Customer Reviews

Altec Lansing inMotion iM716 Headphones

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

Strengths: Sound quality; HD / Bass Mode selector; Isolation
Weaknesses: Low output; Pod not detachable; Microphonics
Summary: The sound from the iM716s is extraordinarily detailed. Transient response is excellent. Vocals will just jump out at you. An eerie experience on first listen.

TIPS and FIT: I was unable to get a good comfortable fit with the included tri-flange tips. Everything sounded canned, tinny. The highs were good, but weren't nearly balanced with the rest of the range. Everything changed dramatically with the foam tips. Very comfortable, and from the mid range down, the sound signature filled out. FYI- I have large ear canals. I later cut off the smaller of the 3 flanges, and the now bi-flanges fit perfectly. People with small ear canals have reported similar beneficial effects from trimming off the larger flange. The foam tips can cover a wider size range.

Inner ear monitors (IEMs) are 'very' sensitive to getting a good seal. Think of it this way, a small 2-way speaker system can sound wonderful in a small room. In a larger room it will not effectively load the much larger space, and bass will seem deficient. The same is true for IEMs. If you properly seal off your ear canal, the IEM will be loading a very small space. Improper seal will decimate bass. For those reviewers that graded these phones poorly, poor sealing of the ear canal due to lack of experience with IEMs is the issue. Anyone can get a proper fit with IEMs. It may take a little more time to adjust these phones, they do not just slip over your ears like full size cans. When properly inserted the wires should go straight down, or toe in a little towards your neck. Therefore the phones are inserted at an upwards angle, NOT straight in and sticking out of your ears like carrots. ;-)

NOTE: Many people believe that balanced armature transducers like those in the iM716 do not require a burn-in period. I found these to flesh out after running them for a full week hooked up to a sound source. Balanced armature transducers are more costly than normal dynamic drivers, and are the transducers of choice in the most expensive IEMs.

SOUND: Upper mid to highs: Exceptional. These are very fast. Articulation is outstanding due to the fast transient response. You will hear fingers sliding down the neck of a guitar, the breathing of vocalists. Exciting.

Mid-bass to mids: With the foam tips or modified bi-flanges, this was in very good balance with the highs. Gives good `body' to vocals.

Bass: Very fast and tight. No one-thump, boomy bass. Acoustic bass is realistic. But if you love the visceral impact of subwoofers, you may prefer a full sized, over the ear set of cans. These are not overly warm, rolled off phones. They almost demand you sit up and notice.

OTHER: HD / Bass modes: Very nice. HD is perfect for quiet surroundings listening to vocals and/or instrumentals. Bass adds more fundamentals. Better for rock and hip-hop and/or surroundings that have higher ambient noise level, like the gym. The volume potentiometer, which I originally disliked having in-line (an audiophile quirk), is actually much easier to control than the iPod wheel.

These earphones are not efficient. I need to increase the volume to get a similar volume level as the stock iPod earbuds. I typically run at about 75% volume.

The isolation factor with these on, with music, is very high. Do not jog, drive or bike in a crowded area with these on. You won't hear a bus 10 feet away. Great for travel or the gym (maybe not the treadmill, due to microphonics inherent in IEMs, dunno, never tried).

OVERALL: These phones will show the limits of your DAP, and not the other way around. Hooked up to a good source and amp, these really shine. I would rate the sound 9 out of 10. Although keep in mind my tastes prefer a fast transient response at the expense of a deep and prominent bottom end. If you are running 15" woofers in your ride, or you prefer tinnitus inducing volume levels, this may not be the phone for you.

To get opinions from people that spend a lot of time with headphones, please go to head-fi.org . These headphones in head to head comparisons have bettered the Etymotics ER6 and ER6i (and Shure e2 and e3), and have come close to the sound quility and refinement of the much more expensive ER4 series (and Shure e4). It should not be too surprising as they were originally reported to be a `tweaked version' of the famous ER4S.

Just received a pair of the Altec Lansing IM716 from Amazon. Here are my initial impressions:

Packaging:
The headphones came in a very simple styrofoam box. Can't say it was the most attractive package, but hey, it much easier to open than the sharp plastic packaging which has become the norm as of late. Inside the box were the headphones, a plastic carrying case, 2 triflanges (already installed), 2 foam tips, a pair of filters, and a filter changing tool. The included instructions were fairly straight forward enough for the first time user of IEMs. There was also a voucher included for a free pair of etymotic earplugs. Although the website given on the voucher is either down or non-existant as I got a 404 error each time I tried.

The Headphones:
Design:
Fairly well built, although I am suspect of the inline volume control. The clip included on volume control is of very little use. It looks basically like the metal clip you find on some pen caps. The headphones themselves are very lightweight. The included triflange tips insert very easily in the ears and isolate from the outside world just as well if not better than the Shure E2C and E3C.

Sound:
The Altecs are some of the clearest headphones that I have ever listened to. Maybe it might be because I have grown used to the rolled off highs of the E2C and E3C, but I was amazed when listening to some smooth jazz saxophone solos. Small details were heard for the very first time.
The headphone actually contains a small switch on the inline volume control that allows the listener to switch between HD and Bass modes. I can honestly say that there is a distinct difference between each. The HD mode gives a flat sound, lows aren't overpowering nor are the highs. Great when listening to classical and jazz. One thing to note is that the HD mode sounds even better when the headphones are amped. The use of an Onkyo receiver brought out the lowend as well created a much more full sound. These headphones need some power behind them in order to shine. Whereas I only needed about a level 10 volume on my Creative Zen touch when listening to the Shures, I needed about a 15 in order to reach the same level of loudness on the Altecs.
The Bass mode does exactly as it advertises. It increases the level of the low end considerably without muddying. Great when listening to Rap and R&B. This creates a much more "fun" sound, if you will. Bass seemed much tighter and cleaner through the Altecs than the E3Cs. When comparing loudness of the low-end, it was pretty comparable with the E2Cs, although the Altecs were not as muddy.
Microphonics can be a problem with these headphones though. I have a feeling this is an issue that may bother some more than others though. The noise that is transmitted through the cord and to the ear is more prominent in the altecs than in either of the shures. This is probably due to the volume control. Not a huge annoyance, but it's noticeable.

Conclusion:
These are a great pair of IEMs for the price. I only wish I had a pair of ER4s or ER4P to compare them to. I can appreciate the sound of these headphones even at low volumes which is something I could have never said about my E2C's. Although the microphonics can be an issue, the great sound coming out of the IM716 will quickly make you forget about it. Remember, you are pretty much getting two headphones in one as the switch creates two different personalities. I recommend these as an alternative to look at if you're in the market for a headphone in this price range.

This is not my first InEarMonitor purchase. Prior to the iM716, I have been using Etymotics er-6i (both amped and unamped), which I had considered the absolute best-bang for the buck monitors. My background includes an interest in "hi-fi" since around 1960, and several years with guitar, string bass, piano etc....anyway..........these are the new champs in the under $250 price category, and strongly comparable to Shure E4, and Ety ER-4S. Negative reviews here reflect that some folks have little idea of how iem's are inserted/fit. Insertion is directed to the front and upwards (this is the natural direction of the ear canal). Also, don't be afraid of going too deep with them - you cannot hurt yourself with them and they demand a good seal. The iM716 is very good in presenting the details of a recording (they are derived from Etymotic drivers), but they are also very musical-sounding. My personal choice of tips for them is Shure Softflex (they fit perfectly). If you need foamies, then Comply works very well. The only questionable choice made by Altec Lansing was to put an in-line resistor module with them (giving you a choice of using them unamped from a power-weak player or switching the module to HD position for more refined sound which is best when amped (imo)(module also has a volume control). The downside for having this module is that it adds a bit of weight to the line. While I don't like this module for my usage, I can see where others could rejoice in its' inclusion.
The design is very attractive and I sometimes think of getting a second pair of them, simply because they are soo cheap and comfortable to me. These iM716's are now my go-to choice for portable listening.

These headphones have a great well-balanced sound, and detail resolution is just awesome. However, you NEED to get a good seal. They have to be inserted quite deep. I have a feeling all the bad reviews about tinny/bass-shy sound or poor isolation have to do with people not understanding how to insert these.

I've had the Altec Lansing iM716 for almost 3 1/2 weeks now, and I think it's an excellent earphone. Although the volume does need to be turned almost all the way up, the iM716 (in HD mode, using the triflanges) sounds great unamplified out of my nano, fuller and smoother than the Etymotic ER*6.

There is a definite learning curve involved in obtaining the proper fit and seal with the triflanges. Initially I had difficulty determining the correct angle of insertion of the earphone in my left ear (angled further upward than the right). Without an adequate seal on one side, half the bass was lost, and at times I was questioning whether the sound was any better than that of the stock iPod buds!

With a proper fit, the iM716 allows me to switch back and forth between it, the Sennheiser HD 555, Alessandro MS 1, and Koss KSC75 & SportaPro without feeling that any one of these headphones sounds dramatically better overall than any of the others. The iM716 is clearly brighter than the rest, but I may actually like it best. I find the sound quality of all of these 'phones "addictive" -- once I start listening, I don't want to stop. I'm able to simply enjoy the music without focusing on deficiencies in sound reproduction.

On the other hand, now I find the Koss Plug, Sony MDR-EX71SL, and, yes, even the Ety ER*6 relatively unlistenable:

Plug -- booming bass, rolled-off highs
EX71 -- boosted bass, sizzly highs
ER*6 -- thin, harsh
Adcom GFA-535 II --> Paradigm Mini Monitors (w/ rear ports ~1 1/2" from wall) -- bass outta control; just wrong!
Sony MDR-V6 -- boosted bass and highs (but not nearly as egregiously as the EX71!)

The EX71 and ER*6 improve notably with the Pocket Amp 2 - Version 2. However, the iM716 unamped still sounds fuller than nano --> SiK ram din --> PA2V2 --> ER*6.

I use the ER-4P. For the stuff that the ER-4P is bad for (dance trax, rock, and casual listening stuff), the iM716 really does well. It is a bit muddy and not accurate at the top end, but overall is very balanced. Unlike the Er-4P, the iM716 does not have a significant mid frequency hump. the ER-4P beats the iM716 with classical music, jazz and some acoustic materials. The iM716 is more for the modern music with electronic sounds, etc. Enough ranting. I recommend it.

One thing you will read in reviews when people first use the IM716 headphones is a complaint about how they hurt the listeners ears while running. Had this customer read the manual they would read a passage explicitly stating how they are NOT reccomended to use while running, bycycling or driving a car.

I use them for long airplane flights, long walks between classes and relaxing at home, and these headphones are fantastic. Once you get it situated in your ear correctly, it takes a few tries to figure it out, you won't want to take them off. They are comfortable and the sound quality is incredible; this is assuming that you have your music encoded in a higher quality format. If all of your music is encoded in .mp3 at 128kbs you arn't doing yourself justice. I have some songs in apple losses and some in ACC 192kbs (w/ vbr) and I am very happy with the sound quality.

The clip, located about 6-8 inches below the actually earphones lets you manually adjust volume and select two different types of pla, Bass and High Definition. The Bass will boost the lower range and that volume quite significantly (for those who complain that the earphones aren't loud enough) and the High Definition gives the listener a crisp tone that is a little bit more flat.

Overall, I am very satisfied with the product and would advise anyone who loves music to promptly go out and purchase them. They are worth MUCH more than the 67.00 I paid for them.

After using my iM716s for about 4 months now I have a few things to say about them.

1) Price: Lists for $199 on Altec's site. $70 is a steal.
2) Quality: Top notch in the earphones, the clip on the volume module is weak.
3) Performance: Bar none best I've had. These things outperform the huge Logitech ear muff set I use mainly to mow in. These things allow me to mow the lawn without having to jack up the volume to drown out the mower.
4) Conclusion: The only thing that stops me from saying these are perfect is the volume module can be a pain and get in the way. When moving around, you NEED to have it clipped to something, otherwise it can create inner ear noise. This can get quite annoying. I've also caught the cord on things, causing the clip to bend away from the module. It is removeable and I was able to bend it back. If there were a pair of equal quality w/o the module, even for the same price, I'd go that route. With that said, I am in no way regretting my purchase and will recommend these to anyone asking me about them or my 60GB video ipod.

Firstly I have to say thank you to Amazon for offering this product at a literally unbeatable price, and of course their prompt service was satisfactory. At first I thought I had been seriously jipped. I was very curious about the price these IEM's were going for. After owning them for some weeks now I understand why the price might be so low. I happened upon this headset while doing extensive research on the Etymotic Research brand. In fact this headset is a joint effort by Altec Lansing Etymotic Research which was a huge selling point for me. After finding out that this set had been said to best Etymotic Research's ER-6's and fall 2% short of the accuracy reproduced by the top model from the same company on several occasions I immediately looked into purchasing them, come to find out this headset is priced somewhat lower than the ER-6's in many instances and later finding that Amazon was offering them for at liquidation type price, the choice was easy. When it was shipped I tore the package open ecstatic about the deal I was sure I got. Sorry to say that when first trying them on I was grossly dissapointed at the sound. Ergonomically they were not a problem as I have been using IEM's for some time now. But the output was terribly low to my virgin ears. I had been using what I thought was a quite good set of Panasonic IEM's and thought immediately that the 716's were inferior. I decided to keep at them because I could not understand why this headset had been considered to be one of the best available and I found them to be so unsatisfactory. After listening to the 716's for a while I found that when I went back to the Panasonic's I found that the loss of accuracy was very intolerable. The 716's block out quite a bit of noise so I learned to enjoy sound at a lower level which was actually better for my ears in the long run. Even at about the half way point on the inline volume control you hear everything from your source of audio without any interference from outside the monitors so high volume levels aren't actually necessary. Now I have seen that the loss of output is easily replaced by the immense gain of quality and I could not be happier with this headset or any head set for that matter.

Summary: Absolutely wonderful headphones. You won't find better sound for this price range. The isolation is FANTASTIC. The only problem, after 2 years, is that part of the wires are starting to fray inside the cord, due to the way the case holds the cord. You can avoid this by leaving the plug end loose in the middle of the cylinder near the volume knob (instead of pushing it into the small groove in the side).

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I really can't say anything that hasn't been better-stated in previous reviews, like the featured ones. I'll just add in that I've used these headphones every day for over two years, and they are the best I have ever owned.

I was originally going to purchase a noise-canceling pair of headphones, but after some research and comments from enthusiast websites, I decided to go with these noise-isolating earphones. It was an excellent decision. When properly fitted, these babies silence EVERYTHING when you have music on. I've mowed the yard and couldn't notice that the lawnmower died except that it wouldn't keep moving. It reduces airplane noise to the sound of a soft breeze. And, unlike active noise cancellation, it doesn't create the sensation of low pressure that some experience.

The sound quality is too good to be true. I noticed things I had never heard before in songs I'd listened to for many years. Any lighter kind of music, especially with a focus on vocals, will sound simply astonishing. The quality of your sound will be limited by your source.

I do think these require a burn-in period. Plug them into a sound source and run them for a while.

As far as long-term durability, I can't complain at all. They still sound as good as they did when I started using them (as far as I can remember). The rubber flanges start to wear down and don't insulate as well after 2 years, but they still isolate well.

One of the main problems I've had is that the wire in the cord has been slightly damaged by the carrying case. Sometimes, the sound in one ear will cut out if I don't straighten out the cord. This can be avoided. When you store it in the case, you should wrap it well, but not too tightly, and when you get down to the plug end, you should not push the cord into the thin groove on the side. Just leave it loose in the middle of the cylindrical area where the volume knob goes.