Etymotic Research ER2-XR Extended Response - In Ear Noise Isolating IEM Earphones with Detachable Cable

Product Information

But the ER2… the ER2 is an anomaly. There is absolutely no point in benchmarking similarly-priced IEMs against it because of how unreasonably highit would set the bar. Now, this doesn’t mean that the ER2 becomes the automatic, default option in its price range because there are absolutely reasons why you would not like it. It is not the perfect, do-everything IEM and there may be others that suit your own personal tastes better than it ever could.

If we remove the eartip we can see that the housing consists of 2 sections – there’s the main housing for the driver, and then there’s the nozzle. The total length is about 22mm, of which the nozzle itself takes up about 8mm.

Whoops!

I've also been able to demo even more stuff, including some summit-fi gear and popular favourites. Since September, I have also been cataloguing all of it in a Google Sheets document, which has since grown into quite a sizeable database, if I might say so myself. Generally, I hear the ER2XR as the slightly more refined, more linear, more authentic sounding version of the Starfield, and would place them ultimately somewhat higher, whereas the Starfield have got the advantage of a more common, less deep insertion/wearing style (for what it is worth, the vented Starfield naturally offer audibly lower passive exterior noise isolation than the closed shell ER2XR). The cable, on the other hand, does feel a bit generic. That’s not to say cheap by any means, but it doesn’t feel like anything special either. It’s fairly soft, but there is still a little bit of springiness to it which is probably what gives it that generic feeling. The MMCX connector and the headphone connector housing are also made out of plastic, but they at least feel well-built and robust and they also have a nice soft-touch rubberized finish. There is also no inline mic or volume slider, which might be a deal-breaker for some. Both in-ears have got a comparable tuning and clearly head into a similar direction in terms of sound, but still have some differences in their tonality. Like the higher priced and more famous ER4 models, there are two ER2 versions: the SE and the XR. While the ER2SE sports a flat balance (designed for critical listeners/audio professionals), the XR has a little more bass oomph. So, the ER2XR will probably be the more fun choice for casual listeners. And, of course, especially if you’re a drummer of bass player, the XR is a more suitable option for stage use than the SE.

Just like on the ER3XR as well as ER4XR, "XR" stands for "Extended Response", indicating a moderately boosted bass compared to the flatter tuned SE (respectively SR) models. These are neutral with a slight tilt in sub bass that does not intrude into those lovely mids. Some bright female voice recordings could sound a bit shouty but that is the only negative that I really found in these. The treble is again lovely, extended without a hint of sibilance. The treble on these are smooth. No sibilance or fatigue. Also no special sparkle as well. These sound more even with slight roll off.

Etymotic ER2XR Review

For my listening tests I ran the ER2SE and ER2XR earphones in side-by-side comparisons, while driving them with Astell&Kern’s excellent SP1000M digital audio player. The player was loaded with standard and high-res PCM and DSD music files and also provided access, via Tidal, to a wealth of MQA material. Here are my findings. Because of this isolation, there’s practically nothing that can interfere with the music playing. It also means that there’s a fairly large part of the ear-canal being bypassed, which does avoid certain resonances which occur when using regular IEMs. D - Alright. Items in this tier do not stop me from enjoying music, but also don't really add anything to enhance the experience. This should be the baseline, below which you do not venture. The housing is made of metal and the blue colour looks really cool. I think the size of the iem is similar to their more expensive siblings – ER3 / ER4 series. The housing has proprietary MMCX connector, so it may be difficult to find 3rd party cables. The cable is really basic one which is kind of let down. But can’t really complain at this price point as it serves the purpose. Also it has bad micro-phonics. So wrapping it around the ears, adjusting the chin slider and using the shirt clip will really help to reduce it.

Simply put, while the Starfield get a “Recommended”, the ER2XR place the bar just a bit higher and get that rare “Highly Recommended”. The XR version features a bigger bass boost than the XRs of the BA variety and with the dynamic driver in tow, the warmer, richer sound is very engaging and just the right amount of gain that is needed to turn the sterile SE version into a musical gem. The ER2XR also has a slightly more noticeable wider soundstage, which helps a little bit with congestion. Perceived lower midrange and fundamental range as well as bass resolution slightly behind that of the ER2SE to my ears; otherwise they resolve pretty much similarly well. Whereas my Sound Tier is based entirely on, well, sound, I wanted a way to indicate how much I like an earphone overall, taking into account things like price, competition, comfort, design, build quality and accessories. This rating is on one hand more subjective, but on the other, aimed towards you. Where the Tier tells you how much I enjoyed something, the Stars tell you if I recommend it to you. It's also quite simple. The weird sound issues were resulting from the fact that I wasn't fitting them deep enough. The proper way to fit them is to push them in until it starts feeling uncomfortable... And then push them in even deeper. Only the cable connector should protrude from your ear canal, the entire blue part should be in there.The ER2XR would not serve me as some of my main in-ears for stationary music listening anyway (in-ears such as the Etymotic ER4SR, my ER-4SR, InEar ProPhile 8, Ultimate Ears Reference Monitors and few others take this spot), as I prefer a flatter, more neutral presentation for that. If you want, you can resort to a little EQ work to remove some of that upper bass as well as reducing the the upper mids and increasing the treble just a touch. Doing so does give it a noticeably more neutral signature, but I think I really do prefer that slightly warmer tonality it has without any applied EQ. Side indicators unfortunately only small and difficult to see in dimly lit environments – coloured indicators would have been better. Moving to the midrange, there’s really nothing praiseworthy, but it doesn’t do anything wrong either. That’s basically a complement at this price point! To this effect, I’ve never noticed any sibilance and it’s fairly natural.