DIY IEM project!

Alright you audiophiles, here is a project that is sure to get some of you REALLY excited,
DIY inner ear monitors.
I am sure by now most of you who have a pair of sure, Stennheiser IE80s, Monster turbine series, know just how good these brands are and how good their sound reproduction and detail are. What some of you may or may not know is that unlike normal over the ear monitors, IEMs are too small to have traditional drivers in them and instead use a micro-speaker called a balanced armature driver, which resembles a small box. They are more energy efficient than standard drivers and are 3-5mm in size.
In the last couple of months, a consorted effort has been made in the DIY thread in HIFI forums regarding inner ear monitor manufacturing. The process is somewhat complex but
extremely rewarding. Can you imagine building an IEM that rivals or equal to a $1500-2000 pair of IEMs that looks better too?




a 6 driver configuration. This IEM requires about ~300ohm of impedance rated amplifier to run. Not for a direct line in to an iPod, COWON J3 or other media player!




Finished product.... OMG... can you say a work of art !!



Here is a thread documenting the procedure for making your own 3 driver IEMs.

Home-Made IEMs (pt1)

DIY Custom IEMs : Part 2


after seeing some of the finished products and the reviews, I am temped to try to make a pair myself.
Several companies right now have gone the custom IEM route and as such their prices are extremely high! Materials being used are 24K gold, tropical and rare woods (ripple maple),
ebony... the list continues. HEIR audio seems to be front and centre at the moment in this exclusive HIFI group, with it's connections in the Head-fi.org forum.
If you do choose to build a pair of your own IEMs, please post your results! I'd be happy to see how you make out.

Here's an instructable documenting my attempts.

It ended up sounding rather sub-standard. :cryyy:

I recommend reading these (For custom IEMs):
DIY In Ear Monitors
DIY IEMs (w/ hollow shells)

I'm currently using a pair of Shure 425s with custom eartips made in this fashion. Albeit much neater because I had prior experience with mold making when I was trying to create a custom IEM.

It's good enough for me, the custom tips give more isolation and increases the bass (Shure 425s have very little bass); overall the sound is also warmer, because RTV silicone which has damping properties was used for the tips.

Interesting stuff! I'll bookmark this so I can investigate this further.

Actually, if you're wanting the high-end results you'd best go with balanced armatures specifically.
They're expensive ($50-$60ea) and you'll need a low temp micro-tipped soldering gun.
Also needed are the resonating tubes that are available from the manufacturer.
Also some B/A's are meant as woofers, others tweeters. When designing a inner ear monitor using multiple drivers you'll require a tiny crossover circuit. (SMC)

Now, you're understanding why some of the high end IEMs are worth $1000's.