That is an interesting comment about getting the right fit to get optimal sound quality. This can explain some of the conflicting reviews.

i think that i might be very interested to go and take a listen to them.
 
i am very curious how the soundstage sounds compared to hd800. or the entire headphone is compared to hd800, which is my main point of refference, and wish that i do not think i am going to get....

@skerry2006aj hd800 is on upper level, the sound stage of hd800 is the best of any headphones I ever tried, el8 wouldn't even come close only he-560

What would you consider your favorite closed back cans?

All the mixed reviews on these are wild. I cant quite nail what seems to be the problem. Is it fitting issues? Is it variations between cans due to manufacturing errors? Is it a subjective issue? Ive never seen a headphone where everyone reviews differ so drastically. Some say its warm and dark, some say its cold and bright. I guess im going to have to try and find a place to test them myself.

@jmotyka, it's just what headphones you are comparing it too. This pair of headphones is at a weird price point, so you have people w/ consumer-oriented headphones making the upgrade vs people w/ flagships trying it out. the common sound sigs at the $1k+ price point and $100-$500 price point can be very different, so no common point of reference. for example, this reviewer is primarily comparing against v-shaped closed headphones (ultrasone/fostex) with more bass emphasis than other options on the market.

I listened to both the open and closed back el-8 at the axpona show this last weekend. I much preferred the closed back model. I did not like the open back at all. The closed back was much tighter sounding and sounded much clearer in general. It mated very well with the attoll preamp/dc/headphone amp that I listened to it on . While it s no serious threat to my Lcd v2 it did not sound bad and was much more comfortable than my Lcd 2

You know for 600-700 headphone, I dont want to EQ anything. For the price I rather purchase the Alpha Dog. I have heard the Open version and it doesnt impress me at all.

Do you think they deserve the price (for $999 in AU)?

It is a misconception that EQ is bad - not all EQ is bad, it's simply a user preference. It is also dependent on the amplifier. Like I noted in my review, the headphones perform fine with a good audio source (this is critical - can really tell the difference between anything but a lossless file). They worked fine plugged right into my phone. The amplifier with flat EQ helped significantly, and the EQ was simply done to tweak the settings to a soundstage that I enjoy for genres of music, etc. It is by no means required. I also have a JDSLabs C5 amp and do not EQ on that at all, for example. I am going to try these with a Tube Amp as well. Also, the fit is key to the soundstage. These are planar headphones, but they use Audeze's newer designs - Fluxor magnets so the overall magnetic flux is not evenly distributed across the diaphram. They use another technology to address that, however. Magnet is also single sided and angled for the Fluxor element design, so it's going to really come down to hearing these and actually burning them in. 
 
Many of the reviews I've read have been listeners who heard these cans for minutes or an hour. That's not enough for these cans to really shine. You need to get used to the fit, the overall magnetic structure and how it transforms the soundstage within your ear. On the closed back, the tightness of fit and even angle is something that should be initially played around with until you get the comfort, sound and overall experience. 
 
I paid $599 for an open box version of these EL-8 closed cans, but they were basically new, so I was happy with that value. I can't say that the price of $999 is worth it. $600 was fair for these cans for sure. 
 
Overall, they are sort of bright out of the box, yes. Not hard to correct. They're bright but not so much that I have a terrible experience, and simple to "fix." 
 
rmoody: These are some of the most comfortable closed backs I have worn, and great isolation. At the moment, I'm really getting into these cans so I really do enjoy them a lot. The Denon D5000's are also excellent cans on the bass heavy side but nevertheless a very well crafted headphone. Also, to a commenter above, the HD800's are probably going to have a different soundstage: they're some of the best from Sennheiser. Also they are open headphones, not closed. Lastly, it's not that fair to compare those to these as the price difference is about two times as much. 

Yes, Saora, EQ is not necessary bad. Actually putting on different amps is a form of EQing as each amp is tuned slightly different. 
 
I also have the closed back version of the EL-8s. I actually preferred the sound of the open version, but the fantastic isolation of the closed back and the fact that I´m using them in an open office environment made the choice pretty easy. They are great office phones.

Interesting review. I tried the EL-8 closed at a local meet recently and I didn't like its sound at all. Lean bass, bright and aggressive-sounding, and a bit sizzly. The only thing I did like about it was the sense of space it created in my head, but with all of its other sound attributes, I couldn't get myself to like it.