[Kdarcia007]

Hey guys,
 
I am on my second set of IE8's for the past 7 years and I just LOVE them, they are so sturdy and I love the sound!, but the oem cable usually goes first, and I have tried several "upgraded" cables like the "Night Stalker" and other I can't recall right now, and they were subpar, they lacked the OEM cable's softness, they were all super stiff and uncomfortable, and to be honest, they did not last long, that same stiffness was very detrimental for the longevity of the cable, they lasted a couple of months AT BEST... then they were gone...
 
Can someone please point me in the direction of some OEM-like cables for the IE8's?, or at least something softer than those chinese cables.

 

[ri_toast]

I just ordered the nightstalker hours before your post.
Specifically, how are your cables "self destructing"?

 

[Kdarcia007]

Because unlike the oem cable, which is soft and flexible, those chinese cables are stiff, and the conectors don't last, the connections snap

 

[StyleElements]

Hey, I'm an IE80 user (IE8 cables fit the IE80 fine), and my original IE80 cable recently broke. Fortunately Sennheiser's customer service was excellent and they mailed me a new cable. While I waited, I looked at Chinese eBay options such as the silver galaxy, night stalker and a few other Chinese cables in the $50ish range. Lee730, a serious IE80 fan, mentioned in the IE80 thread somewhere that the Galaxy cable is stiffer than the stock cable, and from your experience it seems like other Chinese cables are stiffer than the original.
 
I didn't buy any of the above. What I did buy was – gasp – this really cheap cable. I figured, for $8, why not give it a try?
 
http://www.ebay.com/itm/G-Replacement-Cable-Line-Cord-Wire-For-Sennheiser-IE80-IE-80-Headphones-Headset-/380996895087?pt=US_MP3_Player_Cables_Adapters&hash=item58b52f416f
 
I've been using it for almost a week now every day for a few hours (of course this is not a long time). It is soft, flexible, extremely comfortable and has no problem staying over my ear even without any cable guide/memory wire. I can easily lie down with it and I'm happy with the cable. As for sound, I reckon it sounds identical to the original cable.
 
However, this cable is far from durable. The 3.5mm plug and metal thing separating the top and bottom sections of the cable are nice and solid but there is really no strain relief on the cable to speak of. I would not go for a run using this cable, and if I caught it on something while moving quickly I would fully expect it to die horribly
 
The cable is really bare bones, as expected for $8. There is no y-splitter; it comes all wrapped up and you have to unwrap it to your desired length and then be careful not to unwrap it any further. I didn't mind. Once you unwrap it, the part of the cable connecting to the earphones is really thin, almost worryingly so.
 
I have gone through three IE80 cables (over almost 3 years, so I'm not a serial cable abuser ), all stiffer and less comfortable than this cable. And at least this one is affordable! Below is the cable attached to my IE80s. I'm pretty sure it will fit your IE8 just fine.
 
 
 
Overall: Despite potential durability concerns, I'm going to recommend it as something cheap and cheerful. It will probably not last more than 3 months without some care – I really try and look after my stuff – but here is an OEM cable which is nice and soft to me at least. I know it's 8 bucks, so it's probably head-fi blasphemy to recommend, but I'm genuinely really pleased with this purchase.
 
I hope this long opinion helped in some way – good luck!
 
PS: Why not get another stock IE8 cable? I have heard the stock IE8 cable is better than the stock IE80 cable. The IE8 cable is generally regarded as supple yet tough (Kevlar-coated, right?) – I saw that in ljokerl's big IEM review. I like the stock IE80 cable for its toughness but won't say I love it, I find it too stiff and it doesn't stay over my ear without the cable guide.

 

[Kdarcia007]

thanks for the post!
 
Quick update: I called Sennheiser's CS and ordered two oem IE8's cable, it's like $35 each, I didn't know I could do that!, now I'll have my oem cable plus a spare one, yay!