re1+r5.....

^ R5 :S .. You mean E5 right ? RE-1 + E5 would ofcourse have the best soundstage but RE-1 isn't in his budget and they need a better amp than E5 to sound their best. With E5 they are just ohk . Also RE1 has a very laidback sound and not balanced.



Under 3k , the options to consider are RE-2,NE6,PL-50 and maybe Fisher Eterna. Of all these PL-50 has the widest soundstage but each one has a very different sound signature overall .

comparing with re-2,ne-6 and fisher eterna with pl 50 which one sounds natural pl 50 or any one of these, I think e5 works well with pl 50

Balanced under 3k? I would say RE2 + E5. NE6 might be a little heavy on bass. RE1 is above 4k and needs a decent amp, E5 won't do any good.

Fischer Eterna is no way balanced, it's all muddy bass. If you can go above 4k, then there is RE0. Even better is if you can get your hands on the limited edition RE-Zero.



Under 3k, you have two options - PL50 or RE2. My personal preference would go for RE2.

^+1 RE2 for their price money have phenomenal mid range with precise Bass. However remember to get Amp to drive them as they are pretty dependent on DAC and source.

please compare pl 50 and re-2,

more sounstage=

natural bass=

natural mid=

natural high=

comfort=

accesseries=

value for money=

@OP,



Balanced, Natural sound, big sound stage - under 3K? I am guessing you have to compromise somewhere. Either stretch the budget or you are sure to lose at least one of the requirements in an IEM.



I've never tried RE-2 or PL-50.



Among what I've tried, Hippo Pearl comes close to your requirements. It's bass is similar to Hippo VB, do not know if you will consider it "natural" . And the sound stage is nowhere close to BIG. However, it is much easier to drive compared to say, RE-0 and does not need an amp. But, I don't find it on either Jaben's / Uncle Wilson's online. It used to sell @ $43. May be it didn't sell as much and production stopped?



In an unrelated question, Faheem! Did you get around to writing the IEM buying guide?

^ No sir .Everytime I plan to start with a IEM buying guide , I end up with more IEMs to test and the guide remains pending . After this NE6/7 review. I will surely come up with the IEM guide cause I have enough options to compare and give an idea in each segment between 500 bucks to 5000 bucks .

Originally Posted by manu george

please compare pl 50 and re-2,



more sounstage= PL-50 has a slight edge over RE-2 in terms of more wide soundstage.



natural bass= None The bass in both of them is good for the price but doesn't go very low naturally. Without amp , PL-50 has more punch. Quality wise RE-2 bass is more balanced.



natural mid= RE-2 has more upfront mids whereas PL50 has smoother laidback mids.Which is more natural for you ?



natural high= Both are equally good .Can't recollect much so not sure which is better.

comfort= Depends on the fit .If you get a good fit on the PL-50 nothing comes close to its comfort but if you don't it sounds as well as feels horrible. So it's more of a double edge sword. RE-2 has more generic design so more chances of better fit.



accessories= PL-50 due to the added foam tips and carry pouch.



value for money= Both have almost same VFM factor but RE-2 win's due to its lower price .

Anyways as per our talks earlier , I can give you my PL-50 with the 7 day refund .If you don't like it ,send it back ..

i used to own the pl 50 and had bought them after auditioning both re-2 and pl-50.



bass was nearly similar but i found the soundstage and highs to be much better in pl-50's case and hence decided to go for them. also after a usage of around one month (i didn't give them a proper burn-in), i found a increase in both soundstage and bass texture which easily justified my choice.



OT - once you start looking for quality you'll find that you'll never be satisfied. i became too accustomed to their signature and decided to move on. however if you want to hold on to them longer, i would advise you to listen to some crappy IEMs in between.This would keep that enthusiasm and fulfillment that you will get after you listen to them for the firs.t time

I also posted this thread on head fi and they are saying a lot more iem especially ne6 and ne 7 anybody have experience with nuforce

i m using ne6 gives perfect amount of bass and good sound stage but for more balanced natural sound i would say go for RE2 + E5 .