The IE8 is certainly a good starting point. Their pricing has been quite good too, so purchasing one is pretty easy to swallow. The IE8 has a natural kind of presence with a clean and detailed low end. Midrange and treble is well balanced and extended, although the lower frequencies are emphasized and make it sound a little warm and bassy in presence. I would also shoot you towards the other end of the spectrum and look for a very affordable Fischer Audio Eterna, v1 if you can find one floating around the for sale section. It's only about $70 and has a very car audio kind of feel to it with a solid subwoofer like emphasis. You don't always have to spend money to get something you'll like. The concept of "best" is a very subjective thing. I'd also have you look at UE's Triple.Fi 10. The presentation has strong bass and highs and is nice, enveloping presentation with a thick but clean and energetic note. I often describe the presentation as like being at a club. I may also lean you toward the Klipsch Custom 3, a discontinued product but still available on eBay. It's well balanced, decently natural, but has a thicker, well textured note and slight bass and treble emphasis. One key feature with is is the large and well presented sound stage, and is one of the better examples of a good sound stage out there. Bass isn't monstrous but has good weight and energy, and it does respond well to EQing.
It's not all about price. A lot of the challenge is simply finding products that have the sound you're shooting for. That can at times be difficult. I've only suggested a few, and there are plenty more out there. Do some research, and you'll run across a number of other options. Because you have no budget, I would suggest to you a specific approach about reaching your goals. You have money to spare. Buy a few candidates and just try them out. Compare/contrast, and spend some time with each. After a couple weeks, sell off what doesn't do what you want it to do. Keep whatever you like or at least seems to be closest to your goals. Buy a few more candidates and repeat the process. Keep trying and weeding through the products until you find something you can really be happy with. If you buy used, you will not really losing any money doing so. In the end, you may have personally experienced a dozen nice earphones and got a good sense of what's out there and what there is to offer towards your goals. Repeat until you find that option that you really, really enjoy. To reach specific goals, this is the best approach. There is no better way than first hand experience. The only downside is a chunk of money will always be tied up in "liquid" assets. It also takes some time to mull through a large selection of products. However, in the end you will have exactly what you want and know first hand that it fits you best. We can suggest stuff to you, and some of them might fit your goals ok, but you never really know what's best for you unless you actually hear all the options yourself and pass judgment.
