The VSD1 is the latest in a rather long line of budget in ear monitors including the VC02, GR99, GR02 and others that promises high quality sound for around $50 or so. While I haven’t had...
I tried a few Grado's —didn't like the Grado house sound—, a few Senn's —HD650 left a good impression—, a few lower-end AT's —I thought the AD700 were impressive for the price— and after reading...
In my recent quest for a new set of cans, I took a slight detour into the land of flashy prosumer headphones, in the form of the HK CL. The only reason I tried a pair was the price: half off,...
The Creative Aurvana Live! solved a major problem for me—how to listen to good audio while walking the dog at night. I live near a commercial and bar district in Center City, Philadelphia and I'm...
Okay..well this is my first review..if you may call it so..hence any,,amatuerish mistakes be forgiven..here we go..
So i saved some money(i'm always short of it) for the Vsonic gr02 be..after...
Geez, yours canals might be even bigger than mine. I am kind of in-between with the TF10 medium and large tips. I can use either and the biflanges are actually the best for me (but not too comfortable). The large ovals may be perfect...
My K3003 are loned to a fellow head-fier, but I should get them back somewhere next week. From memory, I've been more impressed by the K3003 at first listen than by the IE800, though that's not really saying anything.
Looking forward to comparing them side by side... Edited by james444 - 11/29/12 at 11:42am
My K3003 are loned to a fellow head-fier, but I should get them back somewhere next week. From memory, I've been more impressed by the K3003 at first listen than by the IE800, though that's not really saying anything.
Looking forward to comparing them side by side...
yeah, but I think it might have been the sibilance and enhanced bass, fit, etc that made you not impressed.
I think I will actually like the sound signature of IE 800 more. I just hope the quality of the sound is similar.
Looking forward for your review. Hopefully before Christmas!
Hello James, I have been following your impressions of the IE800 with interest!
Unfortunately I may not get the chance to audition them for a while yet, so I'd be interested in your opinion on how they compare sonically with the BA-SS...
Planned to do a head to head comparison between these two, with a variety of sample tracks I'm very familiar with, and ended up listening to a one minute loop from this track for almost a full hour:
The loop I listened to is from 1:35 to 2:35, basically the end of the chorus and the subsequent instrumental part. It shows the differences between these two IEMs more than anything else I've thrown at them.
Bass: The FI-BA-SS render the bass accompaniment almost perfectly, their bass is dry, fast and delicately textured, with just the right quantity and fine detail. The IE800's bass is thicker, exaggerated and less delicate and detailed in comparison. I wouldn't say it spoils the song, but it's definitely out of balance and leaves all other instruments less room to breathe. Clear preference towards the FI-BA-SS.
Mids: Surprisingly similar, slightly forward on both (the FI-BA-SS maybe a tad more so), but not too much in your face, extremely clear and detailed. The IE800 have a slight warmish hue from their bass excess, but no smear. Their dynamic drivers sound ever so slightly smoother and more natural than the FAD's armatures, but the difference isn't very pronounced in my book. Slight preference towards the IE800, even though the FI-BA-SS may be a tad less colored.
Highs: The FI-BA-SS' highs are vibrant with energy and airiness, cymbals are rendered in great detail, with nice shimmer and sparkle. At first listen, the IE800's highs appeared to be equally detailed and even a tad thinner and more delicate, though less airy and sparkly. But something kept bothering me about the Senn's highs, and with repeated A/B listening I came to realize, that the FADs retain noticeably better detail and realism during the decay of cymbals, whereas the IE800's decay sounds somewhat rushed and simplistic in comparison. Clear preference towards the FI-BA-SS.
I didn't prolong the listening session to compare soundstage, etc., because listening to a one minute loop for almost an hour left me pretty exhausted, lol. Sorry, I'll eventually hand that in at a later date...
Bottom line, the outcome of this A/B comparison is unexpectedly clear, as I prefer the FI-BA-SS over the IE800 by quite some margin. Only in the midrange can the Senns hold their own against the FADs and sound even a tad more natural. But both bass and highs are ultimately not quite at eye level with the latter, to my ears. Thanks for reading.
Hello James, I have been following your impressions of the IE800 with interest!
Unfortunately I may not get the chance to audition them for a while yet, so I'd be interested in your opinion on how they compare sonically with the BA-SS...
Hi Steven, welcome to head-fi! Be prepared for a myriad of different (and conflicting) opinions...
I'll keep mine short, scratch the SM3 if the HD800 are your reference. These are just too thick and dark in comparison. The FI-BA-SS would be more up your alley, but their cables are somewhat precarious and you'd have to treat them with kid gloves. The IE800 have some similarities to the HD800 in the mid/upper range, but noticeably more boosted lows. Like you said, I believe the latter is actually desirable for commuting (especially with low/medium isolating IEMs), but there are conflicting opinions on that, too.
Cool, thanks for the info.
Quote:
Originally Posted by james444
On second thought, seeing this is your first venture into the territory, why not start with something like the Vsonic GR07, which are pretty well balanced, 90% up to top tier sound quality and will let you gather more experience with IEMs with little financial risk.
This sounds like a good idea. I think I will go with this for now, thanks.
Quote:
Originally Posted by tomscy2000
This is the first time I've seen someone do citations on a post! Awesome! I might steal that idea from you...
BTW, [0] is very outdated. I would hardly think that even Average_Joe would believe the SM3 is a top-tier IEM anymore (though I don't think he has used universals for a very long time).
For TOTL universals, I'd first consider usage habits. Do you prefer an over-the-ear fit, or straight-down? Do you plan on using an amplifier with it? Then, I'd consider the sound signature. If you use the HD800 as a primary indoor headphone, then my best guess is that the IE800 won't sound the same. The SM3 wouldn't be a good choice either.
I also have the FI-BA-SS, and like James, I love it, but it isn't exactly great for portable use, lest you don't mind scratching up that beautiful mirror finish and potentially tangling the delicate cable.
"Value" is difficult to determine. It can even be argued that anything above $100 is not worth buying, so $1000 for IEMs is automatically wasteful and unnecessary (though it's a practice that head-fiers regularly indulge in). The way I see the IE800, it is going to have great engineering backing it up, and it'll have great build quality as well. However, there are some questionable design choices, such as the ear tips and the segmented cord. I can't really comment on the sound, but James gave us a nice idea of what it'll be like.
Ah, awesome. Much appreciated.
I'll bow out of this thread now, since this discussion has diverged from the IE800s. I'll try to stick around though, this seems like a cool place.
Wow, yes, that is some coincidence!
Thanks for the comparison James, very interesting indeed! I look forward to some more observations about soundstage etc whenever you have the time to do so....
Regards!
James, sorry to bother you again but can you please try to equalize them if you have some time to spare?
The impression I get from reading your impressions () is that they are technically capable but somewhat limited by their sound signature, mainly the elevated bass and highs.
Taming the bass with a low shelf filter should be easy. Dealing with the treble could be harder but I think you will find a solution .
