During all these years I have explored many different ear monitors ranging from the balanced Westone 4 to the fun TripleFi 10 and have always thought that dynamic in ear monitors don't stand a change against them. But no, the Sennheiser IE 8 proved me wrong.
 
Packaging and build quality
 
The IE8 was packaged very nicely and I especially loved the carrying case (some impressive engineering feat there). Its cables are soft but sturdy - one of the best stock cables I've seen. Very solid look and feel.
 
Comfort
 
Fortunately, I had a good fit with them. They're lightweight and don't feel heavy at all. Sennheiser included a ton of eartips to go with them so there should be no worry at all about fit. 
 
Design
 
The IE 8 features a bass knob which is pretty unique. I did play around with it but ultimately settled with "minimum" bass. Isolation on the IE8 is nothing special. It puts out noise but doesn't do them as well as the Westones or Shures. So far, the IE8 has no issues with microphonics. Subjectively, I quite like the design. I think it looks and feels fantastic.
 
Sound Quality
 
The IE8 has a warm sound signature and is slightly coloured. First thing that impressed me is its soundstage. Wide and deep. Instruments are separated well and the W4, TF10, IE7, SE425 doesn't come close in terms of soundstage AND reproduction. Acoustic instruments sounds exceptionally realistic to my ears. Sennheiser did a great job on the timbre reproduction.
 
The bass knob is useful only to bassheads I guess. I wasn't a basshead and the bass on medium/high setting is just too much for me. My bass knob was set at the lowest setting possible. Bass is unsurprisingly good and quite dominant. Mids are not affected at all by its pounding bass.
 
Mids are in no way recessed. They are detailed and have that lushness and weight in them. Just beautiful.
 
The IE8 doesn't have sparkly treble. It has a good extension but I wish the treble is more emphasised. There is no veil on the IE8 - it's just that they don't have emphasised treble.
 
Overall, it's an amazing in ear monitor. I am impressed with this dynamic IEM and although it may not be an analytical one, it is much more enjoyable and relaxing than other top tier IEMs. Its sound reproduction and soundstage is the best that I have heard to date in an IEM! Sennheiser has done it again. I definitely recommend these. 

Okay, let's go straight in the review! 
 
The Shure SRH 940 is my first closed headphones and I am both intrigued and disappointed at the same time. 
 
Packaging
It comes with an awesome carrying case along with generous contents - extra pads and two replaceable cables (coiled and straight). I wish other audio manufacturers (cough.. Beyer.. cough) would be as generous as the folks at Shure.
 
Comfort
Hmm, this part is a little hard. They are comfortable if you're using it for a short period of time. Longer than 20 minutes and you'll feel the headband pushing into your skull. It's quite annoying but I can live with that.
 
Durability
I find no issues with their build. They feel really solid in my hands. I was a bit concerned with the swivels but I don't think that will be an issue. No cable sticking out the sides = Awesome design.
 
Sound Quality
As usual, Shure is still king of the mids. Let's keep it short shall we?
 
Detail - Astounding
Soundstage - Perfect (for a closed headphone)
Highs - Perfect
Mids - Perfect
Lows - Somewhere between terrible and okay.
Colouration - Somewhere between neutral and coloured
 
Now it's time for some elaboration. First day of purchase, I'm very happy. I listened to all the tracks and I loved its detail. There is some hype about its sound signature similar to the HD800. I see where they're coming from - it's the level of detail. On a serious note though, the HD800 sounds completely different. On the third day, I was listening to some pop and then something's a bit missing but I can't pinpoint it. Listened to the DT880 then the SRH 940. About ten times of trial, I found out that it's missing some bass. The SRH 940 extends well deep but lacks that ... bass. Not that it doesn't hit, but without that particular bass it sounds almost lifeless on some songs. I rate the bass below neutral.
 
Conclusion
Would I recommend these cans? No, not at all especially at its price point.
I'm not a basshead but cans with lows below neutral is completely unacceptable to me. When listening to full sized orchestras, the timpanis almost disappear (that is crucial and I can't listen to orchestras without timpanis - holy cows!). Imagine this - a supermodel with a single missing front tooth, an exam you did well but missed that one question worth 10 marks. Yeah you know what I mean now. I returned the cans within the week I bought them. YMMV
 
Have a great day everyone! 
 
 
 
 

Greetings, this is a very brief review of the DT880 Premium 600 Ohms. 
 
First of all, let me start by saying that these cans are the most comfortable pair I have ever experienced so far. The clamping is very soft and has light pressure on the head. Beyerdynamic cans have legendary comfort.
 
SQ wise, the DT880 is a great all rounder. Every part of the frequency response is perfect and not recessed in any way. It is very full sounding and I haven't have a thought that something might be missing. I find them neutral sounding with a good bass response and they offer astounding clarity. Oh and have I mentioned that they are smooth? Of all the tracks I listened to, I don't think harshness even exist. Soundstage and instrument separation is remarkable - not huge but not small either. They sound fantastic with all the genres I listen to and I can say that they are one of my favourite cans of all time. 
 
One more thing to mention, they do require solid amping. I've tried using them with no amp and failed miserably. But other than that, it's all perfect. Five stars all the way.
 
Verdict: Excellent cans, recommended A++. 

Here's a quick summary on the HD600. I am going to leave out headphone specifications because you can find them on Sennheiser's website. These are open cans ,not suited for portability, and they do require amping (300 Ohms).

Comfort
They are very comfortable and my ears don't get too hot after listening for quite some time. The cups are quite deep and I like it that way. I had hours of listening enjoyment with it and so far had no problems with comfort.
 
Sound Quality
Wow, these cans sound completely natural! I know the differences between natural and neutral but the HD600 has both elements. Although Sennheiser has been long associated with a veil, the HD600 does not seem to have any. SQ is completely transparent and I can assure you that the HD600 has no veil at all.
 
The HD600 is very detailed although not up to DT880's level of detail. For classical music, hands down the HD600 is the king. Violins are wonderfully textured and have a fantastic weight on them. Highs and mids were fantastic and the bass has great impact and that nice punch in them. The HD600 is no slouch, it is aggressive and sound very neutral and balanced across the frequency range. 
 
It did a great job in instrument separation although the size of soundstage could be bigger. Don't get me wrong. Its soundstage is fantastic and has the characteristics of an open can but vocals are more upfront and intimate. 
 
Quick Comparison to the HD650 and HD800
 
Neutrality: HD600 > HD800 >>>> HD650
The HD600 is the most neutral among the three cans although as mentioned the soundstage should be a tad bigger. HD650 to my surprise is dark sounding, veiled and coloured (in a good way). It has more bass than the other two headphones. The HD800 has slightly too much treble in my opinion.
 
Soundstage: HD800 >> HD650 > HD600
No challenge here. The HD800 is the clear winner.
 
SQ: HD800 > HD600 = HD650
The HD800 has a much better presentation and detail retrieval than its younger siblings. On the HD650 & HD600, it's a matter of preference really. If you like listening to pop/rock, it's best to stick with the HD650. And if you like uncoloured headphones or listen to the music audio engineers intend them to be, go for the HD600 and ultimately the HD800.
 
 
Conclusion
Amazing cans and they deserve the title of a legend. They are worth every penny and imho is a top tier can. Comparing them to the Beyerdynamic DT880, I cannot say that they're better/worse than them but all I can say is that both cans are one of the best headphones out there and they compliment each other. When listening to classical music I always reach for my HD600. They are simply astounding and sound heavenly in your ears.