Sennheiser IE80

Link to my review and measurement index thread where one can also find a full review overview, more information about myself as well as my general-ish audio and review manifesto: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/956208/

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I only give full stars. My ranking/scoring system does not necessarily follow the norm and is about as follows:

5 stars: The product is very good and received the "highly recommended" award from me.

4 stars: The product is very good and received the "recommended" award from me.

3 stars: The product is good/very good, but not outstanding/special enough to get any of my two awards. ["Thumbs Up"]

2 stars: The product is only about average or even somewhat below that and somewhat flawed/flawed in some areas. [neither "Thumbs Up" nor "Thumbs Down"]

1 star: The product is bad/severely flawed to outright bad. ["Thumbs Down"]

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Sennheiser IE 80


Source:

Personal unit.


Miscellaneous:

Back in the day, they were Sennheiser’s most expensive (in-ear) model (years ago before the IE 800 that I bought as well and that are on a clearly higher level when it comes to technical performance), and generally considered as expensive for dynamic driver in-ears.

The small graph on the back of the packaging that illustrates how the small screw on the faceplate changes the bass quantity is straight misleading and impertinent as it shows the frequency response to vary from fairly flat to bassy and warm even though the latter is already the case in the screw’s minimum position.

Nice selection of ear tips.
I really like that there is a Sennheiser logo on the included shirt clip.

Really nice and unique carrying case that contains a “drawer” that is securely held in place by a magnet and has even got integrated holders for spare ear tips as well as a build-in holder for the bass adjustment/cleaning tool and last but not least a small compartment for small silica gel pads.
However, as nice and unique as it is, it is ultimately not very practical at all as it takes some time to store the in-ears inside, and likely not the best solution for the cable’s durability either.

The cable doesn’t feel premium at all but is at least not of the cheapest possible kind. It’s removable, though (2-pin connectors).
A chin-slider is not lacking and it reads “IE 80” on the y-splitter, which is a nice touch that I personally like.

While I like the unique shell design and while the build quality seems to be good, the light plastic shells don’t necessarily feel premium.
One does not get much tactile feedback from turning the bass adjustment screws as they don’t feel very precise and don’t give much feedback either as there are no tactile notches.

Very comfortable fit.

The engineering behind how the bass adjustment screw works is pretty unique and shows that definitely some thoughts went into its design. It’s a completely acoustic design and basically just a variable valve that control’s the dynamic driver’s front cavity vent opening that was re-located from the inner half of the shell where one would normally expect it towards the faceplate for easier access and so that it isn’t unintentionally covered/blocked by the user’s ear; for this, Sennheiser used a fairly clever internal routing that one can see on disassembly photos of the IE 80 on the internet.

One dynamic driver per side.




Sound:

Largest included single-flange silicone ear tips.

Tonality:

Bassy, very warm v-shape already when the valves are fully open (i.e. minimum position) to bass-heavy, even warmer v-shape with the valves fully shut (i.e. maximum position.

No matter at what setting the bass adjustment screws are, the lows clearly radiate into the central mids as they already start to climb around 900 Hz.
With the screws in the minimum position, the climax is around 150 Hz with a quantity of around 10 dB compared to in-ears with a flat bass tuning such as the Etymotic ER4SR/my ER-4Sm and a roll-off below 100 Hz towards 20 Hz that are about in-line with the central midrange wherefore the sound is very full, warm and with a strong upper bass punch, but not much rumble from the sub-bass.
When the screws are turned into the maximum position, the bass peaks around 40 Hz with a quantity of around 15 dB, with no roll-off below that, and about an extra 4 dB boost at 100 Hz, wherefore the sound gains a lot of sub-bass and midbass energy.
Needless to say, the midrange, as a result, is always very warm, full and coloured, also somewhat mushy, and even warmer and mushier, more veiled with the screw set to maximum (which is beneficial for the mid-and sub-bass perception but definitely not for the midrange and fundamental range).

The central midrange and upper midrange are mostly accurate to somewhat more on the relaxed side, and thankfully not much recessed.

Going up, one can spot a peak around 5.5 kHz as well as another one around 7 kHz and finally a last one around 10 kHz wherefore the full, bassy and warm sound is ultimately more of a v-shaped signature.
Ultimately, those peaks lead to the highs being on the more metallic side, however as they aren’t sharp and as the warmth and bass are the dominating elements, they are not annoying or obtrusive, which is something where the IE 80 fortunately differ from Sennheiser’s older, less expensive dynamic driver in-ears.
Interestingly, those peaks appear much worse and unfitting when performing sine sweeps or looking at frequency response measurements, while in real world listening scenarios, they are not bothering at all, which, as mentioned, is most likely due to them acting as some sort of compensation for the lows’ bloom and warmth.

Quickly compared to my Shure SE215m+SPE, the Sennheiser are always warmer, fuller, thicker and more coloured sounding in the lower midrange.
IE 80's screw set to minimum: Both have got comparable bass quantity at 100 Hz but the Sennheiser roll off below that whereas the Shure peak in the lower midbass and keep constant sub-bass level below that.
IE 80s’ screw set to maximum: The Sennheiser are clearly warmer and bassier at any frequency below 1 kHz.
Both have got almost similar treble quantity around 5 kHz. Above that, however, the Shure are definitely on the dark, relaxed side, whereas the Sennheisers’ treble is on the brighter side, however less even.

The question whether it is best to have the screw in the minimum or maximum position is a tough one, as the former rolls off audibly towards the sub-bass and only really highlights the higher upper bass and root, whereas the latter does introduce a nice sub-bass boost, however adds even more warmth and thickness to the already really warm sound (it makes the lows even slower and softer, too). Despite the rolled-off sub- and midbass (compared to the root and higher upper bass), I prefer the screw in the minimum position due to aforementioned introduced disadvantages that come with the screw set to the maximum position.
Generally, I only really like my IE 80 for slow, acoustic singer-songwriter stuff.

Frequency Response:


ER-4S-Compensation (Screw set to minimum Position)


ER-4S-Compensation (Screw set to maximum Position)

Generally, the treble peaks on the graph don’t match with the frequencies that I perceive when performing sine sweeps, and I also perceive them as much quieter in amplitude. With the bass screw set to the maximum position, however, I hear the lows as being slightly stronger than on the graph.


ProPhile 8-Compensation (Screw set to minimum Position)


ProPhile 8-Compensation (Screw set to maximum Position)


Effect of the Bass Screw

Resolution:

While the midrange resolution and speech intelligibility seems to be subjectively above that of my Shure SE215m+SPE to some degree, the Sennheisers’ bass is just mushy, slow and lacks control even in the screw’s minimum position, and becomes even worse by increasing it, which also affects the rest of the resolution that is reduced audibly, wherefore the IE 80 are only halfway decently resolving (which is a bit of a stretch for the price anyway) with the bass screw in the minimum position.

Generally, the resolution isn’t great for the price at all, especially in terms of bass quality; the in-ears sound slow, soft and just lack details. The general transient response is audibly pretty bad.

Good treble separation? Definitely not. The presentation is quite smeary and not differentiated at all.

Only when the music material is slow, doesn’t contain many instruments/tonal elements and generally doesn’t have high demands on the in-ears, the IE 80 sound decently controlled and resolving with a nice midrange; however even already with “averagely paced” music and tracks that don’t have a very demanding bass line, the drivers clearly show their lack of control and just sound plain slow, which should not be present at this price point at all.
In contrast, my Shure SE215m+SPE, Moondrop Starfield or the Etymotic ER2XR don’t give in nearly as early nor nearly as much with fast and more demanding music material, which just shows that the Sennheisers’ limits are reached really early whereas the other dynamic driver in-ears still have got (partially plenty) of reserves in comparison and generally sound tighter, faster and better controlled, while the IE 80, when compared to my Shure, are slightly ahead when it comes to pure midrange resolution (but are outperformed by my Moondrop and the Etymotic).
In pre-conclusion, slow and not really demanding, mild acoustic singer-songwriter music is really about the only niche where the IE 80 perform and sound decent.

Soundstage:

The only area that the IE 80 really manage to set themselves apart from many other dynamic driver in-ears is their very large, very open, three-dimensional soundstage.
It expands greatly into all dimensions and presents a large sphere of music that my Shure SE215m+SPE (whose stage is pretty wide, but without much spacial depth to speak of, and ultimately not as wide as the Sennheisers’) don’t have (which also applies to the ER2XR and also somewhat to my Starfield when compared to the IE 80s’ soundstage size).

While this is something that makes the IE 80 nice and rather special, the imaging precision isn’t very high at all, and similarly to the resolution, the soundstage struggles to keep up and collapses the more complex and the faster the music gets.




Conclusion:

The Sennheiser IE 80 are in-ears that only sound nice when used with slow, undemanding, sparsely occupied recordings wherefore they are predestined for slow acoustic singer-songwriter stuff that really suits them and where they sounds nice, effortless, open, spacious, pleasantly warm as well as full, and where their fairly low technical performance in relation to the price isn’t brought to the limits. Therefore, they are clearly not all-rounders but niche in-ears with a large soundstage that perform well on slow recordings but almost fail with everything else as their drivers’ limits are reached very early.

These are a very good dynamic IEM, and when I say dynamic, I'm not just referring to the type of driver. The sound is very forward, very exciting at first, and I was immediately struck with the immense sound-stage. The drivers are very responsive and demonstrate better speed than I expected. If you love any form of electronica, buy them. I was hard pressed to find fault with any specific aspect of the sound while I was listening and the bass is incredible. However, I was quickly fatigued by listening to them and afterwards my head felt full of grit. I gave them about 50hrs of burn-in and used no EQ while listening.
 
Because of the light weight, I had no problems getting a comfortable fit with the included eartips. The included case is heavy and possibly worthless if you go with a Comply eartip.
 
I really wanted to love them considering the bargain price (refurb), but in the end I sold them.

The retail package for the IE 80 is one of the most impressive IEM packages I've seen. The IEMs are nicely presented and the brushed aluminium box looks very sleek.

Opening the box confirms this with a the box despite being plastic with aluminium faceplates seems very well constructed and more than adaquetely protects the IEMs themselves although the L shaped 3.5mm connector can be difficult to fit into the case. The included tip selection is very wide. However for me, this is where the problems began.

The tips selection, while wide, is still subpar in design, with many of the buds themselves seems to be designed for freakish ear canals, a fact not helped by the wide nozzle design of the IE series. This made it impossible to get anything approximating a decent fit with any of the included tips. However, since I own a fairly large number of IEMs I made do with some medium Sony Hybrid greys from a pair of MH1cs which stretched over the much wider nozzle of the IE80. It should also be noted that the IE80 provides almost no isolation at all.

Onto sound: With the stock tips, the sound was fairly decent, the large(for an IEM) soundstage remeniscent of the older IE8 is present, imaging is good and the highs are detailed but non fatiguing and the lows are strong and impactful. However the mid range was muddied significantly by the low end, which was extremely disappointing in a £200 pair of IEMs. The highs themselves while technically accurate, left much to be desired in terms of musicality and I found them quite dry and boring, lacking the slight sparkle of other IEMs in the price range(or below) such as the Phonak Audeo PFE112 or the Shure SE425.
Fitting the previously mentioned Sony Hybrid Grey tips on the IE80 attenuated the highs and closed the coundstage noticeably, resulting in a darker smaller sound. I found the trade off for a secure fit and the greater isolation quite favourable however.

Looking on head-fi I came across the tape mod and auvivo tips. The tape mod involves covering the bass ports with tape. This has the effect of removing the midbass bloat that muddies the midrange and tightens the bass up. Depending on what setting you had the bass port on piror to the tape the IE80 shift from a bass centric to a mid centric IEM, which may not be for all listeners. The Auvio tips are Sony Hybrid clones with a central bore width that fits the IE80 wide nozzle naturally and as such doe not reduce the soundstage and attenuate the highs like the normal Sony Hybrids. Similar, but for me an inferior fit are the silicone tips included with JVC IEMs.

In conclusion, the IE80 is a competant IEM, but is highly flawed in it's stock form. Due to the many issues I have with it, I find it difficult to recommend at the £200 price mark it typically sells for in the UK. If you do find youself enjoying the soundof the IE80, but hating the fit, it may be worth investing £120 in some custom silicone eartips from ACS.

Stock sound:
Highs: 7.5/10
Mids: 5/10
Lows: 8/10
Stock Fit: 2/10

Tape Modded sound:
Highs: 7.5/10
Mids: 7/10
Lows 8/10

I wanted to go up to a high grade of earphone so I looked on head-fi and saw the IE 80s and purchased them from amazon.

    Fresh out of the box they were amazing and some of the best canal-phones I have heard. They felt solid and well-built and the case they come with was very sleek and closes with a satisfying shhhhclick*

 

Firstly the bad,

    Unfortunately that didn't continue as one of the ear hooks fell off and was lost after a week. They are not secured on very tight and pull off with ease. A few weeks after that the silicone tips split and were unusable and the final nail in the coffin for these earphones was that the right ear cable split and stopped working.

Admittedly I have used them continuously for 5 months but i really expected better from a high end top brand of earphones.

 

The ear hooks are quite comfortable and keep some strain off of the cable however they are removable and can be removed. In some ways this is nice as you can wear them as a normal pair of earphones however, the microphonics increase dramatically as expected. I had a little trouble making them fit my ears as they have a core of stiff wire which wouldn't bend easier than my ear. This also meant when I finally made them fit they fitted perfectly, comfortably and were secured brilliantly. Unfortunately they do separate and they don't fit snug up to the body of the earphone so they do little to protect the wire itself form strain unlike the ue900s ear hook which covers the whole piece. As I previously mentioned they also come off very easily so I lost one of them early on.

 

The cables

They were nice to begin with but, without the hooks I found they tugged and pulled at my ears and thus were uncomfortable and irritating to wear over ear. They are the standard Senheiser cables as seen in the IE 8 and IE 60.  Personally I feel that the cables would be of a little higher quality and that they are a major limiting factor of these earphones. Inside the cable appears to be made of copper and the jack I’m unsure of what it’s made from however I know it’s not gold plated (I don’t know if it makes a difference truly) the plastic joins around the IEMs themselves have no strain relief which is my suspicion of why they failed so early on.

 

The box

Oh my, the box (although seen to be paired with their other cheaper earphones) is the best I've seen mainly because the brushed aluminium plates look amazing but the sound, feel and click of the magnetic mechanism inside was smooth and could be compared as the mechanical keyboards of cases. The metal plates are easily dented and this effects the aesthetics of the case but had no effect on the performance of the case or the smoothness of closing the box.

   Inside the box there is a small space for both earphones to be placed with no tips or the tips they give you. This meant when I had to replace the ear tips I had to disregard the box completely as the comply TX500 tips wouldn't fit in the box without ripping the tips or taking them off which was very impractical. I found wrapping the cable in this box difficult to do as the 3.5 mm jack would usually stick out just a little too far to fit neatly.

 

The ear tips

they are very good as they give you a large selection of them allowing them to fit many people’s ears. The isolation of the tips were very good and the ones that fitted were comfortable, especially for listening over long journeys such as the train. The foam tips provided were not very comfortable and I found them to irritate the inside of my ears when taking them in and out over time so I quickly disregarded them.

 

The sound.

These earphones although as short lived as they were, sounded amazing, they sound similar to my Logitech speakers (aka my preferred sound) with a little more bass.

They most certainly have a large bass hump. From my ears the mids and highs sounded crisp and clear but not too emphasized nor too little. The bass is something definitely to experience if you are a bass head its deep and pounding especially if (as with all earphones) you get them in just right.

 
I gave these a 3/5 purely because of the sound quality and the box they came in. unfortunately the value of these earphones I felt was low because of the faults in the quality and production.
The gear I have been using to test these earphones is the ak100 with a range of different qualities of music. Some of the best I found was dust clears –clean bandit, flight –Tristam. & Braken, This is our time -miles Malone and Grab her! – Disclosure 

Hello Headfiers. I know there are a ton of reviews of these bad boys already , but I want to share my opinion as well on the site. Before purchasing them I have read a lot of reviews but my opinion about these differs in some ways than what most people say so I would like to have some responses to my review. (enlighten me please xD)
Overview:

The IE80's are beautifully packaged and presented. you can feel the quality of the product before you even open the package. Inside the box there are the headphones themselves , a carrying case thay feels premium but even without using it I managed to break it . A lot of useless ear tips ,and paperwork. Package feels premium , headphones feel premium , nicely done Sennheizer :3

Sound:
First of all the most Important thing about an IEM it's its sound quality. And the IE80's do not disappoint , even though their sound is not for me . Let me explain. These are prosumer  grade headphones not audiophile grade, and they tend to lack a little bit on the mid section and are more bass heavy. Am not saying that these are bass enthusiast IEM's , but they have a bassy sound signature and I would prefer a little more focus on the mids. Maybe its just me and my preferences. Starting from the bottom the bass is strong and present , it's the main focus of the sound signature and its skull rocking. Its fast , punchy not blurring the track , and its not muddy. The mids on the other hand are the IE80's weak point. They are lacking and not present enough for my liking , because they don't seem detailed enough for an expensive IEM of this price range.Finally the highs are more present than the mids of course , detailed but not in any way overwhelming, I would say that they are the kind of headphones with the "V" shaped frequency response graph but slightly more added bass. the bass is more extended than the treble and the mids being their flaw in my opinion are a little shy. Finally the strongest point of these is their sound-stage. My god the sound-stage is wide open especially for an IEM. They are open enough to match my Phillips Uptown sound-stage wise. They do not feel like any other IEM I have used before and all that because of that openness that they offer. I literally was watching a movie and I heard something outside and turned around , only to find that it came from my IEM's. That experience was awesome and its a huge thumps up for me. Also the adjustable tuning bass is meh. Yes it does affect the bass response but its minor and even turning it to the lowest bass level , I still found the bass to be more of my liking. But turning the bass up doesn't affect the mids which is nice.
Cable:
The cable is removable which is expected in this price range , its not that easily tangled , nothing special , don't know if its worth an upgrade because of their lack of detail. I have't got any problems with it yet but am extra careful with it.
Isolation-Ear Tips-Comfort:

Let me be clear about the included ear tips. In my experience they are unusable . I personally don't find a perfect seal with included tips in any IEM I buy so even though I tried to use the included ones, I couldn't bare use them over 10-15 minutes. Also I would like to note , because many headfiers buy from comply foam tips , the ones that are supposed to work with these don't really seem to work and I have to push hard on my ears to get a nice fit so yeah... Comfort and Isolation are the thing that you have to find alone in IEM's because everyones ears are different and perfect ear tips don't exist.
Build Quality- Design:

Their Build quality is quite nice they are very lightweight despite being crafted with aluminum. They also look really great and are stylish , not really a major pro but something to be mentioned xD.
Conclusion:
So my conclusion on these is that I would recommend them for people who tend to enjoy good bassy sound , but don't really care about their accuracy or extreme detail but just a quality fun to listen sound. My current setup is the LG G3 as a source , the Digit Zoid Zo2 for amping and these for the IEM. So far I am enjoying it but I really want to move to a more detailed pair of IEM's.
 
Ps. Yes they do benefit from amping but in my opinion not worth the money , because of their lack of mids and detail. Amping just makes the bass more forward and punchy. Also to test these I used only flac files. Also I forgot to mention burn-in , YES definitely they need some hour of burn-in. The mids get a little more alive not much though it just benefits a little on the detail.

Introduction:
 
The Sennheiser IE80. I would like to start with stating that I am not an audiophile. However, for the past years I have had my fair share of headphones/earphones and I have been involved with the audio world for some time now. Also, this is my first real review so please take it easy if I'm not as descriptive or accurate as other members on Head-Fi. My primary source when listening to the IE80 is the combination of my MacBook Pro (320kbps to 2600kbps audio files) and my Fiio E10K Olympus 2 DAC/AMP. I will be covering topics such as accessories, build quality and the comfortability of these earphones. I will not go in depth about the sound quality because I have yet to feel experienced enough to share my opinions. Not just on these headphones specifically but audio in general, there are in fact actual audiophiles and professionals on this forum, go to them for sound quality, they know what they're talking about.

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Sennheiser includes a lot of accessories with the IE80 and I enjoy that. The IE80 come with not only silicon eartips but also Comply Foam and double/triple flanged eartips. Sennheiser also generously included a very nice carrying case, a cleaning tool and a good clothing clip. Here's a list of all the accessories.
 
The carrying case as mentioned, is very nice. The top and bottom is crafted of aluminum and the rest is made of high quality plastic. The bottom has 4 rubber feet to stay off of the different surfaces you'll be resting it on. The case closes magnetically and on the inside, is a fitted molding to place the headphones in. The earphones are very well protected. Unfortunately, there is nothing to do with the wire besides wrapping it around a certain portion of the case, this causes memory in the wire for when you want to use them. The case also allows you to carry two different eartips and the cleaning tool with you. Onto the dry salt packet, there is a door latch on the back and inside is where you can place a dry salt packet. A dry salt packet will absorb any moisture within the case, in other words it controls the humidity. This will keep the headphones well protected if you are either storing them for longer periods of time or are in a humid environment.
 

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The build quality of the headphones is also quite good. The housing is made of a high quality plastic but they do house an aluminum insert, this insert faces outwards when in your ear. On the aluminum insert of both earbuds, is a laser etching of the Sennheiser logo, along with the bass dial. The cable as I had mentioned earlier, can have memory at times. When I first got the IE80, the cable memory was very bad, the earphones would often fall out of my ears because the cable would fall over the top of my ears. With some time and use, this went away but after storing them in the carrying case (or even winding them up), there is memory for about an hour. 
 

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I find these earphones very comfortable. Like most high end earphones or in-ear monitors, they feature the 'over and under' cable design. The way you wear these is to have the cable come from behind your ears, and essentially, inserting the earbud upside down. I highly recommend using the cable choke, as it helps keep the wire behind your ear and makes the experience much more comfortable. With the right eartips and the correct fit, these are EXTREMELY comfortable. I am able to wear these for hours if need be. I also wear these to the gym, they have a very solid fit and don't move around one bit. And I don't even use the included cable sleeves.
 

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My opinion is that these are excellent earphones. If your a fan of the infamous Sennheiser signature sound then these are all for you. Now that I have broken mine in, they sound good on just my computer, my computer and my dac/amp and even just on my smartphone streaming Pandora One. They take some time to sound excellent but be patient -- it's worth it. As far as the full retail price, I have noticed they are random sales on Amazon for the IE80, I believe they have gotten all the way down to $260, thats a really really good price point for these so if you ever see that sale and are even just interested -- grab them, you can always return them lol.
 
Since I had forgotten to mention (my apologies), the tunable bass port doesn't quite do justice for me. To my ears, it only gives the mid-bass a slight boost. It doesn't provide a drastic enough difference considering this earphone is advertised so much for having this feature. Also, isolation is quite good as well. You cannot hear much at moderate volumes so if your loud listener, you won't be able to hear a thing. I would have included this into the review but without a sound quality section, it wouldn't have made sense anywhere else.
 
I hope my first written review has helped or informed some people, I'd love to receive some feedback from fellow Head-Fi'ers through the private messages. Thanks!

So, I've had the chance to try the pair my uncle owns, both in noisy (busy streets of Vienna) and silent environment.
 
You probably should take this with a grain of salt as I can only compare this to my good old HiFiMAN HE-400i, which is basically a totally different world. 
 
Let's get to it, shall we. 
 
Thoughts about the device overall: It looks pretty nice, has a good little bass controller, however i've found the bass good enough on the lowest setting too, the cable is very good in my opinion, it's very lightweight so it doesn't pull you down and it's thin! > easy to hide, However what i've found the most disturbing out of anything, and don't get me wrong, this is quite important!, it just slips out of my ears no matter how i put them in or with which ear cup, and this sadly makes the bass go away, and the treble to take over and occasionally destroy your ears.
 
Sound quality: After using an ortho headphone for a good time now, i've found it's sound very interesting and very different in a lot of ways, not all of them being good. The two main difference for my ears is that when listening, I couldn't differentiate quite as much the overall levels of the music, the different layers, and also i couldn't therefore hear the smallest details, which in my opinion are one of the if not the most important things in music. For the good part, I really really liked when there was a melody playing in the treble and the bass, that fine strong bass that this IE can produce, came to it and they pounded my ears at the same time, it was very satisfying and cathartic. Though it hasn't happened quite as often as I would've liked it to, as I've had to keep pushing it in sometimes even twice in a track to avoid ear-bleeding treble. One more thing i've noticed in a few tracks, is that the quieter sound layers sometimes tried to merge into a louder one, they started to copy the main melody and change it's sound more similar to it, so that the main melody didn't change but the quiet one started to sound more like the main one, even if the quieter was just a one sound rhythm. Never experienced such a thing.
 
Overall, if you are someone whose ears are capable of receiving IE's, and you like bass (seriously it has huge bass even on the lowest setting!!!), and you are not that kind of person (like me) that is listening to music just to hear those finest quietest details, then go for this, seriously it's amazing and a lot of fun to listen to!

Design/durability: very good build quality as (almost) always on behalf of Sennheiser. The earpiece with its brushed metal faceplate is very good looking and has a sturdy 'unibody' feel to it. Finish is not plasticky and seems durable. The slightly thick cable feels good too, pretty stiff, doesn't tangle, microphonics are pretty low. The proprietary two-pin connector of the detachable cable feels very sturdy as opposed to most MMCX connectors used nowadays on the IEM market. And also, the bass dial is fairly unique and fun to play with. Update: the connector/pins are causing occasional channel imbalance. Not as reliable as I though it would be.
 
Fit/comfort: the IE 80 is a 'semi' in-ear that doesn't sit deep in the ear canal. Comfort is thus pretty good and slightly better than other conventional in-ears. These Senns can be worn around the ear (which I do) or straight down by simply switching the left and right earpieces. Very handy. Stock tips aren't great in terms of comfort though, I'd recommend that you find some others (I'm using B&W silicon tips).
 
Isolation: as expected, not a 100% in ear, thus definitely below average compared to competition. Maybe 16-20dB noise isolation with stock silicon tips, which is enough for daily commute, but nothing more. Westone, Shure, Etymotic designs all isolate way better, no surprise here. On par with my HD-25 with velour pads. I wouldn't use these on a plane. Isolation seekers, look elsewhere!
 
Sound: the IE 80 is one of these few 'audiophile' IEM that can impress the casual listener almost instantly. They sound fun, lively, and wide. 
 
The bass is the highlight of these earphones, they are big and beautiful. There is a very distinct hump in the mid bass, whether the bass knob is at its maximum or minimum. I usually set it on 1-2 which I think is appropriate for most genres. Bass impact is pretty good and punchy, however not as punchy as with armature designs, although the body of the bass is much better and natural sounding than on the latter. It is meaty and there's an impressive rumble. And the bass extends pretty low. I'd describe the IE 80's bass as a big piece of steak with tons of sauce: not very healthy but oh, so good from time to time.
 
Mids are definitely not the IE 80's main asset. They're smooth and refined but a tad recessed compared to the rest of the spectrum, and I found them to be slightly veiled on some complex tracks where vocals play an important role (some Hans Zimmer sound track and Enya songs). Fine but not great.
 
Highs can be sibilant at times depending on tips, but are overall very well extended and pretty smooth. There's no real sparkle, just a nice shimmer that is more than adequate on most tracks. The most demanding strings tracks were no difficulty for the IE 80.
 
Now the soundstage of these is really good for an in-ear design. It extends a few feet outside of your head and has a very airy and organic feel to it. Instrument separation is fine. I found the wide soundstage particularly convenient for orchestral works, it really makes them stand out. Resolution is great, but as expected it can be slightly inferior to some of the competition's balanced armature designs. Still, the level of detail is pretty astonishing. And last but not least, the big advantage of the dynamic driver here is that it sounds less 'mechanical' and cold than its BA counterparts. The result is a more organic and musical presentation of music, which is definitely pleasant.
 
Bottom line: I was pleasantly surprised by how smooth the IE 80 can sound. They're musical, warm and airy, comfortable, and perfect for casual listening. A good travel companion for my ER-4PT.
 
 
 
 

Dear fellow music lovers,
the IE80 have been around a while and, despite several reviews and an almost infinite thread, still it is not easy to gather in a single place all the information concerning this beautiful IEM.
Despite the earphone being probably at the end of its lifecycle, I will write this review anyway, hoping that somebody will provide a similar review for the new IE80S.

After few month of listening, here come my impressions.

Package:
- the fundamentals are here: several tips.
- ear hooks
- fluff: useless carry-case

Build:
- OK. Detachable cable probably ensure a beyond average life expectancy (for me IEM average life expectancy is 2 years)

Cable:
- bundled cable is ok, angled connector
- currently using it with 5 eur chinese cable with a 3 button Android and IOS compatible remote

Confort
- no rough edges, pretty comfortable for me

Fit over the ear
- a bit tricky, as the overall sound is very sensitive to insertion depth and tips positioning
- no cable microphonics
- once in place does not pops out. Few adjustments every now and then may be necessary
- ear hooks are not easy to use nor necessary

Fit below ear
- possible, but I don't recommend it as the bass becomes boomy
- average cable microphonics

Bang for buck
- on rebate at 140 eur at amazon is a catch (but not worth the full retail price of ~300 eur)

SOUND

Tuning
- bass via the screw
- overall tone via the tips

-Foreword
After several tests I decided which the basic configuration (i.e. bass screw to minimum, single flange silicon tips) is the one providing the bust sound quality. Therefore it is my choice for day to day listening and the descriptions below are based on this set-up.

- Sound Signature
V shaped, with powerfull bass and lively but not aggressive highs

- Bass
Extended, rolled off towards the sub bass and slightly bleeding in the mediums. They are slow (in the good sense, relaxed) accurate and powerful.

- Mediums
A bit recessed but perfectly tuned

- Highs
They provide decent detail and extension, but their tuning could be better (with the wrong recording they can become a little aggressive). Their biggest issue is that they are not linear, but they have a peak at 5kHz, one at 7kHz and one at 13kHz. The result is good detail and extension, but it is not balanced.

-Speed
Slow bass and a lot of echoes to open the soundstage result in a relaxed and slow IEM

-Detail retrieval and instrument separation
Good across the spectrum. More than enough for orchestral music

- Polyvalence
Very good for classical music and jazz. Very natural voice reproduction.
Only average for hard rock and metal.
Fair to good for other genres.

-Forgiveness
The peaky highs and detail retrieval makes this a rather unforgiving IEM

-Source requirements
IE80 are very hiss forgiving
They are very easy to drive, resulting in good sound on almost every source.
That said, a better source can result in audibly better quality. But with any source they are already good.

Perks
- adjustable bass
- can be tuned via eartips

Mods
- tuning via bass screw: this increases mostly the sub bass, with a lesser impact on the bass. The peaks in the highs are also somewhat tamed.
Overall I don't like the result, as the mids seems to be more and more out of tune, as the bass in increased via the screw.

- tuning via the tips: the IE80 progressively go from bass-heavy and V-shaped to neutral as the tips are changed in this sense : foam tips, single-flange silicon tips, double-flange silicon tips, weird triple flange silicon tips.
I don't like the result for the same reason as before, i.e. the mids seems to be more and more out of tune as the tuning becomes more different from the out of the box one (bass screw to minimum, single flange silicon tips)

- the well known tape mod : https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the...-the-sennheiser-ie80-in-ear-earphones.766831/
Similar results and same issues as above

- conclusion: what these tuning have in common is bring some neutrality in the sound signature of the IE80, at the price of making a 200+ eur IEM sound like a 100 eur IEM. Not worth it in my opinion.


Compared to the other IEMs I have tried:

- Sennheiser CX275S : these one have a fun oriented signature: slightly v-shaped, voice oriented mids, not very extended but very fast bass, smooth and pleasant treble. These works best for fast-paced bad recorded music. For a 30 eur IEM they sound very good. Detail resolving and instrument separation is very bad; for this reason also is a very forgiving IEM. Anything which is well recorded will sound way better on IE80, except metal, which really does not like this IEM and which, on the contrary, sound very fun on this CX275

- Sony MH1C: the mids are about as good as the IE80's; lows are faster and with stronger sub bass, but less detailed; highs are a real mess on these. If accuracy and instrument separation is not required at the extremes of the spectrum, these sound 80% as good as IE80's (still they have a smaller soundstage)

- Beoplay H3 : radically different sound signature as these are almost flat. Lows are good, albeit a lot more recessed, highs are less extended (cut at 16kHz) but more linear; as a result these have less air but are less aggressive on some instruments, which may ultimately result more pleasant on the H3 (e.g. brass, acoustic guitars etc..). The mids of the H3 are definitely inferior: less resolving, somewhat out of tune, they make really a mess of a classic orchestra

- Sony mdr 1a : these ones are at least as good everywhere, and better resolving in the mids-high and the highs. Also they are one of Sony's high impedance top headphones.

After two weeks of daily use, I feel I "get" what this IEM is all about now. It's a great IEM for all types of recordings and music. I've run everything through it on my iPhone 5 (no external DAC/Amp) via iTunes and FLAC via Capriccio. I have been doing comparisons between the IE 80, Sennheiser CX880i and Klipsch Reference S4i.
 
There is no competition. The IE80 wins on all fronts except isolation, which I'll get into later.
 
Design: 4.5/5
This is completely subjective, but I love the look of the IE 80. The brushed metal looks fantastic. There are some great features included such as the adjustable bass knobs, detatchable wires, large assortment of tips, over-the-ear wire guides, shirt clip... (great)
 
Build: 4.5/5
The unit is made mostly of plastic except for the thin brushed metal plates. The plastic seems sturdy enough, and the wire connectors that attach to each monitor is very sturdy and requires a bit of force to disconnect. Great.
 
Comfort: 4/5
The unit feels fairly light for it's size. In the ear, they feel good. Good.
 
Isolation: 3/5
This is a weak point of the IE 80. I've tried all tips and I'm able to get a decent enough seal, however, I am still able to easily hear outside noise. Average.
 
Microphonics: 5/5
With the stock cable, I barely perceive any friction noise. Excellent.
 
Sound Quality: 4.5/5
Here's the important part. The IE80 has handled everything I've thrown at it with competence. I listen to pretty much everything I can get my hands on. Jazz, Rock, Metal, Electronic, Classical/symphony, Pop, Accoustical, Movies, Music Videos..
 
These IEMs strike a good balance between being analytical and fun. They won't pick apart your iTunes files and make them sound like trash, but at the same time, you can hear the differences in listening to FLAC files.
 
At first listen, I noticed the high level of detail and clarity in the highs, with slightly warm mids, and heavy bass. The soundstage and instrument separation is fantasic for an IEM. After getting used to the IEMs, everything now sounds just right except for the bass. I have the bass tuned to the lowest setting and I still find that it's a bit on the bloated side. There's definitely a bias towards bass on these. Not too objectionable, but not neutral either.
 
Overall, I would say these are excellent IEMs, except for the price. The retail price is on the high side for what you are getting. However, at about $300-$350, these are great and I would easily recommend these.
 
UPDATE:
 
Using the Capriccio app, I've been messing with a bit of EQing and I've lowered the mid bass down by about 6-7 dB and just ever so slightly increased the midrange. I feel this helps eliminate the "mid bass bloat". If you're using this app, I've uploaded the settings under "IE 80 Accoustic".

--

This review is for someone looking for a good pair of in-ear headphones after using over-ear phones; that's the situation where I am coming from at least, as I have been using Sennheiser's HD598 for some years now.
 
I can appreciate the professionalism and expertise that is apparent in the IE80, The sound quality is great and there is a lot of detail and clarity to be heard in the music.
The bass is not too overwhelming at least when adjusting the bass dial to the lower end, and that's how I like it. The treble/high end is not too bright or tiresome. However, HD598 has a more elegant overall sound, it's somehow cleaner and with a wider soundstage. This is of course due to the difference in the basic nature of these two kinds of earphones. Using an over-ear phone like HD598, no part of the headphone touches the ear itself, the sound comes to the ear canal from a small distance. With in-ear phones, the situation is of course different. The earbuds touch the ear canals and produce the sound right there. For me, that reduces the comfort somewhat and makes the sound more "metallic" (in lack of a better term), and less "ethereal". This is of course a general issue with in-ear vs over-ear phones (for me), not a shortcoming of IE80 in particular. 
 
What is a particular problem for me with IE80, however, that it is difficult to find the ideal positioning in the ear. I have found that if I wear them like supposed to (with the cord over the ear), they don't stay deep enough inside but come a bit out, and consequently a lot of the bass/lower end is lost. I have noticed that if I let the cords hang freely, and not behind the ears, they touch the ear canals in a way that the bass is heard ok, but at the same time the wearing comfort is diminished somewhat, and the cords, protruding from the ears, so to speak, might look a bit funny. 
 
I purchased the IE80 to have a pair that I can walk/jog/exercise with, something that HD598 is very clumsy for. The above-mentioned issues, a lot of which have to do with in-ear phones in general. have anyway made me consider purchasing on-ear phones, and not in-ear ones, for exercise etc. This is a personal preference and doesn't have anything to do with any possible shortcomings of IE80 per se - like I said in the beginning, they are of great quality and have few, maybe no faults, but probably in-ear phones are just not for me. 

Package:

Nice looking but not really so convenient hard case with tight space for the cable. Most of the tips are useless; There are no mid-size foam tips (that most people use); just large and small foam and silicon tips are in all three sizes, but others are really useless (odd shape, no isolation or extremely uncomfortable). I found ear hooks to be useless as well and not so gentle on the cable since the critical point of breaking, where the cable connects to an earphone, is loose. There is also a nice cleaning tool with a screw on the other side that is used to adjust bass.



Build:

Just great! Looks great and feels good, and they seem to be very durable, the first earphones that lasted me over a year (and still lasting). Cable didn't look so good to me at first but it is very durable. When it's cold outside, it stiffens up so you can't fold the cables over the ear nicely, but in just a few minutes, it becomes softer thanks to your skin temperature. Cables are also replaceable, which is great!



Sound:

When I've read reviews about IE80, I expected them to be REALLY bassy, but they are fine. When everyone was saying for bassheads I thought they would have that deep sub-bass ''feeling'', but it's not exactly like that. They have a good amount of sub-bass and punch, but there is a lot of mid-bass (~100-200 Hz, can't exactly tell). Mid-bass is the main problem, and the reason why I didn't rate them higher than four stars. It veils the whole mid-range, which makes them much less clear earphones than they could be (tho clarity is on decent level); Some songs, especially vocal jazz (female vocals with somewhat deeper voices), just sound bad because of that, it's really not enjoyable with so much mid-bass 'veil' or how should I call it.
Isolation is not as bad as I expected when I've read reviews here but not the best as well. Foam tips can improve isolation, but it increases further that problem with mid-bass so I didn't find them to be a good solution.
IE80 has adjustable bass, just like the IE8, you can increase the bass with the small screw that is also used as a cleaning tool, but it is useless in my opinion. On minimum it has too much mid-bass, and if you increase the bass it will become impossible to listen to some genres (forget about vocal jazz, harp, rock with a lot of bass guitar, anything with the bass guitar for that matter if you turn the knob to increase the bass). I've read here about the 'tape mod' where you put the tape on the knobs that let the air in and mid-bass problem should be solved - well wasn't exactly solved but it did help a bit, reduces bass overall which leads to clearer sound and then foam tips are much saner choice than before.
I liked the highs; there is that sparkle, and they sound fun to me, maybe not so realistic all the time, but they are not too harsh or sibilant.




Summary:

Overall good sounding IEM with great build quality and not so useful accessories with one problem that can be a deal-breaker for many - mid-bass that veils mids, making them sound less clear and not so enjoyable to listen on certain songs. If you like that kind of sound and don't mind it, then it is a very good choice (after all they were top range Sennheiser at the time, can't be that bad, but if you are sensitive to it and listen to vocal music (especially with a deep voice) you might want to skip these. Price was too high at 450$ (would be 3.5 stars), but now at 300-350$, it's a pretty fair deal comparing to the competition in this price range.

I can come back to them at any time! Just great sound for not bad price those days. Stage is nice, separation have quality deep bass that I love

IE80 has a warm sound overall,crisp high and punchy bass. The "bass knob" was the best part for me since I am not a basshead so I only turn the knob to halfway. many people said the main issue was isolation but it really depends on where u used it, for me the isolation was enough in train and buses(maybe I dont like total isolation).
To me the carrying case seems to be too big for IEMs

very relax sounding IEM, great for relaxing, fit is awkward if u have small ears, accessories are tons but most are useless, tape mod is good! Recommended

I don't know anything about soundstage and fancy audiophile terms but I've listened to plenty of audio from stock iPod buds, moderate over-ear and on-ear head phones good home stereos, clubs, professional concerts, orchestras..  I bought these after my Shure's had been broken for years and was out of IEMs.  I was doing some research after the Klipsches I bought quit working right and originally decided I was curious about the balanced armature technology thinking it must be superior.  I got the Westone 4s and 2 days later I bought these because of reviews I skipped saying that BAs were thin on bass and the only way to go was a good dynamic.  So I broke down and got these.  Since, I have had the opportunity to compare a lot of the buzzing IEMs as I have also received my VSonic GR07s.
 
Basically what I'm looking for in an IEM is the ability to be driven hard without distorting or clipping.  Response curves I can adjust with EQ.  Sorry, purists.  Anyway, the IE 80 is it.  They are extremely rich and defined.  If you don't like the sound you can physically tune the bass response.  I have them maxed.  As a casual music listener I love bass but just as long as it doesn't muddy the rest of the sound.  These IEMs are extremely defined and have a lot of spatial dimension.  They are very comfortable.  I have a custom silver galaxy cable arriving in a week or so.
 
I prefer the style of the VSonic GR07 more with the swiveling port that goes deep into the canal.  The Sennheisers offer a good seal for me with the foam tips.  The silicone ones aren't bad but I can lose a bit of seal if my jaw is moving like chewing gum or something even with the properly sized tips.  I believe they come with something for everyone.  Also if you google ACS custom tips you can turn these almost into custom IEMs.  I intend to eventually but can't for until a few months.
 
The only other things I would change about these Senns is the cable end plugs I would curve inward toward the head as when I shove these into my ear it causes the cable to angle ever so slightly, however still awkwardly outward.  Also the cable is a bit flimsy.  I was sort of expecting a stiffer springy rubber cord or ome that is very thick but it's very relaxed plastic sheathing which some people prefer. It is completely adequate and only that.  The plugs and Y joint are extremely rugged and refined though.
 
Recap:
Simply amazing.  I can't imagine another IEM better.  I'm still waiting for my GR07s to "burn in" but out of the box they are a bit subdued albeit still nicely tight and defined.  The Westones and other balanced armatures do not burn in over time.
 
EDIT: I forgot to mention pretty much right away I noticed when I made a good seal with the IE 80s in the right ear if I pushed it in too fast I would get a popping.  My initial guess, and still after reading, is the driver cone/film flexing.  I'm thinking of sending it in to Sennheiser to see but as far as I can tell it has not affected the sound at all.  If I try, I can make the left side do it now as well.
 
If you are reading this as a casual music listener with a good budget I would totally recommend the IE 80s.  Bit less of a budget, be happy with the GR07s if you can get them knowing they should get better after a few months.  From what I can tell the Senn IE 60s are definitely worth an honorable mention to checking out.  To know if these are worth $450, listen to a high quality rip of Everything In Its Right Place by Radiohead, or Pagan Poetry by Bjork.  Nothing else can express these songs the way the IE 80s did for me other than my home stereo 3 way floor speakers.  I have also heard that the Monster Turbine Pros were good in-ears but lots of complaints about them falling apart which is pathetic considering they're expensive.  The Klipsches were honestly adequate for me for the price ($70) but their QA/QC is also bad as one side cutting out is apparently common.  Also, I had some comfort issues.
 
Though you pay for what you get, $450 is expensive so I have to give this 3 star on value.
4 on design just because of personal preference improvements I would make.  Some may give 5 star in this category.  Even they don't go as deep as I would prefer they still give good isolation.  Audio quality is unmatched.  They can make a very flat response or given a real fun earlobe wobbling noise.  These things can turn your head into a sound chamber.

I just received my ie80's and am pretty blown away by how they can reproduce sound. I was pretty hesitant about getting IEM's but an upcoming trip had me start to look into it. After many reviews and write-ups I finally settled on the ie80's, I really like Sennheiser as well so my decision could have been a bit persuaded. At this point I am done with over the ear cans and am a new huge fan of IEM's, the sound is just presented in a whole new way! I am now getting impressions and will be ordering customs ASAP. Thanks for everyone who steered me in the right direction. Mahalo!

Hello, to start off this review I would like to tell you that I am giving away by Brand new IE80s FREE so if you would like to enter for it just simply like this post & comment and I will PM you. 
 
I Personally own one of these IEMs and I tested them for few months with my Fiio x1 & Oppo ha 2 SE. Here are the results
 
COMFORT
 
lets start with the bad part about this IEM because there isn't much. Everything about this IEM is great but comfort can be an issue when using tips included with the IEMs. Alot of tips are included but they are all uncomfortable in my Opinion. My suggestion is to Use Comply foams or Spinfit. OR any other 3rd party tips you find comfortable
 
ISOLATION
 
its there but its much better isolating with the Foams tips than silicon tips for obvious reasons. With the foam tip I would give 9/10 for sound Isolation, if you find the RIGHT fit. 
 
SOUND
 
Now lets get into the good part and what most of you will read anyways. Sound is incredible. (period) Sound stage, separation, imaging... its all there 
 
LOW END
 
Exceptionally great because you can adjust it. You put these things full tilt and you head may blow up. So whether you are a bass head or not, you can adjust it to your liking. The bass is tight & punchy But lacks that sub feeling you would get from Shure 846. With all that being said, trust be when I say the bass in these will blow your mind away.
 
MIDS
 
Now Sennheiser is known for the great mids in many headphones and they do not disappoint in these IE80s. With that being said, they are not MIDDDDD ranged like HD650s. I feel like an idiot comparing these to full sized headphones but the mid range can be that good on certain songs. 
 
HIGHS
 
These are not Bright IEMs in anyway, the high are there but in distant because of the large soundstage. They are not ear piecing but detailed. Sometimes, if you concentrate you hear things in this frequency region you've never head before. 
 
BUILD
 
They are built almost like a tank. They are made of aluminum shells with a dynamic driver inside. If I had the choice of taking a High end High priced IEM on a Hike or something, it would be these. 
The cable... oh the cable.... they are sennheiser cables terminating in a 90 degree 3.5mm jack... and.... it doesn't tangle like CRAZY but not the best....you can always get new 3rd part ones. 
 
 
 
 
I will keep this review short as EVERYONE pretty much know or heard how great these are. Any question?  
 
Visit our site for more extended review of the IE80 !
 
Review provided by soulsikreviews.com
 
Video for reference

I recently purchased the Sennheiser IE80 IEM’s and I am delighted I did.
The sound stage from these is amazing and open up my music in ways I didn’t think were possible.
It really has added to the enjoyment of all of my music and has quickly become my preferred way to listen to my entire audio library. I was concerned about comfort with extended use, but I have to say that it really is not a problem and I can forget they are even in my ears and just concentrate on the music.
The sound isolation while not perfect is more than acceptable and could probably be improved with the choice of a different ear tips. All up I am happy to recommend these to anyone who wants to really enjoy most types of music in complete comfort.