[ianmedium]

I have just this week had my NuForce Icon mobile delivered. It is early days yet but my initial thoughts in regards to the compatibility to the IE8 is very favorable.
 
What I like about it is that it allows the IE8's to really show what they are capable of in detail, rythm, pace and timing. Also my regard for the little sennheisers capabilties has hightend with the use of this amp.
 
It shows that the Senns are capable of even greater detail and resolution than I had thought possible whilst not for one minute giving anything up in the musicality stakes.
 
Symbols sound more metallic, vocals are a little more forward in the sound stage and talking of sound stage it is even more detailed and spacious without sounding odd.
 
Soprano's voices are sweeter and clearer and large scale orchestration even more palpable.
 
Bass has tightend up and is more detailed that before. This little amp really shows what wonders the IE8's really are.
 
I am very impressed so far with this Amp. The combination of it, my classic and the IE'8s really make me feel like looking no further for my mobile equipment.

 

[Darkchaser]

Quote:

I have just this week had my NuForce Icon mobile delivered. It is early days yet but my initial thoughts in regards to the compatibility to the IE8 is very favorable.
 
What I like about it is that it allows the IE8's to really show what they are capable of in detail, rythm, pace and timing. Also my regard for the little sennheisers capabilties has hightend with the use of this amp.
 
It shows that the Senns are capable of even greater detail and resolution than I had thought possible whilst not for one minute giving anything up in the musicality stakes.
 
Symbols sound more metallic, vocals are a little more forward in the sound stage and talking of sound stage it is even more detailed and spacious without sounding odd.
 
Soprano's voices are sweeter and clearer and large scale orchestration even more palpable.
 
Bass has tightend up and is more detailed that before. This little amp really shows what wonders the IE8's really are.
 
I am very impressed so far with this Amp. The combination of it, my classic and the IE'8s really make me feel like looking no further for my mobile equipment.

That's awesome, I've been looking for an amp to pair with the IE8s and it's good to know you don't need to shell out for something like RSA Protectors for something good
 
That said, I did have a chance to try out IE8 with iBasso T3D, and they paired really well. From your impressions, it seems like iBasso T3D is on par at least, with the Icon Mobile. I'm leaning more towards the iBasso since it's highly portable and supposedly has better build, but the Icon Mobile does have a DAC. 
 
Any other IE8 users can share thoughts on amps?

 

[ianmedium]

I don't know much about the Ibasso but for portablity the Nuforce is amazing, just a tiny bit bigger than a credit card and a little shallower than the classic, not as wide either, it straps under the classic and is hardly noticable.
 
As for build, though light weight it seems very well made. I like that the sides and bottom are a sort of velvety hard rubber whilst the top plate(in my case) black anodised aluminum, it feels sturday enough to me!

 

[fidele-caput]

IE8 in da house. What can I say, it is like going to the fun-park for the first time. I'm not gonna baby these, gonna take them outside and wear them. I won't care about hunting for tips either. These are my DISCO phones. I love these from the first hear. Lowest bass setting is plenty for me on large bi-flange tips. It's fun fun fun... !!!

 
I bought these from soundearphones, a head-fi sponsor, I asked for a quote to swap with a dud T50p for these. Although  I maybe paid a bit more than discount places, I got worry free genuine product. That means alot for my health lol. BTW the transparent cover hoop also taped on one side, but it's definitely from the factory, so no worries.
Cheers to all fellow IE8 owners!

 

[D4R]

 

 
Quote:

Any other IE8 users can share thoughts on amps?

If you do a search, Headphoneaddict (I THINK he was the author) has an exhaustive side by side review of amps for the IE8.  In his short list the Icon Mobile was ranked 4 or 5 out of 10 (or more other amps). Don't hold me to it, it's been awhile since I read that thread.  But it's a good read.
 
On my part, I like how the Mobile smoothes out the bass.  It pairs rather nicely with the IE8. But I don't mind running it straight out of the iPod Touch.  It sounds great with or without an amp.
 

 

[cravenz]

Quote:

Quote:

Voice of Reason (cravenz), I salute you!  Your entire reply was great and very thoughtful.
 
Thank you.  This was a good time to have a support group that understands my desire to buy some more stuff but that gives me permission to be happy for a while with what I already have.  (Which I am!)

I'll just continue to enjoy this thread...

You are most welcome

 
Quote:

That's awesome, I've been looking for an amp to pair with the IE8s and it's good to know you don't need to shell out for something like RSA Protectors for something good
 
That said, I did have a chance to try out IE8 with iBasso T3D, and they paired really well. From your impressions, it seems like iBasso T3D is on par at least, with the Icon Mobile. I'm leaning more towards the iBasso since it's highly portable and supposedly has better build, but the Icon Mobile does have a DAC. 
 
Any other IE8 users can share thoughts on amps?

I have the D10 with HiFlight topkit and though it's an improvement on sound, I don't really like lugging it around and walking with it, so it's more or less been relegated to being a DAC and functions as a combo unit when I bring my laptop to uni. The topkit tightens the bass, but I really can't remember the last time I plugged my D10 to my iPhone since it's quite troublesome with phone calls and stuff so I've stopped. Guess I'm not useful on that front lol.

 

[HONEYBOY]

Quote:

That's awesome, I've been looking for an amp to pair with the IE8s and it's good to know you don't need to shell out for something like RSA Protectors for something good
 
That said, I did have a chance to try out IE8 with iBasso T3D, and they paired really well. From your impressions, it seems like iBasso T3D is on par at least, with the Icon Mobile. I'm leaning more towards the iBasso since it's highly portable and supposedly has better build, but the Icon Mobile does have a DAC. 
 
Any other IE8 users can share thoughts on amps?

Here's a biased response from an individual who's not a fan of portable amps. I am sure others will have a different experience but here's mine. I found these Portable amps grossly overrated on head fi. I was amazed at what I wasn't hearing, that's for sure. With the IE8 I have tried the IQube V1 and V2, Alo Rx,ibasso D10 and D4, 3MOVE, Voyager and a few more I can't remember. What I can recall is that the differences these amps made if any were just too subtle for me to justify their cost, and that's using them in a quiet environment. The 3MOVE and D4 made the bass even more overpowering.The D10 was perhaps the best of all the above with the IE8 but still, just like the other portable amps the improvements were minimal at best to my ears especially when listening under conditions with which these amps were designed to perform - On the Go. I rather plug my IE8 in an ipod or a walkman and not worry about the improvements some of these bricks would bring and save that money to develop a full sized rig.
 

 

[cravenz]

Quote:

Here's a biased response from an individual who's not a fan of portable amps. I am sure others will have a different experience but here's mine. I found these Portable amps grossly overrated on head fi. I was amazed at what I wasn't hearing, that's for sure. With the IE8 I have tried the IQube V1 and V2, Alo Rx,ibasso D10 and D4, 3MOVE, Voyager and a few more I can't remember. What I can recall is that the differences these amps made if any were just too subtle for me to justify their cost, and that's using them in a quiet environment. The 3MOVE and D4 made the bass even more overpowering.The D10 was perhaps the best of all the above with the IE8 but still, just like the other portable amps the improvements were minimal at best to my ears especially when listening under conditions with which these amps were designed to perform - On the Go. I rather plug my IE8 in an ipod or a walkman and not worry about the improvements some of these bricks would bring and save that money to develop a full sized rig.
 

Yup, nods in agreement.

 

[Darkchaser]

Of course, as usual different people will have different preferences. It also has a lot to do with what source you're using.
 
I do agree that unamped, the IE8 is still pretty awesome. When I was using the s:flo2, the HP out was powerful enough. But when using an iPod, I do find a significant difference between amped and unamped. Unamped, the iPod volume needs to be at ~85% to be enjoyable. I tested myself using an iBasso T3D and the difference is pretty amazing. Without the amp, the IE8 sounds flat, but amped the IE8s really sing.
 
YMMV of course.... and the ibasso T3D has the advantage of being pretty tiny, that I don't really feel much different in terms of the size of the rig.

 

[CEE TEE]

IE8 Kaizen (Continuous improvement).
 
I inverted the Comply T-400 as recommended in this thread and it works very well for me.
 
I use Treble Booster on the iPhone and the Comply inversion gives the treble a bit of sparkle...still wish I had a real EQ!
 
(Interested to see what the next Sony X will be, Engadget rumors are that it will be releaseed in July and Android based.  Wonder if it will give more custom pre-sets (only 2 on current X) and/or a full EQ.)

 

[music_4321]

OK, my IE8s have had about 150 hrs of burn-in with pink noise and I haven't really noticed an improvement, so I'm afraid they'll be going back to Amazon & I'll be asking for a refund.
 
Have A/B'd them with my ES3X several times and the latter just do better along the whole frequency range & dynamics, decay and transient response and I just don't see myself reaching for the IE8s in the future, to be honest. They remain an excellent set of universal IEMs, though.
 
Just going from memory as I don't own them anymore, I guess I'd rather get the UM3X, specially now that they also come with detachable cables (which was one of the main reasons why I went for my customs ES3X).
 
But I guess some people still prefer the IE8s over the UM3X. I find the latter a better sounding IEM all round and I just never perceived that 'huge' soundstage mentioned so often in this and other thread when referring to the IE8. The IE8s remain a nicer looking IEM and the earpieces better built that the (original) UM3X.

 

[chrisssssssss2]

What's funny is when I had my first pair of IE8s against the W3s, I preferred the W3s much more because I felt the IE8s had a recessed treble. However, After missing the IE8 sound, I decided to purchase a second pair from a fellow head-fi member, and the second pair I had was simply amazing. The highs were there that were missing in my first pair of IE8s and the soundstage blew away the W3s. This makes me think that my first pair of IE8s might have been fakes, because they were bass overwhelming and caused such fatigue. So you might want to make sure your IE8s are genuine... I was skeptical at first with all the fakes going around, but after receiving my second pair of IE8s, I completely believe that fakes are being made that look exactly like authentics. However, the fakes sound worse yet not enough to scream fakes until you compare them with a genuine pair, so it's very difficult to tell.

 

[yliu]

Quote:

What's funny is when I had my first pair of IE8s against the W3s, I preferred the W3s much more because I felt the IE8s had a recessed treble. However, After missing the IE8 sound, I decided to purchase a second pair from a fellow head-fi member, and the second pair I had was simply amazing. The highs were there that were missing in my first pair of IE8s and the soundstage blew away the W3s. This makes me think that my first pair of IE8s might have been fakes, because they were bass overwhelming and caused such fatigue. So you might want to make sure your IE8s are genuine... I was skeptical at first with all the fakes going around, but after receiving my second pair of IE8s, I completely believe that fakes are being made that look exactly like authentics. However, the fakes sound worse yet not enough to scream fakes until you compare them with a genuine pair, so it's very difficult to tell.

and how do I know if mine is fake?

 

[fidele-caput]

Check out this thread:
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/457420/warning-fake-ie8s-comparison-pictures-included
 
Where did you get them from?

 

[kenken1985]

Just newly bought a pair of ie8 to pair with my X1060. Burning in and trying hard to find the suitable tips for my right ear.......
Actually does anyone use different tips for each side of the earbud?