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[size=large]Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2008 Coverage Thread[/size]
[size=small]2008-04-15 UPDATE:[/size][size=small]
Here is a link to to a thread with my CES 2008 recap.[/size]
[size=small]And still another thread for my picks for Best of CES 2008 can be found by clicking here.[/size]
[size=small]Next year I'll keep the CES threads better consolidated.
[/size]
Well, my exclusive on the Sennheiser products being launched ended up not being too exclusive, as it appears information on the new products may have gone out earlier than some expected it to. Sorry I'm a bit late to post, but I ended up busy last night, as is apt to happen in a place like Las Vegas.
As for the new Sennheiser products: I have some good news, and some not-so-good news.
First, the good news: I did get the first listen to the new products, as I was allowed to visit the Sennheiser display just as they were finished setting it up. They have a section of the display designed to look like a small section of a passenger airplane (with a few rows of airplane seats), where they're displaying their noise-canceling headphones, and at least one of the new IEMs. I ended up situating myself in one of the "airplane" seating rows for a couple of hours, listening to their new products.
Now, the not-so-good news: Those of us waiting for a new flagship headphone (the rumored successor to the HD650) will have to wait longer. I have no specifics to report on any specific products in this vein, but I can say for certain that there will be no such products announced at CES 2008. The products that have been reported in this thread already are the products that are being shown at this CES. Hey, I'm as eager as the rest of you for a new flagship from Sennheiser, so I'm sad to report that this isn't the time to report one.
Getting back to the good news: I was able to take with me three of the new products to play with: The IE 6, IE 7, and MX W1 (the borrowing of this product the day before CES being one exclusive privilege they were able to extend), and all three are impressive. I've been listening to them for several hours now, and have some initial sonic impressions.
The IE 6 and IE 7 represent Sennheiser's first foray into the land of higher-end, universal-fit, higher-isolation in-ear monitors. Unlike most of their competition in this sphere, Sennheiser has opted to go with dynamic drivers (over balanced armature drivers), each earpiece containing a single , full-range dynamic driver. I believe both the IE 6 and IE 7 use the same driver units, but the sound of both products differs enough to make that fact not obvious.
The IE 6 is definitely the more bass-happy of the two, which isn't entirely surprising, given that Sennheiser makes no bones about the fact that they intended the IE 6 for "listeners of contemporary rock or pop music." It presents with a fairly wide soundstage for an IEM, and shows nice extension on both ends of the frequency spectrum, along with the aforementioned bass emphasis.
The IE 7 shoots for a more neutral, balanced presentation than the IE 6, and is, to my ears, the better of the two. Like the IE 6, the IE 7 has a fairly wide soundstage (a bit wider than the IE 6), good bass extension (though not as emphasized as with the IE 6), and what sounds to me like more extended, better definition through the entire treble range. Though definitely a move toward neutrality from the IE 6, the IE 7 still has a bent toward sound a little fuller than what I'd consider neutral, but it's a very nice balance, to my ears--if I want an in-ear that sounds to me like something very neutral, then I'd go with my Etymotic ER-4S (or 4P). Even though both the IE 6 and IE 7 are rated for up to 20 dB of passive noise attenuation, the more extended "fit kit" that comes with the IE 7 comes with a set of bi-flange tips that seem to give the IE 7 an edge over the IE 6 in terms of isolation (and which I prefer to use even on the IE 6, which I do not believe comes with them). I think both of these IEMs will sell quite well when they're released, and more reviews are posted, but I have a feeling the IE 7 will become the more popular of the two with the Head-Fi crowd, for its more even-handed tonal balance and better treble articulation and extension. (I imagine the tips that come with the IE 7 will be available separately, if they're not included with the IE 6, but will confirm that with Sennheiser, after I make it back to their booth.)
The IE 6 and IE 7 share nice, compact profiles, both sitting quite flush in the ear, making them among the few IEMs that I can comfortably wear while lying my head down on either ear. Both the IE 6 and IE 7 have nominal impedance of 16 ohms; and both share a Kevlar-reinforced cable that does feel strong, but that I wish was more supple, as it's a bit stiff. Both are expected to be available in March 2008.
The MX W1 is certainly one of the most unique earphone designs we've yet seen. First of all, as many of you already know, it's wireless, using a technology called Kleer that allows for the wireless transmission of 16/44.1-quality audio uncompressed. It is a beautifully packaged product, coming with a leather carrying case that holds a rechargeable dock (it has a built-in rechargeable battery). This dock serves two purposes: not only does it hold the two completely untethered earpieces, but it charges them, too (if I'm not mistaken, the dock holds enough of a charge to juice up the earpieces three or four times between its own charges). Since the earpieces provide (again, if I'm not mistaken) about three hours of play time per charge, the dock can ultimately give you up to eight hours of listening time between its charges.
The kit also comes with a transmission dongle, with a mini-plug. You plug this dongle into the headphone out of whatever device you're going to listen to. Volume is controlled by the driving device, and I drove it both out of an iPod nano directly and my Ray Samuels Audio Predator. Plugging the dongle into the Predator actually provides some benefit, as the Kleer technology is utterly quiet (in terms of background noise), and seems to have a lower noise floor than my nano's headphone out--where some hiss can be heard--but is dead silent out of the Predator (which is the quietest headphone amp I currently have). Also, in addition to the lower noise floor, because the volume is entirely controlled by the driving device, the flexibility afforded by an outboard headphone amp with adjustable gain is helpful with the MX W1. Mind you, my nano alone can drive it to satisfactorily loud levels, but it does sound better driven from the nano's line out into the Predator.
So how does the MX W1 sound? Incredible, considering the following: each earpiece is completely untethered, and so powered entirely by the tiny rechargeable battery within each one. Playing lossless and 320 AAC files through my nano/Predator combo yields what is easily the best fidelity I've ever heard from wireless headphones of any type. In terms of ultimate fidelity, it's not going to edge out Sennheiser's own IE 7, or other high-end offerings from the likes of SHURE, Westone, Ultimate Ears, and othes, but, again, it's entirely wireless (well, except for that short bit of wire from the dongle to the miniplug). The tonal balance is on the fuller side to my ears, but can change depending on how I insert them. Unlike other Sennheiser "twist to fit" products (which tend to go in exactly the same way each time) there's a little more position variation possible (at least for my ears) with the MX W1--I probably need to practice a bit more with them, in terms of consistent insertion. Part of this might be due to the fact that the earbud part of the MX W1 earpiece is a bit bigger than Sennheiser's other earbuds. I'm getting better and better at getting a consistent fit, however, and, when fit right, the sound is utterly amazing considering that there are no wires dangling anywhere off my ears (right now, my portable rig and dongle are sitting on the arm of a couch next to me while I type this--being able to hear sound like this without any wires is a sensation that takes some getting used to). Bass extension is quite deep, and the bass balance is rather neutral (by positioning them a little differently, I can get more bloom in the bass, but the MX W1 sounds better to me with the more neutral bass position--again, the flexibility with position will almost certainly vary with each person's ears). There's some nice bloom through the midband (nice to me anyway), and good treble extension and detail. One of the most impressive things to me about the MX W1 is its microdynamic ability, again, considering its wirelessness. Listening to Cantus' Comfort and Joy, the ambient cues of the venue come through very clearly. And the MX W1's timbral abilities are, again, better than any other wireless headphone I've yet heard (and the AKG HEARO 999 is certainly no slouch in that area for a wireless headphone). I'm sure what is also at least partially responsible for the high fidelity wirelessness I'm getting with the MX W1 is the completely new 14-mm driver that is currently completely unique to the MX W1, and manufactured at Sennheiser's Tullamore, Ireland plant (where they make other high-end Sennheiser headphones and components). I have a feeling we'll see other products down the road using this new driver, as it's very good--I'd be interested to hear it implemented in a wired earbud, and hope that's something they'll use it for in the future.
The MX W1 is a niche product, especially given its relatively high MSRP, which I believe will be about $599.00. That makes for an expensive set of earbuds, but one with what is currently an entirely unique feature set--completely untethered earpieces receiving uncompressed CD-quality audio. Given that they provide little sound isolation, I don't imagine they'd be ideal for loud environs. Given that I can walk around without any apparent loss in sound quality (until I'm out of range, at which point, the signal drops off abruptly), I think these would be great for the office. I often use my Yuin PK-1 at the office when isolation from the outside world isn't ideal, but have to carry my portable rig with me as I move around. The MX W1 would be fantastic for office use, and I'll see if I can borrow this set for a little longer, so that I can use it when I get back to my office in a couple of days. I absolutely love the MX W1, and, of the three products they let me leave with--given its uniqueness and wireless performance--I have to say that the MX W1 is the one I'm most excited about (it would take something like a new flagship full-size to outpace my enthusiasm for the MX W1).
In summary: Sennheiser finally has wired, high-end, universal-fit IEMs to compete with the likes SHURE, Ultimate Ears, Westone, etc., in the IE 6 and IE 7 (again, with the IE 7 being my preference between the two). I have little doubt they (the IE 7 especially) will likely find a lot of fans as customers are actually able to start buying and posting about them, which, again, is expected to be some time in March 2008.
With the MX W1, Sennheiser has a very novel, excellent-performance earbud that, despite its price, will probably find a home with a lot of the more die hard Head-Fi'ers who don't mind spending into the higher street prices that an MSRP of $599.00 will result in. I hope Sennheiser has some functional MX W1's at their display starting today for CES-going Head-Fi'ers to listen to (most of the ones I saw at the display were contained within display cases).
I will post some photos I took yesterday, as well as some short CES podcasting bits I started recording yesterday, and will update you on any other cool Head-Fi-specific products I see as I spend some time at the Venetian today.
NOTE: If you're wondering why I have no impressions of the IE 8 (the one with adjustable bass), it's because they didn't have a functional prototype ready in time for CES. They did have a non-functioning prototype there, however, that I was able to take a couple of photos of. I'll give these a listen as soon as I'm able, but it won't be this week.
[size=small]2008-04-15 UPDATE:[/size][size=small]
Here is a link to to a thread with my CES 2008 recap.[/size]
[size=small]And still another thread for my picks for Best of CES 2008 can be found by clicking here.[/size]
[size=small]Next year I'll keep the CES threads better consolidated.
[/size]
Well, my exclusive on the Sennheiser products being launched ended up not being too exclusive, as it appears information on the new products may have gone out earlier than some expected it to. Sorry I'm a bit late to post, but I ended up busy last night, as is apt to happen in a place like Las Vegas.
As for the new Sennheiser products: I have some good news, and some not-so-good news.
First, the good news: I did get the first listen to the new products, as I was allowed to visit the Sennheiser display just as they were finished setting it up. They have a section of the display designed to look like a small section of a passenger airplane (with a few rows of airplane seats), where they're displaying their noise-canceling headphones, and at least one of the new IEMs. I ended up situating myself in one of the "airplane" seating rows for a couple of hours, listening to their new products.
Now, the not-so-good news: Those of us waiting for a new flagship headphone (the rumored successor to the HD650) will have to wait longer. I have no specifics to report on any specific products in this vein, but I can say for certain that there will be no such products announced at CES 2008. The products that have been reported in this thread already are the products that are being shown at this CES. Hey, I'm as eager as the rest of you for a new flagship from Sennheiser, so I'm sad to report that this isn't the time to report one.
Getting back to the good news: I was able to take with me three of the new products to play with: The IE 6, IE 7, and MX W1 (the borrowing of this product the day before CES being one exclusive privilege they were able to extend), and all three are impressive. I've been listening to them for several hours now, and have some initial sonic impressions.
The IE 6 and IE 7 represent Sennheiser's first foray into the land of higher-end, universal-fit, higher-isolation in-ear monitors. Unlike most of their competition in this sphere, Sennheiser has opted to go with dynamic drivers (over balanced armature drivers), each earpiece containing a single , full-range dynamic driver. I believe both the IE 6 and IE 7 use the same driver units, but the sound of both products differs enough to make that fact not obvious.
The IE 6 is definitely the more bass-happy of the two, which isn't entirely surprising, given that Sennheiser makes no bones about the fact that they intended the IE 6 for "listeners of contemporary rock or pop music." It presents with a fairly wide soundstage for an IEM, and shows nice extension on both ends of the frequency spectrum, along with the aforementioned bass emphasis.
The IE 7 shoots for a more neutral, balanced presentation than the IE 6, and is, to my ears, the better of the two. Like the IE 6, the IE 7 has a fairly wide soundstage (a bit wider than the IE 6), good bass extension (though not as emphasized as with the IE 6), and what sounds to me like more extended, better definition through the entire treble range. Though definitely a move toward neutrality from the IE 6, the IE 7 still has a bent toward sound a little fuller than what I'd consider neutral, but it's a very nice balance, to my ears--if I want an in-ear that sounds to me like something very neutral, then I'd go with my Etymotic ER-4S (or 4P). Even though both the IE 6 and IE 7 are rated for up to 20 dB of passive noise attenuation, the more extended "fit kit" that comes with the IE 7 comes with a set of bi-flange tips that seem to give the IE 7 an edge over the IE 6 in terms of isolation (and which I prefer to use even on the IE 6, which I do not believe comes with them). I think both of these IEMs will sell quite well when they're released, and more reviews are posted, but I have a feeling the IE 7 will become the more popular of the two with the Head-Fi crowd, for its more even-handed tonal balance and better treble articulation and extension. (I imagine the tips that come with the IE 7 will be available separately, if they're not included with the IE 6, but will confirm that with Sennheiser, after I make it back to their booth.)
The IE 6 and IE 7 share nice, compact profiles, both sitting quite flush in the ear, making them among the few IEMs that I can comfortably wear while lying my head down on either ear. Both the IE 6 and IE 7 have nominal impedance of 16 ohms; and both share a Kevlar-reinforced cable that does feel strong, but that I wish was more supple, as it's a bit stiff. Both are expected to be available in March 2008.
The MX W1 is certainly one of the most unique earphone designs we've yet seen. First of all, as many of you already know, it's wireless, using a technology called Kleer that allows for the wireless transmission of 16/44.1-quality audio uncompressed. It is a beautifully packaged product, coming with a leather carrying case that holds a rechargeable dock (it has a built-in rechargeable battery). This dock serves two purposes: not only does it hold the two completely untethered earpieces, but it charges them, too (if I'm not mistaken, the dock holds enough of a charge to juice up the earpieces three or four times between its own charges). Since the earpieces provide (again, if I'm not mistaken) about three hours of play time per charge, the dock can ultimately give you up to eight hours of listening time between its charges.
The kit also comes with a transmission dongle, with a mini-plug. You plug this dongle into the headphone out of whatever device you're going to listen to. Volume is controlled by the driving device, and I drove it both out of an iPod nano directly and my Ray Samuels Audio Predator. Plugging the dongle into the Predator actually provides some benefit, as the Kleer technology is utterly quiet (in terms of background noise), and seems to have a lower noise floor than my nano's headphone out--where some hiss can be heard--but is dead silent out of the Predator (which is the quietest headphone amp I currently have). Also, in addition to the lower noise floor, because the volume is entirely controlled by the driving device, the flexibility afforded by an outboard headphone amp with adjustable gain is helpful with the MX W1. Mind you, my nano alone can drive it to satisfactorily loud levels, but it does sound better driven from the nano's line out into the Predator.
So how does the MX W1 sound? Incredible, considering the following: each earpiece is completely untethered, and so powered entirely by the tiny rechargeable battery within each one. Playing lossless and 320 AAC files through my nano/Predator combo yields what is easily the best fidelity I've ever heard from wireless headphones of any type. In terms of ultimate fidelity, it's not going to edge out Sennheiser's own IE 7, or other high-end offerings from the likes of SHURE, Westone, Ultimate Ears, and othes, but, again, it's entirely wireless (well, except for that short bit of wire from the dongle to the miniplug). The tonal balance is on the fuller side to my ears, but can change depending on how I insert them. Unlike other Sennheiser "twist to fit" products (which tend to go in exactly the same way each time) there's a little more position variation possible (at least for my ears) with the MX W1--I probably need to practice a bit more with them, in terms of consistent insertion. Part of this might be due to the fact that the earbud part of the MX W1 earpiece is a bit bigger than Sennheiser's other earbuds. I'm getting better and better at getting a consistent fit, however, and, when fit right, the sound is utterly amazing considering that there are no wires dangling anywhere off my ears (right now, my portable rig and dongle are sitting on the arm of a couch next to me while I type this--being able to hear sound like this without any wires is a sensation that takes some getting used to). Bass extension is quite deep, and the bass balance is rather neutral (by positioning them a little differently, I can get more bloom in the bass, but the MX W1 sounds better to me with the more neutral bass position--again, the flexibility with position will almost certainly vary with each person's ears). There's some nice bloom through the midband (nice to me anyway), and good treble extension and detail. One of the most impressive things to me about the MX W1 is its microdynamic ability, again, considering its wirelessness. Listening to Cantus' Comfort and Joy, the ambient cues of the venue come through very clearly. And the MX W1's timbral abilities are, again, better than any other wireless headphone I've yet heard (and the AKG HEARO 999 is certainly no slouch in that area for a wireless headphone). I'm sure what is also at least partially responsible for the high fidelity wirelessness I'm getting with the MX W1 is the completely new 14-mm driver that is currently completely unique to the MX W1, and manufactured at Sennheiser's Tullamore, Ireland plant (where they make other high-end Sennheiser headphones and components). I have a feeling we'll see other products down the road using this new driver, as it's very good--I'd be interested to hear it implemented in a wired earbud, and hope that's something they'll use it for in the future.
The MX W1 is a niche product, especially given its relatively high MSRP, which I believe will be about $599.00. That makes for an expensive set of earbuds, but one with what is currently an entirely unique feature set--completely untethered earpieces receiving uncompressed CD-quality audio. Given that they provide little sound isolation, I don't imagine they'd be ideal for loud environs. Given that I can walk around without any apparent loss in sound quality (until I'm out of range, at which point, the signal drops off abruptly), I think these would be great for the office. I often use my Yuin PK-1 at the office when isolation from the outside world isn't ideal, but have to carry my portable rig with me as I move around. The MX W1 would be fantastic for office use, and I'll see if I can borrow this set for a little longer, so that I can use it when I get back to my office in a couple of days. I absolutely love the MX W1, and, of the three products they let me leave with--given its uniqueness and wireless performance--I have to say that the MX W1 is the one I'm most excited about (it would take something like a new flagship full-size to outpace my enthusiasm for the MX W1).
In summary: Sennheiser finally has wired, high-end, universal-fit IEMs to compete with the likes SHURE, Ultimate Ears, Westone, etc., in the IE 6 and IE 7 (again, with the IE 7 being my preference between the two). I have little doubt they (the IE 7 especially) will likely find a lot of fans as customers are actually able to start buying and posting about them, which, again, is expected to be some time in March 2008.
With the MX W1, Sennheiser has a very novel, excellent-performance earbud that, despite its price, will probably find a home with a lot of the more die hard Head-Fi'ers who don't mind spending into the higher street prices that an MSRP of $599.00 will result in. I hope Sennheiser has some functional MX W1's at their display starting today for CES-going Head-Fi'ers to listen to (most of the ones I saw at the display were contained within display cases).
I will post some photos I took yesterday, as well as some short CES podcasting bits I started recording yesterday, and will update you on any other cool Head-Fi-specific products I see as I spend some time at the Venetian today.
NOTE: If you're wondering why I have no impressions of the IE 8 (the one with adjustable bass), it's because they didn't have a functional prototype ready in time for CES. They did have a non-functioning prototype there, however, that I was able to take a couple of photos of. I'll give these a listen as soon as I'm able, but it won't be this week.
