Yikes! We switched to in-ears, and the in-ears we're using sound horrible...

iamdave said:
My $1500 pedal sounds worse than a $49 pedal. Holy smokes. Tons of fiz, no tone at all. Like a horrible phone call. What tips might you give me?

I'm using a nice quality Audio-Technica ATW-3255 in-ear system with their in-ears. Dual drivers. The keyboard (Yamaha CK88 sounds like butt also. Same thing, a cheap, bad phone call.
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There are many things that can contribute to poor IEM sound experience. The in ear "buds" themselves are a huge part of it. I like the sound using my Westone UM30 Pro and Westome UM50 Pro buds, but I got a set from a different company that I won't name because my band gets a big discount with them due to a deal with our record label. I can't stand the sound of my guitar on them. They're find for podcast/video recording monitoring, but guitar just sounds cheap, thin and brittle. It sounds completely different compared to my other IEM sets. Even the basic Shure 215s sound much better.

I will also echo another commenter here about mono/stereo as well. If you're running your FM9 in stereo but your IEMs are in mono, the phase cancelation will ruin your tone. Even if your FM9 is in mono, running IEMs in stereo and slightly panning your band mates' vocals and instruments can help a lot.

It does require twice as many aux outputs from your mixer to run everyone in stereo, but it is well worth it in my opinion. Some of my current band mates thought it wasn't a big deal that I set everyone up with stereo, but after filling in for an artist for a show with only mono IEM, they thanked me heavily for doing the "stereo thing."
 
If the other instruments sound bad and the FOH sounds fine then it has nothing to do with the FM9. Lots of good advice on this thread. My only addition is not to touch the FM9 once the FOH is good because that's what matters most. The more you tweak trying to get it sounding good in your ears the more the person running sound has to tweak on their end and your tone as presented to the audience will likely suffer.
 
I will 2nd the Westone UM30 Pro's. I have been using those for a long time and they work good (I do want to try some custom molded inserts with them though). I am using a Sennheiser wireless system and the set that came with that was awful (I almost scrapped the whole idea of using IEM's after hearing those thinking that was as good a it got). Like everyone said the seal in you ears is super important and will take you from an AM radio sound to awesome with good ear buds.
 
get better than "good" quality buds. make sure you have a good seal or custom molds. i also found that keeping the volume low helps tremendously
 
iamdave said:
My $1500 pedal sounds worse than a $49 pedal. Holy smokes. Tons of fiz, no tone at all. Like a horrible phone call. What tips might you give me?

I'm using a nice quality Audio-Technica ATW-3255 in-ear system with their in-ears. Dual drivers. The keyboard (Yamaha CK88 sounds like butt also. Same thing, a cheap, bad phone call.
Click to expand...

I find that I must knock off some high end on the feed to my in-ear transmitter. I also use the ATW-3255, and the pack allows you to rolloff treble, and/or boost the low - so I do both. But my preference is to run the ATW's 'flat', while I use a shelving EQ to rolloff starting in the ballpark of 3.5kHz or so.

In all my of many IEMs, they all seem to have a pronounced resonance in the upper mids. Almost like having a cocked wah wah pedal. I'm not sure if there is an ear-bud design that counters this or not, but I'm still looking. It'd be nice to not need any EQ at all on the transmitter.
 
Sergius9 said:
You might not like this answer but you will need high quality custom molded ear pieces, quad driver minimum.
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alan.thomas said:
Good in ear monitors are expensive and they need to be custom molded to your ears
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I don't necessarily agree with this.

If you're using a silent stage approach, universal fit can work just fine with the right tips.

I started with in-ears about 10 years ago with high quality, custom molded 1964 Audio 6-driver in-ears.

For about the last year+, I've been using 2 different sets of universal fit single (10mm) driver in-ears and I'm very happy with the results. Neither set cost more than $40 on Amazon!

Check out this thread, and the link I referenced there.

I was incredibly surprised by the results.

Edit:
https://forum.fractalaudio.com/threads/reasonable-to-best-iem-for-under-100.207406/post-2587818
 
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unix-guy said:
I don't necessarily agree with this.

If you're using a silent stage approach, universal fit can work just fine with the right tips.

I started with in-ears about 10 years ago with high quality, custom molded 1964 Audio 6-driver in-ears.

For about the last year+, I've been using 2 different sets of universal fit single (10mm) driver in-ears and I'm very happy with the results. Neither set cost more than $40 on Amazon!

Check out this thread, and the link I referenced there.

I was incredibly surprised by the results.
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Hi Unix Guy
Can’t see the link or the thread
Can you please point me to it
Thx
 
unix-guy said:
I don't necessarily agree with this.

If you're using a silent stage approach, universal fit can work just fine with the right tips.

I started with in-ears about 10 years ago with high quality, custom molded 1964 Audio 6-driver in-ears.

For about the last year+, I've been using 2 different sets of universal fit single (10mm) driver in-ears and I'm very happy with the results. Neither set cost more than $40 on Amazon!

Check out this thread, and the link I referenced there.

I was incredibly surprised by the results.

Edit:
https://forum.fractalaudio.com/threads/reasonable-to-best-iem-for-under-100.207406/post-2587818
Click to expand...

The thing is it all depends on how well the monitors fit. I tried everything including custom molds and to me they all sucked compared to a real guitar speaker. Not even my EV-12PXM are as good but I got used to what it is. You mileage will vary, no matter what.
 
Oh, the IEM journey. After trying every Shure IEM made, at great expense, only the SE846 with two different size earpads sounded good. Earpad fit is critical.
 
iamdave said:
My $1500 pedal sounds worse than a $49 pedal. Holy smokes. Tons of fiz, no tone at all. Like a horrible phone call. What tips might you give me?

I'm using a nice quality Audio-Technica ATW-3255 in-ear system with their in-ears. Dual drivers. The keyboard (Yamaha CK88 sounds like butt also. Same thing, a cheap, bad phone call.
Click to expand...
The transmitter etc isn't the issue, you are using their cheap phones. Most good earphones cost what you spent on that transmitter. Sorry..
 
OrganicZed said:
If your system came with these (ATH-E40 IEMs)

View attachment 165971
Then the problem is this:

View attachment 165970
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I've got four of the ATW-3255 systems in my IEM rack. These buds are great for singers - not so much for guitars.

The biggest problem with them is that they are super uncomfortable. So they are what I use as punishment when someone forgets to bring their earbuds to a rehearsal or show. Use them once, and you'll never forget your earbuds again, hahaha
 
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I purchased the 6 driver version of these. Been really pleased with them. They mold the unit to your ears so they fit very comfortably. You use an app on your phone to scan your ears. They come with multiple different tips to ensure you get a good seal. I use the clear thermo plastic tips that come with it. Granted as a guitarist I didn’t need 6 drivers but my recall is based on all the components of the song so I wanted to hear everything clearly. They had a coupon going at the time that gave a 25% discount.

https://wavscustom.com/products/custom-fit-in-ear-monitors?variant=51706386088210
 
Geoff L said:
The transmitter etc isn't the issue, you are using their cheap phones. Most good earphones cost what you spent on that transmitter. Sorry..
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Agreed that the monitors that come with IEM systems are not usually all that great.

I'm usually in the 'you get what you pay for' camp but the KZ ZS10 Pros with the Comply memory foam tips are surprisingly very good sounding, good enough for this weekend warrior. I hear everyone clearly. I do use a bit of corrective EQ to tame the highs, but IMO is not a requirement.
 
Keybi said:
Good IN EARS are more expensive than the FM9 ;).
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Donald Trump GIF by reactionseditor


There are tons of options that are a fraction of the cost of an FM9...

I've gone the expensive custom in ear route, and then also the low/mid/high end universal route. I would recommend universal over custom every time. My $170 set of universals sound way better than the $1500 customs. The tuning in the custom IEM market leaves a LOT to be desired.

Check frequency response before you buy!
 
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