Klipsch IMAGE S4 In-Ear Enhanced Bass Noise-Isolating Headphones

Customer Reviews

Average Customer Review:

Review 6 to 10 of total 399

What an amazing product...,
by B. Smith, 2009-12-07

Where do I start? First let me explain my situation - which you'll probably think is a joke, but I assure you, it's not: if you got a few minutes to read and can understand my situation, you'll understand why I've fallen in love with these earbuds. If you don't wish to read the story - jump down to the *******s.

I work in an office setting, IT to be precise. I'm in a cubicle about 15 feet away from another guy in a cubicle. Now - this guy has a bit of a problem. He coughs, huffs, and clears his throat... a lot. Normally it wouldn't be a problem - some coughing here and there... oh well. Not quite. This guy has got some sort of problem (a "tick" maybe?) or has it set out to drive me absolutely *insane*. He coughs/huffs/and puffs sometimes up to 30-40 times a minute. That's right, 30-40 times A MINUTE! He has his good days where it might be 30-40 times in a single day and then he has some bad days.

With this said, I've had to deal with that for almost 6 months. I've practically lost my mind... I mean, honestly, I've daydreamed about doing terrible and violent things to him. It's essentially what I'd expect CIA torture is like.

So I went out and bought some $10 earbuds from OfficeMax or somewhere like that - hoping to drown out his insanity with some music - maybe even calm my nerves so I don't violently swerve off a cliff or drive through a playground laughing hysterically over lunch. These cheap earbuds worked great - except after a few weeks I had to turn the volume up because his "crazy coughs" got louder. By the end of the day - my ears hurt because 8 solid hours of blasting music was becoming excessive. So I knew I had to look for a change.

I started doing my research - extensive research mind you. There was a very in depth review for "high end" earbuds - you know the type $100 - $1000. The Klipsch Image S4's were the cheapest on the list of 5 or 10 tested - going up against the "best of the best". Long story short - the Image S4's took 1st or second. They claimed there was no major difference from these compared to the $500+ set.

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Storytime is over, now on to my actual review. Very easily a 5 out of 5. I've been getting more and more into *quality* sounding music and these have set my standards high. I listen to music on other speakers/headphones and it sounds flat, dull, and boring. I'm addicted to these earbuds and I can hardly live without them anymore.

Bass: enhanced and very solid. A little higher than I expected - especially since my previous earbuds had literally next to no bass. However, it's a good feeling bass - not "fuzzy".

Highs: precise and very crisp. I sort of expected the highs to be slightly louder but this is nice because I can actually "feel" the music now with the more defined bass.

Lows: very prevalent. I couldn't even hear certain lows with the other earbuds. I remember noticing there was wind blowing at the end of one of my songs that I've never heard before.

They fit very well, I can't even feel them once they're in. However, I wouldn't recommend them for exercise. Since they are noise cancelling they fit snugly inside of the ear canal. Jumping around or active movement may continuously wiggle them loose.

The noise cancelation is seriously impressive. I actually turned my music down from what I had it before and haven't heard one single keystroke in this review yet. Better yet, I know the kid next to me is firing off coughs at a rate and decibel level that would put most military grade weapons to shame and I can't hear a sound of it.

Worth the $80? Yes. I'd do it again in a heartbeat. Not to mention, I believe this actually raised my quality of life in the workplace. Thank you Klipsch - you've done great things for me.

 

Me Gusta,
by Jim, 2009-05-28

So I just got my Images S4's in the mail and I must say, me gusta. They were a little smaller then I was imagining, but that is definately not a bad thing. In fact, i'd say it's a plus. The first thing I notice is the beautiful styling of the earbuds. They look and fell well made, which I'm sure they are. They fit comfortably in the ear and don't move around during some headbanging :). Now for the best part: the sound. It's incredible. The sound is clear; not at all drowned out by the bass, like some others out on the market. But that's not to say there isn't much bass, there is. It is that the bass is in the perfect amount. Anyway I think I will cut this review a bit short so I can enjoy the S4's a bit more. I would recommend these earbuds to anyone who likes clean, crisp sound with plenty of bass. That's all for now.

 

Image S4 Ongoing Review,
by N. Gronlund, 2009-08-08

This will be an ongoing review for Klipsch Image S4 ear buds.

Upfront info: I plan on using these headphones primary to work out with, for approximately 1.5 hours, 5 times a week. Also, I have largish ear canals, and I sweat alot, so good fit is important and can be difficult. They will also be used to listen to music just sitting around, but I use my speakers more frequently.

Other headphones used: various included with mp3 player (clip, clix2, iPod, zen), several Sony, JVC, and Samsung over-ear and in-ear buds in the 40-50 dollar range. Later I will also compare them to my 'cans (Sennheiser HD-280 Pro's)

7 Aug 09 - First Day of use, initial impressions (used with Clip 1Gb, large tips):
In a few words: lightweight, very clear sound, decent seal, but right ear didn't stay while running
In a few more words: Other reviews have commented on the cord being thin, it didn't really seem overly so to me but I will take care not to catch it on anything. Very simple to put in and get a good seal (while sitting still). If you're having trouble, remember that they are angled, so they should be inserted at a slight angle. The right ear kept falling out while running but I think the large ear tip was a tad too large, I will try using the medium ear tip on Monday. Sound reproduction is clear, although I wasn't really listening to anything to push the 'buds (Revis, Seether, and some Flogging Molly). Sound isolation was excellent (when sealed), I could only hear the noise in the gym if I wanted to.

7 Aug 09 - First Day of use, sound testing (computer, with Creative X-Fi sound card)
In a few words: awesome sound clarity and response, extremely comfortable
In a few more words: Pushed them a bit more: Diva Dance (Fifth Element), Battlestar Galactica Season 4 soundtrack, Nightwish, Blue Man Group, Led Zeppelin, Metallica, Blues Traveler, and Nickle Creek. Overall sound was crisp, and I heard elements in almost all of these bands that I didn't realize existed before. With no equalizer or sound effects the bass was acceptable, but for true bass addicts it will be light. However, if you set the equalizer to emphasize the bass a bit more than standard, you should be happy.

First Day Overall: excellent buy at $80, very comfortable to wear for several hours, cannot say enough about sound clarity and response, case is useful for gym rats, easy to seal, you will tell the difference between poorly encoded music and lossless formats (not a con for the 'buds). Bass can be light, cord is no thicker than cheapo ear-bud cord and could be nicked easily

I will update this review again on 14 Aug

Okay, so it's a bit later that 14 Aug, decided to do a two week review instead.

Put many hours on these headphones already and I continue to be impressed. I'm still having trouble with fit while running, I'm going to try buying some additional tips for them. Comparing them to my Sennheiser, the sound quality and comfort is nearly identical, the biggest difference is the bass and the warmth of the music. The Sennheiser cans have a deeper bass and make you feel like the bands right there. Of course, their MSRP is double the S4's, so I would expect that. My only real compliant is the lack of a clip on the cord. Part of the problem while running is the weight of the cord pulling the headphones out, a clip would fix this, but they don't have one. Going to see if I can adapt a clip from something else and see how it works.

 

Klipsch Image S4s,
by Mark A. Joslin, 2009-08-13

I just received these Klipsch Image S4s tonight, and have such been taking the time of sampling a few different tracks. I am thoroughly taken aback by this product, and would recommend it highly. Some key points:

- The bass is near perfect, very clear and pristine
- The noise reduction is pretty good
- The sound sounds great all around - comes through very clearly.
- The price tag of $70 for this sound seems about the perfect price (CNET review raved about this, and I can see why)
- Finally, it's hard to mass market ear canal phones that will fear your ears COMPLETELY perfectly. I personally am using the wider ones and it isn't too deep in my ear so it's staying comfortable but still is remaining a good noise reduction.

For $70, I'd say it's worth it. It's not that big of a dent into your wallet, and gives you a tease of the high end line.

 

Great Earbuds,
by Ben, 2009-05-28

The earbuds are a lot smaller than I initially thought, which is a good thing. The styling, look and build quality is what you would expect from a good name like Klipsch. I am more into HiFi speakers and not really headphones so I cant get too technical. But I have owned and used a pair of Shure E2C before as well as higher end ones like Audio Technica. The Klipsch compares very well to the E2C, although accurate I felt there was a lack of bass on the E2C which is much better on the Klipsch S4. Also the S4 is more comfortable. So at the end of the day I prefer the Klipsch S4. What really seals the deal is the S4 comes with a nice tin case and cleaner for the earbuds. The tin case is pretty nice and can also be used to store other things. The cleaner is also very useful. Both items are very minor things to mention but to me are important for daily use.