IE8 or TripleFi 10? - Page 3

"I played for a while with the ear tips and the positioning to maximize the seal and consequently the bass performance, even swapping out some big-boy tips from one of the other earphones to build out A-T’s meager selection and see if that was the problem. But I was eventually convinced that there simply was no there there."

The reviewer specifically states he/she tried all the included tips, as well as taking time with tips from other brands, so that seal was maximized, thereby ruling out poor seal. But I'm glad to hear there's no problem with light bass for you.

If you read his comment carefully, he tried some tips from one other earphone, singular, that's all. Nothing was "ruled out." Have you tried the CK10s? If not, you know you are unqualified to comment on the bass being light or not. There are several owners on the CK10 thread who do not describe the bass as light, so one reviewer's POV is hardly definitive. Why purposefully make statements about the sound of an IEM on which you have no first-and experience? I suggest you buy some CK10s, then you can make your bass-lite claim based on experience.

Also, who are the "uber respected" HFers who say the CK10 is bass lite? Just curious. No one who has reviewed them says they are bass heavy or bass monsters, but four HFers (now myself included) say they are the best universals they have heard, including many of the top tier phones.

Again, that same S&V reviewer says the TF10s are his favorite IEM of the ones he reviewed, over the IE8s. I recall some pretty disparaging comments on the TF10s you made in another thread (not this one), so doubt you agree with his perceptions/judgment on that front. If his experiences "rule out" fit as the the CK10 bass lite factor in one instance, then I guess they also "rule out" the IE8 being a superior IEM to the TF10, right?

TF10 has MUCH better detail, and treble attack than the IE8. More revealing and nuanced. Unimpressive mids, but not necessarily bad.

IE8 is BIG, a resonant sound, with powerful bass. Not bloated, note--nothing about the IE8 sounds uncontrolled--but very strong. It's not finicky about treble detail, but smooth, and lush from top to bottom.

I've always been a fan op UE's sound, especially the super.fi 5 Pro So yes, I like the Triple.Fi a lot. But the IE is no slouch either. So kuddos the Sennheiser for rivaling with Ultimate Ears, the both sound great, really. I switch regularly between both. I was surprised with the transparancy of the Sennheisers, never thought they could do that, since the CX400 sounded so dull of very bass heavy. I'm not a big fan of Sennheiser in general, they have a dark and warm soundsignature, but with the IE8, yeah I'm surprised. It still has that 'inhouse Sennheiser' feeling though. The Triple.Fi sounds edgy in treble and neutral, which I like, so for me it's a winner. It has no shortage of bass whatsoever. Perhaps it's not OK to say this, but the Triple.Fi sounds more analytical while the IE8 gives easy listening on the go.

Apparently, without even hearing them yourself, you're somehow convinced that the CK10s are lacking in the bass department. You draw this conclusion based upon one reviewer's opinion.

Okay.

I'll bite. The CK10s have the tightest, cleanest and clearest "light" bass I've ever heard from an IEM.

There.

You're right; I'm wrong.

My two cents (having owned the TF10s and now owning the IE8s): I thought the TF10s had wonderful bass and very good treble (although that's my least concerned part of the sound spectrum). But to my ears, the TF10s midrange sucked BIG TIME! I love bass and I love midrange, so the TF10s didn't work out for me in that respect. Vocals through the TF10 sounded very unnatural and lacked the nuances I was use to getting from other earphones I had (before purchasing the IE8) such as the E-Q7, IE7 and HF5.

Ironically, to my surprise, the TF10s did pretty good with jazz (despite of what I just said above). But it was jazz without vocals. I listen to a lot Brazilian jazz with acoustic guitar, and the TF10s tended to shine for some reason, but the music still was heavy in the bass and treble range. In the end, although I didn't hate the TF10s (except it's midrange especially for vocals), I just decided it wasn't my cup of tea.

Only owned the IE8s for about a week, and even with the strong bass presence, the midrange still pushes forward for me. The treble seems a tad bit recessed, but that's fine for me. On certain tracks, however, the treble really shines. I am a basshead, and whereas tuning up the bass doesn't bother me, I've found I enjoy the IE8s with the bass port on the lowest - number 1. I get plenty of bass and the other sound spectrums perform wonderfully.

I was not expecting, to be honest, to like the IE8s as well as I do. As I mentioned above, I own the IE7s and like them a lot, but the music is a bit too colored for my taste. I was expecting that coloration with the IE8s, but have found it less so than with the IE7s. In the end, however, it's the soundstage of the IE8s (much wider than the huge stage on the E-Q7s and IE7s) that has made me love these phones in a short period. The soundstage, I believe, allows me to hear details in the instruments and vocals that I haven't heard in any dynamic earphone I own - armature except for the E-Q7. The E-Q7 is still my favorite IEM, but the IE8 is almost equal to it for me. They don't sound just alike, but each offers a little something that the other one doesn't that complements each other. So they are my two top earphones (one in the armature category, and one in the dynamic category). Wish I could stop, but am always seeking something that can top those two. I haven't heard one yet, but I'm sure it's being built somewhere.

I own Shure se530, IE8, westone 3, triple fi 10 and have chance to listen um3x several times. If I can only chose 1 of these, IE8 will be my final decision

I own(ed) all but the 530, and of those, the W3 would be my final decision.

Agreed...

+1 for me...

I owned the UE10s, but I'm keeping the IE8s. Both are great, I just preferred the IE8s. They have a sound stage presentation like a full sized open headphone, incredible bass and really clear mids with silky highs that don't roll off (hello SE530s).

Cheers,
Peter

No, he didn't. Right at the beginning of his post, he wrote...

"I've read more than a few impressions of the CK10's being bass light, including a couple uber-respected 'headphoneus supremus' members here who say the bass is definitely lacking compared to some of the other top tier IEM's."

And as it happens I've read some of the same conflicting remarks. The only way to narrow down so many earphone choices is to read as many views as possible, and that includes considering the negatives as well as the positives.

I'd love to see some links to those posts by "uber-respected" HFers. Please enlighten with those negative views of the CK10. Also, that review in S&V was pretty much off base on most of the phones he auditioned if you read the entire article.

I've owned both the IE8 and own the TF10, and the CK10s are, IMHO, a better option to both for reasons already noted here and in the CK10 threads. Again, unless cn11 has heard the CK10, he really has no standing as far as rendering an opinion on how they sound compared to the two IEMs featured in this thread.

I simply used that review as an example, among quite a few other comments/reviews I've read, as I mentioned in my initial post. Among them is shigzeo, one of the biggest proponents of the CK10's of anyone on this site. So I tend to believe that if he can say they're 'the best universal IEM he's heard', while saying they don't possess an impactful bass, and that it's the only weakness of the earphone, there's probably a good chance of it being a genuine observation. I never implied at all that I was 'convinced because of one review', nor would I think of making any direct comments without hearing them for myself. I was addressing a concern I had about the sound, based on collected information. Is that so hard to understand?

No need to be right or wrong. And, I'm quite happy for you that the bass is satisfactory. Enjoy.

So please post links to the "quite a few" comments and reviews from respected HFers you have read. It would be good to add their opinions to the mix, since the OP can use as much data as possible to make his decision. I am sure those comments exist, because you and Soozieq have read them. Should be easy to provide links.

You are very familiar with the HF dictum that you probabaly should not comment on an IEM's sound in any definitive way unless you have heard it. So commenting on the CK10 was really something you were not qualified to do, collected data or not. Just admit it and move on.

This is not the CK10 thread so it's not helpful to encourage members to go off topic by posting further comments on the CK10. Maybe they should be kept in the CK10 thread where they belong.