WARNING: Fake IE8s! Comparison pictures included!!

[Totally Dubbed]

I just bought the IE8's form amazon UK and from AMAZON themselves.

Bought for £170 from AMAZON.co.uk from AMAZON EU themselves.
Sennheiser IE 8 -IE Series Ear-Canal Phones: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics & Photo

Several things DO NOT check out:
-The L/R are straight
-The bar code starts BEFORE the R but just after the E in sennheiser.
-The red little wire on the right ear bud is visible, but it is VERY VERY small, and very hard to see.
-The metalic box, seems OK, but it seems like it was used already.
-I am posting a video of it NOW, and will post some pictures here, please tell me if they are fake or not, as i will contact amazon ASAP.

Dubbed

 

[Totally Dubbed]

http://img51.imageshack.us/img51/8678/dsc05746a.jpg
http://img684.imageshack.us/img684/6269/dsc05745.jpg = red wire is there, but VERY SMALL
http://img251.imageshack.us/img251/847/dsc05744.jpg
http://img697.imageshack.us/img697/2776/dsc05743cf.jpg
http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/1812/dsc05742j.jpg
http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/3467/dsc05741u.jpg ear buds were arranged like that when i got them out of the box
http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/1727/dsc05740k.jpg
http://img202.imageshack.us/img202/4544/dsc05739o.jpg
http://img714.imageshack.us/img714/2112/dsc05747.jpg


My unboxing video:
YouTube - Unboxing Sennheiser IE8's

 

[Totally Dubbed]

Here is my video, if they are fake or not:
YouTube - Sennheiser IE8 - Fake or not Fake?

IF YOU GUYS THINK THEY ARE FAKE, AND IF THEY COMPLY:
I am going to take amazon off the "authorised dealers by calling sennheiser and telling them: I got sold fakes. Simple. And if they don't believe me, bitches i got 2 videos up.

Thanks guys!

 

[david1978jp]

It was glued and sealed? Then, it should be real. If in doubt, send it back to Amazon and get another one. This thread helps others and creates panic, too.

 

[Totally Dubbed]

Quote:

Originally Posted by david1978jp /img/forum/go_quote.gif It was glued and sealed? Then, it should be real. If in doubt, send it back to Amazon and get another one. This thread helps others and creates panic, too.

No it wasn't.
It was, if you check the video, almost like they were cut by scissors, and "joint" together by celatape (can't spell it)

Panic?
Another thing the box, which is used for transportation:
Had scratches on it.
Wire feels cheap
Can't really see the red wire
No angled R or L

Biggest thing for me:
They aren't worth £130 more than my mdr-ex500's...That's what REALLY get's me.

 

[Totally Dubbed]

The sound:
Nothing special, although i have heard fakes in the past of other phones, they can produce music.

-Barcode:
It points at being fake

-The box was scratched: Re-ued and re-boxed by amazon?

-Red wire is visible but very slightly.

-Box: Has a nice groove and is glossy + the ear inside the box looks genuine =- pointing to a genuine product

-The plastic cover to protect the phones were held together by tape, and i didn't have to use scissors...

Please could someone help me out.
Thanks

 

[dweaver]

The IE8 actually sound very poor out of the box whereas many of the fakes actually sound OK out of the box. The sound out of my IE8 initially was very boomy with very little soundstage and the treble was recessed and very rolled off. After 30 hrs or so the soundstage started to open up and after a couple days of burnin/use they really changed alot. I would let these cook for a couple days playing maybe the radio and see if they start to change, if they do I suspect they would be the real deal.

If the box looked open maybe you were sold a returned set versus brand new.

You mention in your video the tips in the case being different (this was the way mine was).

 

[Totally Dubbed]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dweaver /img/forum/go_quote.gif The IE8 actually sound very poor out of the box whereas many of the fakes actually sound OK out of the box. The sound out of my IE8 initially was very boomy with very little soundstage and the treble was recessed and very rolled off. After 30 hrs or so the soundstage started to open up and after a couple days of burnin/use they really changed alot. I would let these cook for a couple days playing maybe the radio and see if they start to change, if they do I suspect they would be the real deal. If the box looked open maybe you were sold a returned set versus brand new. You mention in your video the tips in the case being different (this was the way mine was).

Thanks again for the replies. I am going to ask for a refund from amazon, see what they say.
In other words i can't go wrong.
If they are fakes: I get genuine ones next time (i hope)
If they are real: Then i get NEW ones, unlike the used ones they sold me!!

 

[SolidVictory]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Totally Dubbed /img/forum/go_quote.gif http://img51.imageshack.us/img51/8678/dsc05746a.jpg http://img684.imageshack.us/img684/6269/dsc05745.jpg = red wire is there, but VERY SMALL http://img251.imageshack.us/img251/847/dsc05744.jpg http://img697.imageshack.us/img697/2776/dsc05743cf.jpg http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/1812/dsc05742j.jpg http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/3467/dsc05741u.jpg ear buds were arranged like that when i got them out of the box http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/1727/dsc05740k.jpg http://img202.imageshack.us/img202/4544/dsc05739o.jpg http://img714.imageshack.us/img714/2112/dsc05747.jpg My unboxing video: YouTube - Unboxing Sennheiser IE8's

Take a picture of the Sennheiser logo on the actual IEM if you can. That is the most important giveaway for fakes I believe.

 

[Totally Dubbed]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SolidVictory /img/forum/go_quote.gif Take a picture of the Sennheiser logo on the actual IEM if you can. That is the most important giveaway for fakes I believe.

sure thing i will do that NOW.
OMG the bass on these are REALLY BAD, my mdr-ex 500's handle the same bass better...
I am asking for a refund if i can't get this settled.

 

[Totally Dubbed]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SolidVictory /img/forum/go_quote.gif Take a picture of the Sennheiser logo on the actual IEM if you can. That is the most important giveaway for fakes I believe.

We've received your return request.
If you choose to return your item for a refund, you should receive your refund within 30 days of sending your return to us. If you haven't received a refund within that time, please contact us.

FORGET IT, no way can £130 more expensive ones sound as normal and flat lined as this.

Here are the pictures though:
http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/2978/dsc05753q.jpg LEFT
http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/8787/dsc05752v.jpg RIGHT
http://img684.imageshack.us/img684/4126/dsc05752i.jpg RIGHT
http://img717.imageshack.us/img717/5294/dsc05751.jpg
http://img34.imageshack.us/img34/6607/dsc05750i.jpg
http://img718.imageshack.us/img718/7470/dsc05749.jpg it is silver on the logo not green or anything
http://img696.imageshack.us/img696/9223/dsc05754p.jpg

 

[Totally Dubbed]

I doubt that these will sound better even with burn-in. They sound awfull, and i prefer to wear my mdr-ex500's. I have submitted a refund to amazon.

All i have to say:
DON'T TRUST AMAZON EU S.A.R.L, even though they are authorised dealers with Sennheiser....

Reason being:
Called up sennheiser and this is what i got as a response:
They said we authorise the dealer amazon Eu s.a.r.l. But you can send it in and we can have a look at them. If they are fakes we will charge you £30 for costs to the engineer but if they are genuine it will be free of charge.
Sennheirser auithorise the dealer: amazon. Amazon decide to sell me fakes. I pay £30 to acknowledge they are fakes. Amazon runs off laughing, sennheiser runs off £30 richer. Where am i in this debate?
I am going to contact amazon about a return. As my gf rightfully pointed out to me:
If they are fakes: You will get real ones on the return - or at least you should. If they are genuine: You will at least know that the other set they send you haven't been used....

 

[SolidVictory]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Totally Dubbed /img/forum/go_quote.gif We've received your return request. If you choose to return your item for a refund, you should receive your refund within 30 days of sending your return to us. If you haven't received a refund within that time, please contact us. FORGET IT, no way can £130 more expensive ones sound as normal and flat lined as this. Here are the pictures though: http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/2978/dsc05753q.jpg LEFT http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/8787/dsc05752v.jpg RIGHT http://img684.imageshack.us/img684/4126/dsc05752i.jpg RIGHT http://img717.imageshack.us/img717/5294/dsc05751.jpg http://img34.imageshack.us/img34/6607/dsc05750i.jpg http://img718.imageshack.us/img718/7470/dsc05749.jpg it is silver on the logo not green or anything http://img696.imageshack.us/img696/9223/dsc05754p.jpg

It's hard to see the logo properly because the picture is blurry. But from what I can see, the lines are not thin enough nor close enough to the S (they should be extremely close to the S, like almost touching). I suggest you take pictures with the IEM set down with you using flash and holding the camera with two hands. Also, take a picture of the bass knob if you can, again with flash.

All in all, if it sounds really, really bad, it's probably a fake (although the IE8s during the first >50 hours sounds quite muddy and vastly different from a fully burned in IE8). This is why I advise anyone to purchase IE8s from a brick-and-mortar store in brand new condition, and if that's not possible, then at full retail price from an authorized seller (not just Amazon, which can utilize other "Fulfilled by Amazon resellers" which I don't trust at this point).

 

[Totally Dubbed]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SolidVictory /img/forum/go_quote.gif It's hard to see the logo properly because the picture is blurry. But from what I can see, the lines are not thin enough nor close enough to the S (they should be extremely close to the S, like almost touching). I suggest you take pictures with the IEM set down with you using flash and holding the camera with two hands. Also, take a picture of the bass knob if you can, again with flash. All in all, if it sounds really, really bad, it's probably a fake (although the IE8s during the first >50 hours sounds quite muddy and vastly different from a fully burned in IE8). This is why I advise anyone to purchase IE8s from a brick-and-mortar store in brand new condition, and if that's not possible, then at full retail price from an authorized seller (not just Amazon, which can utilize other "Fulfilled by Amazon resellers" which I don't trust at this point).

thanks for the advice, and great thread by the way.
In terms of amazon. I got them verified from sennheiser (i called them up)
It was AMAZON themselves which sold the product not any other seller.

So i'm not one of those "noobs" that went and jsut bought off ebay, or went and bought off another amazon seller even if they had 1 billion reviews.
I actually bought it form amazon, the company itself. and also got it verified.

Set aside any thing:
The fact that i can see that my product looks "used" jsut by the case being put together by tape, or the buds being a a pouch that has all crinkles and such on it, makes me think:
Even if they are legit, great. But why did u sell me used ones, or refurbished ones. I ordered new ones. If i wanted old-used-refurbished i would happily go to ebay or your OTHER sellers.
On ebay, that such of a behaviour, will get the seller banned or suspended. What can i do against amazon?
Call sennheiser up on monday, tell them what happened, and see what happens to amazon.
Their choice (sennheriser's) either deal with them, or get bad reviews from buyers like myself.

Thanks,
Dubbed

 

[david1978jp]

It sounds like a returned item. Please get another one.

I got mine from a local audio dealer, very trustworthy. If judging by photos in this thread, mine can be fake, but mine is not fake. In fact, the original post has been revised (one detail was supposed to be fake, but it turned out not to be the case.) We really don't know how many real revisions out there. Good luck.