Quality IEM in the $500-1,500 range?

Well, I have 64 Audio's A8's - those have 4 LF BA's embedded - and I can hear bass with those that I can't hear using other buds.
I would say the MINIMUM # of drivers for a bassist is THREE! But add more to taste
You need to be able to boost the bass in your ears without turning your mix to mush.
The ONE thing I like with 64 Audio over the others.. is the ADEL tech. The embedded diaphragms that equalize internal and external pressure. They also act [a bit] like ambient ports, in that once you get used to them, there's a certain level of stage bleed (if you keep your volumes low) that lets you communicate on stage (without pulling them out). The ADEL's come in different dB ratings, so you can use different ones if the factory defaults give you too much isolation.

 

When I was doing 90+ IEM gigs a year in 2017 (we've slowed dramatically since Feb 2018) I got so used to having the A8's in, that they stayed in between sets, to keep out the loud dance music

 

Allthough 64 audio, Jh Audio, Ultimate ears ect are all good products they are extremely inflated in price for the quality in sound very big diminishing returns imho. My personal rec is the custom mold Bgvp dm7 at $350 or $300 for universal fit they use 6 knowls and sonion ba drivers and sound amaizing. I curently own the universal fit Bvgp Dm6 five driver set and the six driver hybrid Bgvp Dmg both sets are excellent if you want universal fit for backups. Another company worth checking is Fearless Audio the S8 freedom custom and S6 Rui custom are the two models I'd look into as the other models are not a substantial improvement in sound versus the price imho.

 

FWIW I have never used more than 2 drivers. I use Westone UM2's, UM20's and also the open port version (I forget). I am lucky that universal fit fit me. Of course as they say you don't know what you don't know

 

Oops sorry, the Westones are in the $300 range.

 

One or two drivers and properly fitting eartips.

 

Unfortunately (for me), I spent a number of years and $$$ on trying universal fit solutions - Westone's and others - single + multi-driver, with all kinds of tips. From Comply to custom molds on the end of my Westone UM1 stems. Then, an audiologist (hearing test) mentioned in a conversation about IEM's that I had small ear canals and universals would probably never work for me. I got some impressions made and went with 64 Audio's Qi's (4 driver). LOVED them... and have never looked back. Upgraded to the A8's a couple of yrs ago.
That said, the ZS5/6's I've listened to have sounded awesome.. and if they would seal in my ears, those or the AS10 or the Chinese brand @Ethereal Thorn mentioned would be where I would go - if I could.
I tend to agree with him on much of the US based customs being FAR TOO EXPENSIVE.

I would NOT go with the 64 Audio N8's for an upgrade. Far too expensive for a non-audiophile, non-pro, non-touring bassist

 

I use Westone AM Pro30's, triple driver. In the $450 range. Nice bass response and very clear and detailed. The bass is so full and clear that I don't miss having my cabinets behind me at all in most situations. The low end can be over driven if pushed very hard but usually this is way too loud anyway. The ambient feature is nice to have if you need to communicate between songs or you keep phones in when off stage. It also helps prevent your ears from feeling plugged up. These are universal fit and I use the Westone memory foam tips.

I too am currently researching my next IEMs but only because I want to go with custom molds for a better fit. I'm leaning toward staying with Westone and moving up to their EAS30 or ES50 custom models.

 

The one thing I HATE about my Adel ports, is when the air from my stage fan hits them, it sounds like wind blowing into a microphone. Not really noticeable when music is going, but in between tunes it drives me nuts.

 

I don't know why that would be... the UPSIDE is that you get minimal ear fatigue from them, unlike the fully-closed shells. More vendors are going that route and putting equivalents in their models.
Ultimate Ears has their "sonic filters". JH Audio has their "Ambient FR", and there are others who have similar devices.
Based on my experience with and without the ADEL's and the comments about them here (mine included), I would NOT scratch them off my list. They DO prevent noise saturation and ear fatigue.. The negatives are incidental. YMMV

 

I agree, I think the benefits of the Adel ports far outweigh the negatives. They don't reducuce isolation at all from what I can tell. IMO they block out just about everything. I had two identical sets of monitors, one with Adel filters one without. To me they sounded identical for the most part. Bass response was no different with the filters. That is where I would have noticed the difference in isolation. I even bought a different set of filters that offered even more bass response. I heard no difference there either.

 

Please note that I run my IEM's at VERY LOW volumes, which lets the ADEL's act like ambient ports. If you turn up the volume a little bit (just a little), the isolation is no different from NOT having the ADEL's..

 

so i'm guessing you're on crowded stages and don't move around too much? i suppose wired would be OK in that situation, especially if the bass is run wired as well. myself, i could never deal with that, i'm wireless for instrument and IEMs.

they make those cables where the guitar send and IEM return are built into one cable, one of those might make sense.

 

The Bgvp and Fearless Audio iems both offer custom molds that was why I mentioned them they are both under the 1k mark even for their flagship iems im going to be ordering a set of custom Bgvp dm7's as soon as I get caught up on bills the sound quality is insane for only $350