Etymotic Research ER6 Isolator In-Ear Earphones (Black)

Other products by Etymotic Research

Product Details

Product Manual [327kb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 2 x 11 x 6 inches ; 2 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0007WTHLY
• Item model number: ER6-P
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (161 customer reviews)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: May 10, 2004

Product Description

From the Manufacturer
The Etymotic Research ER-6 Isolator is a compact, earbud-style set of earphones that are ideal for travel and personal listening. If you've ever been a skeptic of earbud sound quality, the ER-6 will shatter the headphone myth that bigger is better.

The ER-6 features a noise isolation of 34-36 dB that far surpasses that of active noise-canceling earphones. This makes the ER-6 a perfect choice for travelers, because these earphones will actively cancel the white noise caused by traffic, trains, or airplanes. These tiny earbuds are perfect for CD, DVD, and MP3 players, as well as laptop computers. Plus, the ER-6 is designed to plug directly into most airline audio systems, so you'll never have to pay for those cheap, airline headphones again.

ER-6 series earphones come with everything you need for a perfect audio experience

The quality of these earphones is outstanding. They deliver such rich sound quality that even the most finicky audiophile will be impressed. The ER-6 earphones have a flat, real-ear response for reproducing CD and MP3 recordings. The sound accuracy is comparable to professional earphones, and provides surprising performance considering that the ER-6 is so compact and weighs less than an ounce.

Etymotic Research delivers outstanding comfort with the ER-6. The flanged eartips fit snuggly into most ear canals, but Etymotic goes one step further by providing disposable foam eartips. The foam eartips provide extra comfort and may offer a better seal in the ear canal. The ER-6 is designed to deliver excellent sound reproduction and big, rich bass tones. A good seal in your ear canal will ensure that you here every detail of your favorite tunes. The ER-6 flanged eartips are easy to remove and should be cleaned regularly for the best listening experience. Etymotic Research provides you with the tools you need to keep your ER-6 clean and working properly.

Test results prove the sound accuracy of the ER-6

Etymotic Design Means 100% Sonic Accuracy

A perfect recording of a live performance played through earphones with 100% accuracy would produce the same sound at the eardrum as a live performance. A complicating factor is that the acoustic resonance and "horn effects" of the ear can distort a flat signal entering the open ear from a headphone. A perfect earphone will create that same frequency characteristic (called the "target curve") at the eardrum.

Target curves on Etymotic Research graphs indicate 100% accuracy. Commercial recordings often have a high-frequency boost that compensates for the high frequency roll-off in studio monitor loudspeakers and high-quality stereo loudspeakers and earphones. The ER-6 earphones compensate for the high frequency boost added to high-quality recordings. This modification (approximately 5 dB at 10 kHz) is necessary to avoid earphones sounding too bright on commercial recordings.

Other in-the-ear earphone manufacturers do not report accuracy scores, but Etymotic Research has tested all competitive products. The accuracy scores of Etymotic Research earphones are higher than those of most loudspeakers, and well above all competitive earphones, except electrostatic headphones that cost thousands of dollars.

What's in the Box
ER-6 earphones, cord with stereo plug, one pair two-flange eartips, one pair foam eartips, two replacement filters, filter changing tool, shirt clip, and pouch.


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.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

92 of 97 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great quality and fantastic noise isolation, November 11, 2004

By	A. Cox "Artist, Musician, Physicist and Cook" (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews

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!

72 of 75 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best portable headphones in their class, February 7, 2006

By	J. Gitzlaff (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

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.

88 of 94 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Love the product, hate the lifespan, March 22, 2006

By	E. Goldberg (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

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.