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Indeed, the forthright manner with which Mido1990 expresses himself is one of the qualities I admire an appreciate about him. By the way mido1990 I read every sentence of your impressions with ardent interest. Your impressions were helpful and then some. I've often entertained the thought of going customs and now that my expectations are in check, I feel that they may be a worthy investment down the line.
The transient speed and consequent black background of the JH 13s that you speak of is a quality I'll truly love. Decays on the IE8 last longer than what I perceive to be realistic so the background is not entirely black or clear but they are rather natural and pleasant to listen to. In fact, one of the reasons I slightly prefer the IE8 with the Sony X than the touch 2G is because of its slightly cleaner transient response and blacker background. The touch 2G and IE8 has the greater soundstage expanse while the X and IE8 gives a better sense of air around and between the instruments.
I'm pleased to know that the JH 13 doesn't share that metallic trait to the treble like most of the other BAs I tried.
thanks my friend,much appreciated.
if you want to get a taste of how fast the jh13 is,ck10 is in the same level...speed wise.
ie8 decay is a bit weird,it extends in space more than it should and there is a plasticky echo that is especially apparent in trance and ambient.i dont find the ie8 black,not even close.
jh13 has the most realistic treble i have heard.nothing i heard comes close.Treble on the jh13 should be the benchmark for all other headphones and iems.it sounds nothing like BAs in this department or Dynamics,its another breed
Another thing that shivers me when listening to the 13s,is the razor sharp imaging and how well it portrays instruments.i mean by portraying instruments,the "correct size". basically with the ie8 or others,you hear the sax, guitar,piano.... but you cant imagine its size in space or you cant feel its physical appearance.thats exaactly what i hear/feel.its very hard to put into words what i mean.
imaging is superb.everything feels engraved in space,the only one that comes close to the jh13 in imaging is ck10.you can call the ck10 imaging an etch while the jh13 engraved.thats the closest i can describe it.
airness department winner is the ie8.as i said "floating and light" is what i would use to describe the ie8.Not to mean that the 13s are dry,oh no on the contrary.but the ie8 is unique here.
Bass: bass is pretty magnificant on the jh13,this is ie8 biggest weakness. jh13 bass is very very tight to the verge that you feel it is like a balloon filled with air and wants to explode,but doesnt.very accurate,tight and natural.
But be aware.dont listen to the IMO gross exaggeration that "OMG, i never heard such a bass texture in my life!!" thats BS.
bass is a bass,its not like i was listening to different thing on my previous iems.
Transparency:excellent.the ie8 will sound muddy and very dark in comparison.The only iem that surpasses the jh13 in transparency is the ck10,but i suspect its because of the tilted treble.its not like the jh13 is dark,if the ck10 transparency is 100%,the jh13 would be 96%.
Detail:very detailed in a natural way.again the ie8 falls short...badly.the ck10 has the same level of detail but in an unnatural manner,in a way that is aggressive and strike you in the face with the level of detail.the jh13 blends naturally in the music.the ie8 ommites,yes ommites some details from the music.some fine details are not presented in the ie8 unless you want to go deaf.
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i can go on and on about the jh13 and i was going to make a thread to compare it to universals but i feel there is no point because there is nothing the universal can do that come close to what the jh13 does,except how i feel about the "light" feel of the ie8.
i only made the above comments because when i was looking for comparisons between universals and especially ie8 and jh13,i didnt find any,so i am trying to help who is in this situation that is hesitating to go jh13 or not because i myself was in the exact same position.
HoneyBoy,i assure you,you will not be dissapointed and i think you had enough universals like me and the next logical step is jh13.you will be amazed but remember,it is not like you were listening to rubbish(a.k.a ie8),ie8 holds its position imo for its unique sound.maybe i am biased towards sennheiser,but i say this in all honesty.ie8 was the most iem i enjoyed listening to.I know and you all know that technically,many universal are better than the ie8 BUT what saves ie8 ass is its unique tonality.
if money is no object ,then the jh13 is 150% worth it and i know that you will not regret it.But as i am a student,i cant say that money is no object and thats the ONLY caveat with me and the price of jh13.if it is a bit cheaper then i can safely say that they are 150% worth it.
i believe it could end your search for the perfect sound HoneyBoy and honestly,i will not buy anything else right now or for a very long time.i cant imagine anythin that can sound more natural than the jh13.i know that the term"i cant imagine" is used alot here ,but this is the first time i say that it is very hard to imagine anything will improve upon the jh13 except if the soundstage became more bigger like headphones which to my understandings,the jh3a does.
the only purchase i could consider in the future is jh3a.
sorry for the long post and i hope i helped you and others who want to venture from universals.and i will say it again,if money is no object or you dont care about price/performance ratio,then the jh13 is 150% worth it.
take care.