Etymotic ER6 Research Er 6 Isolator Earphones

I received these as a gift for my own personal day to day use, at home listening, laptop use, etc. Within a year the jack had basically stretched away from the main cord, since I received them as a gift, I had no receipt to have them repaired under warranty. I sent them to get reterminaled by a respected headphone repair expert, only to find after he retermed them, the left driver is essentially blown. These things were extremely expensive and to have them go out so fast is very very disappointing. I would recommend no one to purchase any Etymotic products because the only items they now repair outside of warranty are the ER-4s which are the most expensive headphones they sell. The rest of the models they only offer a discounted replacement (which is still very expensive) if they need out of warranty repair. Pretty terrible idea for a consumer to have to replace a headphone with any out of warranty repair, but good for corporate because it sells another pair.Go with a pair of Shure/Koss/Westone, even Sony's over these--the price and terrible warranty options are just not worth taking a chance on.

I've gone through two pairs of these now. Both lasted about a year, then the sound to the right side abruptly died. Tinkering with the 2nd set led to the problem - a wiring issue near where the wires meet the connector that plugs into my music device. No 3rd strike for Etymotic; at this price point this sort of fragility isn't acceptable.

I've been using these for several years. I babied these, always returning them to their case when not in use. They had a very easy life. I kept them clean and changed the filters as needed. They always worked great...until recently. The right ear bud is complete dead now. Just died for no apparent reason. Considering how expensive these were and how gingerly I treated them, I would have expected them to last much, much, much longer. These are no longer available. So, I'll replace them with something else, but it won't be from Etymotic.

I got mine as a gift maybe 10 years ago and have really appreciated the way they work. Over this time I was a frequent flyer, kept them packed in my brief case and enjoyed them with my MP3 on flights. I also use them every time I mow the grass in the summer and sometimes in the garden. Not everyday use, but somewhat rugged use at times and I certainly haven't babied them. After just a few years, the case broke so I've been just stuffing them in a zip-lock. Many times they've been yanked out of my ears by a tree limb while maneuvering on my riding mower. I've been able to get replacement ear tips and filters with no problem. Up till now they've been trouble free. Just recently I experienced a failure of one side that sounds similar to what other reviewers describe; I suspect the wire to the terminal has finally failed. Unless I find a better deal, I'll get the same ER6i since I still have replacement parts.

Agree with the previous two reviews. They had great sound for about a year, then the right ear bud gave out due to connection with 3.5mm pin. They had already been replaced once under warranty for the same reason. WAY to expensive to have this problem. I wont buy Etymotic again. Moving over to Shure.