seem to be less tired and irritable after flights when I keep the etymotics in for as much of the flight as possible.

As for sound quality, I agree with the reviewer from North Carolina. They deliver a well-balanced and pure sound, without overdoing the bass too much as is so popular these days. The highs are crisp, the mids are well defined, and the lows are clear as a bell. I have heard from some of my audiophile friends that the headphones have a "break-in" period? Not sure about that, but I did notice that the high end seemed somewhat cleaner after a couple of weeks. I can't be sure, though.

A couple of bad things: the foam earpieces are the ones to use as the white-ribbed rubber earpieces do not work as well and are quite uncomfortable to insert and adjust (think brain-worm entering through ear). The foam earpieces are pretty comfortable, except when inserting in cold weather-they get a bit unpliable. At first, the rather girthy size of the foam earpiece left my ear canals feeling, well, "violated"--but you get used to it quickly. In addition, the foam is an unsightly orange color that I assure you no matter how often you Qtip WILL become discolored. Mine sort of look like a micro-sized orange with some mold on one end and I am not a particularly ear wax heavy guy. The replacement foam pieces are hard to come by, so if you can buy some extra ones when you purchase the headphones. The etymotic website sells them directly. www.etymotic.com

As for cleaning the filter: unless you're really picky, you don't need to replace the filter as often as recommended. BTW, the filters are kinda expensive and inconvenient to get. Just scrape off the gunk with your fingernail or a scraping implement of your choice every once in a while. I've used mine daily for the past 4 months or so and have cleaned them twice with no appreciable loss in fidelity.

Overall, AWESOME noise isolating headphones for a slightly inflated price. I am quite satisfied with mine.