[redogfizbal]

  Fresh out of the box, I am really enjoying the closed backs...  I'm surprised they sound as good as they do with zero break-in... if they are this good now, they should be great with a bit more break-in...
 
I'm very happy so far.  They may be nearly the same weight as the LCD-2, but back to back trying them on and listening, the EL-8 is noticeably more comfortable on my head.  Maybe it's the shape of the cups, maybe it's the headband, maybe it is the distribution of the weight... but these are very comfortable headphones to wear so far.  I don't really mind the LCD series at all, including the XC, which are my personal favorites for late night listening.  I absolutely love the XC, but they're not super easy to wear if you are moving around a lot given how I wear them...  I now have a perfect option for that....
 
I've been *loving* the ADL H128 as my new "go to" option for more portable closed back... what a steal of a deal for headphones, period... not just for folks that need closed back...they are just good, period... but I like these EL-8 closed back better so far... which is good given how much more expensive the EL-8s are by comparison .... it's going to be an interesting listening experiment to let others try them both out back to back at the upcoming headphone meet and see who prefers what...  
 
The audeze sonic signature is there with the closed back.  Plenty of rich bass like you would expect... they seem very clean sounding and more neutral than the other models in the line-up.  nothing is jumping out at me as irritating or obvious... but it's been less than an hour so far... the newness factor is still in full effect....  back to listening and packing boxes to ship to customers....

can you give some impressions on the Bass. I have never heard an Audeze before. Can it be driven with portable sources? How is the sound stage?

 

[IAMBLEST]

Seems that my closed backs have arrived in my us account, hopefully shipped to me in Dubai this week before I travel to China next weekend!

 

[kish05]

I received the open EL-8 yesterday. I'm not a serious audiophile and I don't know much about the measurements and stuff, but I can tell if a headphone sounds good or bad. I like my headphone to be neutral, and I should say the EL-8 performed really great with my iphone 6. It sounded very neutral and open. It has a very wide soundstage and this is one of the best headphone I have heard so far. I'm sure serious audiophiles should be able to get the most out of these cans with an amplifier. Nonetheless it sounded so great from my iphone 6. Hopefully I will be getting the Closed EL-8 tomorrow.
For some reason I'm not able to upload any pictures in this forum. 

 

[Dark Ayla]

I am wondering if the closed back has a darker wood compared to the open back.
So, guys who got the closed back, is it darker?

 

[dooste-man83]

is that correct that el-8 (  close ) have punchy bass and heavy bass ?
even much more than fostex th600 or v-moda m100? 
 
but there were some review about lack of bass in el-8 close(  especially this topic ) !!!! 
Im Confused about this !!!! 

 

[Jazic]

  is that correct that el-8 (  close ) have punchy bass and heavy bass ?
even much more than fostex th600 or v-moda m100? 
 
but there were some review about lack of bass in el-8 close(  especially this topic ) !!!! 
Im Confused about this !!!! 

 
Woah! Calm down! Seriously though, the early impressions about it lacking bass were likely on the pre-production model(s) so it has likely changed quite a bit. A few people who have their EL8 Closed have said the bass is very good and not lacking by any means (scroll up for those). 
 
If you're looking for audiophile-basshead headphones you should look at those you mentioned the TH600 and M100's. These will be an extremely good quality bass compared to those but it will not have the impact or rattle your ears. Is what you can expect is very defined and detailed bass that can be punchy but not slamming.
 
Orthodynamics have a very low distortion rate compared to other types of headphones so if you're comfortable with EQing then these type headphones will accept Eq much better and go to extremes better and yield better results. That said results may vary and opinions may vary but this is what I have experienced personally.
 
Hope that helps!

 

[money4me247]

  is that correct that el-8 (  close ) have punchy bass and heavy bass ?
even much more than fostex th600 or v-moda m100? 
 
but there were some review about lack of bass in el-8 close(  especially this topic ) !!!! 
Im Confused about this !!!! 

well just have to wait for someone who owns both for a direct comparison to see. different people have different ideas of what the perfect amount of bass is.

 

[eggmansr71]

I got my EL-8 closed today and been enjoying it alot.  Running off a HiFi-M8 but really wish I had a balanced cable as the M8 unit seems best from one (at least with my XC).  Anyone know when one will be available?  I think the clamping force has been improved from what was originally reported but I would still like a little less force.  Already voices sound great.  
 
Its not broken in yet so will have to see where the bass ends up.  Right now I would like a little more as its there but not as much as I want.  The bass is there just not as strong/loud as I would like compared to the rest of the frequency response.  
 
I agree that the wood looks cheap.  Not sure why it just needs something.  I'm sure the first model with the wood will become a collectors edition in the future as they move to something that looks better.  I would say already that this will be close to an XC killer.  Lighter weight and less than half the cost with at least 90+% the sound if not more.  LCD 2F is better but I'm not comparing it to the open EL-8 so not really fair.  That's my first impression.  

 

[reddog]

Seems that my closed backs have arrived in my us account, hopefully shipped to me in Dubai this week before I travel to China next weekend!

Sweet to hear, looking forward to your impressions and if these amazing cans are portable. Please have a good stay in China.

 

[DivergeUnify]

Woah! Calm down! Seriously though, the early impressions about it lacking bass were likely on the pre-production model(s) so it has likely changed quite a bit. A few people who have their EL8 Closed have said the bass is very good and not lacking by any means (scroll up for those). 

If you're looking for audiophile-basshead headphones you should look at those you mentioned the TH600 and M100's. These will be an extremely good quality bass compared to those but it will not have the impact or rattle your ears. Is what you can expect is very defined and detailed bass that can be punchy but not slamming.

Orthodynamics have a very low distortion rate compared to other types of headphones so if you're comfortable with EQing then these type headphones will accept Eq much better and go to extremes better and yield better results. That said results may vary and opinions may vary but this is what I have experienced personally.

Hope that helps!

while the orthks are not as bassy as M100s, I certainly get the impression that impact and slam is better on the orthos.

On the M100s, for whatever reasons, the impact just got softened by the wall of bass

 

[IAMBLEST]

Sweet to hear, looking forward to your impressions and if these amazing cans are portable. Please have a good stay in China.

My pm3s and the el8s will arrive at the same time. Not sure which one to bring to Beijing and Shanghai with me!

 

[money4me247]

My pm3s and the el8s will arrive at the same time. Not sure which one to bring to Beijing and Shanghai with me!

bring whicheva one you don't mind getting stolen hahaha

 

[monkeysixtysix]

 
I would say already that this will be close to an XC killer.  Lighter weight and less than half the cost with at least 90+% the sound if not more. 

 
Strong words... Looking forward to reading more of your impressions as you listen more.

 

[Hunter220]

My pm3s and the el8s will arrive at the same time. Not sure which one to bring to Beijing and Shanghai with me!

Did you order the closed back EL-8s?  If so will be interested to hear your thoughts on the two since I currently am auditioning the PM-3s and thinking of testing them against the EL-8s but would be interested to hear some other thoughts first on the two.

 

[reddog]

My pm3s and the el8s will arrive at the same time. Not sure which one to bring to Beijing and Shanghai with me!

Lol the horror such a decision. I would take the most portable of the two. I always wanted to visit Shanghai, the history, of such a city, could keep me happily preoccupied.