OK, so I've been a little quite since I got my 8.A's and there was a reason for this. These are by far the most expensive headphones I have ever purchased and, in some ways, mark an "end of the road" for me with portable audio. If I ever buy anything else it's likely to be primarily a backup or just to play around, nothing this serious again. So I wanted to have a bit of time with my headphones before I would comment.
First things first, in my head I'm comparing these first to my HE-500's (my main at-home headphone) and my 4.A's.
FIT AND ISOLATION:
I think this is as good a place as any to start. Simply put the fit is quite good and the isolation is wonderful. However, I wouldn't say it was better than my 4.A but the reason for that is simple: These are the "comfort" fit and my 4.A was the "musician fit". If you have a top-tier audiologist I suggest going musician as the isolation is definitely better. I also think they feel a bit more secure in your ears. But, then again, given the CIEM is literally hocked into your skull kind of does that. These are a bit easier to put in, however, and definitely easier to take out.
At first I noticed that the fit was a little weird and loose, especially in my left ear. However, it turned out to be a similar experience as my 4.A's in that I was simply inserting them wrong. I was doing it the way I used to insert my 4.A's and thinking nothing of it. I have since learned that like all CIEMs are truly custom so is the way you insert them. Same ears, sure, but different headphones and they need a bit more attention on insertion.
LOWS:
When I was looking at the 8.A I was told it had more bass than the 4.A. I'm not sure that's the best way of putting it. it's not more in the sense of 2 is more than 1. It's more in an abstract sense; that red is more red than that red—I've had that discussion in art school before, don't laugh. It's not just that the bass goes a bit deeper, it's that it's more present, it's more nuanced, it's more layered. Don't get these and think, "Man, my head is going to vibrate off my shoulders!" It won't, these aren't like that. It's more, "Wow, I never heard that part of the reverb before. Oh, has that low bass-line always been there? Listen to the hum on that cello!" Because of this if a song doesn't have much base then the 8.A doesn't shove any in. However, if the song has a really strong bass presence then, yeah, your head just might rattle off your shoulders. You hear the bass when you're supposed to and when you do it's like running your hands across crushed velvet in the dark.
MIDS:
I haven't explored these much yet but from what I'm experiencing if you're familiar with the 4.A then you're in for more of the same. The mids feel well-rounded and smooth with good definition. Seems a contradiction but there it is.
HIGHS:
You'd think with all that bass that the highs would suffer. Nope. Other people have said it and I just want to reiterate: The highs on this headphone are solid, clear, but not harsh. And like everything else the 8.A does you can really hear detail in there.
SEPARATION:
I never know how best to describe this to people. In bad headphones it's like the sound is flat, no levels, no individual instruments. Just one jumble of sound. With the 8.A you get a sense for the pieces, the construction, the layers. It's the difference between looking at an onion and knowing, intellectually, that there are layers below the surface and actually being able to cut the onion open and pull out the layers individually, examine them and put them back.
SOUNDSTAGE:
So far I get a good sense of location but my true test comes later when I use these things for gaming. In a recording studio you can kind of fake your way through directionality but in a game it matters. So I'll be trying these out to see how they fair. One thing I would comment on is that these headphone tricked me a number of times by making me think that they weren't sealing properly due to out open they sounded. I had a sense of "beyond my headphones" and it made me think I hadn't wedged them into my ears right; I did.
More impressions to come. So far I think the Leckerton UHA-6S Mk.II is a good match for the 8.A but I can't help but wonder if something else wouldn't knock my socks off a bit. I feel like there's more the 8.A can do. I'm open to suggestions. For example, if anyone can suggest an AMP/DAC unit that's relatively small but not necessarily portable that they think would pair well with the 8.A for use in an office setting I'm all ears.
Ups haved scheduled to deliver my 8a today, but suddenly they said there was a problem in the sorting process, it might delay. Omg, I might have to reschedule them to deliver next week because I will not be home until next week. UPS really disappoint me this time, maybe I will try DHL or Fedex next time.
As suggested by others, if you're not too far from the depot you can often drive there to pick up your package, with ID. Just call ahead to make sure.
If you are staying in one location next week any reason ups couldn't deliver there?
Unless I'm mistaken you can't change the delivery address as the sender. However, Heir Audio might be able to. You can call UPS to confirm.
