[Max Choiral]

I was actually looking at the flagship QDC stuff recently (crinacle rates them at the top of his list) and how much of a difference they'd make over an Etymotic. I recently switched back to the foam tips on my ER4 and the clarity is really something else. Detail wise they're like 80-90% close to the HD800 but they lack a bit of treble (especially above 10K). However, in terms of clarity it seems that even such a cheap IEM can beat the HD800. Almost every sound that I hear sounds more real/clear and less diffuse like the HD800.

HD800 is actually a very resolving cans however it has an extreme stage which makes it less detail. the cons or pros u take it as u want.
VX resolution is top tier from lowest to the highest frequency. Though, it is to me "emotionless". KSE1200 on the other hand is even more resolving. Take an estat driver and push it in ear and has a narrow soundstage, u can hear every single thing in the track even the one that should not be audible. You can easily know if the mastering was great or bad with kse1200. However, kse1200 vocals are thin.

edit: probably u can get er2se to "upgrade" the timbre of er4.

I really feel alienated when people talk about resolution, details in context of HD800 It has, maybe, a little bit more overall resolving performance than smth like HD650 but with a huge sacrifice to the timbre. Certainly, there is a chance a ~4000$ stack's juice wasn't enough for this pair but my experience with possibly underpowered dynamic and planar headphones tells me that if you even can't get bass and enough body to the sound with amplification, at least, you can evaluate capability of midrange to some extent. And I didn't feel HD800 has even a hint of any serious capability at all.

Detail wise they're like 80-90% close to the HD800 but they lack a bit of treble (especially above 10K).

Do you relate lack of treble based on graph or you actually hear it in music with comparison side by side?

 

[twiceboss]

I really feel alienated when people talk about resolution, details in context of HD800 It has, maybe, a little bit more overall resolving performance than smth like HD650 but with a huge sacrifice to the timbre. Certainly, there is a chance a ~4000$ stack's juice wasn't enough for this pair but my experience with possibly underpowered dynamic and planar headphones tells me that if you even can't get bass and enough body to the sound with amplification, at least, you can evaluate capability of midrange to some extent. And I didn't feel HD800 has even a hint of any serious capability at all.

Do you relate lack of treble based on graph or you actually hear it in music with comparison side by side?

It is really up to you and your experience with the cans. Ive had hd800 years with me and been touring a lot of estat, planar, dd headphones together with me. Hd800 has an extreme wide soundstage to be compared with anything out there. I did a lot eq etc on the set to know how capable was the DD inside the HD800 and it is indeed resolve. The tuning is what people heard "less" due to the extreme treble. I dont recommend a new guy into audio to jump on hd800 as it doesnt sound good out of the box, especially in the new waves kind of music, a lot compressed etc. Tell me if u have listened to any phones that has bigger stage than hd800, i could not find any during the canjam even with 30 grand hifiman shangrila. In short, DD in HD800 is very capable, the tuning that limits it to be a resolution monster. Indeed, estat is better in resolution due to its nature but we are talking DD here. However, this makes hd800 unique to have this imaging and its soundstage, surely top-of-the-line for gaming.

 

[491838]

Do you relate lack of treble based on graph or you actually hear it in music with comparison side by side?

I relate it to full size headphones that I've tweaked with EQ and the sound of speakers. The ER4 does get eerily close to speaker sound at times due to it's highly neutral tuning but its treble is a bit too rolled off in my opinion, especially above 10K, and you can kinda tell on orchestral and classical music. It could use 3-4 dB more air for sure.

Edit: It does blow the HD800 out of the water in terms of clarity. It has a more direct sound that I enjoy but I wouldn't necessarily describe that as more detail. Just better clarity and perhaps more even detail. The HD800's treble is too spiky to have the same kind of clarity but it does come close on some songs and even surpasses the ER4 on others in some regards.

 

[LIVE_EVIL]

When I listen to new music er4 at times fools me into thinking that sound came from "outside". Never happened with any other headphone.

 

[dhc0329]

I tried out ER4XR and to my surprise it sounds quite good. A little more smoothness on treble may help but the bass was quite good having only single BA driver. Since this goes quite deep into your ear, your ear chamber also participates in enhancing the bass reverb. This little earphone doesn't fall behind comparing to some of very expensive totl IEMs. Only grip I have is the microphonics on cable.

 

[Blackwoof]

I really feel alienated when people talk about resolution, details in context of HD800 It has, maybe, a little bit more overall resolving performance than smth like HD650 but with a huge sacrifice to the timbre. Certainly, there is a chance a ~4000$ stack's juice wasn't enough for this pair but my experience with possibly underpowered dynamic and planar headphones tells me that if you even can't get bass and enough body to the sound with amplification, at least, you can evaluate capability of midrange to some extent. And I didn't feel HD800 has even a hint of any serious capability at all.

The HD800 is very overhyped for a TOTL. Has 5% THD like the HD6XX, needs the 6k peak tamed, Still has excursion issues of using a <50mm driver which show's with heavy bass boosts. Wouldn't touch it if there was either ER4XR or HD800 as a choice. Ironically the ER2/ER4 <0.3% under 200Hz at 100db, So cue less colouring there in Electronic/Metal. No idea what they did with the HD800S it bass measures like the HD650?.

 

[twiceboss]

Does the new ER2SE comes with this in the box?

 

[Esers]

Does the new ER2SE comes with this in the box?

Yes. I received er2xr with double-flange tips.

 

[twiceboss]

Yes. I received er2xr with double-flange tips.

Oh damn nice. I had er2se back then. That was one of the moments for me to be "shock" in my audio hobby. Im so in love with the clarity er2se could give. Though, after a few days, i feel like it's not really comfortable for me to wear it in the long run. End up returning it.

And here am i, after about a year, i started missing it. I just ordered it yesterday without knowing that "new tips". Wow, i think i just hit the pot! that double looks soooo comfortable than the triple flange. Still, im gonna keep it this time. Chifi nowadays with sub $500 is nothing compared to this er2.

 

[blse59]

Oh damn nice. I had er2se back then. That was one of the moments for me to be "shock" in my audio hobby. Im so in love with the clarity er2se could give. Though, after a few days, i feel like it's not really comfortable for me to wear it in the long run. End up returning it.

And here am i, after about a year, i started missing it. I just ordered it yesterday without knowing that "new tips". Wow, i think i just hit the pot! that double looks soooo comfortable than the triple flange. Still, im gonna keep it this time. Chifi nowadays with sub $500 is nothing compared to this er2.

I got my ER2SE last week and they did not come with double flange tips.

 

[rggz]

I got my ER2SE last week and they did not come with double flange tips.

Probably you got an old batch then.

 

[Max Choiral]

It is really up to you and your experience with the cans. Ive had hd800 years with me and been touring a lot of estat, planar, dd headphones together with me. Hd800 has an extreme wide soundstage to be compared with anything out there. I did a lot eq etc on the set to know how capable was the DD inside the HD800 and it is indeed resolve. The tuning is what people heard "less" due to the extreme treble. I dont recommend a new guy into audio to jump on hd800 as it doesnt sound good out of the box, especially in the new waves kind of music, a lot compressed etc. Tell me if u have listened to any phones that has bigger stage than hd800, i could not find any during the canjam even with 30 grand hifiman shangrila. In short, DD in HD800 is very capable, the tuning that limits it to be a resolution monster. Indeed, estat is better in resolution due to its nature but we are talking DD here. However, this makes hd800 unique to have this imaging and its soundstage, surely top-of-the-line for gaming.

My experience is fairly wide, covering from moderate low to a premium price range and with different type of transducers including e-stats as well.
Hifiman is more about hype, than sound. This is relative to my time with HE1000 v1. Maybe they did better with Susvara, Shangri-La but those prices, honestly, makes me burst with laughter. Don't take it personal
HD800's soundfield is indeed wide but nothing earth shattering to me. The biggest soundstage (not only wide but also impressively deep) I have ever heard in headphones goes to Perun e-stat, 4th gen if I'm not mistaken. It's old now, there have been changes, 2 or 3 more iterations came out. Even so, for me it was experience akin listening to near-field 2-way monitors. You can find its thread here and dig in for uncovering more details.

 

[LIVE_EVIL]

Does the new ER2SE comes with this in the box?

These come in a special pack of er2se or er2xr with lightning adapter. The combo is more expensive than normal er2se/er2xr, circa 120$ on amazon. Tried all of these, tripple flanges are better soundwise anyway.

 

[Esers]

These come in a special pack of er2se or er2xr with lightning adapter. The combo is more expensive than normal er2se/er2xr, circa 120$ on amazon. Tried all of these, tripple flanges are better soundwise anyway.

I bought regular er2xr version and there were double-flange tips.

 

[LIVE_EVIL]

I bought regular er2xr version and there were double-flange tips.

Full array of them or just 2?