[Exesteils]

Indeed. Sexiest carry cases I have ever owned myself.

 

[Ivabign]

Aarrgghhh
 
down to $330 through buysmart Japan - must stop spending......

 

[wanderer2014]

Now this case is classy! Individual cutouts for ear pieces and the cable, and is a rigid box with a magnetic snap closure.

What I am trying to convey with this analogy is that the fx850 is "special". With wood housings and wood drivers that are tuned wonderfully, it has a timbre and presentation that are sublime to my ears (and eyes!). Yes, the H3 is more "organized" (ie-separation and space) and truly gets the job done, but fx850 adds that extra something that gives it a unique and classy sound.

 
Aye aye, bigfullz.
 
JVC nailed this one for sure. From sound signature, iem design, special eartips, OFC cable to the little extra nifty case (did I mention magnetic closing lid?). The case definitely adds to the overall prestige of the phones and it should be so at this price point. Would be even better if the thing is made in japan though.
 
Sony case is adequate, but I prefer some foam and a hard-shell like the JVC. Will probably build a case similar to JVC for it.
 
Sony did go the extra mile to include the extra mic cable and the tips, but I hardly use them anyway. Overall, this two earphones are enjoyable in their own way.
 
FX850 is keeper for sure but it doesn't have the separation of the H3. Man, hard choose, hard to give up either. Perhaps I should keep both?

 

[Hapster]

Man I'm jealous, all the cases I've ever used have been ridiculously bad...

Sennheiser cx880 and triple fi 10 don't even fit in theirs

 

[Kamakahah]

The case is such a great touch. It's sleek, classy, and very functional. It does everything I want a case to do, and it does that in a compact form.

 

[bigfullz]

 

Aye aye, bigfullz.

JVC nailed this one for sure. From sound signature, iem design, special eartips, OFC cable to the little extra nifty case (did I mention magnetic closing lid?). The case definitely adds to the overall prestige of the phones and it should be so at this price point. Would be even better if the thing is made in japan though.

Sony case is adequate, but I prefer some foam and a hard-shell like the JVC. Will probably build a case similar to JVC for it.

Sony did go the extra mile to include the extra mic cable and the tips, but I hardly use them anyway. Overall, this two earphones are enjoyable in their own way.

FX850 is keeper for sure but it doesn't have the separation of the H3. Man, hard choose, hard to give up either. Perhaps I should keep both?

Sony did include 2 cables and a heapload of tips, great point! As for which one to keep... Gotta go with your gut! We all hear differently and have different aspects of sound that excite us ya know? Or just keep 'em both, total headfi move!
Here is to the headfi journey!

BTW, thanks for that JVC story on the process behind the wood drivers

 

[wanderer2014]

Sony did include 2 cables and a heapload of tips, great point! As for which one to keep... Gotta go with your gut! We all hear differently and have different aspects of sound that excite us ya know? Or just keep 'em both, total headfi move!
Here is to the headfi journey!

BTW, thanks for that JVC story on the process behind the wood drivers

No prob bigfullz,
 
Now the big question is, at 300$ can we find better than what the FX850 offers? The tight lows, the clear mids, smooth treble, soundstage, neat case... the whole package.
 
I mean sure, some people might lose their mind when hearing us spending 300 squid for an iem. But truthfully, for a high end iem, the FX850 is quite excellent value for the money. The H3's technicalities at 268$ (courtesy of amazon) is also good bang for your buck, but some people might not accept the mid and the low of the H3. And the fact that the FX850 is from the only series from the only company on the market to offer wood drivers truly make it unique. For that reason, I would put the FX850 ahead of the H3 in terms of value (say 9.5 for FX850 and 9.2 for H3).
 
But really, can we find an IEM that is better than or equal to FX850 at 300$?
My guess is that the conversation will come down to preference (lose this, gain that...) rather than a clear advantage between IEMs when you have a competent all-rounder like the FX850 in the equation.

 

[vlenbo]

No prob bigfullz,

Now the big question is, at 300$ can we find better than what the FX850 offers? The tight lows, the clear mids, smooth treble, soundstage, neat case... the whole package.

I mean sure, some people might lose their mind when hear us spending 300 squid for an iem. But truthfully, for a high end iem, the FX850 is quite excellent value for the money. The H3's technicalities at 268$ (courtesy of amazon) is also good bang for your buck, but some people might not accept the mid and the low of the H3. And the fact that the FX850 is from the only series from the only company on the market to offer wood drivers truly make it unique. For that reason, I would put the FX850 ahead of the H3 in terms of value (say 9.5 for FX850 and 9.2 for H3).

But really, can we find an IEM that is better than or equal to FX850 at 300$?
My guess is that the conversation will come down to preference (lose this, gain that...) rather than a clear advantage between IEMs when you have a competent all-rounder like the FX850 in the equation.

There might be for SQ alone, but not for everything that the fx850 offers!

 

[JanPro]

I have also H3 but I tend to use FX850 more due H3 are most uncomfortable iems I ever had, feels like bricks in your ears while JVCs are like feathers.

 

[Tympan]

  I have also H3 but I tend to use FX850 more due H3 are most uncomfortable iems I ever had, feels like bricks in your ears while JVCs are like feathers.

 
Feathers from flying mammoth then because the FX850 are large and bulky to me, in comparison to RE600 anyways...
 
 

 

[Exesteils]

Feathers from flying mammoth then because the FX850 are large and bulky to me, in comparison to RE600 anyways...

Large maybe, but they aren't intrusive and I find them quite comfortable. But a bit on the heavy side, yes.

 

[DannyBai]

Try the FX650. Smaller, lighter and still sounds grrreat.

 

[JanPro]

Problem with H3 is that they dont stay in the ears whatever tips I have tried while FX850 are like nailed there and dont fall out during walking for example.

 

[mochill]

Or the ostry kc06 gold and the kc06A

 

[Tympan]

There's nothing more frustrating than good sounding iems that keep falling off. I can't deal with that sort of inconvenience.
The FX850 aren't bad but it took me a couple days to get used to them. Mainly because I'm used to wearing tiny iems over the ears. Unfortunately, the connector stems are just too long for me (I actually might take a 1/4" off with an exacto knife). But they are fine when worn down, I just wasn't used to it.