received my xe800 today from "original earphones" on ali ($23)--came in a plain package. they sure seem real, or at least incredible fakes. initial impressions--very "audiophile." i'd describe the overall signature as "vivid" and crisp--treble is energetic, extremely detailed and quite forward; bright and not at all smoothed over. there is a hint of sibilance; these are not optimal for the treble sensitive. mids also crisp/detailed and a bit recessed in the mix. there is very fast tight lowend, mostly felt as subbass, though not a lot of midbass presence or texture--these aren't basshead or heavy rockers.cymbals, drums, acoustic guitars all sound very sharply etched and almost more-real-than-memorex. it's possible some of the sharpness may smooth out with burn-in. again, fans of a more neutral or warm/smooth sound will find these too much; i'm digging them mucho and ootb rank them near the top of my collection.
