[mrip541]

   
So it's a bit of a tangent for this thread but I'd like to very quickly explore this:
 
If you had a set of customs, and a set of universals and they were:
 
1) Identical in sound quality
2) Identical in comfort
3) Identical in isolation
 
Why would you not go for the universals?

 
I would choose universals, but I'm not sure how a universal could ever be as comfortable as a custom. For some reason the pressure from universal tips just kills my ears. Customs feel almost like nothing is there at all.

 

[hotdogseller]

  It might not look pretty to some people, but at least it looks thousand times better than the HE-1000.

 
LOL this. 
 
also interested to see how the closed EL8 compares to alpha dogs

 

[EddieE]

   
I would choose universals, but I'm not sure how a universal could ever be as comfortable as a custom. For some reason the pressure from universal tips just kills my ears. Customs feel almost like nothing is there at all.

 
Yeah there are still problems to solve. However...
 
Universal IEMs, up until a year or two ago, topped out at mid-fi. Everyone thought of them as mid-fi, they were made to top out a certain quality and hence they did not develop as a category of headphones like some others did.
 
There just hasn't been the R&D there we have seen on flag ships in the full sized headphone category, or custom IEMs.
 
Now that the market is starting to turn on to universal IEMs, I think we will see a lot more research and hence innovation there in the next few years. I think those gaps will be bridged over the next decade.
 
I have a few ideas myself as to how the comfort/isolation gap between customs and universals could be bridged, but don't want to share in case I win the lottery and actually get to try and develop them!
 
Anyway, back on topic.

 

[Vartan]

 

[Jeb Listens]

Most great designs have been somewhat divisive - it's a love / hate thing.  But there seems to be more of a so-so "meh" reaction to the EL8 so far.  Having said that, I do agree with one of the posts above about seeing it in the flesh first - sometimes seemingly simple and uncluttered designs can only really be appreciated this way.  In other applications i've found this to be particularly true when wood veneer is used. 
 
Based on the tiny sound impression we have so far from Jude.... if the EL8 comes close to matching the LCD-X at half the price, well then thats rather spectacular. 

 

[hotdogseller]

 

it was probably the people that designed the i3

 

[EddieE]

There has to be an equation somewhere about how many posts a thread can last on the internet before it descends into negativity. 
 
Anyway, just to remind people focusing on the light grain veneer... this is what the headphones you will likely actually own if you buy an EL8 will look like:
 


 
Stunning...

 

[technobear]

Interesting thread.

To correct an earlier post about the weight of T1's, they weigh 350g. You have to add the entirety of the cable and the plug to get to 550g. In my normal listening position, only the first two feet of the cable are weighing on the cans.

I am another who is blessed with big ears. Even with the T1, I find it requires a bit of faffing about to get them to the one position where they are not pressing on either the top or bottom of my ears. Once set I can wear them for a long time but it is a pain every time I take them off and then have to find that position again.

For this reason, the EL-8 is interesting. Yes it would look dorky on the bus but at home it might be just what I need. However, that wood veneer (or any wood veneer) simply has to go. It would stick out like a sore thumb here. I would like to see some other options for that band. Leather is a good suggestion. Metallic silver would be good. A range of colours would be ace. I would buy a set immediately in metallic turquoise

If Audeze are trying to appeal to a younger and more style conscious audience here, it would appear they have missed a trick. They got the basic shape right but wood veneer is so pipe and slippers. A range of "skins" to personalise the headphone is where its at.

 

[Vartan]

For me
1-st Sound quality
2-nd Comfort
3-rd Look
 
But when you paying for look, it must have a look!

 

[dxanex]

This is the ONLY style of the EL-8 I'd consider buying.

 
Guys, it's real simple-
 
+  = 
 
 
Problem solved!

 

[malla1ml]

The website is back up with the product information.
 
http://www.audeze.com/products/el-8-collection

 

[madwolfa]

  The website is back up with the product information.
 
http://www.audeze.com/products/el-8-collection

 
Bamboo LCD-2 is now down to $916. Rosewood is up to $1066.

 

[Vartan]

 

This is the ONLY style of the EL-8 I'd consider buying.

 
Guys, it's real simple-
 
+  = 
 
 
Problem solved!

+1 for Scotch

 

[madwolfa]

  +1 for Scotch

 
Single malt, please.

 

[madwolfa]

Closed-back specs:
 

Specifications

Style	Closed-back circumaural
Transducer type	Planar magnetic
Magnetic structure	Fluxor magnets
Magnet type	Neodymium
Driver Size	100 mm
Maximum power handling	15W (for 200ms)
Maximum SPL	>130dB
Frequency response	10Hz – 50kHz
Total harmonic distortion	Less than 0.01% (1KHz, 1mw)
Impedance	30 ohms
Efficiency	100dB / 1mW
Optimal power requirement	200mW – 4W
Weight	480g

 
 
Open back:
 

Specifications

Style	Open circumaural
Transducer type	Planar magnetic
Magnetic structure	Fluxor magnets
Magnet type	Neodymium
Driver Size	100 mm
Maximum power handling	15W (for 200ms)
Maximum SPL	>130dB
Frequency response	10Hz – 50kHz
Total harmonic distortion	Less than 0.01% (1kHz, 1mW)
Impedance	30 ohms
Efficiency	102dB / 1mW
Optimal power requirement	200mW – 4W
Weight	460g