In my experience equalisers worsen the overall experience. Sound engineering is a complex field, don't tweak yourself is what I say. I used to do that to gain more treble, but really after going 'direct source' it's so obvious what I missed all those years.

After much comparison, I conclude that I cannot decide whether or not balanced is better than SE. I think of balanced output as listening to a concert in a church, while SE is more akin to listening in a small venue. More intimate, but some intricacies get lost. A concert in a church is...

This has me chortling with laughter lol

Yeah, your experience vastly varies from mine. I remember prior to my IE800S purchase that you said your ZX300 made the IE800S distorted some times. While I have found my ZX300 drives the IE800S like a breeze without any distortion.

You're entitled to your own opinion ofcourse, but Sony's Walkmans are to many listeners far superior than these iBasso's, which are made by conjoining parts that many manufacturers use. The Sony's are all designed in-house by Sony; amps are their own, connections are their own,... and just...

Well, for a balanced cable it is rather lightweight.perhaps that contributes to the perceived discrepancy

Plenty of power on the ZX300 (Asia-pacific model).

I know that of course. It's not about the difference, it's that the 3.5 mm sounds better to my ears now (both ports fully burned-in)

Both outputs on Sony NW-ZX300

After spending most of my time with these on balanced, I've now retried the 3.5mm cable. I'm not sure if it's just my brain picking up on something different, but right now I feel the 3.5mm sounds better to my ears. Less separation yes, more frontal yes. But more overall body and coherence...

Having lived with IEMs as a daily companion for ten years, I'm no stranger to micro phonics. But the IE800S is not the worst, far from it After a while I've learned to tuck the cable beneath my jacket, to hook a part of the cable over a button, to seal the cable in-between the button-array of a...

I'm completely satisfied with these IEMs after 2 (?) months of frequent use. I'm not the person to use many IEMs and I think these are up to the task of serving as a day-to-day IEM (save bedtime, for which I use Klipsch x10). BUT: has anyone had these destroyed by rain yet? This is what I'm...

I dislike it too, but it pays off when you muster up the patience . I let my ZX300 just play overnight until it was burned-in.

No, it's simply not up for debate with these Sony players. Even if you will not attest to the difference in sound, you will find that battery life (especially on balanced) is a lot longer after the device is completely burned-in. That is due to the materials having changed in properties, e.i...

It's not a case of believing or not. Sony explicitly tells you in the 'guide to high quality sound' that each port needs about 200hrs of turn-in. Assuming it will be very similar to the ZX300- which I have- every port will sound at its best after about 300hrs even... To do a review of this...

After 100hrs I remember there was not much difference. My ZX300 really started to shine after 300hrs. You'll have to let that baby play overnight, or your ZX300 will be old before you'll have the best of its capabilities :)

If that's not fatherly love, I don't know what is :k701smile:

I'll insure them for 2000$ and then you will somehow lose them, okay? :o2smile::o2smile:

I will send you mine :L3000: The ak sure are handsome iems. That's perhaps one gripe I have about the IE800S; they don't look like a 1000$ pair of iems. But then again, I don't want them to be stolen.

Well, you know I was considering the Xelento too. And that is basically a tuned version of the akt8ieii. But the included balanced cable with the IE800S and the tiny format (I like tiny IEMs) directed me to the IE800S. I'm glad with my choice. But the akt8ieII are probably in the same league :)

They do sound amazing; very clear, wide soundstage, yet full-bodied. Not fatuiging yet bright treble. punchy bass but controlled. I cannot recommend them enough really :) . Ofcourse after the Skullcandy's that is :wink: (but really, I use my standard Galaxy buds at my laptop often and they are...

Hey @abitdeef , remember I once contemplated getting the Sennheiser IE800S? Well, I've given in and bought them full-price. They're a terrific match with the ZX300, on SE and on balanced.

A friend of mine pushed the foam (hard) in the IE800S case- admittedly it is somewhat tempting. But now his imprint is on there for what seems like it will be forever. Lol, I'm mad but on the other hand cannot be mad at him. Is there anything I could do to level the surface again? It's not like...

If you got the means to play them balanced from a Pentaconn 4.4mm jack, that's a very strong selling point to be honest. Essentially, you get two different IEMS; the balanced and single-ended cables appeal to different tastes/ moments.

I haven't heard the SE846. But from reviews it appears it is more bass heavy than the IE800S. With your preference for EDM and pop, it sounds like a good iem for you. That having said; the SE846 is bulkier and will weigh more than the IE800S. But it is easier to use over the ear (cable)...