Customer Reviews

Ultimate Ears SuperFi 4vi Noise Isolating Earphones w/ Microphone

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(19)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

I love these buds. There are really only 3 choices for iPhone earbuds if you want the mic/control feature. I tried the UB7 Ultimate Buds Apple / Etymotic ER6i and the V-Moda Vibe Duos and these won out.

Etymotic ER6i are the same price, but not enough bass for me. They are a little bigger and not the most attractive. Only 90 day warranty. Uses the original iPhone cable which is good.

The Duos have WAY too much bass and weak highs. Some like them, but for me they sounded muddy and awful next to the UEs. The mic was big and bulky and the button was too small. The cloth cable makes noises in your ear when it rubs against your clothes. Really annoying. Mic isn't as good as the Apple phones.

The Super.fi's have a great design. Very light and I got a great fit. A really nice balanced sound. The button is a little hard to press at first, but after a while it loosens up and you get the hang of where to press - right in the middle. No other cons on these. The case is small and easy to carry. Every phones should come with a case this cool. Cable is the perfect length. Mic sounds as good if not better than the Apple phones. Nobody can tell I'm using a mic.

I hope this helps with a decision. I worked hard making this choice. You can't go wrong with these beautiful buds!!!

First, I would like to give you some insight as to where I'm coming from. I'm a huge music fan, musician, DJ and audio engineer. I appreciate all of the subtleties of music, not just a big booming bass. I want to hear the hi-hats, tambourines, cymbals and other high frequencies. Also, the midrange containing so much musical information (vocals & instruments). Good, solid bass is also very important. I want to experience the _music_. I want to be able to distinguish between a fretless bass guitar, fretted bass and upright bass as well as synthesizers, bass drums and floor toms.
I'm not claiming to be THE authority on audio, but I believe that I do have discerning ears.

Second, I used a variety of MP3s. Some I ripped with Apple Lossless others at 320 constant bit rate, normal stereo, NO smart encoding adjustments, frequencies below 10Hz are filtered out. A few songs from the iTunes music store at 128 & 256 just to try them out. How the song was processed did make a difference! You can't trust some swiped MP3 you got off of Napster/Gnutella, they often sound bad.

That said, my review may seem to contradict some other reviews.

IMPORTANT: It's critical that the ear-buds fit really well in order to get the best bass response! I was lucky that the first covers that I tried fit perfectly (the universal fit kit comes with several covers).

I must say that, depending on the song, these have plenty of accurate bass. If the recording lacks a solid bass try the iPhone's equalizer. Click on: settings/iPod/EQ. My favorites are: Electronic, Flat, Jazz, Loudness and Rock. Most modern music sounds best flat. The artists that I used for the test are: The Police, Sting, James Taylor, Janet Jackson (2008), Armin Van Buuren, Buckcherry, The Offspring, 3rd Party, Elvis, Luciano Pavarotti, Andrea Bocelli, Vivaldi and Billy Cobham... just to name a few.

These headphones are not perfection, but with some occasional EQ, I was surprised and very happy with the results. These will not sound as good as full sized headphones, but I was amazed at how close they are.

They block outside sound a lot which can be good/bad depending on what you're doing (outside noise/safety). For phone use they sound great, but it's weird because you can't really hear your own voice as you speak.

The design of the button to answer calls and change tracks is a weak point in an otherwise good product. I can make it work, but it requires a strong pinch. Also, a clip that attaches to your clothes and holds the wire to prevent tugging on your ears would be welcomed. You could accomplish this with a clip from Shure that's designed for lavalier microphones (music store). Are they worth the $133? For me, yes. I rate them at 4.5 stars for audio, but I would like them more if the button was redesigned. Take them for what they are... small ear bud headphones that sound very good for their size.

After reading tons of reviews on various styles of headphones, and even considering getting the Shure adapter for my iPhone I decided to get this headset.

Compared to the stock iPhone head phones it's night and day. It's not even close the amount of clarity these bring to the table... there isn't really a lot to say if you are comparing them to the stock iPhone head set. It's better in every aspect audio wise. Cleaner Bass, Cleaner Mids, and Highs. Better sound isolation, so you can hear your music at lower volumes.

It comes with a nice stylish headphone case. As do most headphones, but this one is actually small enough to fit in your pocket with out discomfort. I might possibly use this one, as apposed to wrapping the headset around the iPhone when I'm not using it. Definitely a plus.

Now, the only "real" comparison I have for these head phones is against my Shure E3G head phones, and my Steel Sounds 5h (version 1) Headset.

The Steel Sound 5h is a computer gaming headset, but sounds absolutely amazing, I have a link to it later in the review. Keep in mind that it's not earbud, it's a standard over the ear headphone.

I've been an owner of the e3g headphones for a little over a year.

To test the headphones, I got my older 60gig 5th Gen iPod often times refered to as "iPod Classic". I compared it to several types of songs with no EQ settings, just unplugging, and switching headphones, not changing volume levels.

My Shure e3g headphones have better isolation than the Super .fi 4vi, but the Super .fi aren't advertised at isolation headphones, where the Shure e3g are. The Super .fi how ever do Isolate, just not as well... it still drowns out the typing on my keyboard, or the snapping of my fingers when they are a foot or so away from my face.

Bass: This was my biggest concern with every earbud headphone/set i've thought about purchasing. ALOT of it has to do with getting a "GOOD" seal in your ear... you can change the positioning just a fraction and have the difference between "NO" bass, and "WOW" that sounds good.

the Super .fi have more bass than my e3g. Fresh out of the box, with about 10 mins of fiddling around trying to get a "perfect" fit, they have alittle more defined bass than the e3g. I am very pleased with the bass, which from reading reviews of this product people said it was lack luster... I don't find that to be the case at all.

How ever, if you don't have them positioned in your ears just right, the bass is GONE, NONE, very lacking. These earbuds don't go in my ear NEAR as far as the e3g. Which means the fit is more impt, and harder to find. How ever, faster to remove and insert once you get used to finding the "g" spot.

Over all, the bass is nice. Not as rich as my Steel Sound 5h head set (which is not a earbud set)

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000UP83SQ/sr=8-1/qid=1199481684/ref=pd_cp_e_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1199481684&sr=8-1&pf_rd_p=250314601&pf_rd_s=center-41&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B000IC0VYA&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0EPG3MAV3N29HGQR85HF

(My Steel Sound 5h is V1, not V2 just a note)

Recap of the Bass. I am very pleased with it... Better than e3g/e3c and being how iPhone/iPods distort bass if you boost it, what I find my self doing if i want more is turn on the "treble reducer" EQ.

How ever, with this headset I run no EQ... the bass is perfect.

Mids/Treble: Very clean, very clear. I find that the e3g is almost too bright, and punchy on treble. I found my self running a treble reducer on my iPod just because the treble was so over powering with the e3g. The balance is perfect on the Super .fi 4vi. The mids sound better than the e3g, and the highs are balanced better.

These headphones have a great fidelity they sound very true, very crisp, very accurate.

Did I mention they look very nice as well? Stylish look. Black cord, Nickel color headphones.



The Cons: Price. $150ish, is alot, I got mine a little cheaper, but still over $100 (at the time of this review)

The phone button/pause/next track button is hard to press. And if you're like me, you're thinking "You idiots just can't press it" No... it really is hard to press. I can switch tracks, and do everything with it just perfectly, but it's not near as easy to press as the stock iPhone headset. Which is the only down side to the headphones I've found yet. If the button was more like the stock iPhones it'd be perfect.

The earphones sound great. Everyone who complained about the sound was probably not inserting them correctly - it's a little different than standard ear buds because you have to insert the tips into your canals. Overall I found them to be more comfortable than the bulkier super.fi 5 pro ear phones, not to mention better looking and iPhone compatible. I also really like the carrying case that these come with.

However, the build quality is really lacking. I have had the same problems with the button as many other reviewers, and the piece of plastic covering it does seem to come loose easily. It's easy to fix if you notice the problem quickly, but I can see how it could easily get lost if it falls off completely. Worse, the metal case on my left earphone started pitting very quickly and has continued to get worse. Then, a few weeks ago the cord insulation for the left earphone became separated from the splitter. Now today, just over two months after buying these, I noticed the sound only coming out of the right earphone. I wiggled the jack a bit and it crackled a bit and started playing out of the left, but sure enough either the jack or the cord near it must be shot. I'm going to try exchanging these, but I'm worried that it will just happen again. I'm half tempted to just go back to the Apple earbuds, despite the poor sound and isolation - at least if those break, they're cheap to replace!

Update 6 July 2008: I did end up exchanging my original set. The return process was pretty easy, just go to their website and request an RMA and they email instructions for sending it back a few days later. In another ten days or so, a replacement set arrived, new in the box. This was in late March, and so far the replacement set has been totally without issues. In addition, the call/pause button of the new set seems more solidly built and easier to press. So it seems that many of the manufacturing issues may have been resolved. Great news!

Unfortunately I don't think I can change the star rating of this review, but between the improved construction, the great sound, and the good customer service, I'd probably bump this up to four stars.

After being held hostage with the stock Apple earbuds for the iPhone, it's truly wonderful to get a set of these high end in-ear monitors.

The standard tips (as they come in the box) fit me perfectly. If you find that they don't though, all variety of tips are provided in the box.

The mic picks up your voice very well without the need to hold the mic to your mouth. The call answer switch also works well, although it's pretty small and the actual switch is hard to push. This is especially apparent when you want to "double-push" to advance to the next song. Overall though, it's all about the sound quality and noise isolation! Nice, balanced sound with way more bass than stockers. Nice hard case to carry them around too. Highly recommended and worth the $$$.

These headphones are crystal clear and present vocals very accurately. They are not bass heavy, but the bass they produce is super clean. I am a self confessed bass head and although I wish these had a bit more, they keep my satisfied. For a single driver earbud, these are about as good as it gets. The case that comes with these is very nice too. It is a hard plastic case, yet very small. You don't even notice it in your pocket. They are very stylish and look great with the iPhone too.

After trying out and getting rid of several sets of iPhone specific iems (inner ear monitor), as well as a couple of non-iPhone models, the Super.fi 4vi was the hands down winner. When compared to similarly priced iems, I found these to offer the most neutral, best overall sound of the bunch. I am comparing these to Shure E2, Shure E3, Etymotic ER6i, VModa, and my previous favorites - a pair of modified Sony MDR EX91s.

With the iPhone iPod Sound Check off, EQ off, and Volume Limit off, I find the Super.fi 4vi to have a very well balanced sound, with very good quality bass, very neutral open mids, and clean well defined treble (without being sibilant or harsh). Another nice aspect to these particular iems is that they actually do a good job with soundstaging. In my previous experiences with iems, only the modified Sonys offered anywhere near the sort of realistic sound stage that the Supers provide. The Sony, lacking true iPhone compatibility is now my wife's favorite for her iPod.

Until you start comparing the Super.fi 4vi to MUCH more expensive iems, you won't find a better reproduction in sound for your iPhone while getting a microphone and pause/track switch, too boot! When compared to the Shure E2 and E3, I found the bass in both a bit muddy. It was there in quantity, but I couldn't get well defined bass from either. The VModa was simply too bass heavy for my taste. It was almost as though the bass output had been boosted. The Etymotic, while a really nice iem, is known to be a bit anemic in the bass department, and a bit sterile overall. That was my impression, as well.

Take the time to get the right fit. This is critical with ANY iem, and these are no exception. As one reviewer observed, just a VERY slight movement when placing these will make the difference in no bass and "WOW". The rest of the frequency range responds in similare fashion.

Get the Supers and enjoy what your iPhone can really sound like!!

To start off with, these headphones sound very good once you get past the microphonics caused by cable movement. This can be a problem with any ear-canal style headphones, these headphones seems to be a little bit worse than some others I have tried in that regard. The button on the cable is a little bit easier to accidentally press than the Apple design on the standard iPhone headphones. It is also a little bit harder to find because the button sits much farther down on the cable and is easy to lose underneath clothing or jackets. It also is easy to confuse with the cable junction when you are trying to press the button without looking down at the cable because they are of similar size. I much prefer the Apple design for these reasons. In addition I think the Apple design is sleeker looking compared to the clunky cable and microphone/junction/button knobs on the Ultimate Ears.

Finally, the reason that I gave this product such a low score is because I am appalled by how quickly these things fell apart. I don't think I've treated them especially hard. I use the headphones mostly while seated at work, and the rest of the time while doing light manual work (like painting my house). In just slightly less than 30 days the left speaker developed a static sound at some frequencies. I mostly listen to podcasts and always at reasonable volumes, so I can't see how this could be caused by having the volume too loud. After the second month of use the cable has frayed at the base near the mini-plug. The left speaker has now stopped working altogether. I have always used the included case when transporting them in my pocket to protect them from undue wear and tear. For comparison I have used the original iPhone headphones for a year and a half (since the release date of the original non-3G iPhone) and they are still in working condition. In fact I still use them when at the gym where I find them more comfortable than the in-ear design. So using the same or more care with these much more expensive headphones has resulted in less than one tenth of the lifespan. That is entirely unacceptable.

I have attempted to contact Ultimate Ears to get a replacement or warranty repair, but they have not responded to my emails. I will attempt to call them shortly to see if I have more success. Either way I cannot recommend these headphones until they improve their build quality. They may be fine in the studio, but they are not durable enough for casual use.

I don't understand the negativity in these reviews.

Let me tell you where I'm coming from first: I own ultimate ears super.fi 5 pro headphones but when the iphone came out the fit was awkward so I've been on the hunt now for solid replacements for about 6 months now.

Getting tired of the Apple phones, I decided to take the plunge. I was hesitant to buy these initially because I already dropped $250 on the super.fi pro's so I decided to try the vModa headphones. WOW--WHAT A WASTE OF MONEY! Not only was the sound horrible but the button on the wire was hard to push. It's almost level with the material around it. So, I resolved to get these new super.fi 4vi headphones (ignoring all these terrible reviews).

So, I got them yesterday and the sound, to my delight, is just almost the level of the super.fi 5 pro's and the clicker is just fine to use (what are these other reviewers talking about???). I like that the button is a little lower (responding to another reviewer about it being hard to push with a jacket). We'll, I say, the button up by the ear is really silly because you have to raise your hand to your cheek every time you want to pause or FF. Also, like my super.fi 5 pros, if you take care of them and store them carefully, they should last (I'm sure there are isolated cases where this isn't so, like all other electronics.)

Honestly, I would've given these a 4 because I am spoiled by the beautiful super.fi 5 pro sound but I felt it was my duty to give it a 5 because of all the silly nitpicky things that people point out. I'm sure I'll get negative comments and I'll be more than happy to answer them one-by-one.

Bottom line: if you're in the market for good headphone for the iPhone at a fairly reasonable price point with excellent highs/lows and pretty good (not thumpin') bass, get these. If you like bass only and don't really care about overall clarity, get the muddy V-Moda's.

Good luck with your decisions.

After getting an iPhone, I found myself stuck with Apple's provided headset for longer than expected. Except for the ear buds themselves, the design is terrific. They are lightweight, and the integrated microphone + click control was easy to find quickly and operate correctly, even in the dark or with my eyes closed. Of course, the ear buds themselves are horrible, and ruined the headset. There wasn't a day that I didn't crave a replacement.

Finally along came a variety of choices. After trying four different kinds at Macworld Expo 2008, I picked these Ultimate Ears, because the ear inserts were relatively small and comfortable, and the controls + microphone were lightweight, and placed roughly where I expected them. They look good, feel solid, and sound terrific. I'm quite happy with them.