There are cables that are less microphonic, and I think it might be possible that if you wrap the cable around your ear instead of going straight up it's supposed to help also. I don't personally like the around the ear thing--feels like a bridge too far for me look-wise, but I'm not everyone.
But I'll get on my shtick for a second: I love my ER4SRs. They've basically saved my career. They're small, there's no latency, there's infinite battery life, essentially everything is replaceable, the sound _perfect_. I super wish they made a (non-Lightning) cable that had a mic in it (I know there's 3rd party ones but haven't had a lot of success there yet and quit trying), but it's a small inconvenience. I can mostly work anywhere under almost any conditions, which has turned out to be important.
[1]: https://www.etymotic.com/product/shirt-clip-for-er-series-ea...
The solution is to ensure that they are never jostled, which I achieved by staying still. Probably going wireless would also eliminate the issue.
It may be as simple as replacing the cable though, I'm not entirely sure.
I also bought a replacement cable, which didn't work, then contacted support for a replacement. Their suggested fix of changing the filter worked. I suspect the reason may have been moisture; I washed the silicon tip with soap and water, then put it back on the earpiece and filter without waiting for it to fully dry.
This shouldn't happen considering the price, but it wasn't a dealbreaker for my personal preferences (as the fix wasn't too noticeable, and I enjoy the noise isolation and sound quality).
I’ve ended up switching to Shure IEMs, but I use the Etymotic triple-flange silicone ear tips. I’ve tried everything else I can find, and nothing else works as well to keep them in my ears.
Comply foam ear tips are a good idea, but don’t work nearly so well as my 32dB NRR earplugs at staying in my ears. And the triple flange silicone tips actually let me hear something instead of just blocking out noise.
I’ve recently discovered that Shure now has a couple of different “totally wireless” devices that you can plug into whatever modern Shure IEMs you have, so I’m trying those out now, both as a way to actively block out the sound of my wife snoring with white noise from my iPhone, and I’m also going to try them in combination with a Røde Wireless Go II lavalier mic setup for Zoom and Chime teleconferences.
Something else to really pay attention to is listening to music all day. 85 dB might not "sound" (hehe) like much, but more than a couple hours of that and you'll damage your hearing [1]. Do that for a year, say, and it adds up. And 85 dB doesn't sound that loud, especially if you work up to it.
This is where I'm jealous of Apple's Airpods ecosystem, where they know the SPL of the drivers and what volume you're driving them at, so they can avoid damaging your hearing. I really wish more laptop/phone/etc. manufacturers would post more detailed headphone jack stats so you could just plug in your SPL and set the volume accordingly. I had a hell of a time figuring it out for my 2018 MBP; I can only imagine what it's like for less ubiquitous hardware.
[1]: https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/noise-induced-hearing-loss
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microphonics
> Microphonics, microphony, or microphonism[1][2][3] describes the phenomenon wherein certain components in electronic devices transform mechanical vibrations into an undesired electrical signal (noise).
There's no electricity involved in this phenomenon, which arises through pure mechanical coupling when the wire causes the sealed earpiece to move and air pressure in the ear canal to swing wildly.
But that's like complaining about URL vs. URI...
I have been wearing in-ears for years, running the wire down my spine and into my pants pockets.
That limits the parts of the cable that can still move to between the device and my beltline, which doesn't cause any noise whatsoever.
I've already explained this multiple times elsethread:
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28738098
EarPods have rolled off bass response, but to me the full experience is superior to what I get with in-ear, at least as soon as I start moving. They don't deliver that "sealed off from the world" effect, but I don't actually want that most of the time.
For better fidelity, I prefer my old Grado SR-80 headphones, but they're an open air ear-cup design, so not good in an office environment or similar.
The same effect happens when you jostle a sealed in-ear monitor. I don't doubt that you are not perceiving this rumble, but my explanation is that your brain is filtering it out.
EDIT: It occurs to me now that if you listen at consistently high volume (which many in-ear headphone users do), jostling rumble will be relatively lower.
Definitely a no-no for audiophiles.