Audio Technica ATH-CK7 earphones.
I finally got my Audio Technica CK7 earphones . Paid about 90$ including shipping from a reputable (ID verified) ebay seller.
Right out of the box, the highs where a bit harsh and there was a noticeable level of sibilance. This was actually a good sign because all high end earphones I got so far did this before an overnight burn-in. The memorable exception was the fake Sony earphones. I don’t know for sure what is so different in hi-fi earphones that does that but it is probably because they can actually produce such high frequencies while the cheap ones just cut it off anyway.
After an overnight burn in, harshness and sibilance are gone. I checked impedance and everything looks all right. There’s a little bit more difference between the left and right speakers (about 1 Ohm) so it is not as precise as the ER6 Etymotics. One speaker will probably play a tiny bit louder but it won’t be noticeable.
Then the real test began in my noisy work environment. This was not a problem while listening to big noisy music like Hatebreed and Front line Assembly but with classical music, external noise and speaker noise really gets in the way. Since I already have replacement foam tips on order for my ER6, I didn’t mind replacing the provided silicon tips of my CK7 by the Etymotic foams. I had to stretch the opening a little bit but it still fits and it really raises the CK7 to a new level of quality by significantly reducing external and speaker induced noise. That is how I’ll use my CK7: with ER6-14F Etymotic foam tips. It is a small easy to do mod that is really worth it. Note that this mod could be done on the Sony EX90 earphones but because of the vent holes on the buds, it would not be as efficient.
