Choosing The Right Earphones

One of the most common questions I get is, "Which set of earphones sounds the best?" This can be a subjective answer unless a very specific application is called for. If you are just picking up a new iPod for Christmas and are looking for crystal clear sound with lots of good low end...keep reading...we know the perfect set of headphones for you. If you're a vocalist or guitarist or maybe even a drummer and are looking for certain features from a set of earphones, we can give you some recommendations based on what we're hearing and selling to some of our other musician clients.

Single Drivers:

Futuresonics M3, M5, M8, M9 (same drivers, different colors) Some argue that Futuresonics has developed the best low frequency for a single driver earphone. In this price range, the Atrio series are hard to compete with. (iPod listeners love these)

Sennheiser IE7: For just a little more money than the Futuresonics, the Sennheiser is the most crystal clear single driver on the market in all frequency ranges. The low end is especially tight while the high end is crisp. (Audiophiles, stop looking around, just order these)

Dual Drivers:

Shure SCL-5 (formerly E5): A favorite for drummers as the cable is thicker and generally stays in place better than the competition. If you move around often during your performance or your earbuds fall out constantly, go with these. These earphones are also great for long plane rides, because they stay in your ear ever when you are asleep!

Westone UM2: Recommended for vocalists, guitar players, and audiophiles. Gives a great low and high response suited for most everyone. This is one of our all-time best selling earphones here at RoadDogOnline. Looking for a great all around set of earphones? Comfort? Sound Quality? UM2.

Triple Drivers:

Shure SE530: Great for the all around listener who wants a high fidelity sound. They are loaded with two low frequency drivers and one high frequency driver. These earphones truly package low frequency thunder with high frequency clarity.

Westone 3: The most recent edition to the earphone market, this earphone gives the listener everything they could ever want. Explained, these earphones are loaded with one driver for each frequency range (low, mid, and high) giving the listener clarity in every frequency range without over-pronouncing one single frequency band. Looking for only low frequencies? Honestly, these are not the earphones for you.

All in all, earphone selection is much like purchasing a pair of shoes; I like mine because they fit my foot and my application well, whereas you like your shoes for a different reason, maybe they look great? Whatever the reason may be, the point is that earphone choice is an individual decision. We at RoadDogOnline are not trying to tell you to that you need a specific earphone because it is the supposed best on the market, instead we try to educate our pack to make sure that they are getting the earphones that they need for their specific application. So if in doubt, give our experts a call, we promise not to give you information that will be useless to you, like our competition would.