Sennheiser HD650 Love (Appreciation Thread)

@Leoi distortion at which frequencies are you talking about. If it's bass distortion then my experience with the HD600 is that it's just a FR related thing. If you bring the midbass down 2db distortion will be as low as simply turning down the volume by 2db.

 

It's possible. However, that would also mean that overall distortion at a certain perceived volume level is also lower, as the mod makes the FR flatter.

There's also the possibility that the fact is related to a reduced vibration of the driver OR increased rear dampening given the compression of the foam. Unfortunately I don't have a stock 6XX for making a direct comparison: the conclusions I've listed were made by comparing both sides (eg. left side stock, right side modded), and hard panning a mono track on Audacity, half-way while finishing the mod. I've also inverted sides (eg. left side / right ear), just in case there's some imbalance in my hearing.

I would love if someone could test and share their experience, of course.

 

This is a massive necro— I only came across this post because I was looking for other impressions of these pads, hah. If anyone happens to be considering these then they have to dislike the stock HD650 sound because these change things up a LOT:

MiniDSP EARS stock HEQ (I'll get around to tweaking the curve eventually... I suck at this sorta thing). GREEN is Yaxi Alcantara with a perfect seal, RED is Yaxi Alcantara with seal broken, and BLUE is Stock HD650. 4-6kHz needs a big pinch of salt.

Feel is alright. The contact with side of head is less comfortable than stock pads because the surface area is a lot narrower. Adding to that the fact that the pads are deeper, there's a fair bit more pressure. Sound is weird, bass is flubby and mids are hollow-er than Kubo Tite's soul. Not my cuppa tea in the slightest.

 

Oh damn! Disappointing to say the least

 

I personally appreciate a bass boost (to say the least... haha), but quality leaves something to be desired on the Sennheisers so increased volume just exacerbates things. Also the elevation was enough for a minor headache, think Meze 99 Classic levels of whoomp whoomp.

Not as visible and probably just a result of other FR changes but treble on the Yaxi pads wasn't to my liking. I personally call the midrange-through-midtreble balance on the HD650 perfect for me, and the Yaxis just made everything sound dull.

Worst thing is what happened to the midrange proper, as far as I'm concerned. It sounded hollow and lifeless, even speaking without consideration for how well the stock headphone does midrange (spot-on for me). Expanded headstage but images were flatter, if memory serves, with layering less defined.

 

If someone could only to make a set of pads that last longer and doesn't f**k the tone, they'd make a killing.

 

Someone on reddit modded their HD58X with those yaxi pads + cups from headphile. Now that you confirm yaxi's seriously mess with the sound I can only imagine what making them closed as well would do to the sound. Probably nothing good

 

And more comfortable too. I really love how the dekoni leather pads feel, compared to velour stock pads.

 

Just talking off the top of my head as a total noob (someone please correct me if I'm wrong!), less room for excursion with a sealed back so maybe bass is reined in— no visible ports in that one photo and the cups don't look big enough to house much air unlike TH-_00 series. Probably some muddiness and reverb just because I don't see how anyone can get around that without fancy internal dampening or designing cups to within a nanometer's tolerance (MDR-Z1R was great at this, just hate the fluffy, thuddy bass and the 10kHz treble spike). Resonant peak of HD650 driver is around 80Hz so maybe a bit more volume below that, and a tad more control thereabouts?

Here's a silly thing, I actually have an easier time getting a sense of "room" with semi-sealed headphones like the X00 and HP-3 compared to true open-backs, might be from reflections giving a sense of definite space v. open-backs where things just trail off into nothingness. I know some other people have reported similar findings so I don't think I'm totally insane; this could explain the redditor's report of a more venue-like feel.

This is all supposition, mind. Could be and very likely am completely off-base. Would be curious to get ears on those, but $$$.

It could also just be that my listening environment can be ridiculously loud, masking low-level detail and nuance. There's a reason I don't own any proper open-backs, lol.

 

Long shot - but does anyone happen to have a digital document that's properly scaled and represents the oval shape of these headphones (the full cup for the rear or just the baffle for the front)? I suppose I could take some measurements and draw it up in PS if it isn't already floating around out there - I'll do this and post here if it hasn't already been done.

Hoping to print it out and use it to stencil cuts for alternative materials.

 

It's almost 2020 and I still haven't found a better pair of headphones than the HD650. Everything is either less versatile or has treble peaks that cause fatigue.

I have IEMs that are better for bassy music and rock. I've never found anything definitively better for acoustic guitar or classical.

Maybe I should narrow my search to the latter.

Does anyone know of headphones that are better with acoustic guitar or classical music? They need excellent mids, a smooth response, accurate timbre, and (the only tangible improvement I'm seeking) outstanding bass. No treble screwery.

The SR1a nearly get there, but the bass is a fail. Some Audeze cans get close but always sound a little rough or unnatural. MrSpeakers is about the same (indeed, every planar sounds a little wonky to me).

What's left? ZMF? They all sound a little hollow to me, but maybe I need to get some in my own setup at home to find proper synergy.

 

MySphere to a degree especially 3.2 when properly amped. I'm putting all my chips on HEDD for a HD650 replacement based on my short audition at canjam.

The future is a non conventional design, ribbons in some way or another.

 

Why not just stick with the 650?

 

Yeah, I'm going through the same thing. You FEEL like that there should be something better for you out there but your experience tells you otherwise - but that feeling never goes away. For my tastes, the Focal Elex has gotten the closest but no way would I sell the HD650 and make it my main pair of cans. I may eventually try the Aeolus or the Auteurs but up until this point I have always talked my self out of it. I can somewhat predict what will happen though - I'll end up selling the Elex and keeping the the HD650 and the ZMFs.

 

I'll never let go of the 650. I've had mine for almost a decade at this point. I just want to find something that can deliver a classical experience with legitimate sub-bass. I do use a subwoofer sometimes with my 650s, but that's always a little wonky.

 

Hmm...out off all of Zach’s open headphones the Auteur has most of what you’re looking for except that you’ll need tubes to tame the treble peak with the Teaks + Auteur pads or possibly look for a harder wood.

The Aeolus imo have the closest sound to the HD650. It extends lower than the HD650 and is light to boot. I still prefer the tonality of the Auteur but I consider the Aeolus as the hotter cousin to the HD650.

The only other headphone I could think of is the Verum One. That headphone is beautifully voiced, and has great planar bass. It’s very smooth but depending on the ear pads/gear can be peaky. I only ran into the issue with the high end peak on certain solid states.

 

The HD600s are better for just about everything guitar related, acoustic included. They've become my change of pace headphone of choice.

I haven't spent enough time with classical to make a judgment there.

 

For classical? Try the HD800S with Oratory's Harman EQ. I feel no need to go back to the 650. I know senior members here are no fans of the Harman curve but I think most of the disagreement is in the bass. Just leave the bass alone to see if you like it.

 

The ZMF Aeolus with suede Universe pads comes really close (recommended by Zach since he knew I was a Senn fan), but was a little bit too forward for me - maybe more a super HD600. As such, the Auteur pulled ahead since it was more laid back. If I could address that forwardness with maybe a different shaped pad, the Aeolus would be a no brainer for me.

 

And if you like it you save a bunch of money compared to super expensive and heavy boutique planars. I like ZMF tuning but to my ears the drivers don't sound as technically capable as totl dynamics like the 800S and Utopia so can't justify the pricing. Special woods and aesthetics have zero value for me, but that's just me.....