# IEM shopping



## noUser01 (Mar 15, 2015)

I'm looking into buying an in-ear-monitor system for myself so I can route the click my drummer hears to me in-ears, as well as a direct signal from my AxeFX II so I can hear myself better.

What should I be looking for? Obviously I want stereo, and a metal belt pack for sturdiness, but what else is important to look at? I've looked at the Sennheiser EW 300 and it looks awesome, but looking at the Carvin EM900 (which is much cheaper) it makes me wonder why there's such a huge price range for IEM's.

So what should I be looking for? What are some other models I should look at?


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## concertjunkie (Mar 28, 2015)

ConnorGilks said:


> I'm looking into buying an in-ear-monitor system for myself so I can route the click my drummer hears to me in-ears, as well as a direct signal from my AxeFX II so I can hear myself better.
> 
> What should I be looking for? Obviously I want stereo, and a metal belt pack for sturdiness, but what else is important to look at? I've looked at the Sennheiser EW 300 and it looks awesome, but looking at the Carvin EM900 (which is much cheaper) it makes me wonder why there's such a huge price range for IEM's.
> 
> So what should I be looking for? What are some other models I should look at?



from what ive read , the IEM that comes with the carvin EM900 is utter garbage. Best to get a third party IEM (the Shure se215 is a great price for your first IEM @ $100). Ideally if you have money to spend, you should get a triple driver IEM or higher, and molded to your ear. That along usually runs $500+

I would also look into a wireless transmitter pouch that will hold the wireless receiver and protect it too


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## larry (Mar 29, 2015)

no experience with the carvin IEM system, but i will say the sennheiser is quite feature-rich and very well thought out. from frequency and power management, to control locks to prevent accidental changes. quite nice. i used it with my drummer during rehearsals, but unfortunately we never made it far enough to play shows. With my new work schedule, it doesn't look like i'll be back in a band anytime soon... 

so it's just sitting around. will be posting a FS thread for it soon, but you can PM me if you're interested.


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## noUser01 (Mar 29, 2015)

concertjunkie said:


> from what ive read , the IEM that comes with the carvin EM900 is utter garbage. Best to get a third party IEM (the Shure se215 is a great price for your first IEM @ $100). Ideally if you have money to spend, you should get a triple driver IEM or higher, and molded to your ear. That along usually runs $500+
> 
> I would also look into a wireless transmitter pouch that will hold the wireless receiver and protect it too



Thanks. I've got SE215's but I'm more concerned about the transmitter and pack compared to something like the higher end Sennheisers.



larry said:


> no experience with the carvin IEM system, but i will say the sennheiser is quite feature-rich and very well thought out. from frequency and power management, to control locks to prevent accidental changes. quite nice. i used it with my drummer during rehearsals, but unfortunately we never made it far enough to play shows. With my new work schedule, it doesn't look like i'll be back in a band anytime soon...
> 
> so it's just sitting around. will be posting a FS thread for it soon, but you can PM me if you're interested.



Thanks, good to know!


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## BlueGrot (May 4, 2015)

Stereo? Hopefully you've got your own on-stage solution for this, if not, you're robbing the house desk of an auxiliary send. Might not seem like a big deal, but this is usually a big no-no.


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## Blasphemer (May 4, 2015)

FWIW, I have the EM900 and a pair of SE215s. I'm very happy with that setup, but this is also knowing that a unit like a Shure PSM900 sounds quite a bit better - just not $1000 better. The transmission from the Carvin is a bit compressed. Not too smashed, or anything, but just a little pressed.

The reciever and the transmitter are both sturdy, and haven't given me any problems, yet. I can't comment on the Sennheiser as I haven't used one, but I guarantee you it's better than the Carvin. The question is just is it $650 better? Probably not.


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## noUser01 (May 5, 2015)

Blasphemer said:


> FWIW, I have the EM900 and a pair of SE215s. I'm very happy with that setup, but this is also knowing that a unit like a Shure PSM900 sounds quite a bit better - just not $1000 better. The transmission from the Carvin is a bit compressed. Not too smashed, or anything, but just a little pressed.
> 
> The reciever and the transmitter are both sturdy, and haven't given me any problems, yet. I can't comment on the Sennheiser as I haven't used one, but I guarantee you it's better than the Carvin. The question is just is it $650 better? Probably not.



Is the belt pack all metal? Including the battery cover?


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## Blasphemer (May 5, 2015)

Its like 95% metal. The batteries are installed like no other system I've ever encountered. I don't have it on me or I'd take pictures, but I'll try and explain.







Inside the red circles are probably the only plastic part on the unit aside from the rubber grips on the side. You push those in, and the battery compartment comes completely out of the receiver. It's roughly the size of the blue portion I've outlined. The batteries then sit horizontally, side by side in the veeeery snug battery compartment. It all feels super solid and doesn't worry me in the least. It's just way different from and Shure or Sennheiser unit I've seen.


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