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Etymotic Research ER6 Isolator In-Ear Earphones (Black) | 
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| Brand: Etymotic Research
Category: CE
List Price: $99.99
Buy New: $72.22
You Save: $27.77 (28%)
New (25)
Avg. Customer Rating:  149 reviews
Media: Electronics
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 2 x 11 x 6
Legal Disclaimer: Warranty does not cover misuse of product.
MPN: ER6-P
Model: ER6-P
UPC: 898234000602
EAN: 0898234000640
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Features:
| • | Compact, lightweight with amazing sound quality | | • | Offers noise isolation of 34-36 dB | | • | Perfect for travelers and laptop users | | • | Flanged eartips fit snuggly into most ear canals |
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Product Description
The ER-6 Isolator earphones provide outstanding sound quality and isolation in a lightweight, compact package. And at less than half the price of ER-4 earphones, they're an incredible value. Because these earphones were designed to match the acoustic response of the open ear, their response accuracy surpasses that of all other earphones and earbuds in their class.With their 15-20 dB of isolation, the ER-6's offer more external noise reduction than any other noise-reduction earphone. Why is isolation important? By blocking out ambient sounds, you can hear the full range of today's digital recordings without having to play them at unnaturally high and potentially unsafe levels. Since you don't have to boost the volume to overcome external noise, ear-overload distortion is minimized.The ER-6 Isolator earphone system includes:5' cord with 3.5 mm stereo phone plug;2 double-flanged silicone eartips;2 foam eartips;2 replacement filters;Filter-changing tool;Shirt clip;Pouch.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 144 more reviews...
 great quality and fantastic noise isolation November 11, 2004
91 out of 96 found this review helpful
I've been using these for about 3 years - since I start using an IPod. I listen to huge range of music, all classical styles - from renaissance to atonal, all rock styles, jazz, funk and R&B, rap, brit pop, punk etc. I rarely walk out of the door with my fully loaded 40gig IPod, and these are what goes with them.
Sound Quality is superb, much better than Sony funtopias, and Bose noise cancelling (and don't get me started on the virtually useless Apple headphones). I haven't tried the Shures, so no comment on them. Not as good as my Sennheiser HD 600, but that's to be expected.
They are extremely clear, and revealing, and have great frequency balance across the range. Some complain that the bass is not good enough, and it could be better, but at least it's accurate, this may not matter to some, but flabby artificial bass just annoys me and just becomes fatiguing. The quality is so good its easy to get use to them, but when I temporarily started using the Sony's (having stepped on and broken the ER6s) and then came back to these I realised how good they are. No going back again for me!
Noise isolation is amazing, when I'm on the subway without them I get to (sadly) remember how noisy the subway is, I just don't notice it with these headphones on. I use them when I'm flying, and I did a back-to-back with the Bose and the ER6s blew them away, in both quality and noise isolation. I even get to sleep. Using this style of 'phones when flying or travelling on subways is a must.
Points to note: You do have to put these into the ear canal to use them effectively, and this takes some getting use to. There is some microphony from the cable which may be intrusive especially during very quiet music. Filters may need changing fairly often. I just scrap of the muck off the filter and they last much longer. I know it sound disgusting but it does work. They don't appear to be that well made, but mine (2nd pair) are still going and I don't treat them well at all (see previous)
If you want to go better, try the ER4Ps, they give even better bass and isolation (for twice the money), possibly the Shure equivalents or top end 'phones like the HD 600, but no noise isolation from these beauties!
 Love the product, hate the lifespan March 22, 2006
81 out of 85 found this review helpful
Over the past three years, I've owned several pairs of Etymotic ER-6s.
I won't try to sway you on their sound quality; some people love them, others don't. I've never had a complaint in that regard. The customer service I've received from the company has been consistently exemplary.
They do have one fatal flaw, and it's the reason I've stopped using them. Unlike the more expensive ER-4s, they're too small to remove from your ear without pulling a bit on the cable.
If you use your ER-6s daily, this cable strain will destroy them within a year or so. In effect, you're not buying a set of earphones, but a subscription that you'll have to renew almost annually with an expensive replacement pair. Unlike Shure, Etymotic charges nearly the full retail price (about $80) for an out-of-warranty replacement.
So, as much as I've enjoyed my ER-6s, I'm afraid I can't recommend them here until Etymotic fixes this design flaw.
The best portable headphones in their class February 7, 2006
71 out of 74 found this review helpful
I bought these phones approximately 18 months ago when they cost 20% more than do today, and I never regretted the purchase. My upgrade path took me from the standard Sennheiser earbuds that were (at the time) bundled with various MP3 players including ones manufactured by MPIO, Rio, and Apple; then to a set of Sony in-ear headphones; then these Etymotics. I like the cheaper Sony's price and sound isolation, but not the asymmetric headphone cable or the boomy bass. The Etymotics brought even better sound isolation, smoother sound (with ample, if not accentuated bass) and better detail. For my buck, these headphones inhabit the sweet spot where improved sound quality/isolation begin to encounter the law of diminishing returns. I.e., the ER6 are a lot more of an improvement over the Sony in-ear phones, or stock earbuds, than the Etymotic ER4 or Shure E4c/5c are over the ER6's.
Sound isolation with the ER6 is extremly good -- I use mine daily on Chicago's mass transit system (buses and subways) and routinely for airplane flights. Notwithstanding the soundproof fit, they are comfortable to wear. I haven't experienced sore or uncomfortable ears using the Etymotics, even on long transatlantic flights.
These are not the best choice for working out because the cables rub against your clothes and transmit vibrations as sound right into your ear. In practice, when walking or commuting you can easily drape the cables in a way where this doesn't occur. But running around, leaning up and down, and changing positions frequently, I don't think you could escape the issue entirely. In that case, I'd hypothesize you might want in-ear headphones that drape over the back of the earlobe, which might prevent this from happening.
I couldn't help noticing that a small number of people have suddenly posted strongly negative reviews of these headphones, making implausibly strong claims about how bad they allegedly sound, lacking bass, or falling out of their ears despite the reviewer's claim that s/he inserted the according to directions. These reviews are so far against the manifest weight of numerous other reviews (and, more importantly, my personal experience) that I simply cannot fathom how any of these 1-star reviews have a basis in reality. The ER6 is not hard to use, not hard to insert, and does not produce bad sound, as tons of independent reviewers agree. Maybe, despite their belief to the contrary, these reviewers aren't doing as good a job reading the instructions as they think they are?
My last comment relates to a few people out there who seem to think that you need an external portable headphone amplifier to make these things really sound good. To that, I have a three word reply: "hogwash" and "snake oil". I tried a popular external amp with these phones, and after extensive testing (and single-blind testing with my wife to ensure I hadn't suddenly gone deaf) concluded that they make no audible difference, on any genre of music I own from classical to hip hop to alternative, on any bitrates from 160 to lossless. So save your money, save some space, and just jack the Etymotics right into your portable player. If you want more than that, go buy a higher model headphone; don't think that an amp will make any difference beyond the placebo effect.
ER6 vs. ER6i Earphones for Apple's iPod / Winner: ER6 June 1, 2005
55 out of 57 found this review helpful
After checking with the vendors that these headphones were returnable after being opened, I proceeded to test Etymotic Research's more economically accessible earphones - the ER6 and ER6i headphones - to more objectively make a comparison between the two. I compared their respective power usage, bass response, clarity, connection to the iPod, convenience, and sound isolation capabilities. The overall winner: ER6 Isolation Earphones. The report is below (*note this was not a scientific study but I did try to control whatever I could)
iPod Battery Life Winner: ER6i
The battery life of iPods isn't particularly great, and can be affected by a number of sources such as if EQ settings are on, if the iPod is on "hold", the song-encoded bit rate, whether or not the screen light is on, or in this case, what type of headphone is being used. I tested the battery life of the iPod using the ER6i and ER6 earphones by playing the "All Songs" function which plays every song in the library continuously until the power runs out. By starting it from the first song in the library using both earphones, I was able to factor out the bit rate in determining which earphone lasted longer. Of course, the earphones that lasted longer would be subjected to songs with bit rates that might have been much larger (say 824kbs using the Apple Lossless Encoder instead of the default 128kbs ACC encoder) or much smaller than the earphones that ran out quicker. Therefore, if the longer-lasting earphones hit a string of large bit-rate songs, the battery would run out faster than if there were lower encoded bit-rate songs. Therefore, the times that I will report should not be compared as absolute ratios. I kept the volume exactly the same for both trials and I never touched the screen so the light was never enabled. The results: the ER6 ran the battery out in 6hrs:23min while the ER6i ran it out in 9hrs.26mins. Winner: ER6i
Connection to the iPod Winner: ER6i
Because the ER6is were specifically designed for the iPod, the headphone jack connection was perfect and not as sensitive as the ER6 connection. When a headphone is disconnected from the iPod, it pauses the music automatically. Twisting the headphone jack while the iPod is in use has no effect when using the ER6i but the more tenuous connection established between the ER6 and the iPod renders the music to stop when doing this. (There is definitely some flexibility, but running with these or ascending stairs will continuously stop the music and become quite a nuisance.) Winner: ER6i
Bass Response Winner: TIE
Almost any criticism of these headphones in other product reviews always comes back to the bass response. Admittedly, for the price tag, I think the bass could be better on both models, but the major criticism of the iPod ALSO is bass response. In order to hear the bass response well, I set the iPod EQ setting to "R&B" which GREATLY enhances the bass with any headphone. I found that the ER6i lived up to its advertised enhanced bass response. However, the bass was much boomier and subsequently less accurate than that of the ER6s. In addition, the enhanced bass sacrificed mid and upper frequencies rendering a much more immature sound, and frankly, merely as impressive as my Sony Fontopia headphones that were $60 cheaper. Even though the ER6 bass response is a little thinner than that of the ER6i, it's HIGHLY accurate. I can hear each note with remarkable clarity exposing how succinct the notes truly were when they were recorded. For example, check out the beginning of Dave Matthew's Band "Crush"; you can hear his finger strike the string and the transition from each note to the other omitting that muddled "fake bass" that Sennheiser can produce. Any R&B song will really expose the accuracy. However, having that full bass response that the ER6i offers is an important basement for listening to music. Just for fun, I hooked up the ER6s to my Sony Discman and the bass was AMAZING, absolutely the BEST bass I've ever heard; highly accurate with some serious depth. Therefore, I'm convinced that the lack of bass with the ER6 is only a function of the iPod's notoriously thin low frequency output. Both earphones have something to offer; therefore they tie in this category, but I'm leaning towards the ER6.
Musical Clarity and Realism Winner: ER6
If you go to Etymotic's website you can see how they measure sonic response accuracy. The higher the accuracy score, the closer the earphone-produced sound is to live music. The ER6 is 90% accurate whereas the ER6i is 81% accurate and boy is this noticeably different. The ER6i doesn't have the same near-live sound that the ER6 can produce. High frequencies are fuzzier, substantially muted, and not as accurate rendering the ER6is incapable of producing the near-live musical experience of the ER6s. Singers' voices aren't as exposed, sounding more distant and washed out by the bass. The ER6s are just plain amazing in this category. You can hear the decay of each note as if you were standing in a concert hall (as long as the recording is high quality), and I have heard at least 5 to 10 seconds of additional sound at the beginning and ending of each song, especially during fade outs. It's also fun to hear musician's comments after the song, especially on Dave Matthews Band and Ben Folds Five/Ben Folds recordings. Cymbals are bright, crisp, and crystal clear; singers' enunciations are quite clear, trumpets sound fantastic, etc. - virtually any high frequency is the best I've ever heard. The mid-ranges are unbelievable as well and overall balance of sound is impeccable. I can hear layers of songs with the ER6s I didn't hear before. Therefore, the ER6 CLEARLY wins.
Noise Isolation Winner: TIE
When you spend over $100 dollars for earphones, you think that they better sound like they were a gift from God. For me, the reason that these earphones are this expensive is because the noise isolation is flat out incredible. I have tried the famous Bose Noise Canceling Headphones and both of the Etymotic Research earphones cancel sound BETTER (and they're HALF the price with MORE convenience i.e. not as bulky). Don't run, bike, or drive with these in your ears; you will die. I am a drummer and I've been using earplugs since I was 7, trying to find ways to completely isolate sound. Well these earphones do just that. When I walked down the street outside my apartment along a very busy road, I could not hear ANY ambient noise, literally (*the volume was half up). Along my walk I could not hear a backhoe dropping building rubble 15 feet away which I could usually hear from my apartment two blocks away! This feature alone makes these products complete steals in my mind. Winner: Tie, both World Class
Convenience Winner: ER6
By convenience I mean for removing and inserting them into your ear canals... The ER6is are smaller than the ER6s and are harder to grasp when pulling them out of your ears. I can quickly pull the ER6s out of my ears but it takes longer to inch the ER6is out of my ears. Winner: ER6
Overall Winner: ER6
Both of these products are WAY better than conventional headphones, but choosing between them will depend on your priorities. Do you want more bass and longer battery life with the ER6i? Or do you want clearer, more accurate bass with more convenience offered by the ER6s? Maybe you're a runner, and the thought of constantly adjusting the headphone jack sounds too cumbersome and distracting....go with the ER6is. Like in life, you have to sacrifice something to gain something with these headphones....unless you're Bill Gates in which case you could buy the premier ER4 model headphones which have the best of both worlds but require a second mortgage to purchase (list: $330!!!!!). For me, the clarity of a headphone determines its maturity and quality which really put the ER6 over the top even though it sucks in the iPod battery department. Any way you slice it, these headphones will improve sound, period. And the sound isolation is not hyped...it's real.
 Great for the gym September 17, 2004
51 out of 53 found this review helpful
After trying many portable headphones for the last ten years, I've finally settled two: the Sennheiser PX100 (with the Koss Porta Pro a close runner up) and these Etymotic phones. The Sennheiser's are great for where you need a little sound to infiltrate the headphones, such as bike riding (not something I'd recomend to inexperienced bicyclists). But at the gym, where the machines are noisy, the spin cyclist class plays god-awful music at top volume and people talk (more on that later), these are the best. With the Sennheiser I had to turn the volume up so high that the batteries were quickly drained, not to mention the damage to my already fragile hearing.
A few pointers. I almost returned them after the first listen. But then I remembered that headphones need to be "broken in" by playing them for awhile. I hooked them up to my stereo and played CD's all night. Big difference the next day. Also, try the different ear plugs. The plastic ones were absolutely horrible for my ears. The grey foam pads worked better. On the Etymotic website they have white ones that are smaller than the grey ones. These worked best for me (narrow ear canals I guess). Order extra filters. I had one plug up on me fairly quickly. Finally, don't wear these where you need to speak with people. You can't hear people talk with these in your ears and music playing. You can barely hear people with the music off. Pulling them in and out is a pain (and people probably don't want to see your ear wax).
Oh, almost forgot. The sound. Great. With no outside noise, the sound comes through wonderfully. They may lack a bit on the bass, but compared to regular headphones at the gym, the improvement is astounding.
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