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I did???
I think you mean the D-465.
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I guess we have to pick a bone here. In all cases when somebody says portable, I think of a truly portable environment, and in that situation, I would dare anybody to tell me that "difference that is ultimately clear between the E888s and MX500s". You know why those people out there were so resistant to my A44 review? Because it is in essence a portable 'phone, and it makes no sense for anybody to be running it from a $1000+ setup. In the same case here, I believe you'd have to be in a totally comfy at home situation with your portable with a relatively high end setup, whether it be portable or a full rig, to be able to truly hear differences that are very likely to be unheard in a portable environment. Hence the lack of interest in truly slicing and dicing portable 'phones 5000 ways till Sunday.
This is why I've come to the sad conclusion of just not caring all that much anymore about my portable 'phones. As long as I'm not using something that just obviously sounds bad, I'm pretty happy with anything that's small and convient and can be run from a 5mw portable. In the same sense, I no longer care about how relatively expensive equipment is to a 'phone, before sticking the 'phone into the equipment. I've powered my 888s before from my 9000ES with a tricked out JMT Cmoy that's designed for low to very low impedance headphones, and sure enough it sounds plenty good. I'm certainly not going to run around and make a full report about it, because I already know 95% of the people out there don't care. The mindset would be "it's a portable earphone for crying out loud."
Going back to how it doesn't matter to me anymore...I would simply recommend the earphone that the person can afford. If they're looking to spend $80, I'd tell them get the 888s. If they can afford $20, I'd tell them get the MX500s. There's definitely differences and discrepencies, but we've driven these earbuds from so many different sources and amps and etcs that I don't think any review we've ever done since Headwize is conclusive. I personally know for a fact that the 888s can sound extremely muddy from certain amps, and yet much more transparent and detailed than the MX500s from other amps. But that's throwing in full sized amps, which just isn't logical. Truth to tell, the two earbuds sound so similar that a person might as well just get one they can afford, and don't think twice on it. The ultimate question a person has to ask themselves is, "would I be able to hear this difference between the two in a subway station, in a crowded street, etc etc."
On the other hand, if you're (speaking in general, not singular) really one of those people that live off a portable only, then the above doesn't apply. Then it's no surprise you'd want to crank out every last bit of performance from your portable. That's understandable, I was once there myself. I envy those days, that was when I ran with my D-465 and 888s, and really, really enjoyed the music, not the equipment. I didn't know why things sounded so good, but it just sounded good, and I didn't care about the why. I also just knew the 888s sounded better than any other 'phone in the house, but once again, didn't care about why.
| Yes, I know you yourself have had a D777 |
I did???
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| but once you get to the high end portables, that is when the difference is ultimately clear between the E888s and the MX500s... |
I guess we have to pick a bone here. In all cases when somebody says portable, I think of a truly portable environment, and in that situation, I would dare anybody to tell me that "difference that is ultimately clear between the E888s and MX500s". You know why those people out there were so resistant to my A44 review? Because it is in essence a portable 'phone, and it makes no sense for anybody to be running it from a $1000+ setup. In the same case here, I believe you'd have to be in a totally comfy at home situation with your portable with a relatively high end setup, whether it be portable or a full rig, to be able to truly hear differences that are very likely to be unheard in a portable environment. Hence the lack of interest in truly slicing and dicing portable 'phones 5000 ways till Sunday.
This is why I've come to the sad conclusion of just not caring all that much anymore about my portable 'phones. As long as I'm not using something that just obviously sounds bad, I'm pretty happy with anything that's small and convient and can be run from a 5mw portable. In the same sense, I no longer care about how relatively expensive equipment is to a 'phone, before sticking the 'phone into the equipment. I've powered my 888s before from my 9000ES with a tricked out JMT Cmoy that's designed for low to very low impedance headphones, and sure enough it sounds plenty good. I'm certainly not going to run around and make a full report about it, because I already know 95% of the people out there don't care. The mindset would be "it's a portable earphone for crying out loud."
Going back to how it doesn't matter to me anymore...I would simply recommend the earphone that the person can afford. If they're looking to spend $80, I'd tell them get the 888s. If they can afford $20, I'd tell them get the MX500s. There's definitely differences and discrepencies, but we've driven these earbuds from so many different sources and amps and etcs that I don't think any review we've ever done since Headwize is conclusive. I personally know for a fact that the 888s can sound extremely muddy from certain amps, and yet much more transparent and detailed than the MX500s from other amps. But that's throwing in full sized amps, which just isn't logical. Truth to tell, the two earbuds sound so similar that a person might as well just get one they can afford, and don't think twice on it. The ultimate question a person has to ask themselves is, "would I be able to hear this difference between the two in a subway station, in a crowded street, etc etc."
On the other hand, if you're (speaking in general, not singular) really one of those people that live off a portable only, then the above doesn't apply. Then it's no surprise you'd want to crank out every last bit of performance from your portable. That's understandable, I was once there myself. I envy those days, that was when I ran with my D-465 and 888s, and really, really enjoyed the music, not the equipment. I didn't know why things sounded so good, but it just sounded good, and I didn't care about the why. I also just knew the 888s sounded better than any other 'phone in the house, but once again, didn't care about why.
