[rlw6534]

I just leave mine in the shape of my ear and carefully take the buds out without disturbing the shape of the hooks. Then I put the hooks over my ears, and twist the IEMs into my ears to put them back on. I almost never have to reshape them.

As a four-eyed half-blind glasses wearer, I hate memory wire or shaped cable. It's just flat-out uncomfortable trying to balance my eyeglasses and stiff cables.

 

[barato]

Got my ie300 and not that impressed.
Im coming directly from the CX300S which I recently picked up and wanted to upgrade to ie300.
My experience with over-ear headphones in similar price brackets, €50 vs €300 msrp, is that there is significant step up performance with higher end options e.g HD650/600.
IE 300 definitely better than cx300s but they surprisingly very similar overall with marginal improvement in most areas.
Its my first time with higher-end IEM and greater diminishing returns compared to over ears might be something to be expected.
The HD650/600 are also probably the biggest gems of the headphone world, so it is a tough thing to compare to, maybe ie900 couldgive the kind of sound quality I was hoping, too expensive for me though.

Build quality, comfort etc. are also all really good, as to be expected from sennheiser, which is obviously an extremely important consideration.
Maybe some chinese IEMs in similar price range could impress me more in terms sound quality, a lot seem to think so, but build quality, QA, comfort etc. are things that I feel may not be guaranteed with those so didn't want to bother taking the gamble.

_________________________________
ok little update, I removed the foam in the tips and the change was quite positive. I notice with these senn IEMs the smoothness of the treble compared to full size hps, it is expected a tiny, light driver would excell at higher frequencies. IE 300 treble is incredibly clean and smooth, but there was some hashiness or grain to it and this seems to have been related to the foam. Without foam Ie300 high treble is really just exceptional, havent heard anything like it, though the high treble range does not typical contain much important musical information, but it is area that significantly impact fatigue, glare, harshness and so on, something that is subtle but obviously very important.
I also notice they do handle higher SPL very well, without sounding compressed or muddy, I listen at lower volumes so not really a benefit to me but worth mentioning.
I still find bass and midrange is lacking some texture and meat, not the most realistic timbre, but the speed/dynamics are excellent.
I need to play around with tips more, it could be simple seal or fit issue.

 

[iron2k]

Has anyone tried any of the following cables with IE300???

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002832728321.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002935302880.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003956413421.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003824894838.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004039041234.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003635644733.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004390966107.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003477335861.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003753050420.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003286992781.html

 

[GoodBoy]

This is how my IE300 came from factory and how the cable looks unboxed... Guess we got punished for not spending several hundred-1K$ more on properly boxed cable without any kinks like is the case with IE600/900.

Other than that I find it high quality, enjoy minimalistic aproach, color is great and it feels good in hand (lol). If not for the kinks... oh and I also find the splitter very annoying, it is situated too close to neck it should be 5cm lower for better comfort without collar-like effect. Any advice how to unkink the kinks if that's even possible with such material?

 

[GoodBoy]

Im coming directly from the CX300S which I recently picked up and wanted to upgrade to ie300.

The HD650/600 are also probably the biggest gems of the headphone world, so it is a tough thing to compare to, maybe ie900 couldgive the kind of sound quality I was hoping, too expensive for me though.

_________________________________
ok little update, I removed the foam in the tips and the change was quite positive. I notice with these senn IEMs the smoothness of the treble compared to full size hps, it is expected a tiny, light driver would excell at higher frequencies. IE 300 treble is incredibly clean and smooth, but there was some hashiness or grain to it and this seems to have been related to the foam. Without foam Ie300 high treble is really just exceptional, havent heard anything like it, though the high treble range does not typical contain much important musical information, but it is area that significantly impact fatigue, glare, harshness and so on, something that is subtle but obviously very important.
I also notice they do handle higher SPL very well, without sounding compressed or muddy, I listen at lower volumes so not really a benefit to me but worth mentioning.
I still find bass and midrange is lacking some texture and meat, not the most realistic timbre, but the speed/dynamics are excellent.
I need to play around with tips more, it could be simple seal or fit issue.

I've had CX300 while being good on it's own IE300 easily outperforms it in terms of tonality, soundstage, imaging and detail retrieval. It's propably one of the best value IEM on that aspects alone and that's why we pay premium over most ~100$ IEMs.

Don't find treble being very harsh it's just well extended so because of this some tracks might sound too bright. Easily fixable though 1-2db less makes a big difference. Also depends on the gear you listen to, for example with my samsung smartphone I don't have to EQ it, so far I only did it with Sound BlasterX G6 as it has very neutral DAC prone to brightness in top end.

Aside from different acustic flavours doubt IE600/900 have much better technicalities over IE300. Of course someone who upgraded from "cheap" IE300 to crazy expensive (in IEM realm) may try to put these in bad light only to justify money spent on IE600/900. Let's be realistic those all share similar if not identical 7mm XWB driver, production cost is probably very similar so huge price gaps is mostly marketing doing. Will experiment to replicate their tuning on IE300 later on.

 

[ericpalonen]

Let's be realistic those all share similar if not identical 7mm XWB driver, production cost is probably very similar so huge price gaps is mostly marketing doing

The platform for the IE 300 / 600 / 900 indeed is the 7mm TrueResponse dynamic driver, however there are a host of other things that occur during production to affect the resulting sound, all of which are actually pretty intensive. An IE 900 for example, is tuned differently and additionally, has 3 absorber chambers milled into a piece of aluminum. Then there's the acoustic vortex in the exit nozzle, etc. Material cost differences aside, there is a lot of precision labor that has to occur (and quality checks for consistency) by both man and machine to get to that next watermark of performance.

 

[Dust by Monday]

This is how my IE300 came from factory and how the cable looks unboxed... Guess we got punished for not spending several hundred-1K$ more on properly boxed cable without any kinks like is the case with IE600/900.

Other than that I find it high quality, enjoy minimalistic aproach, color is great and it feels good in hand (lol). If not for the kinks... oh and I also find the splitter very annoying, it is situated too close to neck it should be 5cm lower for better comfort without collar-like effect. Any advice how to unkink the kinks if that's even possible with such material?

What I do is microwave a cup of water until it’s fairly warm but not boiling. Then I place the wire in it (careful not to put the ends in) wait a few minutes. Then take it out and let it hang. Maybe run your hand over it a few times to help it straighten faster. Then let it cool and it should be kink free.

I’ve also placed my IE 400 Pro cable on my cast iron heater in the winter time and taped each end to keep it tight. Then I waited 10 minutes and took it off. The cable was so nice and straight and it’s been like that ever since. (I use the roadie wrap now)

 

[ericpalonen]

This is how my IE300 came from factory and how the cable looks unboxed... Guess we got punished for not spending several hundred-1K$ more on properly boxed cable without any kinks like is the case with IE600/900.

Other than that I find it high quality, enjoy minimalistic aproach, color is great and it feels good in hand (lol). If not for the kinks... oh and I also find the splitter very annoying, it is situated too close to neck it should be 5cm lower for better comfort without collar-like effect. Any advice how to unkink the kinks if that's even possible with such material?

I'm not sure if you live in a warm enough environment but if I were you I would put the cable (cable only) in a ziplock bag, and leave it on my car dashboard for an hour while I go to the store. When it gets warm it becomes looser.

 

[The-One]

I would like to add an additional observation I have noticed with the IE300 since I got them in the sale.

They make garbage sources sound acceptable, in fact the voices sound better plugged into my daily budget Xiaomi smartphone than a desktop DAC or an LG phone with Quad-Dac circuitry.

The problem with the phone I use all the time is obviously audio quality was never a high priority so most things when plugged into it sounds "lifeless", is the best way I can describe it. The IE300 actually makes it sound OK, which is a feat in and of itself.

 

[earmonger]

I need to play around with tips more, it could be simple seal or fit issue.

Definitely play with the tips. Note that the IE300 stems have an extra notch, so that the included tips can fit in two positions: one snug to the IEM and one about 2mm down the stem. (It's on the instruction sheet no one ever looks at.) For me, the silicones in that second position are the ideal seal. If you don't get a seal you won't get good bass.

 

[The-One]

Definitely play with the tips. Note that the IE300 stems have an extra notch, so that the included tips can fit in two positions: one snug to the IEM and one about 2mm down the stem. (It's on the instruction sheet no one ever looks at.) For me, the silicones in that second position are the ideal seal. If you don't get a seal you won't get good bass.

lmao. I just pushed them down as hard as I could. I will deffo check it later

 

[Cheradenine]

Got my ie300 and not that impressed.
Im coming directly from the CX300S which I recently picked up and wanted to upgrade to ie300.
My experience with over-ear headphones in similar price brackets, €50 vs €300 msrp, is that there is significant step up performance with higher end options e.g HD650/600.
IE 300 definitely better than cx300s but they surprisingly very similar overall with marginal improvement in most areas.
Its my first time with higher-end IEM and greater diminishing returns compared to over ears might be something to be expected.
The HD650/600 are also probably the biggest gems of the headphone world, so it is a tough thing to compare to, maybe ie900 couldgive the kind of sound quality I was hoping, too expensive for me though.

Build quality, comfort etc. are also all really good, as to be expected from sennheiser, which is obviously an extremely important consideration.
Maybe some chinese IEMs in similar price range could impress me more in terms sound quality, a lot seem to think so, but build quality, QA, comfort etc. are things that I feel may not be guaranteed with those so didn't want to bother taking the gamble.

_________________________________
ok little update, I removed the foam in the tips and the change was quite positive. I notice with these senn IEMs the smoothness of the treble compared to full size hps, it is expected a tiny, light driver would excell at higher frequencies. IE 300 treble is incredibly clean and smooth, but there was some hashiness or grain to it and this seems to have been related to the foam. Without foam Ie300 high treble is really just exceptional, havent heard anything like it, though the high treble range does not typical contain much important musical information, but it is area that significantly impact fatigue, glare, harshness and so on, something that is subtle but obviously very important.
I also notice they do handle higher SPL very well, without sounding compressed or muddy, I listen at lower volumes so not really a benefit to me but worth mentioning.
I still find bass and midrange is lacking some texture and meat, not the most realistic timbre, but the speed/dynamics are excellent.
I need to play around with tips more, it could be simple seal or fit issue.

I like my IE300 a lot more now than I did when I first got it in October, I liked it well enough but it wasn't a favorite. Over the past few months and after messing around with different tips I've been enjoying it a lot more and appreciate it's versatility with the types of music I listen to. I've had a similar experience with a few IEMs that later became a favorite.

 

[Dust by Monday]

I like my IE300 a lot more now than I did when I first got it in October, I liked it well enough but it wasn't a favorite. Over the past few months and after messing around with different tips I've been enjoying it a lot more and appreciate it's versatility with the types of music I listen to. I've had a similar experience with a few IEMs that later became a favorite.

That’s what happened to me when I went from my IE 100 Pro to 400 Pro. At first I was like… umm they’re barely any different, but after getting used to them, I now notice the differences. Not just sub bass, but also instrument separation, imaging and overall sound stage. The way they can play complex tracks and still make out each sound perfectly is amazing. The 100s are no slouch but they tend to sound thin and they break down a bit dying really busy tracks.

 

[rwelles]

Definitely play with the tips. Note that the IE300 stems have an extra notch, so that the included tips can fit in two positions: one snug to the IEM and one about 2mm down the stem. (It's on the instruction sheet no one ever looks at.) For me, the silicones in that second position are the ideal seal. If you don't get a seal you won't get good bass.

I use the second position on my IE900s. I've found putting a 2 mm x 4.5 mm (ID) rubber ring on first keeps it from accidentally being pushed back the 1st position. They're cheap, maybe 25¢ each. hth

 

[barato]

Definitely play with the tips. Note that the IE300 stems have an extra notch, so that the included tips can fit in two positions: one snug to the IEM and one about 2mm down the stem. (It's on the instruction sheet no one ever looks at.) For me, the silicones in that second position are the ideal seal. If you don't get a seal you won't get good bass.

thanks, I did not realise this. had them snug and kept feeling like they could not get quite deep enough without the shell hitting the ear. Will give outer notch a try.
Nice little touches like these are what I like about senn.