Head-Fi.org › Head Gear › Headphones › In-Ear › Universal Fit › Monoprice 8320 IEM › Monoprice 8320 IEM Reviews

Member Reviews: Monoprice 8320 IEM

Positive Reviews

SanjiWatsuki

A $7 Beast

Posted
By SanjiWatsuki

Pros: Unheard of sound quality and build quality at its price

Cons: Not the most isolating IEMs.

Allow me to preface this by saying that I have way more experience with headphones. The only IEMs I've ever owned before this were some cheapie $20 Sony IEMs, the MeElec CW31s, and the MeElect M9-BK. I've sold every IEM I've owned before this one, mostly because I felt like they never got any head time compared to my full-sized cans.   The packaging for the 8320 was about was minimalist as you can get -- there were the IEMs with inserts already on, no alternative inserts, no box, just a small plastic bag.    The design felt pretty solid, especially for a headphone of its price. The clothed cable was a nice touch and felt like a definite step up over typical cables...
(read more)
Comments (3)
Was This Helpful? 1 
inline79

Worth the fitment ritual

Posted
By inline79

Pros: amazing soundstage, mids

Cons: have to plan in advance to wear them

Awkward fitment, but pleasant sound.  Good control of microphonics, even without wearing cord up (only really one way to wear it).  R Ch lost trebel after 10hrs of burn in!   2nd pair.  These don't isolate that well, but super wide soundstage, great detail, and suitable amount of bass that extends well into the deep.  Very fun to listen to. THese are definitely mid centric, maybe even bordering on bright.  Bass, as said before is there, even with a good seal, maintains its backstage presence.  Mids and treble are clear with great detail and that superwide soundstage.  Only the awkward fitment, difficult sealing, and de-emphasis of bass...
(read more)
Post Comment
Was This Helpful? 

Negative Reviews

gm20

Good Sound, Lousy Fit

Posted
By gm20

Pros: Best sounding IEMs under $30

Cons: Could never get a good fit

I could never get the 8320s to fit right.  I put on smaller tips (helped a little), put the cord over my ears, in front of my ears, twisted the bud...my ears just aren't big enough.   The 8320s suffer mostly from a bizarre design.  If Monoprice would put the same guts into a standard, straightforward bud I would buy them in an instant.  Soundwise, they are on par with UE SuperFi 4s and MEElectronics M9P, but with larger soundscape.  All of the instruments are very distinctive, even on crappy 192 AAC.  Isolation is poor with the stock tips, better with smaller tips, not great overall.   I wanted to like these so much, but I can't stand wearing...
(read more)
Comments (1)
Was This Helpful? 
Spiff0

Overhyped

Posted
By Spiff0

Pros: Detailed highs

Cons: Tiny soundstage, Poor Isolation/fit

These IEMs were a surprise to me, after all the reviews I read I am still not sure if my pair is defective, but so far nothing seems to show that.   I was extremely disappointed with the 8320. Highs are detailed without being sibilant but I never use mine due to:   -Soundstage is tiny. They sound flat and distant. Sound appeats to come from inside your head, cold and not involving. -Bass is acceptable but depends on good fit. -Format is not very good. Over-the-ears are my favorite but their format does not allow for a deep insertions/good isolation, they are not particularly comfortable. Also despite the format, it is easier to let the cable to down instead of...
(read more)
Comments (4)
Was This Helpful? 

More Reviews

elpsycongroo

Great budget headphone, but quite harsh

Posted
By elpsycongroo

Pros: Decent SQ for price, fairly nice cord

Cons: Build quality, huge clunky body, very harsh sound

I got these for ~$10 online. I must say the first thing I noticed was the shoddy build quality. However, considering the asking price and the decent sound quality, this is really nitpicking. The cable is actually decent enough, especially for the price, being a braided sort of fabric.  On to sound quality! These things sound incredible compared to stock earbuds. The bass is very present and strong, punchy even, but feels cold and kind of harsh in places. Sub-bass is very good for a headphone in this price range, as long as the seal is perfect. The mids feel recessed, almost drowned out by the bass in some songs.  Highs are fairly detailed but sound tinny and harsh,...
(read more)
Comments (4)
Was This Helpful? 
Golila3

Cheapest Hi-Fi IEM

Posted
By Golila3

Pros: Sounds like Hi-Fi IEM Tight bass, great instrument separation (even for $30-50 IEM) Very Detailed Highs, very fast

Cons: FIT IS HORRIBLE very boring mids

Just want to explain one thing. In my opinion, the reason this IEM is receiving so much praise is it really sound Hi-Fi  It somewhat has lots of elements an audiophile looks for such as speed, positioning, instrumental separation and a punchy but tight bass, thus, making it what we might consider the Cheapest Hi-Fi IEM which, in my opinion, does fit the name of the 8320.    Warning  as far as my experience went, I would suggest you all leave the other monoprice products alone. I ordered 3 other IEM/earbuds and none of them was even able to touch the 8320's shadow, not even the one that was almost double the price of the 8320.
Comments (2)
Was This Helpful? 
thelostMIDrange

Diamond in the Rough 'fo sure

Posted
By thelostMIDrange

Pros: everything

Cons: picky with source files

      this little acorn has an honest, balanced, and natural sound that is very musical and non fatiguing when used at low volume. the stock med tips work for me. highly recommend non-compressed source files with these as their high quality immediately show the flaws of the mp3 format.   Some cans i used to own : Grado rs1,rs2,hf2,ps500,sr225,custom magnum Senn650, Senn600 beyer dt880 hifiman500 kossksc75 yamaha yh2 vintagefostex20 fostex50 shure215 jvcfHz100 various others not worth mentioning.                
Post Comment
Was This Helpful? 
aangen

Wow, a nice surprise

Posted
By aangen

Pros: So cheap, yet decent sound

Cons: None.

These little things sound really good, even though they cost less than $8. How do they do it? Everyone should try these at this price, I mean why not? Totally useful phones for nearly nothing. You can't go wrong.
Post Comment
Was This Helpful? 
lyleyork

Buy These!!

Posted
By lyleyork

Pros: Separation of highs, mids, and bass.

Cons: Wire noise

Don't hesitate, just buy these, they are a definite steal for 8 bucks.  I promise you, these headphones will put a smile on your face.  Nice separation of highs, mids, and bass.  It has nice control in high volumes and heavy bass.  Can basically handle any genre you throw at it.....   The texture of the wire does not bother me, i think its kinda cool, i think they are a handsome pair of headphones, though i'm more concerned about the sound.   More for sitting down still and listening to tunes, not for working out (too much wire noise).
Post Comment
Was This Helpful? 
MarkdotT

I liked them so much, I started importing them into the UK!

Posted
By MarkdotT

Pros: Top end of the value for money spectrum,

Cons: Poor presentation

I am not a regular headphones/earphones user so what caught my eye originally was the articles in Lifehacker. To see a $9 version of anything compared favourably to $100+ version is something to pay attention to whether the item is earphones or cruet sets.   When the shipment arrived I was surprised how small the carton was. I had seen unboxing videos on Youtube and expected something larger for the quantity involved. SO, you can imagine I was a little disappointed to find bulk packed items just in small plastic bags with no packaging at all. Of course, if they had been packed in boxes, the shipping charge would have been higher but I was a little disappointed.   I got...
(read more)
Post Comment
Was This Helpful? 
Huntbald

WOW

Posted
By Huntbald

Pros: Cheap, Great, Sounds like it costs 10x more

Cons: None really. Bothers my ear after a while.

WOW! These IEMs are amazing especially for the price! Best IEM I have ever owned! I actually prefer listening to some songs in these than my modded ATH-M50s. I have owned other IEMs preferably JLAB J5 those were crap. I then switched to some that came with my Galaxy S3 and thought those sounded pretty good. Than I told my brother about these and he got some. I heard than and was so amazed that I bought myself and pair (Who wouldn't? There freaking 8 dollars!) I was surprised at the bass in these. Some people may not think the have any but there is just a perfect balance between bass and everything else. The bass is clean and not overwhelming the mids and highs are perfect. Just awesome.
Post Comment
Was This Helpful? 
gsbergman

AWESOME!!!!

Posted
By gsbergman

Pros: Great audio, comfortable, low cost

Cons: none

I bought these after reading the reviews. Boy, was I impressed. These phones smoke my Klipsch S4's. Although they are IEM's and not earbuds they smoke my Yuin PK1 earbuds too. These phones are the best I've found for under $200, no joke. You'd be hard pressed to find a better sounding IEM for the price, or for that matter 25 times the price. I love them. If they were priced at $100 I would still pay the price for these great sounding phones. What else can I say, BUY THEM!!!!!.
Comments (8)
Was This Helpful? 
7nationarmy

Stupid Good for $7!

Posted
By 7nationarmy

Pros: Very Decent SQ, PRICE OMG

Cons: Bad baad cable (tangle prone, don't seem durable), Not the most comfy, No accessories at all

The true budget IEM king!   First of all, there are no accessories and packaging. The IEM comes in a plastic wrap. That's that. Can't complain for $7 though.   The housing is a big, bulky shiny plastic. OK for the price. For me comfort is not bad at all, but for those who have smaller ears comfort will be an issue. Get another pair of eartips cos the stock ones are not so good. I use Meelec tips stuffed with Comply foam.   The worst part: cable. Super tangle prone, kinks, and no chin slider.   But... the sound! You can't get any better sq for even 5-10 times the price.   Bass: Has a decent impact and control, but lacking extension. Overall it...
(read more)
Post Comment
Was This Helpful? 
Head-Fi.org › Head Gear › Headphones › In-Ear › Universal Fit › Monoprice 8320 IEM › Monoprice 8320 IEM Reviews