[Dillan]

Hello guys i wanted to buy the EL8 Open back but i heard that they lack bass and they dont sound good with trance and hip hop and dance
i listen to every genre , but considering i'm paying a lo of $ and i already have a denon d2000 i dont want to buy them and then regret it

and my local stores dont have a test option and they are the only one who have it

can someone help me with this ?
these are the headphones they have : 

HD 650  , VB630 , EL8(close and open) , T90 , T1 , HD700 , T5p 2nd gen and first  , Shure 1840 and 1540 

i listen to every genre including trance and electronic , what do you think i should do ? i have a FiiO E10 amp too

i listen at home too , so no problem having open back headphone


also i have to say i dont care about the bass that much , not a basshead , but i just want them to sound good at every genre including trance
i dont care they have a boomy bass or not , i just want these to sound good at trance too 

anyone who have these badboys please help , also if you have tested the headphones i mentioned too , then better ! any help would be great

The 2016 open back version sounded like they had more bass than the closed version to my ears. These are planars and still hint at that Audeze house sound with good bass quality and quantity. I have found these to be very fulfilling in bass and can play all genres well. I have auditioned some of the worlds best and I rate them as one of the very best I have listened to.

 

[indieman]

Hope to audition these again soon, perhaps tomorrow. Will report back. From last time I remember the bass being nice and punchy.

 

[SoundTown]

Anyone here tried both the EL-8 Closed and Open? Not planning to get the EL-8 (simply don't have the money) but when I tried the EL-8 Closed, I was extremely impressed based solely on the fact it sounded exactly like what I'd expect a headphone of its price should sound. In other words, based on my personal experience, it sounded like it'd be worth every dollar it cost. For that reason, I'm just plain interested in the headphone now, much to my wallet's fright.
Not only am I curious about the differences between the Open and Closed, I'd also like to know if my impressions can be considered reliable. Having read that the EL-8 were relatively easy to drive, I tried them out of my Fiio Q1 Dac/Amp and out of my friend's Samsung S7. What I noticed was that for all the hype of planars' bass, the EL-8 Closed didn't seem to have very thick bass.
The Closed had very tight, controlled and deep extended bass, but it really didn't seem very pronounced. Based on my brief demo, it seemed like there was a mid-bass scoop, something like the Zero Audio Carbo Tenore's general sound signature actually.
What I'm getting at is: does the EL-8's bass become noticeably more pronounced with more amplification? Or is it just that the EL-8 don't have very pronounced bass? Would like to know.

 

[Dillan]

Anyone here tried both the EL-8 Closed and Open? Not planning to get the EL-8 (simply don't have the money) but when I tried the EL-8 Closed, I was extremely impressed based solely on the fact it sounded exactly like what I'd expect a headphone of its price should sound. In other words, based on my personal experience, it sounded like it'd be worth every dollar it cost. For that reason, I'm just plain interested in the headphone now, much to my wallet's fright.
Not only am I curious about the differences between the Open and Closed, I'd also like to know if my impressions can be considered reliable. Having read that the EL-8 were relatively easy to drive, I tried them out of my Fiio Q1 Dac/Amp and out of my friend's Samsung S7. What I noticed was that for all the hype of planars' bass, the EL-8 Closed didn't seem to have very thick bass.
The Closed had very tight, controlled and deep extended bass, but it really didn't seem very pronounced. Based on my brief demo, it seemed like there was a mid-bass scoop, something like the Zero Audio Carbo Tenore's general sound signature actually.
What I'm getting at is: does the EL-8's bass become noticeably more pronounced with more amplification? Or is it just that the EL-8 don't have very pronounced bass? Would like to know.

To my ears and with much surprise.. The open version had more bass. This is very unique but it was the case in multiple different comparisons. Others may disagree.

And as far as more/better amp = more bass.. The answer is no. You won't get a noticeable amount of more bass with a better amp.. I'd rely on EQ for that. Mine have the cipher cable which paired with an iPhone gives you EQ app that can bring these to insane bass levels if you wanted.

 

[SoundTown]

To my ears and with much surprise.. The open version had more bass. This is very unique but it was the case in multiple different comparisons. Others may disagree.

And as far as more/better amp = more bass.. The answer is no. You won't get a noticeable amount of more bass with a better amp.. I'd rely on EQ for that. Mine have the cipher cable which paired with an iPhone gives you EQ app that can bring these to insane bass levels if you wanted.

Thanks for the reply, now I'm even more interested in trying the Open versions. Will definitely be going back to my local retailer to try more of Audeze's headphones, they've gotten off to a great start with me through the EL-8 Closed. Can't wait to try the LCD-X.
From some people's impressions I'm worried the X will just blow my mind, heh.

 

[mikek200]

Just picked up a pair of used,el-8.o
As mentioned earlier in the thread,I too,am getting this squishing sound from the the ear cups,not sure why it is,maybe a combination of leather & sweat?
These headphones run extremely hot,almost to the point of being unusable.
Does anyone have a suggestion,as how I can get rid of this squishing,other than velour pads?,and what kind of SQ changes should I expect?
 
My setup is a ParasoundZD v2 dac/amp &  the 1217 Garage Ember tube amp.
 
Any help/suggestions,will be appreciated thanks,
 
Mike

 

[Sharkhunter]

I picked a EL-8 refurbished Open Back headphones. I also own a HD800S. "Never Forget You" track by Zara is extremely sibilant on audeze el-8. i loved this song on LCD-2 and HD800S. 
 
Will this become better with any burn-in? Any tips on reducing the clamp force. 
 
Thanks,

 

[inthere]

A properly working EL-8 shouldn't be sibilant at all IME.

 

[Sharkhunter]

A properly working EL-8 shouldn't be sibilant at all IME.

So this song doesn't sound sibilant. My audio chain is modi 2u - lyr 2 with LISST tubes. Also any tricks to ease the head clamp. I did try stretching across the books. It didn't help much.

 

[arftech]

My pair of like new EL-8O were delivered today and after about 4 ours of listening to everything from jazz, electronica, blues, rock, hip-hop and r&b via Tidal HiFi I am really impressed.  These were manufactured 4/16/16 so they're the improved versions.  Coming from the B&W P7 is a revelation!  I'm still keeping my Westone UM Pro 50's though because they're damn good.
 
Enjoy The Music!

 

[zerolight]

I just auditioned a pair of open back EL8 today alongside the Oppo PM3. Sadly I forgot my headphone adaptor for my iPhone 7 plus so I couldn't use my own music which is of the rock, hard rock, 80s hair rock variety, with a dose of current pop/rock. What I got was an AK device with classical music from Vivaldi I think. Not my thing. However I quickly discovered the EL8 destroyed the PM3. Whilst the PM3 was nice, smooth, quite detailed, the EL8s were more detailed, and had in comparison, a huge and deep soundstage. I was very impressed. Bass notes sounded rich and deep, textured would be the description I'd use. Really amazing. I need closed back NC phones right now, or I'd be hunting for a used pair!

 

[smokecrack]

How do the EL-8's compare to a Grado 325e? Worthwhile upgrade?

 

[Fred Wang]

I only had the chance to listen to the Grado 325e for a short while, so, take this opinion with a grain of salt. The Grado 325e's were impressive for the price and definitely punched above their price. The 2016 revision of the EL-8's (I have the open-backed), are wonderful. In terms of weight, the EL-8's are significantly heavier, but they are far from uncomfortable. 

I would say that the Grado are slightly more open in their sound, while the EL-8 have some more "oomph" to the sound. In terms of clarity and speed, I think the EL-8 are better than the Grado 325e, but this might also be due to them being planar magnetic. To me, when I try to remember the Grado's sound, I remember thinking it was somewhat...bell-like, and a little bit bass-light (though not as much as I expected when I first saw them. The EL-8, to me, are somewhat warmer and have a lot of bass for open-backed headphones. Just as a side-note, I tend not to like bass-heavy sounds, but am somewhat sensitive to peaks in highs, so, it might also help explain my preference for the Audeze sound.

But, YMMV.

Cheers!

 

[coletrain104]

has anyone here heard the Hifiman 400i? thinking about moving up, and the el-8 open is the kind of step I can currently afford. No point if the EL-8o isn't my thing though. Thoughts?
 
EDIT: I should add that I've seen measurements for the new 2016 models and they look quite relaxed in the upper range. Do you feel that this is true to the ears?

 

[florencephile]

was wondering the same exact thing. anyone experience both side by side?