Need HD 800S help FAST!

Got it CT, and measured. I don't think you guys are going to like the results.

Thanks OJ, it's a pleasure to have a job where people appreciate your work. Not many people get that kind of feedback in their jobs. Don't know about the "big time audio reviewer" thing though, I'm just like you guys with more expensive measurement gear and a lot of years using it...and the bloddy good fortune to be in the right place at the right time for John Atkinson to ask me aboard.

You know, Two Ears, the Germans and the French have a long history of putting up with each other. They'll deal with it.

 

@CEE TEE is this the mod that was in @zerodeefex's pair that @drfindley had for a while?

 

Second harmonic distortion can be added due to asymmetric drive and/or excursion, i.e. "push" differing from "pull". This is what happens in single-ended amps due to the curve of the transistor/tube being more linear at one end from the other (exponential/polynomial?).

Here is a quote from Nelson Pass' "Zen Amplifer" article from 1993 (which I did build back then):

"Simplicity is not the only reason for the use of the single-ended topology. The characteristic of a single-ended gain stage is the most musically natural. Its asymmetry is similar to the compression / rarefaction characteristic of air, where for a given displacement slightly higher pressure is observed on a positive (compression) than on a negative (rarefaction). Air itself is observed to be a single-ended medium, where the pressure can become very high, but never go below 0. The harmonic distortion of such a medium is second harmonic, the least offensive variety.

It is occasionally misunderstood that single-ended amplifiers intentionally distort the signal with second harmonic in order to achieve a falsely euphonious character. This is not true. Low distortion is still an important goal, and it is my observation that deliberate injection of second harmonic into a musical signal does not improve the quality of sound."

 

Wish Sennheiser read this last part....

Although I have heard from a few people that the HD800S represents an "improvement" to the (stock) HD800's sound, I have it from certain other sources that the HD800S is a less capable, less accurate driver and all-around headphone compared to the modded HD800. With this new information coming to light, I'm inclined to believe so

 

Seems the screen is way enough to remove, so I wonder if a direct swap would work (likely). Would be a great test.

Course, hard to do when they're not your cans

 

Big question is if we're going to see the HD800 get knocked off the wall of fame, see these two as partners in the wall of fame, or see the HD800 retain its status with the HD800 S missing mark, because of the modability of the HD800.

 

lol wut

 

I think the wall of fame has to exist in world where no one mods their headphones, otherwise there will be no end to it.

 

Also it would be a great way to turn off a lot of readers. "Oh, this headphone sounds great--oh wait, I have to do what to get it to sound like that??"

 

If your mod is anything to go by I'm on the same page as well, especially when you can pick up a mint second hand HD800 for below $1000 these days. Yeah, for classical or female vocals absolutely not worth it to go for the HD800S. No point.

That being said I am very much coming around to the idea that the HD800S or your modded version might be the superior all-round listening device. Especially if the source material is poor.

Extreme Clarification: Never heard HD800S, this is all me comparing HD800 vs HD800 modded. Just so no one is confused.

 

Ha, you should read some of the troll responses to tyll's article on the original anax mod.

 

Looking forward to the InnerFidelity article. It seems your findings confirm and reinforce Sennheiser's positioning of the HD 800 S as a consumer market headphone while the more accurate HD 800 is intended for the professional market. Sennheiser's Product Specialist, Scott Houston clearly states that in this video:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01AF9IZP2/ref=sr_acs_va_item_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1454283287&sr=8-7-acs

"..we would take [the HD 800 S] more out of the professional application and put it more into the consumer side. So something where the consumer wont need any to use any kind of outboard equipment or equalization to get that little bit warmer sound they would want, that they would be more familiar with. As long you're plugging it into an amplifier because these guys need some power." ​

I also noticed that Sennheiser changed the HD 800 product description to say, "These headphones are top-of-the line audio technology at its finest" while the HD 800 S description is softened to say, "A modern classic, Sennheiser’s reference class HD 800 S headphones deliver sound that is as natural as possible."

Sennheiser seems to be well aware of the tradeoffs (e.g. distortion in the bass) they faced in trying to design the HD 800 S for the consumer market. I appreciate that Tyll makes the measurements available in InnerFidelity articles and its for that reason he is the most trusted reviewer-- the data doesn't lie.