chrisssssssss2
100+ Head-Fier
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- Oct 1, 2009
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As most Sennheiser IE8 owners know, getting the right tips for their IE8s is one of the most important features because it changes the sound quality more than any other IEM. As a proud owner, I have tried multiple tips, seeing how each tip affects the sound quality. Usually, I've found that the tips that gave the best sound quality offered very little isolation, and the tips with the best isolation had the worst sound quality. It was like a tradeoff. Somedays, I would use shure olives to get the best isolation, but found myself switching tips because the sound quality was horrible. Other days, I used the stock sennheiser medium single flange tip and the UE single flange tip that everyone recommended, but hated the isolation.
From trying almost every tip possible, I concluded that foam tips and tips with a deeper insertion gave the best isolation(i.e., shure olives, sony hybrid tips, etc.), but there were many problems. Shure olives and comply foam tips made the sound quality worse... making the IE8s sound muddy. Other tips that isolated well were tips that were inserted deeper, such as the sony hybrids. However, these tips have a narrow sound tube, which decreased the soundstage quite a bit. Although these were the best tips for isolation, the sound quality suffered tremendously. In contrast, The sennheiser stock tips and the UE single flange tips both maintained the best sound quality, but the fit was very shallow, making the isolation horrendous for a top tier IEM. Some days, I would pick up the Shure SE530s over the IE8s just for noise isolation, although IMO the IE8s perform much better.
Recently, I found a great solution for my troubles. I walked into radioshack, and found that auvio sells silicone tips that are pretty universal. They come in various sizes (S, M, L, XL, double flange), kind of like the sony hybrid tips that come with the EX700s. These tips have a much deeper insertion than the UE and sennheiser stock tips, and isolate quite well, although not as well as the shure olives and sony hybrids. However, the sound tube is just about the same size as the UE and Sennheiser tips, maintaining the great sound that comes with these tips. Also, they are easy to put on and take off the IE8s unlike the comply foam tips. The auvio silicone tips basically maintain the great sound quality produced from stock tips, while increasing the noise isolation greatly.
In conclusion, it's been a long ride trying to find the perfect tips for the IE8s because it was always a struggle to find a balance between sound quality vs. noise isolation. The auvio silicone tips have finally put this search to rest. I HIGHLY recommend these tips.
Here is the link for anyone interested:
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=10788687
From trying almost every tip possible, I concluded that foam tips and tips with a deeper insertion gave the best isolation(i.e., shure olives, sony hybrid tips, etc.), but there were many problems. Shure olives and comply foam tips made the sound quality worse... making the IE8s sound muddy. Other tips that isolated well were tips that were inserted deeper, such as the sony hybrids. However, these tips have a narrow sound tube, which decreased the soundstage quite a bit. Although these were the best tips for isolation, the sound quality suffered tremendously. In contrast, The sennheiser stock tips and the UE single flange tips both maintained the best sound quality, but the fit was very shallow, making the isolation horrendous for a top tier IEM. Some days, I would pick up the Shure SE530s over the IE8s just for noise isolation, although IMO the IE8s perform much better.
Recently, I found a great solution for my troubles. I walked into radioshack, and found that auvio sells silicone tips that are pretty universal. They come in various sizes (S, M, L, XL, double flange), kind of like the sony hybrid tips that come with the EX700s. These tips have a much deeper insertion than the UE and sennheiser stock tips, and isolate quite well, although not as well as the shure olives and sony hybrids. However, the sound tube is just about the same size as the UE and Sennheiser tips, maintaining the great sound that comes with these tips. Also, they are easy to put on and take off the IE8s unlike the comply foam tips. The auvio silicone tips basically maintain the great sound quality produced from stock tips, while increasing the noise isolation greatly.
In conclusion, it's been a long ride trying to find the perfect tips for the IE8s because it was always a struggle to find a balance between sound quality vs. noise isolation. The auvio silicone tips have finally put this search to rest. I HIGHLY recommend these tips.
Here is the link for anyone interested:
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=10788687
