basically, if you want boom, get the sonys. if you want an almost perfect representation of what you're listening to, get the etymotics. I have two of them (for my nano and my regular ipod), and swear by them. is it justified to drop 70$ more on them? well, i'm a firm believer of buy the top of the once and keep it as long as you can, instead of the alternative of buy low and be dissatisfied.