 SIMPLY THE BEST! READ THIS ONE! |
| Review Date: April 26, 2009 |
| Reviewer: J. Delong, |
| First off I am a normal consumer who does not work for the industry at hand. I have been in search of the "Best" in ear monitors or ear buds for nearly 4 years. Never being happy with what I tried based on reviews I always returned them or sold them online. I have tried Ultimate ears super fi pro 3's & super.fi 5's, Klipsch Image & Custom 3 's, Sony, Apple in-ear with remote (Best for the price except cable noise) Koss CC_01's, and most recently Shure Se 530's (which I thought were the best until I go tired of the THICK cable with noise at the connections)... Now, last week I ordered the Sennheiser IE8's. SIMPLY STUNNING, from the bass control, to the changeable cables, to the comfortable fitting, to the amazing sound quality both low and hi. The warm sound, solid yet smooth bass, and crystal clear hi's I am amazed and I am not even through the total burn in time they do require by audiophile standards. I have about 12 hours on them thus far and they are already 150% better then out of the box. I took them for a hike yesterday, they stayed in place, sounded amazing and look great too, very stealth and sleek once in. they also come with a HUGE assortment of fittings for your comfort level needed. Trust someone who has finally ended their search and has found a keeper..... I am a new fan of sennheiser. In fact, I just ordered their "Work out" phone for my shuffle. Thanks! |
Expensive but worth it
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| Review Date: November 20, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Douglas A. Greenberg, Berkeley, CA USA |
For years the Etymotic ER-4 series, e.g., Etymotic ER-4P Portable In-Ear Earphones represented the top of the line among in-ear monitor headphones. The Etys remain a good product (and an excellent buy), delivering crisp detail and excellent treble reproduction, but their weakness has been relatively modest bass performance.
Recently a whole group of challengers has emerged, including, for example, Shure SE530PTH Sound Isolating Earphones with Push-To-Hear Control, Ultimate Ears Triple.fi 10 Pro Earphones Gun Metal Blue and the long-delayed, soon-to-be-released Westone 3. Consumers seeking audiophile sound from small in-ear monitors now face a veritable embarrassment of riches.
In competition against these other products, the Sennheiser IE 8 acquits itself well. These earphones are small, comfortable, and beautifully crafted. They come with a variety of ear tip flanges for a custom fit, and include a feature unique among small IEM's, an adjustable bass setting (you use a small screwdriver-like tool that is included in the package).
The sound quality is clean and clear, without even a trace of murkiness. The output level is a bit lower than the Shure 530's, meaning that if used with a low-powered device like an iPod you will need to set the volume level relatively high. This output is on a par with the Etymotic ER-4P's, but with superior bass performance. Very fine detail reproduction is slightly better than the Shures, but is a bit lower than the Etymotics.
Truth be told, my teenage son doesn't really discern much difference between his stock white iPod earbuds and premium IEM's like these Sennheisers. For him, splurging on the IE 8's would seem foolish. But there are some of us who place great importance on what others might perceive as small differences in sound quality. For us audiophiles (or obsessive-compulsives, if you prefer), the Sennheiser IE 8's represent a fabulous purchase.
Expensive? Yes, definitely, But actually, if you consider how often you might use and enjoy these over a period of many years, the cost really might not seem that great. |
Superb sound
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| Review Date: December 27, 2008 |
| Reviewer: L. Topper, |
I have to say that this is a terrific product. The cabling is of very high quality and is replaceable in the event that the cable gets snagged or torn. Sennheiser tries to give the customer a wide variety of eartips, but my package came with one or two tips in which there was only one tip of a particular design and size. To date, Sennheiser did not have extras of the large double flanged earpieces. The Sennheiser staff were very nice to deal with. They sent some replacements,but they did not have any of the double-flanged pieces that are unique to the IE-8.
What makes these earphones unique is that they have a variable bass control directly on each earpiece. They are adjusted with a tiny screwdriver that comes with the set. The second unique quality is in the fit. The IE 7 and IE 8 sort of just lay in the bottom of the ear and just peek into the ear canal. For some listeners, it will be extremely comfortable because it puts virtually no pressure inside the ear canal itself. What makes it difficult is it is harder to achieve a tight seal with the earpiece in the ear. This is absolutely essential to get a solid bass response--which is one of the truly great features of the IE 8. For me the best solution is to get some Comply Comfort Foam Tips. This of course requires a separate purchase. (The Westone UM 2 and UM 3 each come with Comply Comfort Foam Tips). It is interesting to note that Etymotic ER 4 comes with similar foam tips (not Comply Comfort Foam, but something similar). Both Westone and Etymotic originally manufactured hearing aids. When I purchased a pair of Klipsch Custom 3 earphones, I had to purchase a separate tip. Once I did, I achieved a seal and obtained a very good sound. I had the same problem with the Denon earphones (both 700 and 701 models--if interested, get the Denon 701, not the 700. The basic earphone is the same, but the 701 comes with a case, has more flexible cabling arrangement, and is cheaper on Amazon Marketplace). In all three of these earphones, the replacement of the eartips to Comply Comfort Foam Tips increased the performance (and seal) dramatically. If you are going to spend $150.00 to $450.00, what is another $10.00 for the tips. If you are really a music lover, it is worth the extra price. The Klipsch has a more exaggerated bass response than either the Sennheiser IE 8 or Westone 3.
In short, the Sennheiser IE 8 is a very expensive purchase, but I have most of the audiophile earphones and headphones from virtually all the manufacturors accept Stax.
Something that is kind of amazing is that when I have written reviews of quite a few headphones and earphones. I have generally rated most of them pretty highly. The bottom line is not that I am not discerning, but that there are some many great sounding earphones and headphones on the market. The technology in making these products is truly amazing. |
The Best in the IEM Market
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| Review Date: January 10, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Christopher Bartolome, Boston, MA USA |
The Sennheiser IE8's are amazing. The IE8s sound great in all aspects and brings an overall balanced sound. It has a very punchy base but not too strong to overpower the crystal clear vocals. What I love most about the IE8s is the wide soundstage that it produces; the sound is very wide and everything sounds accurate and precise! However, at first, I had problems finding the right fit, since all of the included tips are atrocious. But after purchasing T-400 comply tips, the isolation has become truly comfortable using foam under silicon sleeves, and I feel that more detail can be heard with them. Overall, I am very pleased with the Sennheiser IE8s!
*UPDATE* 01/10/10
Finding the most comfortable tips without sacrificing sound quality is the biggest issue with the IE8's. Once you find a comfortable tip without sacrificing sound quality, the IE8's sound amazing. For me, using only the Comply T-400s completely ruined the soundstage, but made it so comfortable to wear. The double flanged stock tip had the best sound quality, but were uncomfortable to wear. The single flanged stock tips had great sound quality but were too shallow.
In order to find the right comfort, isolation, and best sound quality, I decored a Comply T-400 by removing the plastic tubing, and then placing a medium single flanged tip over the comply where you would normally slip it on an earphone. Then, compress the comply foam tip and allow it to expand, making the single flanged tip fit tightly on top of the comply foam tip. By doing this, the soundstage remains intact while providing the comfort of a T-400 tip. Now the sound is truly amazing and the comfort is right there. I recommend anyone who has an IE8 and a Comply T-400 to try this mod. |
a good alternative to Electrostatic phones.
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| Review Date: January 15, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Doctor Richard, Newton,, MA, United States |
This is really a PS to the earlier review. I'm spending time with iPods and the fabulous Roll Pro headphone amp while listening to a range of phones including the Etymotic Blue tooth, Sennheiser 650, and Koss electrostatics. I can understand why Sennheiser has launched a new kilobuck-plus headset; even the vaunted 650 presents ratty treble compared to statics - massed violins, etc. do not sound recorded at all on electrostatics, just honey-smooth - Sennheiser has yet to make a real competitor with Electrostatics. I must say for overall pleasure, the IE8's are my favorite alternative to electrostatics.
I have owned many headphones over the decades, starting with Koss Pro-4A's in 1965. I love Sennheisers in general, even the less costly models that use excessive warmth quite endearingly to impress. I was quite unprepared for the pleasure of the IE8's, having been annoyed by other in-ear phones. I have large ear canals; none of the supplied tips gave me a seal, but I carved out and created my own seal from a piece of expanding foam, and got approval from Sennheiser to use it. I find the supplied over the ear clips to be an unnecessary nuisance, especially because they do not fit into the cool metal carrying case, which I have abandoned anyway as too fussy. The sound can be a tad glaring, but maybe I just listen too loudly - sounds great at lower volume levels than usual. Despite a house and a life full of headphones, including electrostatics, these have fast become my all around everyday, walk-around favorite. |
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