Sennheiser IE80's Impressions Thread
Sep 29, 2015 at 6:44 AM Post #6,721 of 7,699
Few things to note before you even check about sound: 
 
-IE800 has so short cable that it's unbelievable, if you are like me 185 cm (~6 feet) you won't be able to wear cable under your shirt and change song from your pocket, it's frustrating.
-It has stiff cable and huge stuff where Y split of cable is, so if you don't wear it under shirt it will bounce and hit your clothes and since cable is stiff it will make extreme noise in your ears
-It cannot be worn with cable over the ear because Y split is too high and even if it wasn't, then cable would be too short even for gnomes, let alone humans
-Because it is worn "regular" way, with cable straight down they don't exactly stay most securely inside ears
 
In my opinion IE800 is complete disaster and I wouldn't trade my IE80 for them, ever, even if they were the same price, let alone 2 times more.
 
Sound is good tho, bit different but I'd sa better than IE80, no mid bass "veil" as much as IE80 and highs seems to be sharper, which I didn't find particularly good but they sound more clear than IE80 for sure, still, all the trouble and unacceptable physical form makes them extremely bad product in my opinion, let alone better from IE80. 

 


say your saying because all this makes 800 a bad iem?
would i neeed an an amp for any of those iem??
 
Sep 29, 2015 at 7:12 AM Post #6,722 of 7,699
   
say your saying because all this makes 800 a bad iem?
would i neeed an an amp for any of those iem??

Well IE800 sounds great, no doubt about that, maybe bit too much treble but generally they sound good, in my opinion better than IE80, but physical form... all those things make them very bad earphone.
What is the use of good sound if I can't change song without pulling earphones out of my ears since cable is too short, if I can't put cable under my shirt, if I can't wear them with cable over the ear for secure fit, if cable will make noise whenever I move... 
 
No, amp could make it even worse in most cases since usually amps don't work as good with very low impedance earphones such as IE80. Also they very sensitive earphones so they need very low power to sound loud. There are some amplifiers made to work well with IEMs but you really don't need it at all.
 
Sep 29, 2015 at 7:56 AM Post #6,723 of 7,699
Well IE800 sounds great, no doubt about that, maybe bit too much treble but generally they sound good, in my opinion better than IE80, but physical form... all those things make them very bad earphone.
What is the use of good sound if I can't change song without pulling earphones out of my ears since cable is too short, if I can't put cable under my shirt, if I can't wear them with cable over the ear for secure fit, if cable will make noise whenever I move... 
 
No, amp could make it even worse in most cases since usually amps don't work as good with very low impedance earphones such as IE80. Also they very sensitive earphones so they need very low power to sound loud. There are some amplifiers made to work well with IEMs but you really don't need it at all.

 


would price right now on i80's a good investment? also how do u like i80's?

i wana use it for portability and for my phones,tablet,laptop use,
 
Sep 29, 2015 at 10:28 AM Post #6,724 of 7,699
   
would price right now on i80's a good investment? also how do u like i80's?

i wana use it for portability and for my phones,tablet,laptop use,

Depends what you consider a good investment. I have IE80 for 2 years now, been using them every day, including in gym, and they are still working fine. So for me it was very good investment since I listen to it a lot and IE80 has good build quality so they last pretty long time. 
 
IE80 sound good, very good bass and plenty of it, with option to increase it even more by turning knob, tho then it's too much for my taste. Highs aren't sibilant at all but aren't the smoothest laid back either, overall good sound with decent clarity for a dynamic driver earphone. The biggest, and in my opinion the only problem with them is that upper bass (at around ~150 Hz) may and do affect lower mid range, so if you prefer a lot of jazz for example with deep vocals think twice, but other than that IE80 is great overall. Isolation isn't on Shure/Westone level but it's ok, as good as most other in ear earphones. 
 
IE800 have less problem with mid bass (or no problem at all?) and not only thanks to that they sound clearer overall, but treble is sharper which some might find good and fun but I don't like it. (just a brief comparison between it and IE80, since you were interested in both). Overall somewhat different but imo better sound then IE80, but again, bad earphones just because of physical form, short cable, etc. 
 
Sep 29, 2015 at 9:48 PM Post #6,725 of 7,699
Few things to note before you even check about sound: 

-IE800 has so short cable that it's unbelievable, if you are like me 185 cm (~6 feet) you won't be able to wear cable under your shirt and change song from your pocket, it's frustrating.
-It has stiff cable and huge stuff where Y split of cable is, so if you don't wear it under shirt it will bounce and hit your clothes and since cable is stiff it will make extreme noise in your ears
-It cannot be worn with cable over the ear because Y split is too high and even if it wasn't, then cable would be too short even for gnomes, let alone humans
-Because it is worn "regular" way, with cable straight down they don't exactly stay most securely inside ears

In my opinion IE800 is complete disaster and I wouldn't trade my IE80 for them, ever, even if they were the same price, let alone 2 times more.

Sound is good tho, bit different but I'd sa better than IE80, no mid bass "veil" as much as IE80 and highs seems to be sharper, which I didn't find particularly good but they sound more clear than IE80 for sure, still, all the trouble and unacceptable physical form makes them extremely bad product in my opinion, let alone better from IE80. 
true true and true. Ie800 was one of the worst iems I've ever used...and I love my sennheiser products.
 
Sep 30, 2015 at 6:17 AM Post #6,726 of 7,699
true true and true. Ie800 was one of the worst iems I've ever used...and I love my sennheiser products.

Yeah, I have both full size HDR130 (RS130) and IE80 and had couple of more before those... but IE800 is simply a disaster, which is a shame since it really does sound good, and build quality of earpieces themselves is nice, and even the cable is good when it comes to quality... but thanks to some really bad design decisions... IE80 remains flagship in my eyes for now. 
 
 
Anyways, does anyone know how does any of these compare to IE80? 
 
-Earsonics Velvet 
-Fischer Amps FA-4 E XB
-Aurisonics ASG-2.5
-InEar StageDriver3
 
I was thinking of getting some upgrade with "fixed" mid bass veil, but generally as similar as possible sound... these are the ones I narrowed down to, but didn't find much/any direct comparisons with IE80. 
I've already posted this but since I didn't get replies I do it again... it can also be helpful for other folks with IE80 when the times for upgrade come. 
 
Sep 30, 2015 at 6:37 AM Post #6,727 of 7,699
Yeah, I have both full size HDR130 (RS130) and IE80 and had couple of more before those... but IE800 is simply a disaster, which is a shame since it really does sound good, and build quality of earpieces themselves is nice, and even the cable is good when it comes to quality... but thanks to some really bad design decisions... IE80 remains flagship in my eyes for now. 


Anyways, does anyone know how does any of these compare to IE80? 

-Earsonics Velvet 
-Fischer Amps FA-4 E XB
-Aurisonics ASG-2.5
-InEar StageDriver3

I was thinking of getting some upgrade with "fixed" mid bass veil, but generally as similar as possible sound... these are the ones I narrowed down to, but didn't find much/any direct comparisons with IE80. 
I've already posted this but since I didn't get replies I do it again... it can also be helpful for other folks with IE80 when the times for upgrade come. 


I think the asg may be your best bet.
 
Sep 30, 2015 at 12:42 PM Post #6,728 of 7,699
I'm 6'7" and have no problems wearing the IE800s normally with the phone in my pants pocket. Haven't heard any microphonics as of yet, unlike my old Beyerdynamic DX 160 and B&W C5 v1/v2. Haven't had a fit problem with the IE800s either - and as you can tell by my posts here, finding the right tips was pulling teeth for me. But then again, maybe the IE800s work well for me.
 
Sep 30, 2015 at 5:55 PM Post #6,729 of 7,699
I currently own a pair of shure se215's and se315's. I listen to music mostly on my iphone 6 on a daily basis using Spotify's highest quality synchronization setting. I am able to hear differences in the type of sound they produce and the quality (se315 more clear but less bass for instance). However, my cable has broken again and I am wondering whether I would notice a step up in quality/sound if I would go for the ie80's? Or would it be negligable given the way I listen to music? Any help is appreciated.
 
Sep 30, 2015 at 7:31 PM Post #6,730 of 7,699
I currently own a pair of shure se215's and se315's. I listen to music mostly on my iphone 6 on a daily basis using Spotify's highest quality synchronization setting. I am able to hear differences in the type of sound they produce and the quality (se315 more clear but less bass for instance). However, my cable has broken again and I am wondering whether I would notice a step up in quality/sound if I would go for the ie80's? Or would it be negligable given the way I listen to music? Any help is appreciated.

The way you listen to music is good and don't let fairy tales about hi res make you think it isn't. iPhone 6 has very good sound quality if you have sensitive enough earphones, which you do and IE80 are also one of the most sensitive earphones that exist at 125 dB SPL and low impedance of 16 Ohm, so you won't have any problem at all with iPhone. Also whatever Neil Young says Spotify is ok. 
 
However, whether you would like IE80 or not is up to you, nothing to do with Spotify or the iPhone
 
Sep 30, 2015 at 10:43 PM Post #6,731 of 7,699
I currently own a pair of shure se215's and se315's. I listen to music mostly on my iphone 6 on a daily basis using Spotify's highest quality synchronization setting. I am able to hear differences in the type of sound they produce and the quality (se315 more clear but less bass for instance). However, my cable has broken again and I am wondering whether I would notice a step up in quality/sound if I would go for the ie80's? Or would it be negligable given the way I listen to music? Any help is appreciated.


95% of what people mistake for a step up is a signature difference, and from a SE215 to an IE80 the difference in signature is massive enough for you to decide you love it, or can't stand it. if your aim is supposedly closer to a neutral sound, I would stick with shure. if you feel like you're a massive bass head and don't care much for mediums, then the IE80 can be mighty enjoyable. 
but the concept of upgrade is dumb most of the time when used in the IEM world. you almost never get an improvement in distortions and frequency extensions, that is clear enough to be unanimously called an improvement, while staying in the same kind of signature with the same kind of comfort and isolation. so it's always a game of trading one thing for another. when you read people telling you how much better something is, it usually means they like it and they don't know how to speak objectively. 
 
one clear step up is to stop using IEMs and go get a good pair of speakers well placed in a nice room. ^_^ .
 
oh and BTW, the IE80's isolation is not even close to be as good as it can be on a pair of shure with the right olive tip or comply foam.
 
did you get a look at the signature measurements of se215 se315 vs IE80? do you feel it might be a change you would welcome? that's the kind of questions you must ask yourself IMO.
I never was a huge fan of the shure cable, but even with it, I rank the comfort higher for shure than the IE80.
 
not "shure" (I'm so 1970 funny) if that helps you at all, but here are my own measurement of my own IE80 vs se215. they're my IEMs, they're not new and I can't guaranty all sold pairs are identical to this. same with my play pretend "diffuse field calibration", don't go making comparisons between this and other online measurements! or at least dismiss the treble part that is always unreliable on measurements.
but still the differences between the 2 pairs is indeed legit as it's done with the same gears under the same circumstances so this graph on its own makes sense.
the IE80 has a bass setting, so I show mini, max(you can go wherever you want in-between). and also the vastly loved "tape mode" that is no more than duck taping the bass screw to seal the vent.(click the pic to view something)

to make exaggerated simplifications, you could kind of see the taped IE80 as a SE215 missing a lot of medium. the rest being a lot more V shaped overall(still no medium).
to me the 215 is a nice cheap all rounder. the IE80 I use to have fun with some bassy music that will shake my brain. I enjoy both a lot, but upgrade.... nope ^_^.
 
 
oh and no you do not need high end devices to enjoy all the music of your IEMs, just like you do not need a 3000$ bottle of wine to enjoy wine or know when one is clearly not to your taste ^_^(tell me if my crap analogies are too french for you
biggrin.gif
).
best bet in the end is probably to get a pair from a place where you can send it back if you realize it was really not for you.
 
Oct 1, 2015 at 8:07 AM Post #6,733 of 7,699
  Ok thanks for the replies. Makes the choice a bit harder though, but I think I will stick with my current pairs unless I can try the IE80 somewhere before buying :wink:

The IE80 still belongs to the most populair IEM´s on the market, even 4 years after it´s release, it is safe to say they did become a classic, like some of their big can like the 600-650. If you can find them at a good price don´t hesitate, as they are really good even far beyond their price class,
 
Oct 1, 2015 at 2:19 PM Post #6,734 of 7,699
Hello IE80 enthusiasts!

I recently bought this IEMs in full retail price and I can't say I'm completely pleased. It hasnt been a let down but it isn't either the iem I was expecting.

I'm in love of instrument separation and music clarity. I feel I can listen everything with great depth. However, I feel this iem to be very slow, and that the sound stage is so big that some stuff get lost on the process.

I have done the tape mod and I'm amazed how a simple thing changed completely the sound. My favorite genre is heavy metal and before the mod, listening to fast music was really depressive.

So, my question is. Does someone else know any more hints on how to drive this IEMs with heavy metal? (it is really sad to have such a high end IEM that can't deliver your favorite genre).
 
Oct 1, 2015 at 3:45 PM Post #6,735 of 7,699
Hello IE80 enthusiasts!

I recently bought this IEMs in full retail price and I can't say I'm completely pleased. It hasnt been a let down but it isn't either the iem I was expecting.

I'm in love of instrument separation and music clarity. I feel I can listen everything with great depth. However, I feel this iem to be very slow, and that the sound stage is so big that some stuff get lost on the process.

I have done the tape mod and I'm amazed how a simple thing changed completely the sound. My favorite genre is heavy metal and before the mod, listening to fast music was really depressive.

So, my question is. Does someone else know any more hints on how to drive this IEMs with heavy metal? (it is really sad to have such a high end IEM that can't deliver your favorite genre).


My first advice would be to keep looking for a better isolation tip. Isolation can be tricky. You think it is 100% and in fact that is just 80%. That 20% may mean you loose half of your bass.
 

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