earbud problem

The earbuds that came with my sansa clip zip are HUGE. There is no possible way for them to fit in my ears, none, nada. Fortunately I have a pair of in-ears that would fit the device. But I don’t really like them either, they make my ears feel like they;re stuffed up. I like to listen to music when I’m going to sleep so actual head phones are much too cumbersome. Is there any remedy for mal-fitting earbuds?

Thanks !

@meenie wrote:

The earbuds that came with my sansa clip zip are HUGE. There is no possible way for them to fit in my ears, none, nada. Fortunately I have a pair of in-ears that would fit the device. But I don’t really like them either, they make my ears feel like they;re stuffed up. I like to listen to music when I’m going to sleep so actual head phones are much too cumbersome. Is there any remedy for mal-fitting earbuds?

Thanks !

You could try earphones that are made for children (no offense meant) but the earbuds should be smaller in size. 

Some ear buds (and most, if not all in-ear monitors) have different sized tips for different ear (canal) sizes.

Otherwise, it’s just a matter of trying different ones out to see if they fit both your ears physically and sound-wise.

Sennheiser makes a line of earbuds targeted for those with small ears. This is the XX1 series. The MX471 and MX581 received nice reviews. I haven’t read detailed reviews on the cheaper ones. The MX471 is around $21, while the MX581 is around $26(check Amazon and B&H photo for prices). There is an MX271 for around $10, and an MX371 for around $15. Even the MX271 will probably sound much better than the earphone that came with your player. My advice is to go for the MX581, unless you want to be frugal, in which case the MX271 makes sense. The MX471 is priced so close to the MX581 and the MX581 is much better, so imo the MX471 doesn’t make sense.

I have the MX580 which sounds a bit different than the MX581, though not worse, just a bit different. I like the MX580 very much.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt=Sennheiser+MX&N=0&InitialSearch=yes

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Sennheiser+MX&x=0&y=0

I just noticed that the MX471 and MX81 come with free US shipping from B&H, while the cheaper ones don’t. On Amazon I think they are all with free shipping for orders over $25. So if you are just buying one pair of earphones and are in the US, the MX371 might cost around the same price as the MX471. Of course at just $5 more the MX581 is a much better buy. The MX581 also comes with a splitter, so two sets of earphones can be plugged into a player(be careful when using this, as it sticks straight out, and banging into this might damage the player’s headphone jack).

Just to be sure: you know that the earbuds that come with the player fit OUTSIDE the ear canal, right, and don’t actually go in it? (The kind that actually go into the ear canal typically are referred to as IEMs–in-ear monitors.) The ones that SanDisk provides sort of rest outside the ear canal, with the flesh of the ear holding them in place. And a good tip to keep them from falling out/off when you move around: loop the cable up, not down, and then around the back of your ear downwards–that helps keep them in place.

An interesting review comparing the Sennheiser MX580 to the MX581.

http://www.head-fi.org/t/511784/review-sennheiser-mx580-mx581-fraternal-twins-equally-fabulous

Meenie, the Sennheiser MX581 has a volume control on the cord, so it will also solve your problem of the volume being too loud.

Mags1230 wrote:
“You could try earphones that are made for children (no offense meant) but the earbuds should be smaller in size.”

:slight_smile: no offense taken, Mags. I didn’t know they made earbuds for children, that might work!

Tapworm wrote:

"Some ear buds (and most, if not all in-ear monitors) have different sized tips for different ear (canal) sizes.

Otherwise, it’s just a matter of trying different ones out to see if they fit both your ears physically and sound-wise."

My In-ear monitors came with three - I’m using the smallest and they feel weird and make weird sounds when I put them in, after awhile they tend to fall out, but the two larger ones are too big.

But having said that, the earbuds (the ones that are supposed to just fit in the external part of the ear) are just way too big or my ear anatomy is odd, but they’re way too big and there’s noghing to hold them in - I can kind of stuff them down tight, but they just pop right back out. - and I’ve never had a pair that fit any other way. they all just pop out. Must be my ear.

JK98 - Thanks for all that info! the one with the volume control really sounds interesting!! I’ll take a look at them!

Thanks so much!! :smiley:

Miikerman said: “Just to be sure: you know that the earbuds that come with the player fit OUTSIDE the ear canal, right, and don’t actually go in it? (The kind that actually go into the ear canal typically are referred to as IEMs–in-ear monitors.) The ones that SanDisk provides sort of rest outside the ear canal, with the flesh of the ear holding them in place. And a good tip to keep them from falling out/off when you move around: loop the cable up, not down, and then around the back of your ear downwards–that helps keep them in place.”

Thanks Miikerman, yep I know. the ones that came with my device fit outside - but they just won’t stay in place - I’ve never found an external earbud that fit - they cling there for about 3 minutes while I feel them getting more and more loose, then they fall out, lol.

the ones I already have are internal - they have a soft plastic cover and fit down into the ear canal - I’m not real fond of them either - they just feel weird. They came with 3 sizes and I use the smallest one, the other two are too big, but they also tend to come out after awhile. Maybe the cord wrap idea will work with them.

Thanks :slight_smile:

The 581 sounds really interesting… I put it on my wishlist on Amazon (poke poke hubby) hehe. Funny thing is I checked it out on ebay and all the prices there were more than at Amazon, lol. they went from $28.+ up to $52.+ sheesh

@meenie wrote:

Miikerman said: “Just to be sure: you know that the earbuds that come with the player fit OUTSIDE the ear canal, right, and don’t actually go in it? (The kind that actually go into the ear canal typically are referred to as IEMs–in-ear monitors.) The ones that SanDisk provides sort of rest outside the ear canal, with the flesh of the ear holding them in place. And a good tip to keep them from falling out/off when you move around: loop the cable up, not down, and then around the back of your ear downwards–that helps keep them in place.”

 

Thanks Miikerman, yep I know. the ones that came with my device fit outside - but they just won’t stay in place - I’ve never found an external earbud that fit - they cling there for about 3 minutes while I feel them getting more and more loose, then they fall out, lol.

the ones I already have are internal - they have a soft plastic cover and fit down into the ear canal - I’m not real fond of them either - they just feel weird. They came with 3 sizes and I use the smallest one, the other two are too big, but they also tend to come out after awhile. Maybe the cord wrap idea will work with them.

Thanks :slight_smile:

Meenie, thanks for understanding that I wasn’t insinuating anything–it’s just that we all sometimes overlook things, and I just wanted to make sure here.

I have sort of the same issue as you–external buds also have a tendency to get loose on me, why I moved to the in-ear kind, which are fine for me.  Although I also have found earbuds that have a molded form that goes over the ear, holding the earbuds in place.  (And I think I’ve seen that form on sale by itself, for use with your own earbuds–for around $10 or so, perhaps at Amazon.)  Better than earbuds alone, but still not as good for me as the in-ear kind. 

@meenie wrote:

 

My In-ear monitors came with three - I’m using the smallest and they feel weird and make weird sounds when I put them in, after awhile they tend to fall out, but the two larger ones are too big.

But having said that, the earbuds (the ones that are supposed to just fit in the external part of the ear) are just way too big or my ear anatomy is odd, but they’re way too big and there’s noghing to hold them in - I can kind of stuff them down tight, but they just pop right back out. - and I’ve never had a pair that fit any other way. they all just pop out. Must be my ear.

You think you have problems getting earbuds to fit your ears? Consider yourself lucky . . .

:laughing:

 

Mine don’t stay in either. I tried all 3 sizes. I’m thinking maybe they made them this way because the last clip had headphone jack problems, from the wires pulling in the jack over time and they had to replace them under warranty.

Hello Libby.

A right angle plug does help protect the jack on the player.

The earphones(IEMs) that come with the Clip Sport don’t fit me well either, and I have trouble getting a decent  seal. The sound is also imo too bassy and doesn’t have enough detail. I never expect included earphones to be good, so I’m not disappointed. In fact I would rather have a case or a skin for the player included instead of earphones. I already have so many earphones. 

See my rant about included earphones in general.

http://www.head-fi.org/t/738704/including-earphones-with-mp3-players

I found some very low priced in the ear earphones that I like very much, the Soundmagic ES18 at just $12. 

It has 10mm drivers.

http://www.head-fi.org/t/598627/review-soundmagic-es18-measured

I have many other earphones that were more expensive, however the ES18 is one of my favorites. 

Another of my favorites is the Sony XBA-1, at $25. This was originally $80. Since it has a single balanced armature driver, its bass isn’t the strongest, however it has great detail, and offers much better isolation than the ES18, which could be good or bad depending on the circumstance. When placed in the ear as far as it will go(on me the outer end is even with my tragus), the isolation and the bass are the strongest.

Another IEM I like is the Panasonic RPHJE450. It is $20 at Panasonic.com with free US shipping. 

It has stronger bass impact than the XBA-1 but less detail. It is ported, so isolation isn’t so great, It has a very ergonomic shape which many find very comfortable. It has large 12.5 mm drivers which help give it stronger bass impact and a “larger” sound. 

Those are the three IEMs I use most often, even though I have quite a few others. The others annoy me very much though either due to quirks in the sound or the fit. Some I can’t get a good fit with, and one has treble that hurts my ears. 

I haven’t spend more than $50 on an IEM as ones I paid close to that much for are unusable for me due to the fit. I would really hate to pay $100 or more for one and not have it fit. Besides which, the sound on these three satisfy me. One other one I have is the Panasonic RP-HJE355. It has more detail than the HJE450, but much less bass impact. It is much smaller than the RPHJE450, so it would be great for those with very small ears. 

It is $19 on Panasonic.com(also check the price on Amazon).