[Philo]

I find them to hold up very well against the 600. Haven't heard the 900.

Agreed. I've heard the 900 as well, and owned the 800 S too. The 800 S is in the middle between the 600 and the 900 - as their numbers say it too. The 900 is slightly better then the 800 S, especially in dynamics and bass response. I've had a need by the 800 S to EQ-ing in some things. Bass + 5 Db (from 60 Hz to 500 Hz), and the treble - 2 Db (8 KHz). The 900 doesn't need any EQ. Its bass response is strong enough, it's impactful and well articulated as well, as long as its treble is smooth enough, not too harsh. The 900 is a really professional IEM, by all needs. It's one of the best of the bests currently.

 

[thefitz]

Do you feel the ie 800 s still stands up well today? How do they compare to the ie 600 and 900?

Aren't they all the same drivers in different housings?

 

[ardilla]

Aren't they all the same drivers in different housings?

That might very well be and we will never ever know for sure

 

[Philo]

That might very well be and we will never ever know for sure

They are three different drivers, for sure.

 

[ardilla]

They are three different drivers, for sure.

How do you know?

 

[thefitz]

All of the sets refer to their 7mm xwb driver

 

[Philo]

How do you know?

Sennheiser says it oneself.

 

[ardilla]

Sennheiser says it oneself.

Interesting. Do you have a source you can share with us? They're all called "7mm True Response transducers" so it's not easy to discern is they're different or not...

 

[Philo]

Interesting. Do you have a source you can share with us? They're all called "7mm True Response transducers" so it's not easy to discern is they're different or not...

"Our German-engineered and manufactured TrueResponse driver ensures exceptionally natural reproduction. A large part of its very precise transient response comes from the unique combination of materials in the diaphragm together with its high inner dampening. So when the signal stops, the sound stops too. This is how the IE 900 can reveal details in tracks you thought you knew inside out."

Ok, they say not exactly, what you've asked for; but, if you think it over, it's just evident, different sound quality needs a different quality driver as well. The drivers, and the housing of the IE900 is a further development of their former flagship model, the IE 800 S. The IE 600 plays in a different league again, it's not a high-end model.

 

[ardilla]

"Our German-engineered and manufactured TrueResponse driver ensures exceptionally natural reproduction. A large part of its very precise transient response comes from the unique combination of materials in the diaphragm together with its high inner dampening. So when the signal stops, the sound stops too. This is how the IE 900 can reveal details in tracks you thought you knew inside out."

Ok, they say not exactly, what you've asked for; but, if you think it over, it's just evident, different sound quality needs a different quality driver as well. The drivers, and the housing of the IE900 is a further development of their former flagship model, the IE 800 S. The IE 600 plays in a different league again, it's not a high-end model.

Not necessarily. The acoustics of the chamber is different. The ie900 has 3 Helmholtz Resonators e.g.

Lots of different speakers use the same drivers. Headphones too.

 

[thefitz]

If they're different drivers, they're "the HD600 and HD650 have different drivers" kind of differences. A driver is only one part of the equation, and they're often less expensive than you think.

 

[Blackberry Jack]

Recently rediscovered these babies. Gotta say they handle pretty well against some TOTL multidrivers like U12t. Maybe the ie800s is not the most detailed iem, but incredibly natural in tonal balance and with nice imaging. Its perfect for the music lover in me, rather than the audiophile. Its signature is kinda addictive.

 

[ardilla]

Recently rediscovered these babies. Gotta say they handle pretty well against some TOTL multidrivers like U12t. Maybe the ie800s not the most detailed iems, but incredibly natural in tonal balance and with nice imaging. Its perfect for the music lover in me, rather than the audiophile. Its signature is kinda addictive.

Well put

 

[mtnegg]

Given the current Amazon price of $550 USD, how do these IEMs hold up? Most of the reviews I could find were around release date, and had quite a different retail price...

 

[thefitz]

Given the current Amazon price of $550 USD, how do these IEMs hold up? Most of the reviews I could find were around release date, and had quite a different retail price...

Personally, I haven't heard an all-BA IEM that sounds better than this. The nice thing about Amazon is you can try it and return it.

The main detraction is the proprietary tip connector and semi removable cable.