Everyone who has an ie800 owes it to himself to try the Cayin N6(with fw 3.0).It's crazy how much the ie800 benefits from a very good Dac(s).Leaves my dx90 in the dust in all areas,This is a combination that will turn a hardcore basshead into a treblehead without wanting more bass on top.However this is a very picky dap,i would not recommend it for example for se846.This is end game set up if you value sound above all and less size and battery life.

caruryn said:

  Everyone who has an ie800 owes it to himself to try the Cayin N6(with fw 3.0).It's crazy how much the ie800 benefits from a very good Dac(s).Leaves my dx90 in the dust in all areas,This is a combination that will turn a hardcore basshead into a treblehead without wanting more bass on top.However this is a very picky dap,i would not recommend it for example for se846.This is end game set up if you value sound above all and less size and battery life.

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TWO PCM1792A. Impressive!
Yes. 800 needs powerful DAC.

My months of listening to the DX90, AK240 and N6 is having two is no better than one especially in the Bass department.

johnwamp55 said:

My months of listening to the DX90, AK240 and N6 is having two is no better than one especially in the Bass department.

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The N6 kills the dx90 in the bass department as far as texture,detail and control goes.It is very obvious with ie800,don't know about ak240.
 
I'm suspecting that you're referring to bass quantity when you talk about two not being better than one but none of the three are basshead daps,they focus on providing a balanced response in all frequencies each within its own signature.
 
While on the subject,the daps that i read are leaning heavy on the bass are the fiiio x3ii(which i read has more bass than x5ii) and hidizs ap100 on the mid section and the Acoustic Research M2,sony zx2 and Calyx M on the high end front.

exactlt the X3 original plus a good amp is better than the dx90 or ak240.

I am completely content with Fiio e12a for an amp, and fiio x5 for a DAC, which uses PCM 1792.
 
I would like a little more top end, but it is easily solved with some EQ-ing. 

Well,the dx90 with cayin c5 is not better than Cayin N6 HO and frankly neither is the Cayin N6 with c5.It ads a little more depth and width in the soundstage,a more colored signature and with the bass boost on it's good for edtm but it looses a little in clarity,detail and the treble is not as extended,the vocals don' have the same energy and i miss the spectacular bass texture that the N6 dacs provide.Anyone who has heard the bass of c5,that says a lot.The n6+c5 nevertheless is a potent combination for very high impedance headfones.
 
Overall the ie800 with a good synergistic dap is truly amazing.Quite frankly if anyone could make an iem that has the clarity,detail,mids,airiness and bass texture of ie800 without the thin character i would pay easy up to $2000.From what i saw the jh Angie may be a good choice since the y share a similar character?

Well, having an x3 and a Cayin c5 I can perhaps add to the conversation. Iit's sufficient for now, but I feel it could be much better. (As always with audio). The x3 alone with the IE 800 is muddy as hell and I just don't appreciate it at all. Had I only the x3 (original, not ii) I would be seriously disappointed in the IE 800. The soundstage is cramped and simply low quality. The c5 makes things noticeably better. The two combined still have problems though. I would like:
 
1) better instrument separation (from a DAC superior to the x3s Wolfson I guess)
2) smoothness to the treble. I love the extension and truly hope a better DAC or amp would reduce sibilance. Some albums are way too sibilant with the x3+c5+IE800 combo.
3) Although the c5 is known for its great, holographic soundstage, I imagine it could be even better.
 
I'm hoping an ALO continental tube amp plus an AK120ii with it's dual DACs might be end game for me. On the way there I might try out either the x5ii or change the amp for e12a or pico slim 

nI had the AK120II, Dx90 and AK240 your wants and hopes will lead you to think and believe one of these will solve it. They will excell in one or two areas but fall short at the other areas. I kept the X3 and pair it with the Arrow.

caruryn said:

  Well,the dx90 with cayin c5 is not better than Cayin N6 HO and frankly neither is the Cayin N6 with c5.It ads a little more depth and width in the soundstage,a more colored signature and with the bass boost on it's good for edtm but it looses a little in clarity,detail and the treble is not as extended,the vocals don' have the same energy and i miss the spectacular bass texture that the N6 dacs provide.Anyone who has heard the bass of c5,that says a lot.The n6+c5 nevertheless is a potent combination for very high impedance headfones.
 
Overall the ie800 with a good synergistic dap is truly amazing.Quite frankly if anyone could make an iem that has the clarity,detail,mids,airiness and bass texture of ie800 without the thin character i would pay easy up to $2000.From what i saw the jh Angie may be a good choice since the y share a similar character?

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I got the Angie's recently to go with my IE800 & SE846 and I will say yep, its exactly what you are looking for.  With the bass at 1 - 2 oclock, the bass is comparable to 846's.  Yet the Angie's have clarity and soundstage of IE800's, and the mid's somewhere in between the two (not as forward as 846, but not as thin sounding as the 800).

deltronzero said:

   
I got the Angie's recently to go with my IE800 & SE846 and I will say yep, its exactly what you are looking for.  With the bass at 1 - 2 oclock, the bass is comparable to 846's.  Yet the Angie's have clarity and soundstage of IE800's, and the mid's somewhere in between the two (not as forward as 846, but not as thin sounding as the 800).

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Can Angie replace both (IE800 & SE846)?

james444 said:

  THIMC: here's an easy mod for the IE800 that kills three birds with one stone:
 

1. Slightly smoother treble
2. Slightly reduced sub-bass
3. More securely mounted tips

 
Instructions: use a piece of dried alcohol swab and cut out two stripes about 80% of the nozzle's diameter in width and 300% of the nozzle's diameter in length. Center them over the nozzles and put the tips back on. While the swab's acoustic resistance will have a slight damping effect on treble, the fact that it doesn't cover the entire nozzle will lead to a slight amount of air leakage at the sides, and as a result slightly reduced sub-bass. Last not least, the additional layer of fabric will make the tips stay on more securely.
 
Disclaimer: the effect of this mod is slight, but imo easily noticeable. As always, try at your own risk.

 

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jazz said:

  The provided link (which I had overlooked at first) was an interesting and informative read. It seems that I have to try the fabric mod and stand corrected in the case of the IE 800 insofar as the fabric insert is exactly at the right place where it's possible to insert it to compensate for an existing irregularity – by chance. I don't think I will make use of the bass compensation by the leaking effect, though, as it causes an unwanted loss of efficiency at low frequencies, while the bass response can be perfectly equalized with an equalizer – other than the treble response, if the linked graph is really universally valid for every pair of ears (which is usually not the case with the upper end of frequency response graphs).

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So I tried the damping mod. First with a thin nylon gauze. The effect was positive, I liked what I heard. Then I went to some loose wool fibres, slightly compressed to a small ball, halved in a second try. This was an ear-opener. Although there's very few material in the transmission path, the effect is very noticeable and absolutely positive: The treble now is almost free of harshness and sharpness and more natural than originally. So thanks to james44 for the tip!
 
Listening to the IE 800 alone leaves almost no wishes. The treble now is maybe even better than from the SE846. Contrary to my expectations the damping mod makes it more liquid and sparkling. Still there isn't the same coherence of the sound, it isn't «of a piece» to the same degree. (This with both IEMs optimally equalized.) I attribute it to an nonlinearity out of reach for the FiiOs' octave equalizer; I guess it's due to a missing 3 kHz band in the first place. As it is now, the IE 800 has a musical, even magical midrange which makes vocals sound warm and captivating, but the SE846's midrange is more neutral and particularly creates the better coherence. So over-all I'd say they play on equal levels now. (Everything is «to my ears» of course.)

jazz said:

   
 
So I tried the damping mod. First with a thin nylon gauze. The effect was positive, I liked what I heard. Then I went to some loose wool fibres, slightly compressed to a small ball, halved in a second try. This was an ear-opener. Although there's very few material in the transmission path, the effect is very noticeable and absolutely positive: The treble now is almost free of harshness and sharpness and more natural than originally. So thanks to james44 for the tip!
 
Listening to the IE 800 alone leaves almost no wishes. The treble now is maybe even better than from the SE846. Still there isn't the same coherence of the sound, it isn't «of a piece» to the same degree. (This with both IEMs optimally equalized.) I attribute it to an nonlinearity out of reach for the FiiOs' octave equalizer; I guess it's due to a missing 3 kHz band in the first place. As it is now, the IE 800 has a musical, even magical midrange which makes vocals sound warm and captivating, but the SE846's midrange is more neutral and particularly creates the better coherence. So over-all I'd say they play on equal levels now. (Everything is «to my ears» of course.)

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Glad it all worked out Jazz.Since you have both ie800 and se846 which do you prefer most with Hugo?I'm thinking of buying it once i win the lottery,any day now.

caruryn said:

  Glad it all worked out Jazz.Since you have both ie800 and se846 which do you prefer most with Hugo?I'm thinking of buying it once i win the lottery,any day now.

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I really can't tell. My preferences use to change on a daily basis anyway. But I guess the SE846 will still get more use, since I value the absence of bothering sonic components higher than the presence of spectacular traits.

jazz said:

   
I really can't tell. My preferences use to change on a daily basis anyway. But I guess the SE846 will still get more use, since I value the absence of bothering sonic components higher than the presence of spectacular traits.

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Thanks, i thought that would be the case,some found the ie800+hugo too bright but as long as it matches well i have no problem with too much treble as long as it's not piercing.