I had the chance to demo the S8. I think it sounds really good. It is very smooth but exciting at the same time. Super addictive.
very impressive with sound stage and imaging. Mids are smooth and rich, sub bass has good body and weight, treble is bright and bit boosted up top.
Upper mids are emphasized but stay within reasonable range for me (saxophone test succeeded).
Lower mids may lack a bit of body depending where you coming from (not ideal for some drums for example)
The treble might be a tad hot but I’d need to listen again to be sure. I usually like dark sound.
The tuning is special imo.
I tried different kind of recordings, new and old. Electronic and acoustic, vocals/instrumentals, High and low end mastering. They sound very revealing but they also have this smoothness that makes lofi/old recordings sounds delicious.
Well mastered music like the last FKA Twigs sounds soo impressive with it. I think female pop with epic production may be the ultimate type of music for S8
I tried briefly the blessing 2 and was disappointed, bass is better but the mids are too dry and thin next to S8. Maybe a bad pairing with my source ?
They fit similar than S8 but are thicker and heavier. Not bad but feel a bit clunky next to their S8.
Chaconne are tuned very close to S8 on the other hand. I was surprised how they managed to keep the same kind of sound with an earbud. But the vocals are way too forwards for me. Its mid focused although FR is very extended. I prefer the more balanced sound of S8.
The build quality is the best i ever seen from an earbud, really beautiful, they look better than on pictures and the fit is like a better mx500. Nothing to complain about on that matter.