[Rurouni]

Received my ie900 today. It’s now produced in Ireland for those who were wondering.

Running it off a TAZH1ES unbalanced low gain. I would say it’s moderately easier to drive than the Z1R.

Sound wise I would say preliminary that the IE900 shines best on many modern produced pop/rock pieces and for piano reproduction, and is edged out slightly overall by the z1r in just that final 10-15% of timbre and realism. (Especially in brass and woodwinds where the z1r’s treble detail and smoothness is just magical).

But that is in no way a knock against the ie900. It is definitely in the end game category for IEMs

I’ll update again after more testing but at USD800 new this is a good buy.

 

[roadrat]

Received my ie900 today. It’s now produced in Ireland for those who were wondering.

Running it off a TAZH1ES unbalanced low gain. I would say it’s moderately easier to drive than the Z1R.

Sound wise I would say preliminary that the IE900 shines best on many modern produced pop/rock pieces and for piano reproduction, and is edged out slightly overall by the z1r in just that final 10-15% of timbre and realism. (Especially in brass and woodwinds where the z1r’s treble detail and smoothness is just magical).

But that is in no way a knock against the ie900. It is definitely in the end game category for IEMs

I’ll update again after more testing but at USD800 new this is a good buy.

$800 USD?

 

[Rurouni]

Ah typed too fast it’s usd1000 new.

 

[maceto]

I found my cable PWAudio GENESIS - snaps well in and doesn't feel at all like it's going to fall out like their stock cable does - I am not going to discuss if I hear a difference or not as I am not in a soundproof room and have the ability to objectively judge it - even remotely. It just feels better.

 

[gikigill]

Received my ie900 today. It’s now produced in Ireland for those who were wondering.

Running it off a TAZH1ES unbalanced low gain. I would say it’s moderately easier to drive than the Z1R.

Sound wise I would say preliminary that the IE900 shines best on many modern produced pop/rock pieces and for piano reproduction, and is edged out slightly overall by the z1r in just that final 10-15% of timbre and realism. (Especially in brass and woodwinds where the z1r’s treble detail and smoothness is just magical).

But that is in no way a knock against the ie900. It is definitely in the end game category for IEMs

I’ll update again after more testing but at USD800 new this is a good buy.

Yup, the Z1R is a good compliment to the IE900.

 

[shimigg]

Can someone recommend a good cable from AliExpress for the ie900 , preferably a modular one if possible.

If not , what is the material for the OG cables as I am looking to maintain the sound

 

[Spie1904]

Can someone recommend a good cable from AliExpress for the ie900 , preferably a modular one if possible.

If not , what is the material for the OG cables as I am looking to maintain the sound

Do yourself (and your wallet) a favour and don’t go around spending lots of money on cables.
They make very little if any difference sound wise.
If you want better comfort (which I suspect to be the case), I understand wanting something with less memory for example and in that case I wish you the best of luck with any recommendations people may have
(Not that familiar with what exists on aliexpress)

 

[shimigg]

Do yourself (and your wallet) a favour and don’t go around spending lots of money on cables.
They make very little if any difference sound wise.
If you want better comfort (which I suspect to be the case), I understand wanting something with less memory for example and in that case I wish you the best of luck with any recommendations people may have
(Not that familiar with what exists on aliexpress)

Yea, not going for SQ as I already like it now, I just want better comfort and tangle free cable, probably something braided

 

[Beh0lder]

Yea, not going for SQ as I already like it now, I just want better comfort and tangle free cable, probably something braided

Nicehck makes some very pliable noodles, dunno about the connectors but plenty of chifi have dedicated IE900 connectors to choose from

 

[shimigg]

Nicehck makes some very pliable noodles, dunno about the connectors but plenty of chifi have dedicated IE900 connectors to choose from

What material should the cable have ?

 

[TomBY]

I bought my IE 900 at my local dealer in Germany 1.5 years ago. Previously, I used FiiO FA-7 and FA-9 and I were not very satisfied with sound and the comfort of the FiiOs. The FA-9 war a little large for my ears. I was looking for an IEM with a more dynamic sound than the FiiOs, and I was looking for a FiiO with a dynamic driver. The dealer did not have FiiOs available and recommended the IE-900. At that time the IE-600 was just on the market and sold out.

I tried the IE-900 with my FiiO M11 Plus Ltd. player and was immediately impressend by the sound quality in comparison to my FiiO IEMs. Despite the high price of 1.499 € I took the plunge and bought it.

I used it for a while, enjoyed it, but struggled to find ear tips, which could fit my ears well. With the ear tips I tried (the stock tips, some Complys and the Bayer Xelento tips), I wasn't perfectly happy, because when pressing the IE 900 to my ears, I could feel how much the sound would improve especially in the lower frequencies.

My ear channels are quite small and narrow, therefore even small tips do not fit too well. I listen mostly Classic and Jazz.

This summer I got notice of Sennheisers Germany exclusive pilot project of custom ear tips, which are made in cooperation with Geers hearing aid device company. I took the occasion and ordered one black pair of the custom ear tips and Sennheiser gave me 20 € discount for them, because I had only bought the IE 900 one year before.

The procedure was to go to a local Geers shop (in my case 30 km drive), get my ears measured (in my case not with a laser, but with an elastic cast), and then wait about 1 month to get my custom ear tips delivered to the Geers shop. They checked, if the tips would fit well, everything was OK.

At home, I did my first tests with the custom ear tips and I was immediately excited about the huge improvement in sound. Now the IE 900 really showed its potential. The sealing is better and the sound is more dynamic. This is mostly because the custom tips reach deeper in my ear channel. This matches exactly, what Sennheiser stated on the description of the product.

The custom ear tips are larger than standard ear tips but the ear channel ist not round, but fairly flat, so it fits in my narrow ear channels. The downside is, that it is sometimes cumbersome to put the custom ear tips into my ears and find the right position to push them deep enough in the ear channel.

The custom ear tips fit good enough in the case of the IE 900. They are labeled with my name, a serial number, and left / right.

In the attached images, you can see, how flat and narrow my ear channels are and imagine that standard tips are difficult to fit. The left ear channel ist smaller and narrower than the right one. In the other image you can see, that the custom ear tips fit well enough in the case and where the labeling is placed.

In summary, I am quite happy with the purchase of the custom ear tips. I don't thing there is any memory foam tip, which could fit that well to my ears and resolve the sound quality issues (I tried the stock tips and the Comply foam tips). The difficulties on attaching the IE 900 to my ears is the price I have to pay, but that is mostly thanks to my "strange" ear channels. It is probably easier with ear channels of different shapes.

I haven't noticed any wear of the custom ear tip's material, they seem quite durable so far. In my opinion, to get the best sound quality out of the IE 900, the custom ear tips are very recommendable. In fact, I think most IEMs would profit from such a customization. It is Sennheiser's merit, that it is - as far as I know - the first manufacturer of IEMs, who offer the option of custom ear tips.

 

[Premetec]

After all this time … i try read all 300 pages , but … how bests eartips for ie900?

 

[TomBY]

This depends on your ears, so nobody can really tell from remote.

However, in addition to my last post about the custom ear tips, it is really clear, what the IEM industry is lacking: standardization. I all the plugs and connectors would be only a very few, one could let custom ear tips made by any provider and you would be set up and use the tips on each IEM, as long the shape of the IEM doesn‘t hinder this. But currently, we have ear tips with many (too many) plug sizes, and as such the reuse of custom ear tips is difficult. My custom ear tips, for example, do not fit on my my Sennheiser Momentum 3 Wireless and not on the Sony WF 1000 XM4. I haven‘t tried them on my FiiOs yet.

 

[lmf22]

After all this time … i try read all 300 pages , but … how bests eartips for ie900?

It depends on what kind of fit and sound you're after.

I keep going back to the stock silicone tips, with a shallow insertion. They're the most comfortable for me, easy to get a proper seal, and has the most open treble that's not shouty.

What is it about the stock tips that you don't like? Is it something about their sound? Uncomfortable? Hard to get a proper seal?

 

[Premetec]

It depends on what kind of fit and sound you're after.

I keep going back to the stock silicone tips, with a shallow insertion. They're the most comfortable for me, easy to get a proper seal, and has the most open treble that's not shouty.

What is it about the stock tips that you don't like? Is it something about their sound? Uncomfortable? Hard to get a proper seal?

I love the sparky treble of ie900 , but some times are too much in quantity , the splashes have much sustein …
It possible tame treble without affect the mid-hi ?