Audio Soundmagic PL30 or Sennheiser cx180

G

gulati.ishank

Disciple
Hi everybody

I want to buy an iem for about 1.2-1.3k and is confused b/w the two mentioned in the title.I will use it for litsening music outdoors.I litsen to all types of music so which would be best among them.Any other suggestions are also welcomed.
 
I picked up the CX180 yesterday.

Wouldn't say that they have powerful bass.

I find the sound extremely aggressive in the mid-treble region. Even after getting a better ear seal (itself a struggle) the bass imprves but the quality of treble is too peaky.

These are my first IEMs, got them for the flights I have to take ever so often. Frankly, they are rubbish. Or I am spoilt.
 
Go for Sennheiser.. I have PL30 and after 6 months of usage, the left ear piece stopped works. I need to twist the cable in a particular way to make it work...
 
Check the review for both the products.

Have never heard the Sennheisers but I can tell you that PL30 is one of the best IEM for the price. I wanted to buy those but wasn't able to find them anywhere. Ended up buying the cheaper PL21 and even they are awesome. Satisfied with the quality of Soundmagic Products.
 
cranky said:
I picked up the CX180 yesterday.

Wouldn't say that they have powerful bass.

I find the sound extremely aggressive in the mid-treble region. Even after getting a better ear seal (itself a struggle) the bass imprves but the quality of treble is too peaky.

These are my first IEMs, got them for the flights I have to take ever so often. Frankly, they are rubbish. Or I am spoilt.
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You said they are trouble to fit, can you please elaborate
 
honestly the pl 30 dosent provide much by way of bass but its has a good overall spectrum of sound and if cx 180 is similar i would suggest you to go for neither of them instead go for soundmagic E30 its the replacement for pl 30 it has better bass and a better overall sound signature, check some reviews they can be had for as low as 1450 at homeshop18 (1800 - 350 using coupon)
 
abirjin said:
honestly the pl 30 dosent provide much by way of bass but its has a good overall spectrum of sound and if cx 180 is similar i would suggest you to go for neither of them instead go for soundmagic E30 its the replacement for pl 30 it has better bass and a better overall sound signature, check some reviews they can be had for as low as 1450 at homeshop18 (1800 - 350 using coupon)
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Which will be best for me among E10, pro alpha and M1.

I will use Nokia 5233 as my source so high impedance of M1 can be a problem.

Please help guys.
 
allrounder799 said:
You said they are trouble to fit, can you please elaborate
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If the seal isn't airtight you lose a lot of bass.

Getting it airtight is fairly tough - maybe it's just me though.

The housing is very short and stops once halfway in. I had to use the largest size pad and got close to a reasonable fit, bit a more compliant rubber would have helped.

Anyway I use it once or twice a month so I'm not going to be too picky. I have to use the equaliser to get some semblance of balance in the sound.
 
gulati.ishank said:
Which will be best for me among E10, pro alpha and M1.

I will use Nokia 5233 as my source so high impedance of M1 can be a problem.

Please help guys.
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only e10m seems to be available in india and it wont work with ur phone(i have 5800xm and doesnt work) its only intended for apple devices, i havent used brianwavz IEM's so i cant comment on them but as i suggested in my previous post check shoundmagic e30 i have read its reviews and they say that sound is similar to e10 so that means it sounds pretty good
 
abirjin said:
only e10m seems to be available in india and it wont work with ur phone(i have 5800xm and doesnt work) its only intended for apple devices, i havent used brianwavz IEM's so i cant comment on them but as i suggested in my previous post check shoundmagic e30 i have read its reviews and they say that sound is similar to e10 so that means it sounds pretty good
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Will e30 work with my phone.
 
In a budget of ~2000/- I would recommend that you look at these following pieces apart from the Sennheiser CX 180 and SoundMAGIC PL-30 --

1) BRAINWAVZ M1 ~1600/- http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MP4Nation/M1/ / http://www.head-fi.org/t/499583/brainwavz-m1-review

2) SoundMAGIC PL-50 ~1900/- http://www.inearmatters.net/2009/06/review-soundmagic-pl-50.html / http://www.head-fi.org/t/432843/soundmagic-pl-50-review.

Be wary SoundMAGIC products have sub-par build quality, I would recommend the BRAINWAVZ due to this factor.

Hope this helps, Cheers!!
 
gulati.ishank said:
Finalised pro alpha.

will buy as soon as it comes instock.
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I think for overall sound signatures the BRAINWAVZ M1 and the SoundMAGIC PL-50 are better, as the Pro-Alfa are more focussed on the bass aspect and slightly lower on detailing.

Can you please give us a list of favourite artistes, bands that you listen. Your current [I listen to all music types] is very vague and doesn't really tell what you are looking for in your earphones / IEM's.

Hope this helps, Cheers!!
 
ALPHA17 said:
I think for overall sound signatures the BRAINWAVZ M1 and the SoundMAGIC PL-50 are better, as the Pro-Alfa are more focussed on the bass aspect and slightly lower on detailing.

Can you please give us a list of favourite artistes, bands that you listen. Your current [I listen to all music types] is very vague and doesn't really tell what you are looking for in your earphones / IEM's.

Hope this helps, Cheers!!
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Bands- Metallica, Muse,Linkinpark, Foo fighters,Pink floyd,Evanescence,Bullet for my valentine,Green day,30 stm,Nickelback,Coldplay,nirvana,Beatles,Led zeppelin

Artists-Eminem,Kanye west,Lil wayne ,Bruno mars,Justin timberlake,Usher,Taio cruz,Adele,Katy perry,Taylor swift,Carrie underwood,Britney.

This will be my first iem and i don't know much about technical stuff,that's why i didn't mentioned it.

So, what is your suggestion now.

Also, i contacted pristine note and they said pro alphas and M1 would be priced around 2k instead of 1.6k.
 
gulati.ishank said:
Also, i contacted pristine note and they said pro alphas and M1 would be priced around 2k instead of 1.6k.

Well I bought it a few months ago, when it was 1600/- that is why I was quoting that price, apart from that the hike is thanks to $ going up and crude price implosion.
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From your list that you have provided, it will be better if you go for the BRAINWAVZ M1 OR SoundMAGIC PL-50 because even if the are not very bass oriented, they deliver a sufficient thump and manage to have a better detail texture for the sound, something which is absent from the Pro-Alfa.

The M1 has a better bass section than the PL-50 which is highly mid-centric and bass shy.

Hope this helps, Cheers!!
 
ALPHA17 said:
From your list that you have provided, it will be better if you go for the BRAINWAVZ M1 OR SoundMAGIC PL-50 because even if the are not very bass oriented, they deliver a sufficient thump and manage to have a better detail texture for the sound, something which is absent from the Pro-Alfa.

The M1 has a better bass section than the PL-50 which is highly mid-centric and bass shy.

Hope this helps, Cheers!!
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But M1 has high impedance , can my nokia 5233 drive it.

Also please tell me if Sansa clip+ is available anywhere, i think i will buy it too.

And thanks for your help.
 
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