Reviews for Klipsch IMAGE S5i Rugged All-weather, All-sport In-ear Headphones with Mic

NOTE: Klipsch S4, S4i and S5i all have the same frequency response on the boxes, meaning that its highly likely the drivers/speakers inside are also the same. That being said, all three are within 40$ price range from eachother and all have a seperate set of "accessories" to suit them, S4 being bare bones, S4i having remote/mic, and S5i having remote, mic, case and weatherproofness.

use: on my Imac for a little more privacy on skype, with my iphone 4 for car use, and at college.

i've had my ears in practically every brand of expensive headphones from monitor headphones, to listener based amplified headphones, to wireless etc... basicly I've owned almost every type of headphones out there.

So here's the review. I looked at all three klipsch models and I really wanted a case, so this was my choice. The sound is pretty standard for its price range. Also cord noise as others are claiming, well thats standard with any in-ear headphones, if its an issue to them, they likely didn't pick the right product for their needs or arent using them right. The Sound is fairly flat, with a bit of extra bass, but i think its more a product of sound isolation than anything else. The cord is tangle resistant, which means its "less likely" to tangle up taking them in and out of of the case, and this claim is true, they are less likely than say your regular ipod headphones to tangle. So yeah I covered pretty much all of it for a new purchase, sound, value, quality are all decent... durability, we shall know with time.

93 of 100 people found this useful

I have been looking for the perfect earbud style headphones for awhile now. Ive been through countless pairs and these are the ones that finally stood up to the challenge. I workout with them, snowboard with them and they have even been through the wash a couple times....they're unstoppable ! They are amazingly comfortable for long car and plane rides and have great sounding audio. Mine fit perfect to my ear shape and block out everything around me on my bus commute. I strongly recommend !

50 of 50 people found this useful

bought this earphones a year ago, was very happy at the beginning especially with noise reducing feature (should put buds tight into ears which causes a headache sometimes), but the worst part - wire cover got broken and probably headphones going to be dead soon. Back to comfortable but not so cool Apple head phones with mic! And I wish they cost less - it's not a Bose product even close!

48 of 55 people found this useful

I bought these earphones because of the huge controller on them and it works great. I found other controllers too small and difficult to find the right button. with these, there are 3 easy to find buttons ( +, - and a play button). so you don't even need to be looking at it to use them, you can just feel the difference between the buttons with is invaluable for a number of activities such as running, biking, skiing etc. and it will be great for the winter because you'll be able to use the controller with gloves on.
Sound is great as expected from Klipsch.

29 of 31 people found this useful

This is the first review ever on anything i've brought before, but I feel like this product deserve a five star for sports lovers.

I've own quite a few earphones, Sennheiser Adidas Sports Headphones(generally OK but do not reconment for wearing a long period of time), Bose inear 1st gen(very fragile), Klipsch X5(small earphone delivers a big sound!), and a few Shure(I guess they are better with their higher-end earphones, the mid-price ones i had was aweful IMHO).

For sports purpose, I think the S5i is the best one i've own so far, althought the clip they proveded is quite easy to drop if you pull the cable in a certain direction, but the water resistant is exceptionally good. I've been riding in many weather conditions including some very heavy rains and it never fail on me. For a couple of times i accidently drop one of ear pieces in a glass of water and it still performs perfectly.

Sound wise, personally i am not a big fan of heavy base, but not a classical guy either, the base from Klipsch is just right for me, mid and high are very clear, the lows are just enough to pound my head. Of course the sound from S5i is not as rich as the X5, but interestingly I would use S5i over X5 most of time, I would use my X5 only when I know i'll be siting down with my computer, maybe is because S5i fits better in my ear and it allows me to move around with it.

27 of 28 people found this useful

Worked for me as advertised.

My sweat on long bike rides or on an elliptical does not affect its performance despite having the cord and microphone/controller under my shirt on my bare skin.

26 of 28 people found this useful

I'll probably go through this a little more specific so that people can get a grasp of my idea of what the headphones feel for ME.

Sound - The sound is on top premium quality, although there are muffles here and there everything is heard through out the song. Testing it, the highs were clear but there were a few cling and tangs that sounded out of order but still felt natural enough for me that it didn't really put me off. The Mids are perfect, without any distortion and with perfect comfort the Mids really played out well without any form of muffling or even vague ticks that i didn't prefer. The Lows although some people are very opinionated about the lows as it's an important part for many people it is perfect for me. It's balance with the music although some people don't understand that bass is not the most important thing, it's a perfect balance giving enough oomf that it doesn't distort or magnify anything you don't need. I give the sound 4/5

Quality - The quality gives it quite the gift, although it would've been nice for it to untangle more easily, it's made easily tangible for it to be portable. The build on it feels very natural and with the metal buds and quality of the ruggedness you can feel the protection in the rubber. The remote is perfect for me as i do a lot of sports including basketball, skipping, weight lifting, power lifting and just training in general; without any problem i was able to fall through all that without any form of problem as i put the headphones around my ear and have the clip on so that the vibration doesn't make the headphones fall out. 5/5

Build Design - Although the remote could've been smaller after some personal time with it, it's become perfect. I've never had the problem of it becoming accidentally pressed, the large size makes it almost impossible to press accidentally unless you're always touching your chest at a constant rate but the design of the actual buds are very well put into. If you clip the headphones and have them over the ear with the nice fit of the buds it makes it an absolute match. The buds because of their oval shape they are very comfortable and never fall out of my ears, sometimes though i feel it puts air in my ear but if i just pull the top of my ear upward it releases the air. The only problem i have with the concept is the way the headphones tangle and the remote could've been just a little bit smaller 4/5

With the casing that comes with strobe lighting and a flash light and it's a very hard rubber case it allows perfect holding material that i believe is klipsch quality. Without fail these headphones i got for $100 i feel very satisfied with and plan on becoming a loyal customer to klipsch. Even though i was skeptical at first because it was a company i was not familiar with physically i feel quite relieved that this satisfaction with them are high.

25 of 28 people found this useful

The sound is perfect but beware of the case. Even though it's supposed to be made for extreme outdoors, the case open up easily. I lost my headphone somewhere in the nature because of that and never found it. I had to buy another one but this time, the case will remain in closed pocket

20 of 22 people found this useful

Amazing sound for Classical music - rich bass and clear treble. And durable (nice little metal case for storage) - I put mine through the clothes washing machine on warm mode this week and they still sound fine!

16 of 16 people found this useful

The sound quality of the Klipsch is exceptional. The Noise Isolation is exceptional. Highs are great, and the bass is deep and not overpowering. (Not for the bass fanatic though.) The rugged aspect of the headsets are great. I have not had a chance to do a comparison to the to the S4i, although I am assuming that the sounds quality is the same between the two models, just a more rugged designed for the S5i for $30 more.
The sounds is amazing for the price of earphones, although referring to the title of my review. These headphones are not for me. Why? I use Bose qc15 for my noise canceling and listening enjoyment while traveling. Those are amazingly comfortable for long flights. If these will be your only set of earphones, then absolutely purchase.(Sound it not to far away from the bose products for a fraction of the price.)
I purchased these for my walk to the gym and for my workout. I occasionally take calls before, after, and during my workouts. The problem I have with with the noise isolation is I can't hear myself speak, which is a problem. I find my self speaking louder than necessary. This is not a Klipsch problem, but a problem with incorporating noise isolation with mobile phone use. I would prefer an open ended design such as the Bose Mie2i.
This other CON is the location of the music and phone control. The control button housing is far to low and too large for me. Yet I am sure this will hold up in all situations, it is quite rugged. I keep my earphones behind me while working out, this creates and problem when sitting or lying on a bench.(The control module rests in the middle of my back) The second I sit down , the song is either paused or skipped. Once again this is a personal issue that may not apply to everyone. I will be returning them. For $129.99 I need to find whats right for me.

12 of 14 people found this useful