Products
Etymotic ER4XR
Etymotic Research HF5
Tested using Methodology v1.3.1
Updated Feb 21, 2022 03:01 PM
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Tested using Methodology v1.3.1
Updated Apr 10, 2024 06:09 PM
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TypeIn-ear
EnclosureClosed-Back
Noise CancellingNo
WirelessNo
TransducerBalanced Armature
MicNo
TypeIn-ear
EnclosureClosed-Back
Noise CancellingNo
WirelessNo
TransducerBalanced Armature
MicNo
Our Verdict
Etymotic ER4XR
Etymotic Research HF5
The Etymotic ER4XR are better critical listening headphones than the Etymotic Research HF5. The ER4XR have a better more premium build quality with dense durable earbuds and a detachable, braided audio cable that you can replace if it ever gets damaged. They also have a slightly better sound than the HF5 with more bass. However, the HF5 are a better value for your money since they cost much less for a similar sound. They also isolate as much as the ER4XR in noisy conditions which makes them a great choice for loud noisy environments and for commuting.
Variants
- ER4XR
- HF5 (Black)
- HF5 (Blue)
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Standard
ER4XR
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Black
HF5
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Standard
ER4XR
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Blue
HF5
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Standard
ER4XR
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ER4XR
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Main Differences for
Mixed Usage
Mixed Usage
Threshold
Mixed Usage
6.6
6.4
Noise Isolation
9.7
8.9
Full Comparison
Design
Style
Design Picture 2
Type
In-ear
In-ear
Enclosure
Closed-Back
Closed-Back
Wireless
No
No
Transducer
Balanced Armature
Balanced Armature
Comfort
6.5
6.5
Comfort Picture
Weight
0.04 lbs
0.04 lbs
Clamping Force
0 lbs
0 lbs
Controls
0.0
0.0
Controls Picture
OS Compatibility
Not OS specific
Not OS specific
Ease Of Use
N/A
N/A
Feedback
N/A
N/A
Call/Music Control
No
No
Volume Control
No
No
Microphone Control
N/A
N/A
Channel Mixing
N/A
N/A
Noise Cancelling Control
N/A
N/A
Talk-Through
N/A
N/A
Additional Buttons
N/A
N/A
Breathability
9.2
9.2
Breathability After Picture
Avg.Temp.Difference
0.8 °C
0.8 °C
Portability
8.9
8.5
Portability Picture
L
2.1"
2.5"
W
2.4"
2.8"
H
0.9"
1"
Volume
4.4 in³
7 in³
Transmitter Required
N/A
N/A
Case
7.5
7.0
Case Picture
Type
Hard case
Soft case
L
5.4"
4"
W
3.6"
2.2"
H
1.9"
1.2"
Volume
68 in³
N/A
Build Quality
8.0
7.0
Build Quality Picture
Stability
8.0
7.5
Stability Picture
Headshots 1
Angled Picture
Side Picture
Headshots 2
Front Picture
Rear Picture
Top
Top Picture
In The Box
In the box Picture
Sound
Sound Profile
Frequency Response
Bass Amount
-5.29 dB
-7.2 dB
Treble Amount
-2.82 dB
-3.9 dB
Frequency Response Consistency
9.7
9.8
Consistency L
Consistency R
Avg. Std. Deviation
0.07 dB
0.05 dB
Bass Accuracy
7.3
6.7
Bass
Std. Err.
3.35 dB
4.11 dB
Low-Frequency Extension
84.76 Hz
88.51 Hz
Low-Bass
-5.48 dB
-7.13 dB
Mid-Bass
-2.81 dB
-3.21 dB
High-Bass
2.04 dB
2.26 dB
Mid Accuracy
7.5
6.6
Std. Err.
3.33 dB
4.49 dB
Low-Mid
2.92 dB
3.9 dB
Mid-Mid
1.61 dB
3.08 dB
High-Mid
4.48 dB
5.85 dB
Treble Accuracy
7.2
6.7
Treble
Std. Err.
4.19 dB
4.56 dB
Low-Treble
4.62 dB
5.29 dB
Mid-Treble
-0.7 dB
-0.65 dB
High-Treble
-4.99 dB
-6.94 dB
Peaks/Dips
7.4
7.5
Peaks/Dips Graph
Peaks
1.63 dB
1.59 dB
Dips
1.43 dB
1.38 dB
Imaging
9.1
8.5
Group Delay
Phase Response
Weighted Group Delay
0.06
0.1
Weighted Amplitude Mismatch
0.59
2.08
Weighted Frequency Mismatch
1.39
1.15
Weighted Phase Mismatch
1.31
0.71
Soundstage
0.1
0.2
PRTF
PRTF Accuracy (Std. Dev.)
N/A
N/A
PRTF Size (Avg.)
N/A
N/A
PRTF Distance
N/A
N/A
Openness
0.3
1.1
Acoustic Space Excitation
0
0
Weighted Harmonic Distortion
7.4
7.5
Weighted Harmonic Distortion
WHD @ 90
0.271
0.313
WHD @ 100
0.225
0.162
Isolation
Noise Isolation
9.7
8.9
Noise Isolation
Isolation Audio
Overall Attenuation
-32.83 dB
-29.99 dB
Noise Cancelling
No
No
Bass
-21.55 dB
-16.84 dB
Mid
-28.93 dB
-21.81 dB
Treble
-48.55 dB
-51.42 dB
Microphone
Microphone Style
Integrated
No
N/A
In-line
No
N/A
Boom
No
N/A
Detachable Boom
N/A
N/A
Mic
No
No
Recording Quality
0.0
0.0
Microphone Frequency Response
Recorded Speech
N/A
N/A
LFE
N/A
N/A
FR Std. Dev.
N/A
N/A
HFE
N/A
N/A
Weighted THD
N/A
N/A
Gain
N/A
N/A
Noise Handling
0.0
0.0
SpNR
Speech + Pink Noise
N/A
N/A
Speech + Subway Noise
N/A
N/A
SpNR
N/A
N/A
Active Features
Battery
0.0
0.0
Battery Type
N/A
N/A
Continuous Battery Life
N/A
N/A
Additional Charges
N/A
N/A
Total Battery Life
N/A
N/A
Charge Time
N/A
N/A
Power Saving Feature
N/A
N/A
Audio While Charging
N/A
N/A
Passive Playback
N/A
N/A
Charging Port
N/A
N/A
App Support
0.0
0.0
App Picture
App Name
N/A
N/A
iOS
N/A
N/A
Android
N/A
N/A
macOS
N/A
N/A
Windows
N/A
N/A
Equalizer
N/A
N/A
ANC Control
N/A
N/A
Mic Control
N/A
N/A
Room effects
N/A
N/A
Playback Control
N/A
N/A
Button Mapping
N/A
N/A
Surround Sound
N/A
N/A
Connectivity
Bluetooth
0.0
0.0
Bluetooth Version
N/A
N/A
Multi-Device Pairing
N/A
N/A
NFC Pairing
N/A
N/A
Line of Sight Range
N/A
N/A
Default Latency
N/A
N/A
aptX Latency
N/A
N/A
aptX(LL) Latency
N/A
N/A
Non-Bluetooth Wireless
0.0
0.0
Non-BT Line of Sight Range
N/A
N/A
Non-BT Latency
N/A
N/A
Wired
9.5
9.0
Cable Picture
Analog Audio
Yes
Yes
USB Audio
No
No
Detachable
Yes
No
Length
5 ft
4.1 ft
Connection
1/8" TRS
1/8" TRS
Wired Latency
0 ms
0 ms
PC / PS4 Compatibility
PC / PS4 Analog
Audio Only
Audio Only
PC / PS4 Wired USB
No
No
PC / PS4 Non-BT Wireless
No
No
Xbox One Compatibility
Xbox One Analog
Audio Only
Audio Only
Xbox One Wired USB
No
No
Xbox One Wireless
No
No
Base/Dock
0.0
0.0
Type
N/A
N/A
USB Input
N/A
N/A
Line In
N/A
N/A
Line Out
N/A
N/A
Optical Input
N/A
N/A
RCA Input
N/A
N/A
Dock Charging
N/A
N/A
Power Supply
N/A
N/A
Check Price
Standard
ER4XR
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
HF5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Standard
ER4XR
SEE PRICE
Walmart.com
Blue
HF5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Standard
ER4XR
SEARCH
B&H
Standard
ER4XR
SEARCH
BestBuy.com
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Etymotic ER4XR
Etymotic Research HF5
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Etymotic ER4XR vs Etymotic Research HF5: Main Discussion
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