These headphones rule

Awhile ago I ordered ER-20 HI-FI earplugs from Etymotic Research. Those earplugs made such an impression on me, that I wanted to purchase their ER-4P earphones right away. Fortunately, their \$300 pricetag caused me to put that purchase off indefinately.

I recently have been reading reviews of Etymotic’s new ER-6 Isolator earphones, which are the “cheap” version of the ER-4’s at \$130. I just got them this morning, and they sound amazing… They do such a fantastic job of blocking eternal noise, and the fidelity of the audio is fantastic. They are some of the best sounding earphones I have ever listened to (yes, they are in the league of the Grado’s, which aren’t shabby at all, mind you). I think the key for me is the fact that they block out external noise…. I no longer hear the ominous din of the server rack 10 feet from my skull (which I am sure was causing permanent hearing damage.. :P), Instead of several conversations layered on top of each other coming from around the office, I hear a faint muttering in the far distance…. Now I only hear my music, and the quality of it is amazing…

I can only imagine how nice the ER-4s sound, but I can’t say I enjoy having the \$150+ in my pocket. :)