Hey there, first post here. I thought I'd chime in since I got the Image ONEs a few days ago. I haven't picked an amp yet, so my opinions are based on the output of the iPod and iPhone.
Anyway, I found that compared to the RE0 IEMs (my only decent reference at this point) the ONEs don't seem to have the same high-end extension. The detail is there, with no sibilance, but it doesn't have the same neverending treble. Midrange sounds good to my ears, but it occasionally gets hidden on the bottom end by what I consider to be way too much bass for "analytical" listening. An example is on the Dallas Wind Symphony's Strictly Sousa album - the bass drum is just overpowering and not true-to-life at all. Mind you, it's good quality bass, but just too much for my taste on that type of music. I listened to some Steely Dan, Seether, Metallica, and AC/DC also, and had the same issue.
On the fun side, though, rap, dance, electronic, etc. all sound really great. I tried some rap with tones in the 30 Hz range and it was loud and clear with no distortion. A test tone at 20 Hz played perfectly through the iPhone, also. They add some nice extra bottom end to piano, acoustic guitar, and vocal music, too. I listen to a lot of Mapleshade stuff, and Tao Ruspoli's Flamenco is WAY more fun to listen to than on the RE0s. Another good one is the ARC Choir's Walk With Me. The clapping, feet stomping, and deep bass voices are just flat out more interesting. These albums sound "accurate" on the RE0s, but aren't near as nice to listen to.
Isolation is probably good for airplane or car noise, but you can still hear things like people talking pretty clearly. They just cover my ears, also, and I'm probably average to big in the ear department. Other than a really quiet environment, people around you probably won't hear anything, either.
I personally think they're worth every penny, and I enjoy the microphone and the case that holds my iPod, RE0s, and probably an amp, too. They also come with a 1/8"-1/4" adapter and an airline adapter (I was REALLY glad to see that). I like that I can skip forward and back with the remote, also.
Hopefully this will help out anybody that's just getting into this stuff (like myself). I'm still reading a lot, and trying to make a logical progression through my equipment. The Image ONEs do a lot of things well at their price point and include some nice accessories, so I'm happy with them. I can't see buying anything else in this price range, and my next upgrade will probably be in the neighborhood of the HD 650s or something similar.
so I went for the B&w p5's got them for $220 ;b cant wait to get them 