[Smaugtd]

Hello all,
 
My earphones after 4 years of usage just broke =( 
 
Is still IE8i (the only model I can find to buy) still good in the market has it any differences with the IE8?
 
My budget is around 200 pounds and I mostly listen to rock/metal/indie music.
 
Thanks 

 

[ProtegeManiac]

 
Is still IE8i (the only model I can find to buy) still good in the market has it any differences with the IE8?

 
The only difference is the talk cable. Why not get the IE80 for $257?

 

[Smaugtd]

Is it such an upgrade? I read that they preety much have the same sound output plus people actually prefer IE8 over the IE80.
 
After 5 years there is still no other pair of headphones in this budget that outclasses IE8? Impressive.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

  Is it such an upgrade? I read that they preety much have the same sound output plus people actually prefer IE8 over the IE80.
 
After 5 years there is still no other pair of headphones in this budget that outclasses IE8? Impressive.

 

I wasn't thinking it will be an upgrade, but

 

1. You can't really find an IE8 these days, and if you do, they're either counterfeit or - as in another thread I replied to a few days ago - it costs more at $340. Might as well get an IE80 since it'll be easier to get a replacement unit if the drivers or the shells fail within the warranty period.

 

2. For $200 it's hard to find anything else actually - it's either a good one for $120 and below (look up the Havi B3 Pro - the tonal qualities are different but the shell shape is similar) or you might as well spend a little bit more and get something familiar in terms of both sound and more importantly, fit. I don't like its fit but if you have no issues with them and like the sound anyway then why change either of those?

 

3. If you're really thinking of one that "outclasses" the IE8, by what criteria would it need to be better? If it's more neutral then it's likely even the Havi B3 Pro is generally more neutral considering the bass of the IE8. If it's by having tighter but still relatively thundering bass, then the one I know that can do that is the Aurisonics ASG-1, but that's $500. There's the TTPod T-1E but apart from my not having actually heard it, the fit is also very different - the shells look more like the IE800 (the ASG-1 at least has an over-ear cable design, and the semi-universal shell has been smoothed out in the 1.3 and later revisions). If you just want more bass but with more audible treble, I think that might be the Red Giant Ossicle.