[braiseworth]

I may buy a pair of these. I love the ie80s and the 846s as well. I will use them mostly for running and gym work. Not sure what to get lol

 

[Duncan]

I'm starting to really enjoy these (and more importantly, understand them) now, I know what they're good for, and their limits / tolerances...

Am intrigued how they respond to upgrade cables (or, how good the stock cables are) - wondering if it is worth getting a cable like this or if you'd need to spend more / get a higher grade for best results...

 

[RIQUE]

Anybody with a pair of Sony MDR 7550 compair them to the XBA-H3?  Any comments appreicated. 

 

[dweaver]

From memory, not A/B testing.

The H3 has more bass and warmer thicker mids. The 7550 has good bass but is not as heavy and more forward and balanced mids. Both have nice treble that never becomes to excessive.

Initially I was wowed by the bass of the H3 but I think ultimately the 7550 is more balanced and musical. The H3 suffer less from wind noise and is slightly more isolating though. If you love big bass the H3 is a no brainer.

 

[RIQUE]

From memory, not A/B testing.



The H3 has more bass and warmer thicker mids. The 7550 has good bass but is not as heavy and more forward and balanced mids. Both have nice treble that never becomes to excessive.



Initially I was wowed by the bass of the H3 but I think ultimately the 7550 is more balanced and musical. The H3 suffer less from wind noise and is slightly more isolating though. If you love big bass the H3 is a no brainer.

 


Just what I wanted to hear dweaver. Thanks for the post. I went ahead and got me the H3.

 

[dweaver]

No problem and happy listening

 

[cricketbaby]

Anyone here tried the JVC spiral dot tips on these? I just bought some Ortofons (which I'm loving), but after reading up on the spirals I am very intrigued.

Where can the Spiral Dots be purchased from? Can't find them anywhere...

 

[Duncan]

With further listening / testing, I can say from a personal perspective that the HA3 is NOT in the same league as the IE800, but - more akin to a sidestep / minor upgrade to the UE TF10...

The sound overall just isn't as engaging with the Sony's as it is with the Sennheisers, sounding smeared, and a bit 'grey', and lacking both refinement and excitement in a direct A/B - Not bad, definitely not, and I still stand by the fact that at approx. 30% of the street price of the IE800s, that they offer great sound, and even better value, but - the recent flurry of talk saying that these are giant killers is - at least from my perspective, with a dose of hindsight, a bit overplayed...

I have gone back to the IE800, not saying that I will abandon the HA3 (the lack of microphonics is worth the price of admission alone!), but - they will not, long term - be my IEM of choice...

 

[joey99]

I think both H3 and IE800 have their good and bad points .. both very musical and I feel the bass more on the H3. After having ie800 for 3 weeks .. they also have a very addictive sound that have made me listen to all sorts of different music that I usually don't listen to .. till 4 or 5am into the morning the last 3 nights. Rarely has any audio stuff made me want to keep listening to stuff all night long instead of going to sleep. In clarity and sound stage, ie800 is very slightly ahead. H3s are warmer and IE800 are brighter. Both H3 and Ie800 are great at my desk but the IE800 is a bother to take out while the H3 stay where they're supposed to while walking around.
 
I find them both very enjoyable iems and will keep both. Still waiting on my 846 to come .. will see how they go compared to these and hopefully will be the end of my curiousity. 
 
Just to add .. for some music like Rihanna .. I think it sounds better on the H3 and sounds like that's how it's supposed to be .. more full and bassy. The Ie800 sounds a bit thin on things like that.

 

[hockey_magnet]

  I think both H3 and IE800 have their good and bad points .. both very musical and I feel the bass more on the H3. After having ie800 for 3 weeks .. they also have a very addictive sound that have made me listen to all sorts of different music that I usually don't listen to .. till 4 or 5am into the morning the last 3 nights. Rarely has any audio stuff made me want to keep listening to stuff all night long instead of going to sleep. In clarity and sound stage, ie800 is very slightly ahead. H3s are warmer and IE800 are brighter. Both H3 and Ie800 are great at my desk but the IE800 is a bother to take out while the H3 stay where they're supposed to while walking around.
 
I find them both very enjoyable iems and will keep both. Still waiting on my 846 to come .. will see how they go compared to these and hopefully will be the end of my curiousity. 
 
Just to add .. for some music like Rihanna .. I think it sounds better on the H3 and sounds like that's how it's supposed to be .. more full and bassy. The Ie800 sounds a bit thin on things like that.

Kind of how I feel about the 846's vs the H3. I think you'll find the 846's bass to be a fair bit better then the ie800 for Rihanna, etc. The H3 is definitely warmer than the 846  and to me the bass goes deeper but the 846's provide better clarity in all areas and the base is more crisp. Snares sound more like they should. I like a warm sound and right now prefer the black filter on the 846 but that may change. To me, the 846's sound more like you're actually there while the H3's separation is almost too much (artificial) but the H3's are just so darn relaxing and fun. I'm getting more used to the 846's though. Funny - as far as walking around, they both stay in place fine, no microphonics from either but the 846's somehow seem to transfer foot impact (I don't run, just walking) which I can't figure out

 

[joey99]

The 846 sounds to be awesome .. can't wait to try them. In my opinion all these top tiers are going to be good .. just need to find the signature you prefer. I enjoy my IM70 just as much as the IE800 .. and will use them for going out and for the gym. They are just much less fiddly (actually fiddleless) then both H3 and IE800 .. just a plug and go iem that also sound awesome.

 

[Duncan]

De-railing the H3 thread somewhat, however - bearing in mind we're talking about the H3, IE800 and 846 in the same sentence, it annoys me that in the UK, the 846 is over 50% more expensive than the IE800 (450% more expensive than the H3 to put it in an even clearer perspective)...

...Unless the price calms down a bit on them (or, they really are at least 50% better than the IE800 in real terms) I won't be buying them any time soon - would rather buy the JVC FX850 (which is the next IEM on my radar!)

 

[heatofamatch]

Not bad, definitely not, and I still stand by the fact that at approx. 30% of the street price of the IE800s, that they offer great sound, and even better value, but - the recent flurry of talk saying that these are giant killers is - at least from my perspective, with a dose of hindsight, a bit overplayed...

 
Don't you just hate the giant killer narrative? It's like an emotion/attention ointment with instant effect on whatever topic you apply it to. The discovery thread is like, totally mired in grease from its topical application.

 

[vwinter]

Man, the IE800 is rediculouly sensitive @125dB.  I'd be wary of any source with output impedance higher than 2ohms as the impedance is quite low @16ohms according to Sennheiser(although Rin measured it to be 18).  The nice thing about it's impedance is it's flat.  The 846 varies in impedance with frequencies as it can dip as low as 4ohms at certain frequencies.  It has no impedance or phase variations throughout the audible frequency range.  It's totally flat.  In terms of sound output graphs, it looks bass emphasized with good amount of sub bass.  Treble extends better than 846(rolls off drastically around 10K).

Since output impedance won't affect the frequency response given the flat impedance curve, is there another reason why you would try to follow the general 1/8th recommendation?

With further listening / testing, I can say from a personal perspective that the HA3 is NOT in the same league as the IE800, but - more akin to a sidestep / minor upgrade to the UE TF10...

The sound overall just isn't as engaging with the Sony's as it is with the Sennheisers, sounding smeared, and a bit 'grey', and lacking both refinement and excitement in a direct A/B - Not bad, definitely not, and I still stand by the fact that at approx. 30% of the street price of the IE800s, that they offer great sound, and even better value, but - the recent flurry of talk saying that these are giant killers is - at least from my perspective, with a dose of hindsight, a bit overplayed...

I have gone back to the IE800, not saying that I will abandon the HA3 (the lack of microphonics is worth the price of admission alone!), but - they will not, long term - be my IEM of choice...

Haven't read all your posts but have you tried the pinhole tape mod? Just curious to how/if that would alter your perspective to any degree.

If you have or plan to, the pinhole should be absolutely tiny to have a substantial enough effect.

 

[StanD]

Since output impedance won't affect the frequency response given the flat impedance curve, is there another reason why you would try to follow the general 1/8th recommendation?

Usually the 1/8 rule is said for damping or controlling the excessive movement of the transducer (Inertia). If a transducer has a wild impedance curve, the output impedance of your amp (which is basically constant or should be) forms a frequency dependent voltage divider or attenuator with the impedance of the transducer, effectively a tuned circuit, hence affects the FR. Often, this impedance hump occurs in the bass (as in some Sennheiser cans) which causes a bass boost, not a good one as it usually becomes under-damped.
Usually an Ortho (planar) is resistive (no impedance curve) and the diaphragm has little mass for inertia.
 
In the below case for a Sennheiser HD558.
A 53.2 Ohm output impedance cuases a 50% loss of signal in the flat areas and a 20% loss at the impedance peak. A 30% delta
A 6.65 Ohm output impedance causes an 11% loss of signal in the flat areas and a 3% loss at the impedance peak.A 8% delta.
Got to go to work, don't have time right not to compute dBs, sorry.