[tumburu]

Well, I guess Mr Fang never heard Layla. 

 

[Caruryn]

I also doubt the ie80 has the clarity(haven't heard them) of ie800 since everyone is talking about the veiled mids and bass bloat that interferes with mids.Here is a good comparison
http://headmania.org/2013/03/24/sennheiser-ie800-sennheiser-ie80-audiotehnica-ath-cks-90-martin-logan-mikros-70-comparison/
Nevertheless,as long as ljoker considers them one of the best universals around(that was some time ago of course

),i can sleep easy without waking in cold sweat that they sound like a piece of $#iT according to Mr Fang.

 

[Dobrescu George]

  I also doubt the ie80 has the clarity(haven't heard them) of ie800 since everyone is talking about the veiled mids and bass bloat that interferes with mids.Here is a good comparison
http://headmania.org/2013/03/24/sennheiser-ie800-sennheiser-ie80-audiotehnica-ath-cks-90-martin-logan-mikros-70-comparison/
Nevertheless,as long as ljoker considers them one of the best universals around(that was some time ago of course

),i can sleep easy without waking in cold sweat that they sound like a piece of $#iT according to Mr Fang.

ie8 are not veiled at all if you put tape over them and use only double flange, and keep bass at 100 hz with -2DB from an equalizer. actually, they are fun and enjoyable.
 
ie800 are easily one of the best IEMs ever, if not the best. 
 
I have been searching and listening to all kinds of headphones/iems and such.
 
i have considered worthy of buying, from all tested : hd800, ie800, ie8/80, ultrasone dj one pro, ultrasone signature dj, hd650, hd600, hd598, akg k550.
 
notable is that i liked LCD 2 and 3, but both were way too heavy for me to really consider them. I also understood what one would love about he560, but to me it did seem like i would rather get something else, as i really like having lots of bass and treble. 
 
In reality, what reproduces closest sound to real, none.
 
In reality, bass guitars sound more distorted, cymbals sound extremely bad, like having a foil of aluminium and pusing it against another, they sound just painfull to the ear, just extremely loud and harsh, and mids are most of times about the same clarity as hd800.
 
the closest to reality, you get with an ultrasone signature dj, hd800, hd650, hd600, hd598. 
the fun to listen to is ie8, ultrasone dj one pro, akg k550, ie800.
 
The bottom line is that every headphone will be loved by some and hated by some, but every headphone is great for at least one person.

 

[potatoe94]

IE8000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

 

[JaZZ]

  The IE 800's frequency response is pretty v-shaped with emphasised bass and upper highs and eectric guitars do sound too "powerfull", that's a fact and even Sennheiser's official measurements prove that, albeit I can't approve calling the IE 800 "scam".
 
Yes, they are pretty colored sounding, but I guess that's intended.
Yes, they are somewhat artificial sounding, especially in the highs, but Sennheiser never announced them to sound accurate or natural. They sound gimmicky but that's not a bad thing when you are using them on the go.
Yes, they may be overpriced given their build quality (cables aren't user replacable and quite short).
 
But no, they are definitely not scam and I'll tell you my opinion why:
 
Even though  they have a quite noticable treble emphasis there are no peaks in that area which is due to the Helmholtz resonator (one of the two holes on the back) which is tuned to ecpecially that area to eliminate peaks.
The bass emphasis does not bleed into the mids but stops in the fundamental tone area. In addition, the bass emphasis is pretty well made as it rises very evenly and holds the level even in the sub bass (the IE 8/80 have a mid bass emphasis with less level in the sub bass area unless you add more low end by adjusting the bass screw which will lead to slower bass with more bloat).
Mids are recessed but neither too dark nor too bright sounding.
Resolution is pretty good.
Distortion levels are very low.
Though the IE 800 has got dynamic transducers, the low end is firm, fast and solid.
Imo the IE 800s are surprisingly well sounding iems if you want that sound signature that is tuned to "fun".
 
That's just my opinion on the IE 800 and you may agree or disagree with it, I wouldn't mind, however, I am convinced that most of you will agree that one as an employee (or is Dr. Fang Bian even the CEO? I don't know, at least he works at HiFiMan.) does not simply publicly comment on another manufacturer's product like that in such an outrageously offensive manner.
I've only got the HE-400 from HiFiMan and it is also not sounding natural in the upper mids with that peak.
 
Just my 2 cents.

 
Well said, Chris! I agree with you on everything (except for the HE-400, which I don't know). I like the sound of the IE 800, but to my ears it's very colored (in the mentioned way) and needs some serious equalization to sound passably neutral. I have always wondered how other people could not hear the bass excess and the slight sharpness in the treble like I do. On the other hand, I rate its detail reproduction very high, more so than its transparency. Also, it has a kind of midrange magic, a trait which I'm inclined to call «concertante», as it's a great match for string orchestras. That' said, it's not bad with rock and jazz, too.
 
As has been said, the cable is too short on both ends, making it hard or uncomfortable to wear over the ears, which is very much a necessity in view of its stiffness and «microphonics». I have no idea what Sennheiser was thinking when they equipped it whith this kind of cable.
 
All in all most of the time I have a clear preference for the Shure SE846, though, which sounds closer to neutral and my sonic ideal, moreover has the higher resolution. After all the IE 800, with the bass toned down on the X5's two first sliders, has a similar low-frequency extension and quality (to my ears).

 

[yangian]

An unmature person.
Finally, I found I prefer 80 more. Well, that's only my preference. That's true seperation is better on 800 ans more clear. But soundstage is pretty larger on 80. And I don't know maybe I havn't fully burned in. High on 800 are still harsh to me.
For classical/symphony, I havn't found any other IEM more enjoyable than 80. I can listen to it a whole day without feeling fatigue or boring. Better than 800 of value.

 

[potatoe94]

Can anyone verify for me that the IE800s changed their sound tuning over the years of release ? 

When the first few batches of IE800 came out , i went to give it a demo within 1 month of release , and i significantly notice the bass was very much overwhelming & the treble was rather exaggerated with the mids falling far behind . The overall experience was quite odd due to the very noticable V shaped signature . I really disliked the IE800 during that time , as i thought , for the price , they certainly did not hit it at all . 

But 2 years later (a few months ago from today) i traded my UmPRO 50 for the IE800 with my friend , where because i am very sure i do not like the sound of the UmPRO 50. Having a 1 year old IE800 which my friend had , the sound remained very much similar to the one i tested from the demo unit 2 years ago . Due to hygiene and other reasons , i try my luck and send my unit to Sennheiser for warranty claim , claiming that "there is a little left-right imbalance in the high frequencies" and that they should "help me check" . After just one day , they called me and told me they will be giving me a new IE800 with the bottom cable , probably one of the biggest "win" of my second hand purchase. 

And the sound differed drastically . The soundstage was wider , detailed were present , bass was not exaggerated , treble was controlled and pleasant , it was almost everything i wanted my inEars to sound . Everything seemed very ... ideal . It is just strange . 

i did not recall what was my previous S/N , and i sent in my leather case together with my old IE800 for warranty claim . 
I do have the leathercase back , but i am not sure if the S/N was the S/N of the previous , or the replaced IE800 . 
Anyone knows how can i check the IE800's S/N on the earpiece itself ? 

Then maybe someone could verify if they have changed the tuning of the IE800 over the years . 
Cus now it is just so perfect . 

 

[Dobrescu George]

If i can call for help in here, i am trying to build a software for music playback. I do not have money to start the thing up, but i guess that i can get some sponsorship (it basically means that i get some money, i have to pay much more back, but i can start). I need to demonstrate that people would be interested in a software that is able to do high resolution resampling for all platforms (windows, mac, android, linux, iphone). If anyone has heared Hqplayer, it changes the SQ a lot. My application, too will sound different from how the original sounded, but it also does bit perfect playback, so you can choose what you like better.
 
I am designing right now a great UI to put in. I had learned from using all apps out there a lot about what users fiind nice in a interface and not.
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/764517/new-application-that-does-high-resolution-resampling-with-lanczos-algorithm-new-user-interface-all-operating-systems
 
Thanks a lot, and sorry for interrupting the ie800 thread.
 
Anyways, I am curious if wrapping the cable in something like isolation band for wires could stop it from hardening. it would take the looks off, but it might save the cable, more so for someone like me, who tends to sweat more than the average person.

 

[JaZZ]

  Can anyone verify for me that the IE800s changed their sound tuning over the years of release?

 
It seems so, according to Inner Fidelity:   Early    2013

 

[HiFiChris]

I guess the differences in both frequency response graphs are caused by bad seal in the graph with the rolling off bass. Even Tyll said "I had great difficulty getting the tips to seat properly in the dummy head, though I had no problems getting them seated in my ears."

 

[Dobrescu George]

This data is quite valuable for someone who want yo buy them now, as he/she could get new ones instead of old sounding ones.

 

[JaZZ]

Does somebody have a recommendation for an IE 800 replacement cable – apart from the original Sennheiser cable? Mine is about to break right below the splitter/connector.

 

[daseinpdx]

  Can anyone verify for me that the IE800s changed their sound tuning over the years of release ? 

 

 
I have had the 800s for over 2 years and have had to replace them about 5 times.   I have had really low serial numbers and my latest pair 20K+ serial number.  I haven't noticed any appreciable difference in sound over the years.  Always the v-shape sound.  
 
If there has really been a change in the sound, there might be a couple of possible explanations.  First, we do know that they have done some changes to the cable.  I am not sure if includes wire and not just the insulation.  Changes in the wires might lead to subtle changes in sound.  Second, early on , it was difficult to buy them, always out of stock.  Now it is pretty easy to find.  This mean that they found different sources for critical parts or a faster manufacturing process.   I suppose this could lead to differences in sound.
 
Of course, this is all predicated on the fact that there is a real difference in sound.   The reality is that memory is not reliable.   So, there is a good chance that your recall of the sound in the past might not be accurate.

 

[potatoe94]

 
Their reasoning that it was a "conscious decision so as to keep the bulk down" sound hollow when they go and produce another bulky and over-engineered carry case to go with it.
 
I know sound is the most important thing but I personally think they look horrible and there doesn't seem to be a great deal of effort put into ergonmics.

hahaha yea , but having the earpiece in leather case sure does catches the eyes of many the moment i flip open the case in metro . 
It seems like it is an expensive product . hahaha !

 

[potatoe94]

 
Of course, this is all predicated on the fact that there is a real difference in sound.   The reality is that memory is not reliable.   So, there is a good chance that your recall of the sound in the past might not be accurate.

perhaps so & loving it !