SennHD600 MassDrop

I don't need more headphones... I don't need more headphones... I don't need more headphones...

How many times do I have to say it to believe it? :D
 
What's up with the "steel blue" finish? Makes it look cheap IMO.
adiypk.jpg
 
I remember getting a pair of refurb HD595's for $120, was so stoked ;)
 
Yippee38 said:
Ok. I guess I'll hold off for the 598s. Thanks for the info.
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I'd say if you are looking at near $200 for the 598 anyway, as someone who has owned both, just grab the 600, they are in a league of their own compared to the 598, and not quite that hard to drive either. A proper amp setup will really bring them out though.
 
Javatango said:
What's up with the "steel blue" finish? Makes it look cheap IMO.
adiypk.jpg
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If you're all about the look, the hd650 comes in a more modern finish. The hd600 is the same housing but that marble color actually dates back to the late 90's as I recall. A real testament to the staying power of the hd6x0 line.

I would also recommend jumping straight to hd600 over the 598 even without an dedicated amp.
 
Would anyone recommend these over the DT880's? I've heard better things about the DT880's over these.

1. They have more detailed treble.
2. Bass not as tight or impactful but is more accurate and natural.
3. Sound stage is better
4. Mids are more "lush"

I currently own Mad Dogs and am looking for a set of open cans so I might jump on these if someone could chime in on how they compare to the DT880's which are also neutral headphones like the HD600. I have a Schiit Modi and Schiit Valhalla if that makes any difference.
 
If you game AND listen to music with your phones, i think the 598s arent a great choice. i have 598s and they are great for gaming, but they really have no bass. my buddy's 600s are nicer for that, even with no amp.

as far as comfort, i couldnt ask for more than the 598s offer though...
 
I've got a pair of Audio Technica ATH-A900X cans, how do these stack up?
 
cvinh said:
Would anyone recommend these over the DT880's? I've heard better things about the DT880's over these.

1. They have more detailed treble.
2. Bass not as tight or impactful but is more accurate and natural.
3. Sound stage is better
4. Mids are more "lush"

I currently own Mad Dogs and am looking for a set of open cans so I might jump on these if someone could chime in on how they compare to the DT880's which are also neutral headphones like the HD600. I have a Schiit Modi and Schiit Valhalla if that makes any difference.
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My opinion here, but "detailed", don't quite know if I'd say that so much as the HD600 are more laid back with their far more natural sound than the DT880s.

Bass, you are comparing semi-open cans to open cans, the DT880's win here, but the HD600 do their job just fine.

Sound stage, I don't feel the DT880s come near the HD600s in regards to sound stage. The 880s feel as though they are "there" whereas putting on the HD600s the sound stage widens further with a more 3d spacial feel.

Mids, and this is the FUN part about the HD600, the DT880s sound as if the mids are recessed, keeping in mind I don't mean full recession like the DT990s, but the recessed sounding mids of the DT880 compared with the Senn HD600 which focuses on it's mids, it is no comparison. The Senn HD600 will excel at the mid range.


The HD600 is a great all-around headphone, and they have stood the test of time and are constantly ranked up there with new arrivals, so Sennheiser did something right with them.




Hulk said:
I've got a pair of Audio Technica ATH-A900X cans, how do these stack up?
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I have only tried the A900 and AD900, not the new X models, but coming from the originals, these SHOULD be rather night and day. Keeping in mind everyones' ears are different.
 
sobe88 said:
My opinion here, but "detailed", don't quite know if I'd say that so much as the HD600 are more laid back with their far more natural sound than the DT880s.

Bass, you are comparing semi-open cans to open cans, the DT880's win here, but the HD600 do their job just fine.

Sound stage, I don't feel the DT880s come near the HD600s in regards to sound stage. The 880s feel as though they are "there" whereas putting on the HD600s the sound stage widens further with a more 3d spacial feel.

Mids, and this is the FUN part about the HD600, the DT880s sound as if the mids are recessed, keeping in mind I don't mean full recession like the DT990s, but the recessed sounding mids of the DT880 compared with the Senn HD600 which focuses on it's mids, it is no comparison. The Senn HD600 will excel at the mid range.


The HD600 is a great all-around headphone, and they have stood the test of time and are constantly ranked up there with new arrivals, so Sennheiser did something right with them.
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We are both talking about the DT880 600 Ohms right?
 
Okay I guess if I need bass I can always listen to my Mad Dogs. Will jump on this but just a little skeptical about Sennheiser sound because going from the HD595's to the Mad Dogs was a huge jump and wasn't sure how much better the HD600's could sound compared to the 595's.
 
If you aren't comfortable with them, I really don't see an issue re-selling them. They are sought after by quite a few. And as I mentioned above, everyones' ears are different, so you may like the 880s more due to the Beyer sound signature. If it comes to that, I'm sure you could resell them here for a good amount.

These things have been around since 1998 and still to this day do extremely well.
 
Hulk said:
I've got a pair of Audio Technica ATH-A900X cans, how do these stack up?
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Hard to say. Check my sig... I've got an AD900X, which would likely be considered the lowest end of all the headphones in my arsenal... but I use them the most. I like their sound signature, and they are wonderfully comfortable. That said, for as much as I love open AT cans, I equally dislike their closed ones. I owned an A700, have heard an A900X, a W5000, and A L3000. The only one out of the bunch that I liked at all was the L3000, and it still didn't wow me like a headphone with a ~$3000 price tag should.

My point is, headphones are so incredibly subjective. My general philosophy when picking a new cans is not to look for something better, but rather to look for something different. I've got several pairs of headphones in different classes and I use them all for different reasons, making for a nicely balanced collection. And I think with an HD600 you could expect a very different presentation than your A900X. Whether or not it's better can really only be decided by you, and you might also find that neither is better. My guess (having not heard a high-end Sennheiser in several years, mind you) is that the HD600 would be better musically. Brighter, airier, more neutral. You may find the A900X to be better for gaming however, by way of having the deep, boomy bass that comes with a closed headphone. This was precisely my case several years back when I owned both a modded HD580 and an A700. I gamed on the A700 and thought they were acceptable for that, but not a chance in hell would I ever pick them over the HD580 for music.
 
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sobe88 said:
If you aren't comfortable with them, I really don't see an issue re-selling them. They are sought after by quite a few. And as I mentioned above, everyones' ears are different, so you may like the 880s more due to the Beyer sound signature. If it comes to that, I'm sure you could resell them here for a good amount.

These things have been around since 1998 and still to this day do extremely well.
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Ok I will do just that, just on a tight budget so I can only afford one of these headphones at the moment but I'll just try the DT880's somewhere along the way. (Maybe find a Music store to sample them). Thanks for the help.
 
cvinh said:
Ok I will do just that, just on a tight budget so I can only afford one of these headphones at the moment but I'll just try the DT880's somewhere along the way. (Maybe find a Music store to sample them). Thanks for the help.
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If you want to stick with Beyer, don't forget the DT990 600ohms for sale on MassDrop :D

https://www.massdrop.com/buy/beyerdynamic-dt990

lol, these are my daily drivers when on my gaming pc. They are my "fun" headphones.

THE OPTIONS!!!!




Should add a disclaimer, lol, the DT990 are NOT natural sounding and focus on the lows and highs with recessed mids. Stick with the HD600 for a better all-around sound and natural experience
 
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I also see these being compared to AKG Q701's alot even though the AKG's cost about $100 less. Are they really similar ?
 
cvinh said:
I also see these being compared to AKG Q701's alot even though the AKG's cost about $100 less. Are they really similar ?
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Again, I've got to sort of reach into the deepest pits of my memory, but I'd say they are at least fairly similar. The Q701 is very detailed, open, airy, awesome soundstage. Very nuetral sounding. All traits I remember being associated with the Senns also. I would also say probably similar in comfort. The Q701 has fairly stiff pads, which I remember the HD580 having the same (I actually had 600 pads on my 580). The headband on the Q701 is garbage though, to the point where I use it the least out of all my headphones solely due to comfort concerns. One of these days I'm going to get around to buying some leather scrap and making a better one.
 
Damn good price. To some, their more analytic nature (as opposed to the 650's) makes them more desirable. Oh well. Good price or not, I don't have the money - so no purchase for me. :(
 
great price. i'm tempted to buy these just to finally try them for myself and compare them to my other headphones.
 
I'm on the fence on these. I have Grado RS2's and I'm looking for a good compliment to them. I'm leaning towards these hd600s or AKG q701s. Decisions decisions..
 
FinalAura said:
I'm on the fence on these. I have Grado RS2's and I'm looking for a good compliment to them. I'm leaning towards these hd600s or AKG q701s. Decisions decisions..
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IMO the best compliment to an RS2 would be something that is your "comfort cans" and I don't see the Q701 as a good fit for that. I love my RS2, but still don't use it as much as I'd like to because Grado's really just aren't comfortable to me. Perhaps they don't bother you. However, the Q701 can also be quite uncomfortable with it's stupid headband. The HD600 shouldn't have that problem.
 
FinalAura said:
I'm on the fence on these. I have Grado RS2's and I'm looking for a good compliment to them. I'm leaning towards these hd600s or AKG q701s. Decisions decisions..
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The Sennheisers will most likely will be more comfortable as stated above.

If you already have Grados I would get the 600s. The Q701s and Grados both have distinct sound signatures, but the HD600s don't (which is a good thing, you shouldn't only have 2 pairs of cans that both have a weird sound signature).
 
I definitely find the rs2 conformable. What I like most about them other than the sq is that they are very light. I would like my compliment to be relatively light and comfortable as well.

Thanks for the insight on the akg. I might have to rule those out then.

Now I'm debating on these or he400s now. I have read that the he400 is quite heavy though.

IN regards to amping, I have an aune t1 and don't plan to upgrade it any time soon. I've read that it should be good enough to drive both, but may possibly hold back the hd600s.

Again, decisions decisions.. Haha
 
FinalAura said:
I definitely find the rs2 conformable. What I like most about them other than the sq is that they are very light. I would like my compliment to be relatively light and comfortable as well.

Thanks for the insight on the akg. I might have to rule those out then.

Now I'm debating on these or he400s now. I have read that the he400 is quite heavy though.

IN regards to amping, I have an aune t1 and don't plan to upgrade it any time soon. I've read that it should be good enough to drive both, but may possibly hold back the hd600s.

Again, decisions decisions.. Haha
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HE400s are going to be inefficient being orthos. I've not heard a pair, but my understanding is that they are going to like power. The HD600 being 300ohm also is going to like power. Both really need an amp to do what you want, but I can't really say how they would perform side by side with the amp you have.

If your interesting in something from AKG, maybe have a look at the K712 Pro. I haven't heard them myself, but supposedly the headband is a world more comfortable. They are on my bucket list, I'll likely end up swapping out my Q701 for a pair some day.

If your looking to stay in the $200 price range, I really can't recommend the AD900X enough. I love them. Very light, very low clamp, very soft, mushy pads. They can be a bit bright, but if you aren't opposed to that I think they are a delightful headphone. (Note that it's closed brother, IMO, is nowhere near as good. To each their own, but I don't like em)
 
FinalAura said:
Now I'm debating on these or he400s now. I have read that the he400 is quite heavy though.

IN regards to amping, I have an aune t1 and don't plan to upgrade it any time soon. I've read that it should be good enough to drive both, but may possibly hold back the hd600s.

Again, decisions decisions.. Haha
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The HE400's are nice and I have them paired with the Aune T1. Yes, the headphones are heavy but damn they sound nice. The Aune will not hold back the HD600's.

A guy here in the forum put this site together that was pretty impressive:

http://www.audiobot9000.com/
 
Found this post on Headfi, I thought it gave a pretty decent idea on how it compared to similar headphones. Although it may not have as much detail in the treble and bass and the DT880's these are supposed to have better mids, a more 3d soundstage, and are more natural. Hope this helps someone else as it did me.


Originally Posted by Brooko View Post

Hi FULLAUDIO



Thanks for the impressions. I am a reasonably long-time owner of all 3 headphones DT880 (mine are 600ohm), K701, and HD600. I would encourage you (rather than quickly swapping the headphones) to actually spend a day with each - and then see if your ideas on the sound of each actually change.



You may find that after spending longer time with a headphone like the HD600, and only the HD600 - then switching to the Beyer or AKG - that you will then change your mind on which is most balanced. Instead of the HD600 being overly warm and lacking energy - you may find that they Beyers / AKGs instead sound overly bright. It's an interesting exercise. Our brains adjust to what they are used to - then compare other sounds to that base. As the base changes - so do our impressions of a particular headphone.



Anyway - it's a good idea for a thread - I'll also throw in my quick impressions of all 3. My set-up is Foobar (PC) > optical out to an Audio-gd NFB-12, then either direct to the headphones or via my LD MKIV (the amp doesn't change the contrast, nor my impression of each).



DT880.

Quite flat - but with elevated high-end. Bass extends pretty well and is nicely defined. Mids appear slightly further back in the spectrum - particularly compared to the highs. For me - it is the most detailed (like shining a spotlight on the music). Has the smallest sound-stage of the 3 - but still great for almost any genre. Very, very comfortable. Definitely brighter than 'normal' sound.



K701
Again reasonably flat response - but with more emphasis on mid-range and highs. Bass is recessed compared to mid-range and highs - but what is there is well defined, and IMO sounds really good. Definitely the most bass-light of the 3. Does a beautiful job of the mid-range - particularly acoustic and stringed instruments in general. Widest soundstage of the 3 - by quite a margin. Imaging is OK - sometimes struggles with center stage (not sure if that is particular recordings though). Handles fast paced music pretty well. Appears very detailed - but IMO the Beyer shows more actual detail in comparison. Comfort because of the bumps in the headband is not great. Because of this, I removed the bumps, added a small layer of foam, and then finished it with a soft lamb-skin leather layer. It is now extremely comfortable.



HD600

Whilst I wouldn't call it exactly flat - I would say it gives (to my ears) the most natural presentation of the three. It is the most life-like and has really good resolution and timbre. Sound stage is close to the Beyers (marginally larger), but the imaging is better than both to me. Has a little mid-bass bump, and gives the impression of slightly forward mids. Appears slower than both the Beyer and AKG. Appearance of less detail is often misleading - the detail is all there - it just doesn't have a spotlight shone on it like the others. Comfort is pretty good - although a bit clampy at times. Over time they have become more comfortable for me - and sit between the Beyer and my (now modified) AKG.



Of the three headphones - with a good (well recorded) live performance - all three headphones sound superb - but the HD600 is the only one (if I close my eyes) that can actually give me the feeling that I am actually sitting in the audience - their tone, timbre and imaging really is superb.



Short summary (just my view):

Bass (quantity) - HD600 > DT880 > K701

Bass (quality) - DT880 > HD600 = K701 (just different presentation between the Senn and AKG)

Mid-range - HD600 > K701 > DT880

Highs (quantity) - DT880 > K701 > HD600



Sound-stage (size) - K701 > HD600 > DT880

Imaging - HD600 > DT880 =/> K701 (tough to call depends on recording)

Naturalness - HD600 >>>> K701 > DT880

Comfort - DT880 > HD600 > K701



I love all 3 headphones, and I probably spend equal time with each - depends on my mood. They are all stellar performers for their price.
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$275 is still bit on the high side. There are places with rebates you can get em for $220-250. Used ones are usually between $190-250, expensive ones usually come with custom cables.

For those considering the HE-400, they a bloated pos with reliability problems. Since the HE-560 has superceded the 500's, used 500's go for cheap and new ones even less ($400-500 range). There were lot's of HE-400 going for cheap on Head-fi anywhere between $150-220, really does say something about them.

I've owned/own them all and heard them.
 
|Tch0rT| said:
Care to list the sites? I didn't find any like that. Cheapest outside Massdrop was Amazon at $320 that I found.
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I've also searched slickdeals history for these sales but lowest I found was $260 after rebate. Plus this deal includes free shipping. I have bought used headphones off of headfi but most sellers always want paypal + shipping fees covered and that will also jack up the price. I think $275 with free shipping is a great deal for a new pair. You also know for sure that you get the warranty whereas warranty may not be intact when ownership is transferred.
 
FinalAura said:
I'm on the fence on these. I have Grado RS2's and I'm looking for a good compliment to them. I'm leaning towards these hd600s or AKG q701s. Decisions decisions..
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How I tend to view things, Grados tend to be bright; AKG reveiling and Senn Smooth.

With RS2 already; if you want a complement I'd go for something a bit less fatiguing; so Sennheiser would work well. I would probably go for the HD650 though as they are a little warmer than the 600 (further from RS2 signature); though both are markedly smoother than RS2s.

I say this as an owner of HD650s, Grado MS1s, and AKG k271s.
 
Thanks for the input. I pretty much want an akg and a senn now, haha. Last night I was reading and debating between the k712pro and the hd600. I was going to pull the trigger on hd600, then mass drop lists the k712! Man Oh man, haha. At least I know I what I want is between those two.

It's like massdrop is stalking me
 
FinalAura said:
Thanks for the input. I pretty much want an akg and a senn now, haha. Last night I was reading and debating between the k712pro and the hd600. I was going to pull the trigger on hd600, then mass drop lists the k712! Man Oh man, haha. At least I know I what I want is between those two.

It's like massdrop is stalking me
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I feel your pain, the led under the T key on my Ducky Shine 2 went out, a day later MassDrop puts up the MaxKeyboards Nighthawk drop.... MassDrop is turning into Steam sales on the holiday seasons for me, lol.


On topic though, both are great cans, I just dont think I can replace my HD600 with anything but the HD800 (or Orpheus if someone wants to spot me $30,000)
 
I went ahead and just joined the drop for the hd600s. I can always get the k712's some other time I suppose.

It's been a while since i've heard anything new, so I'm hoping I learn to llike these as much as my grados :)
 
|Tch0rT| said:
Care to list the sites? I didn't find any like that. Cheapest outside Massdrop was Amazon at $320 that I found.
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Some of the sites are local ones here if you want to buy from Australia. Think it was the razordogs ebay page that had em $250 as well. Amazon is expensive. I'd personally buy used as it's cheaper. I got my HD600's for $210 after rebate special 3 years ago. Can't remember the site though. The really special deals don't pop regularly though, only when luck is around you may find one for cheap.
 
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