I’m finally fed up with the Ipod earbud - it falls out too often and since they don’t fit my ear well I don’t get quality sound from them without cranking the volume full blast. If you had the same problems and you found a better product please do tell. Thanks.
Keep in mind there are two kinds of “earbuds”- the conventional earbuds like the Ipod has, and the ones that make a seal, sometimes known as “in-ear monitors”. I like the sound of the Ipod buds, for a cheap thing. They don’t have real bass, the treble is maybe a little soft, and the lower mids are muddy with voices which is my biggest problem, especially with audiobooks. Other than that I find the sound to be smooth and rich. The in-ear types, at least the cheap ones, can have much better bass but there tends to be harshness and recessed mids. There are some really pricy IEMs that should be better. One thing about IEMs is they block out background noise while buds don’t.
As for “buds”, some people like the Sennheiser ones: MX-400, MX-450, MX-500, and MX-550. I tried the 500 and I don’t like them. I think they’re bigger than the Ibuds and the sound isn’t as smooth. Some people like them though, and some people think the 450 is better, and they’re all cheap anyhow, $15 or less, so you could give them a try.
There are some headphone forums at head-fi.org.
People speak very well of the Shure IEMs
Here is the E2C
I have the model up the E3C. The sound is phenomenal.
I’d like to append to the OP. This is a topic I’ve held off on making a decision on as well. I’ve always been a bit dissatisfied with the iPod buds. Not only do they out me as an Apple sheep upon first sight as I’m going down the street, but I also agree that the fitting is not for everyone. They downright hurt my outer ear canals, which aren’t shaped like precisely molded hemispherical earbuds.
I’ve read all about the Shure models, and I’ve even listened to a pair. Can’t disagree on the sound fidelity being top notch, but I wasn’t able to understand how they’d make for a secure fit. I’ve bought and used earbuds in the past, and they are not exactly designed for physical activity. They slip and fall out quite easily to start with, even moreso when you’re sweating during a workout. Part of the beauty of the iPod buds is that they rest in the hook of your ear lobe and don’t completely fall out. This of course leads to cranking up the volume to full blast to compensate for slippage over time, as the OP mentions.
Isn’t there a “sport” earbud with sound quality rivalling the Shures or Etymotics? I’ve read about UltimateEars which are custom-designed on an individual basis for perfect fit and marketed to musicians (for anywhere from a few hundred dollars to nearly a thousand). Isn’t there a low-profile earphone with sound quality that’s better than “good enough”? Solid bass, throaty mids, clear but non-piercing highs, and a solid mechanism for staying in the ear canal without making it feel like you’re shoving a square peg in a round hole, and which can it be had for less than $100? About the only candidate I’ve really seen are a few models from the Sennheiser Sport line, but I can’t find any to go kick the tires on at a store to see whether I like them first. 
I’m not so sure I’d call the Ipod design a beauty. Indeed they should fit in the “hook” pf the earlobe, but there’s lots of people who don’t have that hook. Regular ear buds fall out of my ear immediately, it’s not a matter of physical activity, they just fall out standing still.
That said, the in-ear variety should generally fit pretty well, and if they don’t you’re probably using too small a ear piece. My Sony’s come with 3 size fittings and I use the smallish ones for casual use since they are more comfortable and the middle sized ones for a snug fit that I can run with.
One thing that’s a deal braker for my next set of headphones is the style of cord. Sony insists on using this retarded asymmetrical style which causes one ear to support the weight of the cord and has a annoying wire that needs to run under my chin to the other side. Finding a brand with a Y-connector will be a must for my next purchase and I suspect that it’ll help make them even more secure due to a lighter and better cord design.
The Shures come with a selection of ear pieces, different sizes as well as different styles. Theseare a compressible/expandable foam like foam hearing protectors. I have found this to do a pretty good job of keeping my IEMs in.
However you can buy as an accessory these bad boys. They really lock into your ear. As a side benefit they really block the outside noise. With these in my ear, I can run my weed whacker and still hear my iPod. As far as how well they retain in the ear, I was working in the yard a few days ago, and a branch I was trimming fell. It caught my headset cord. It pulled my iPod off of being clipped to my pocket, and managed to disconnect the headphone cord. It did not pull the monitors out of my ears.
Warning: many IEMs block outside sounds so completely that they could be dangerous in some situations. I would never ride my road bike with my IEMs in. I would not be able to hear cars coming up behind me.
I have a set of Sennheiser Sport earbuds, and I like them a lot. I use them for playback monitoring on my Zoom digital recorder. They fit me well and have far better frequency response than what I’ve observed from the Ipod variety.
My only dislike about the “sport” Sennheisers is that they make the lead wires to the earbuds unequal in length, assuming you’ll be wearing whatever device you’re listening to on an armband (necessitating a longer wire to the opposite ear). Since I don’t use them that way it always strikes me as bizarre.
Does anyone have experience with custom-molded ear pieces?
I have a pair of the E3C’s and I love them. They do a good job of isolating outside sound like earplugs do, so you don’t have to crank up the volume to hear the music. I never have to put my IPod barely past half volume up when im walking around the busy streets.
If you’re a fan of uber bass tho, you might want to skip the shure’s. They’re made for the professional musician in mind, and they aren’t into the whole uber-bass uber-treble that everyone else likes to do. You get more clarity with the Shures, but if you like the overall “feel” of an enhanced sound system, you might wanna try someone else.
If you just want comfortable ear buds & do not want (or do not want to pay for) the “noise cancellation” features, I have been most satisfied with these.
I’ll third the Shures. Fantastic sound quality, and they come with 9 sets of inserts (three types in three sizes) so you can figure out which best fits you. As a word of caution, they block ambient noise so well that I don’t use them when I’m out running because I can’t hear the traffic. For everything else, though, they’re great.
Sennheiser is very good, but I found that V-Moda makes a very good product despite the fashion connotation. Fit well in my ears (and come with 3 different sizes of earbuds) great bass response and noise cancellation.
FYE has Skull Candy earbuds on sale for $10.00. I have/had the belkin shells that go over the iPod buds, and the rubber inserts were horribly uncomfortable. The Skull Candy ones are just right. And the sound is pretty good. I think if you’re going from iPod buds to in-ear buds, you’ll notice a difference even if the new buds are not high end.