Shitty/unusuable CIEM fit- what to do?

Discussion in 'IEMs and Portable Gear' started by Kattefjaes, Feb 20, 2019.

  1. Kattefjaes

    Kattefjaes Mostly Harmless

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    Last August, I got myself fitted for some UERR, from these people:

    http://www.custom-inearmonitors.co.uk/

    The first set that arrived were so bad, I couldn't actually get the right one in my ear properly- the protrusion above the nozzle was so sharp and uncomfortable- it stuck in the ear and the nozzle could never reach the canal properly, no matter how I tried to wiggle it. The pain made my eyes water, it was incredible.

    I sent them back for changes, got some back which physically went in my ears, but they were terrible. Left one was more or less OK, but very sloppy and popped if I moved my head at all. The right one was miles out- the top "pokey bit" went in, but the nozzle was just butted against the canal on every side at the last bend. It was really unpleasant and hurt in a different way.

    Next remake it hurt less, but still didn't fit properly. The right one was loose and sloppy, but still didn't fit in the canal properly. because it didn't go deep enough in the canal, there were terrible problems with occlusion. In the right ear, rather than hearing music, I could mostly hear my own massively resonant breathing and low frequency musculo-skeletal booms with every step. Even if I did a "steadicam walk" (I have a pretty good one when needed, as it goes), the booming drowned out all the low frequencies in the left ear. That was even louder than the really loud breathing. Essentially, in the right ear, you can only hear the music properly sitting down and holding your breath, which is somewhat unsustainable.

    They did a refit, and we didn't get anywhere at all. The left one is sort of OK- a mediocre fit that pops a bit, but livable. The right one is sloppy mid-nozzle and the tip doesn't engage with the last bend at all- if anything, the occlusion problems are worse. Can't even use them sitting down, as the constant noise in one ear is really fatiguing.

    Essentially, I have a pretty expensive pair of CIEMs that sound much worse than any of my universals- unusable. The company concerned has stopped responding to emails.

    Has anyone else been through this? What did you do? Especially interested with UKers who have been through this. Note that burning the building down is not an option, but advice welcome :)
     
  2. Ash1412

    Ash1412 Friend

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    Did you change ear impressions/molds throughout? If it was just one set of molds, then thats their manufacturing being crap
     
  3. Kattefjaes

    Kattefjaes Mostly Harmless

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    Yeah, to be clear, that's what I meant by "they did a refit". They took new moulds.

    It'd be a shocker if they'd sold these to a vocalist- the sound of your own voice booming in one ear would be deadly.
     
  4. Jinxy245

    Jinxy245 Vegan Puss

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    I am by no means an expert, but I have heard that some people have oddly shaped ear canals in one or both ears that aren't suited for CIEMs.

    I'm guessing @shotgunshane would have more experience/knowledge in this area.
     
  5. Kattefjaes

    Kattefjaes Mostly Harmless

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    Oh, I am sure that I have oddly-shaped everything- but these are the worst customs that I have ever had. They are literally unusable, I have a scuba diver with a subwoofer in one ear all the time, it's pretty shitty.
     
  6. shotgunshane

    shotgunshane Floridian Falcon

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    Are your UERR’s made with second bend deep fit?

    When I bought the UERM they made it pretty shallow fit. It had one minor issue and they fixed it from my picture and drawn explanation. Then when I had the UERR made years later, they used those old corrected molds and scanned them. Again shallow fit but this time the best fitting customs I ever had.

    The shallow fit made all the difference in the world. In fact, I hate the deeper fit many manufacturers use; it’s never comfortable long term for me. Anyway, mentioning in case they have been trying for a second bend fit. Ask them for shallow fit.

    I’ve read plenty of horror stories like this across many/most manufacturers. Sometimes you just have bad luck. Maybe contact UE directly and explain your story. See if they have someone in your area that can do digital ear scans. That might make a huge difference, as it sounds like your impressions/molds just haven’t been quite the right quality. This can be due to many factors: not enough impression material used, so impressions have pockets or incomplete spaces; maybe you clenched too tightly on the bite block; bite block versus no bite block - different ear canals react different ways; maybe the builder removed too much of the impression or too much acrylic when sanding/polishing, etc.
     
  7. Kattefjaes

    Kattefjaes Mostly Harmless

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    Yeah, that's the thing, the dealer did the moulds and scans themselves, too- it's pretty much their whole business.

    They were quite careful with the bite blocks and how they were positioned, for what it's worth, but were absolutely going for a second bend fit. The issue is that the right one just butts against the second bend, and never goes through it. That seems to be the optimal depth for massively loud resonance.

    The other issue is that they have not only provided IEMs that don't fit, they've now gone very quiet. It's hard to get anything out of them.
     
  8. shotgunshane

    shotgunshane Floridian Falcon

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    Do you have other good fitting customs? If so insist that they make molds from those.

    That’s unfortunate that they are ignoring you. A talk in person might be worthwhile. Maybe you could negotiate some kind of refund.
     
  9. Ice-man

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    I had customs made for my jh audio and the fit turned out quite good on the first try. Sadly, I hated the sound of the jh13. They key to the whole process IMO was the making of the molds. Without a good mold of your ear canal, you'll never get a pair that fits well. Did you only have one mold made or multiples?
     
  10. Kattefjaes

    Kattefjaes Mostly Harmless

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    Not any more- that's why I paid for these. I used to have some Etymotic custom moulds that were phenomenal (with the moulds just done in a high street audiologist with putty). Sadly, they got stolen, which still rankles. It was years until I felt up to taking that plunge again.
     
    Last edited: Feb 20, 2019
  11. Jinxy245

    Jinxy245 Vegan Puss

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    Do you Facebook? Many times they are more responsive on social media (Including Twitter, Instagram etc)
    Might be worth a try if you have an account.

    Good luck!
     
  12. Kattefjaes

    Kattefjaes Mostly Harmless

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    I don't, I destroyed all Facebook accounts some years ago. I didn't like the way they didn't even pretend to not f**k your data- as well as trying to combine every version of you and introduce everyone you'd ever met to each other. It wasn't all about Zuck's backpfeifengesicht, but Facebook gives me the creeps generally.

    Turns out I was right, but that's not really a good thing.

    Maybe I could try The Twitters. I was trying to avoid direct confrontation, but you make a really good point.
     
  13. Zhanming057

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    I've had a similar experience from JH audio but UE seems to be the worst offender in this regard. US-based IEM makers really need to step up their game in this regard. It isn't 2009 anymore, and Asian companies are far and above much better at making earmolds that fit you correctly.

    Here's what I would do (i.e. what I did with JH when my multi-refit pair still never worked):

    1. Send them a sternly worded email that you are giving them one more chance to get the fit right. Ask that they reimburse the cost of you going to a real audiologist - I've found that a lot of local dealers don't really know how to do a good pair of impressions. If that works great, if that doesn't it's off to 2.

    2. Complain on both Twitter and Head-fi - preferably calling out their local Head-fi rep if there is one. Ask for either a full, 100% refund or an universal pair of the same IEM - depending on whether you like their sound or not. Don't compromise for anything less.

    Finally, you may want to look into companies such as Fitear, Canal Works and QDC in the future - UE and JH stubbornly stick to outdated techniques of constructing CIEM's, and I've had so many friends (including myself) go through multiple refits that I cannot recommend these companies for CIEMs over the Japenese/Chinese options. Everyone has fantastic sounding in-ears, but some of them won't make you go through 3 refits.
     
  14. EagleWings

    EagleWings Friend

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    I am sorry to hear that man. UE doesn't have any active reps on HF to my knowledge. I could be wrong though. Twitter and FB may be your best bet to get UE's attention, as they are a big ass company and know that one complaint from a customer won't dent their sales.
     
  15. nudd

    nudd New

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    Unfortunately fitear is so hard to get outsude of japan ... Otherwise I really like their MH334SR. But it is really expensive!!!!!
     

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