[kaushama]

May be they have IE9 in development!

 

[zardos]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kaushama /img/forum/go_quote.gif Now Sennheiser should have tuned it to have much less in mid bass, in its lowest bass setting out of box. Since they have included bass tuner, there is no logic in keeping the IEM so bass heavy!!!

To me there is no such bumped mid bass feeling, because I get not enough seal with the stock tips which I prefer. The result is that the bass sounds natural and wonderful airy on lowest setting. To me SE530 has a bit more mid bass than IE8 with stock tips. If I force 100% seal on IE8, then yes, too much mid bass. But I would never force 100% seal on these babies because I really love the open, airy sound of the IE8 with stock tips and cable-over-the-ear wearing.

 

[kaushama]

Quote:

Originally Posted by zardos /img/forum/go_quote.gif To me there is no such bumped mid bass feeling, because I get not enough seal with the stock tips which I prefer. The result is that the bass sounds natural and wonderful airy on lowest setting. To me SE530 has a bit more mid bass than IE8 with stock tips. If I force 100% seal on IE8, then yes, too much mid bass. But I would never force 100% seal on these babies because I really love the open, airy sound of the IE8 with stock tips and cable-over-the-ear wearing.

You are correct! I tried that too. If you get a perfect seal bass is overpowering. And treble quality chnges too to better response. But again then there is conceptual conflict, it being an "IEM". Poor isolation!
I think Senn should have tuned bass down so that one can get 100% seal, good isolation and better bass.
But for a better balanced tonal response with marvelous sound-stage and imaging, it should not be pushed too far into the ear-canal. Do not try to achieve 100% seal. When you do that you get a beautiful more or less neutral tonal profile with wonderful highs and mids.
It shows another phenomenon too. The treble response is affected by its over-powering bass. I experienced worse highs, when it is used with largest silicon tip pushed into my ear-canal to get best isolation and 100% seal. Best SQ achieved with dual flange and lightly fitting slightly smaller Sony silicon tip.
So its SQ can be tuned to your preference by playing with the ear tips and fit.
But inevitably, isolation suffers in this tuning. I have seen before, Julie (soozieq) is wearing them just pushing them lightly into canal. I think it is the best way of listening to it.

 

[jinx20001]

Quote:

Originally Posted by zardos /img/forum/go_quote.gif To me there is no such bumped mid bass feeling, because I get not enough seal with the stock tips which I prefer. The result is that the bass sounds natural and wonderful airy on lowest setting. To me SE530 has a bit more mid bass than IE8 with stock tips. If I force 100% seal on IE8, then yes, too much mid bass. But I would never force 100% seal on these babies because I really love the open, airy sound of the IE8 with stock tips and cable-over-the-ear wearing.

sorry this is rediculous. everybody tries to get 100% seal. if you dont have a 100% seal then id call that a poor seal and poor isolation and as a result poor sound. correct me if im wrong but your happy using them with a poor seal because it gives you better sound yes??

and dont say you havnt got poor seal because anything other than 100% is poor as iem's Require you to have a perfect seal for optimum sound and fit.

 

[zardos]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jinx20001 /img/forum/go_quote.gif sorry this is rediculous. everybody tries to get 100% seal. if you dont have a 100% seal then id call that a poor seal and poor isolation and as a result poor sound. correct me if im wrong but your happy using them with a poor seal because it gives you better sound yes?? and dont say you havnt got poor seal because anything other than 100% is poor as iem's Require you to have a perfect seal for optimum sound and fit.

We are talking about nuances here. The result is far from beeing poor sounding. Fit (and comfort) is top of the hill. I use the IE8 for jogging without any fit problems. I think the seal is only a little bit reduced compared to my SE530. It is enough reduced to make the bass sound very nice and airy but not enough reduced to make the overall sound thin or metallic. If I press the IE8 deeply in my ears and hold my fingers on it I may get nearly 100% seal, but the sound is horrible bassy. No comparison to SE530 which I can press very deeply into the ear canal without getting much changes sound wise. Someone around here said the IE8 has a semi open design. I think that is true.

 

[kaushama]

Yes I posted it earlier. There were some discussions in Jaben forums about this. And wide sound-stage may be result of it being semi-open.

 

[Spad]

Quote:

Originally Posted by djayjp /img/forum/go_quote.gif Most likely Frankfurt because they are German 'phones after all

One would think, but then there's the EU and duty-free considerations.

If the savings are substantial I'll see about having him pickup a few more, assuming anyone's interested. At this point I have no idea as to price, limits, etc.

 

[Spad]

Semi-open IEMs? Don't they call those earbuds?

 

[PhilS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kaushama /img/forum/go_quote.gif It shows another phenomenon too. The treble response it affected by its over-powering bass. I experienced worse highs, when it is used with largest silicon tip pushed into my ear-canal to get best isolation and 100% seal.

Yes, indeed, with the wrong tips and/or the wrong placement, the sound can really be off. I have found after further experimentation that for me the Comply tips give too much of a seal and, just as you describe, the bass becomes overwhelming, the whole presentation becomes dark, and you lose the highs. For me, with the medium foams that come with the IE8 (which are not as comfortable as the Complys, but certainly tolerable), the sound is lush and just wonderful to listen to. Great bass, tight and not overpowering, wonderful midrange, and plenty of treble.

I really think that one really needs to experiment with the tips and the placement to reach the right sound, and it is quite possible that the ear shape/size of some folks might not allow them to achieve the right sound without purchasing tips from outside sources, modifying tips, etc.

As far as the issue of isolation, I don't have a problem with isolation. I've been listening with the Giants/Eagles game turned up pretty loud and can't hear a thing.

 

[zardos]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spad /img/forum/go_quote.gif Semi-open IEMs? Don't they call those earbuds?

Maybe 90% IEM, 10% earbud bastards. Very different from other IEM sound-wise, but also a bit different construction-wise with short and thick nozzles.

 

[Spad]

Quote:

Originally Posted by PhilS /img/forum/go_quote.gif Yes, indeed, with the wrong tips and/or the wrong placement, the sound can really be off. I have found after further experimentation that for me the Comply tips give too much of a seal and, just as you describe, the bass becomes overwhelming, the whole presentation becomes dark, and you lose the highs. For me, with the medium foams that come with the IE8 (which are not as comfortable as the Complys, but certainly tolerable), the sound is lush and just wonderful to listen to. Great bass, tight and not overpowering, wonderful midrange, and plenty of treble. I really think that one really needs to experiment with the tips and the placement to reach the right sound, and it is quite possible that the ear shape/size of some folks might not allow them to achieve the right sound without purchasing tips from outside sources, modifying tips, etc. As far as the issue of isolation, I don't have a problem with isolation. I've been listening with the Giants/Eagles game turned up pretty loud and can't hear a thing.

Wow, isn't this almost exactly what some complain about concerning the Westone 3? Another less-than-perfect IEM--who would have thought.

 

[kaushama]

Quote:

Originally Posted by zardos /img/forum/go_quote.gif Maybe 90% IEM, 10% earbud bastards. Very different from other IEM sound-wise, but also a bit different construction-wise with short and thick nozzles.

Is IE7 an IEM? They are open!

 

[PhilS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spad /img/forum/go_quote.gif Wow, isn't this almost exactly what some complain about concerning the Westone 3? Another less-than-perfect IEM--who would have thought.

I would think fit is going to be an important issue that influences the acceptability of any universal IEM for any particular user. And even custom IEM's are not perfect. As I've indicated elsewhere, my custom IEM's don't fit me anymore after only four years. So essentially they are worthless at this point. So there's really no perfect IEM period.

That being said, I think that while fit is going to be a factor with every IEM, judgments can be made about relative merit of particular IEM's based on the relative comfort to the majority of users, the sound quality most users experience, etc. Thus, even though fit is important and sound quality may vary for every IEM based on how it fits a particular user, if a large number of users of a particular IEM find that it is harsh in the upper regions, or the bass sounds bloated, or whatever, that seems to me to be worthy of consideration, notwithstanding that an IEM that is generally acceptable or preferable to most users does not sound right to a particular user based on the fit or other issues.

In other words, I think we can still make some judgments about the relative merits of various phones, even though fit is very important and influential. I'm not saying anything about the relative merits of the W3 or IE8, however, as I don't own the W3. This is just a general comment.

 

[kaushama]

Quote:

In other words, I think we can still make some judgments about the relative merits of various phones, even though fit is very important and influential. I'm not saying anything about the relative merits of the W3 or IE8, however, as I don't own the W3. This is just a general comment.

Yes as I told before, it ultimately boils down to personal preferences.

 

[Spad]

Quote:

Originally Posted by PhilS /img/forum/go_quote.gif That being said, I think that while fit is going to be a factor with every IEM, judgments can be made about relative merit of particular IEM's based on the relative comfort to the majority of users, the sound quality most users experience, etc. Thus, even though fit is important and sound quality may vary for every IEM based on how it fits a particular user, if a large number of users of a particular IEM find that it is harsh in the upper regions, or the bass sounds bloated, or whatever, that seems to me to be worthy of consideration, notwithstanding that an IEM that is generally acceptable or preferable to most users does not sound right to a particular user based on the fit or other issues. In other words, I think we can still make some judgments about the relative merits of various phones, even though fit is very important and influential. I'm not saying anything about the relative merits of the W3 or IE8, however, as I don't own the W3. This is just a general comment.

Now if only such opinions could be restricted to those who have actually heard the 'phones in question. Too often these uninformed conclusions only serve to muddy the water, so to speak.

Separating the wheat from the chaff can be next to impossible in many of these threads. They're not always informative, but there's no denying that this also contributes much to their entertainment value. And if it wasn't fun few of us would be here.