Roundup: 16 Headphones : Klipsch Custom-3
By
Digital Versus,
published on June 27, 2009
Powered by
Contents
11. Klipsch Custom-3
What about on stage?
How the Custom-3s perform on stage is a very interesting question, as their excellent isolation, ear-wires and rich, dynamic sound are all great signs for audio pros.
We tried them out, and they really are very good. The ear-wires work well, keeping the headphones in place even while you're moving about. You might struggle with such a huge dynamic range, though, which is likely to keep your sound engineer busy making sure you can stand keeping these in-ear headphones all the way through a long set ...
Klipsch is one of the best-known manufacturers of headphones in the US, so when it launched a range of in-ear headphones, we were obviously interested. With five models on offer, it has one of the widest selections on the market, and these Custom-3s are at the very top of the range.
What's in the box?
Klipsch ships the Custom-3s in its usual packaging, mixing plastic with a golden box, which offers a luxurious finish without falling into the trap of looking like cheap bling.
Inside, there's a whole host of accessories. As well as the huge case (15 x 9 x 3.5 cm), there are five pairs of tips (three in grey silicon and two more double-flanged offerings), a mini-jack to 6.35-mm jack adaptor, a cleaning tool, and an airplane adaptor. A smaller case would have been great, but given their size and the shape of the cable, the Custom-3's would never have been able to fit. It's a shame though, as the three Custom models are all more or less the same shape, and the case for the smaller Custom-1s was more manageable.
The cable is finished with a solid exterior, and the ear-wires around the headphones are also robust. This not only makes wearing the Custom-3s more comfortable, but it also makes the ear-wires far less likely to slip off than other headphones. The Custom-3s look pretty good, and are a little more reserved than the silver Custom-2s. The combination of black and orange is a lot classier, but it's nothing like the distinction of the Q-Jays.
Finally, it's worth pointing out that these headphones sit very deep inside your ears. If you're not used to it, it can be a surprise at first, and even if you are, it takes a little while to get the fit right, especially with the double-flanged tips. The ear-wires pass over the top of the ear, which is by no means a bad thing, as when headphone wires come down the front, they can often rub against your chin or even a jacket producing irritating interference.
Sound Quality
Playful is the best word to describe the sound of the Custom-3s. You certainly hear the classic V-shaped response curve, but it's generally under control, without shouty treble or loud, clunking bass. Although each end of the spectrum is very strong, the mid-range is there, too. The sound is very clear and well-defined.
The Custom-3s are most at home with classic pop and rock music. Whether it's live or a studio recording, with a home-made feeling or an old-fashioned transistor-based amp with their creaking, dirty sounds, the warm analog glow is what the Custom-3s do best.
With funky jazz, orchestral music or acoustic pieces, it's the Q-Jays that do better, despite being part of a less prestigious range. That isn't that surprisng, as these types of sounds are where the Q-Jays really excel, and, to be fair, the Custom-3s aren't awful at them either. In general, they're more than good enough for the majority of audio sources, although we do wish they were better at some. You still need to spend a little bit of time playing with the equalizer to make sure you don't tire your ears out too quickly.
What's in the box?
Klipsch ships the Custom-3s in its usual packaging, mixing plastic with a golden box, which offers a luxurious finish without falling into the trap of looking like cheap bling.
Inside, there's a whole host of accessories. As well as the huge case (15 x 9 x 3.5 cm), there are five pairs of tips (three in grey silicon and two more double-flanged offerings), a mini-jack to 6.35-mm jack adaptor, a cleaning tool, and an airplane adaptor. A smaller case would have been great, but given their size and the shape of the cable, the Custom-3's would never have been able to fit. It's a shame though, as the three Custom models are all more or less the same shape, and the case for the smaller Custom-1s was more manageable.
The cable is finished with a solid exterior, and the ear-wires around the headphones are also robust. This not only makes wearing the Custom-3s more comfortable, but it also makes the ear-wires far less likely to slip off than other headphones. The Custom-3s look pretty good, and are a little more reserved than the silver Custom-2s. The combination of black and orange is a lot classier, but it's nothing like the distinction of the Q-Jays.
Finally, it's worth pointing out that these headphones sit very deep inside your ears. If you're not used to it, it can be a surprise at first, and even if you are, it takes a little while to get the fit right, especially with the double-flanged tips. The ear-wires pass over the top of the ear, which is by no means a bad thing, as when headphone wires come down the front, they can often rub against your chin or even a jacket producing irritating interference.
Sound Quality
Playful is the best word to describe the sound of the Custom-3s. You certainly hear the classic V-shaped response curve, but it's generally under control, without shouty treble or loud, clunking bass. Although each end of the spectrum is very strong, the mid-range is there, too. The sound is very clear and well-defined.
The Custom-3s are most at home with classic pop and rock music. Whether it's live or a studio recording, with a home-made feeling or an old-fashioned transistor-based amp with their creaking, dirty sounds, the warm analog glow is what the Custom-3s do best.
With funky jazz, orchestral music or acoustic pieces, it's the Q-Jays that do better, despite being part of a less prestigious range. That isn't that surprisng, as these types of sounds are where the Q-Jays really excel, and, to be fair, the Custom-3s aren't awful at them either. In general, they're more than good enough for the majority of audio sources, although we do wish they were better at some. You still need to spend a little bit of time playing with the equalizer to make sure you don't tire your ears out too quickly.
| Klipsch Custom-3 | |
|---|---|
| Pluses | Minuses |
|
|
| Klipsch has managed to retain its reputation for audio excellence with these Custom-3s: typical high-end headphones with lively, attractive sound. |  |
- Custom-3 Noise...
Finally, as a general rule of thumb, you'll probably spend around half as much to get a pair of in-ear headphones that's as good as the equivalent regular on-ear headphones.
They must have meant half again as much?
Where are the regular head phones reviews. All we get are buds and in ear headphoes, where are the regular ones that you lead into your article with a picture of?
Wasted my time as i dont like buds....bleh.
what about shure? probably the best in ear headphones on the market
what about shure? probably the best in ear headphones on the market
agree , but also one of most expensive one
I didn't read the article, and after looking at the list of products "reviewed" I guess there's not much room for variety. Like so many stuff out there, it's so relative! What might sound amazing to me might sound like crap to you. Besides, you can use the $20 headphones, and with decent equalization and moderate playback volume, after a few hours of listening it will sound great. Try it...
I can make two additional recommendations for headphones with which I've been completely satisfied:
- Yuin PK3. Earbuds, hard to find in the US, sound quality equal to many full size cans. Good bass, fantastic mids and highs, great definition in the highs. About average comfort. $39, and best most earbuds you'll find for less than $150.
- Koss KSC75. Open over ear with earclip. Incredible sound, great bass, good highs (highs could be better). Overall great sound profile. $12-18 with sound better than just about any in-ear or earbud you'll find for a reasonable price, and give more expensive over ear phones a run for the money. Everyone should own at least one pair of these classics.
As you can tell, I'm a bargain shopper.
This review seems slanted.. no Shure, no Ultimate Ears? Two of the best brands out there. Also, no Skull Candy, not the best but very popular (and affordable)... Then they throw in M-Audio and Cardo 'over the ear' cans? Headphone and earbud reviews should be separate, totally incomparable experience (not to mention there are many other over the ear cans not mentioned). Also, the only buds that get 5/5 have links directly to amazon in the body of the review. Its like an article to pit 16 random products together to put one on top. It's a paid advertisement. This is an incompetent article. WTF Tom's?
What about Shure? The SE210 is probably the best value high quality consumer head phone set out there. Absolutely superb headphones and from a brand that I'd trust more than a lot of the ones already included in the review.
The whole Sennheiser in ear series requires a long burn (playing music/test tones at a moderately loud volume continuously) in period. I have the IE8 and the review does not do the final product justice. The IE8 benefits from at least 250+ hours, but they keep improving even after 400+ hours. The overpowering bass is greatly reduced leaving a warm, fun headphone with excellent detail, treble extension, controlled yet powerful bass that doesn't intrude on the other frequencies, and the widest soundstage (headstage) of an in ear headphone.
One of the best bang for the buck headphones though is the NuForce NE-7m for $50.
This review seems slanted.. no Shure, no Ultimate Ears? Two of the best brands out there. Also, no Skull Candy, not the best but very popular (and affordable)... Then they throw in M-Audio and Cardo 'over the ear' cans? Headphone and earbud reviews should be separate, totally incomparable experience (not to mention there are many other over the ear cans not mentioned). Also, the only buds that get 5/5 have links directly to amazon in the body of the review. Its like an article to pit 16 random products together to put one on top. It's a paid advertisement. This is an incompetent article. WTF Tom's?
This is not a paid advertisement.
For all of you asking why certain products were not included in this roundup, I ask that you please read the introductory paragraph at the top. We only included products where we had a review unit to test. We cannot test a product we do not have on hand.
Thanks for you article. And it's a good thing to keep it in a state of "work in progress". Definitely looking for updates.
TERRIBLE selection.
No Ultimate Ears, no Etymotic, no Shure, no Westone, just overpriced junk with the slight exception of SOME the sennheisers.
I usually don't bash articles but this is a comparison of all the crappy overpriced earphones and IEMs on the market, I'm surprised there is no BOSE!
For all of you asking why certain products were not included in this roundup, I ask that you please read the introductory paragraph at the top. We only included products where we had a review unit to test. We cannot test a product we do not have on hand.
I understand this well enough, but you can not exclude the GOOD products in a product survey. You might as well do a CPU roundup with only VIA CPUs.
Sennheiser earphones has to be listened for some hours to get the optimum sound quality and a warmer sound out of them, did you take this into account?
unfortunately out of the packaging the Sennheiser IEx series will sound terrible because they are dynamic driver type headphones. after about 100 hours or so of burn-in time, they will beat everything on this list by SQ alone. this review is generally ill-informed and amateurishly approached. i would check out more dedicated communities for headphone reviews such as head-fi.org
I understand this well enough, but you can not exclude the GOOD products in a product survey. You might as well do a CPU roundup with only VIA CPUs.
Yes, we can. When we get more products in, we will review them too.
unfortunately out of the packaging the Sennheiser IEx series will sound terrible because they are dynamic driver type headphones. after about 100 hours or so of burn-in time, they will beat everything on this list by SQ alone. this review is generally ill-informed and amateurishly approached. i would check out more dedicated communities for headphone reviews such as head-fi.org
It sounds like you're in the market for very high-end, expensive headphones (audiophile quality). This review doesn't include any of those, so far, so you'd be better off for now doing research at another site.
I agree with smallcaps,you need to burn in dynamic driver earphones for them to show their full potential. Many dynamic earphones won't start sounding good until over 50 hours of burn in. Balanced armature earphones don't require burn in, giving earphones such as the Q-Jays an advantage in this group comparison. If you are going to review earphones you need to learn their differences. If you are not willing to take the time and learn the basics behind comparing earphones, you should not do it at all. And,fyi, head-fi.org may feature some very pricey earphones, but they also review earphones within the price group represented by your sample.
It sounds like you're in the market for very high-end, expensive headphones (audiophile quality). This review doesn't include any of those, so far, so you'd be better off for now doing research at another site.
The Senns IE 7/8s are audiophile quality as well as the klipsch custom 3.
You should contact more companies for more earphones, like these:
Ultimate Ears, Shure, Etymotic, Westone, exct.
This article is a good first step, Tom's really should get into audio more.