headfone
Banned
Now known as alphaman
- Joined
- Mar 21, 2006
- Posts
- 216
- Likes
- 11
Just ordered the IE-8s from computeruniverse.net, so I'll report back w/audio eval. when those arrive and have burned in. (Anyone know how long for USA delivery?)
Some preliminary thoughts...
Currently have Shure SE530 and EC2 IEMs. Both those have rotten cables -- fall apart after less than 4 mos use. I've had Shure replace the E500 2x. Sigh.
Experience with other "smaller" Sennheiser phones -- since my first pair from 1985 (anyone remember MS100s? Similar to the px100) -- as well as 580, 600 and 650 was positive wrt cable durability.
Reasons I chose the IE-8s (over W3):
(1) Prior experience with Senn 'phones: 650's are the best headphone I've heard (see my sig line for the phones I've compare this model with)
(2) Westone and Shure IEMs have a common engineering heritage. So, IMO, they will sound more alike than Westone and Senn. For me, then, even if the W3 is better rated (statistically) than E500/SE30 and equally-rated to (but different) than IE-8, then I will choose the IE-8 to hear what sonic gaps it fills (and what it misses).
(3) I respect the comments and judgments of the posters on this forum. Esp. because most have no commercial interest (at least TTBOMK!). EarphoneSolns and HeadRoom have comments and ratings on various models, incl. IE-8, but who knows who really wrote them? HeadRoom didn't rate the IE-8 all that well. But, I don't trust product-vendor opinions. Even Amazon seems to display their better reviews first!
Seems that more and more audio companies are getting into the IEM game. The competition, of course, is a good thing. Now, I really wish some of the other main players -- i.e. headphone/dynamic-transducer giants (esp. beyer and AKG) -- would enter the IEM arena.
Anyway, I'll post more after the IE-8s arrive...
Some preliminary thoughts...
Currently have Shure SE530 and EC2 IEMs. Both those have rotten cables -- fall apart after less than 4 mos use. I've had Shure replace the E500 2x. Sigh.
Experience with other "smaller" Sennheiser phones -- since my first pair from 1985 (anyone remember MS100s? Similar to the px100) -- as well as 580, 600 and 650 was positive wrt cable durability.
Reasons I chose the IE-8s (over W3):
(1) Prior experience with Senn 'phones: 650's are the best headphone I've heard (see my sig line for the phones I've compare this model with)
(2) Westone and Shure IEMs have a common engineering heritage. So, IMO, they will sound more alike than Westone and Senn. For me, then, even if the W3 is better rated (statistically) than E500/SE30 and equally-rated to (but different) than IE-8, then I will choose the IE-8 to hear what sonic gaps it fills (and what it misses).
(3) I respect the comments and judgments of the posters on this forum. Esp. because most have no commercial interest (at least TTBOMK!). EarphoneSolns and HeadRoom have comments and ratings on various models, incl. IE-8, but who knows who really wrote them? HeadRoom didn't rate the IE-8 all that well. But, I don't trust product-vendor opinions. Even Amazon seems to display their better reviews first!
Seems that more and more audio companies are getting into the IEM game. The competition, of course, is a good thing. Now, I really wish some of the other main players -- i.e. headphone/dynamic-transducer giants (esp. beyer and AKG) -- would enter the IEM arena.
Anyway, I'll post more after the IE-8s arrive...