Sennheiser HD 800 Headphones Reviews

Sennheiser HD800

Posted 5/6/10

Featured Review

Pros: A world-class high-end headphone from Sennheiser

Cons: Expensive; can be a little bright

REVIEW: Sennheiser HD 800Overview Reviewing a statement product is tough – especially one that was as highly anticipated as the HD800. There is already a huge buzz on head-fi about them, and many have already declared them the best dynamic headphone on the market. But most of these proclamations have been from owners, One potential difference between my listening to the HD800 and other people's so far is that I am fortunate to have been loaned a pair for a fairly lengthy period (1 month) - I did not buy them. So I do not have to deal with either buyer's euphoria, or worry about remorse, coloring my view on the headphone's performance. While I admit I *want* to like these, as I would...

(read more)

Right amp required

Posted 5/30/10

Featured Review

By pabbi1

Pros: Best dynamic available

Cons: VERY picky about the amp and cable

Let's start with my long love for all things Senn, from my first hd545, to hd600, not so much the hd650, but back again with the he60 (electrostat) and now the hd800. The search for amps started with a balanced Bijou, where I thought a tube amp would be just the ticket with a SS source (Cambridge 840c), but, not quite. I also tried them balanced with a Little Dot Mark IV... just wasn't quite there. Keeping with a SS source, I then looked at push-pull amps, where the jury is out, mainly by not having the amp fully functional for a long enough time. So, I completely switched gears, through an odd congruence of events. First, I upgraded my source significantly, and...

(read more)

A bit overrated

Posted 5/30/10

By Lunatique

Pros: Comfortable, detailed, big soundstage

Cons: Artificial sounding, anemic in the bass, overpriced

I have listened to the HD800 twice, and I never really warmed up to it. Its clarity and resolution sounds artificial to me instead of natural, and it has no authority in the sub-bass region. I'm one of those people who simply cannot consider a pair of headphones to be "amazing" or "the best of" if it's lacking neutrality in a chunk of the frequency range. A amazing pair of headphones should sound like a full-range speaker system that reaches down to 30Hz and remains substantial and authoritative--anything less than that is not "amazing" to me. It's sort of like if a girl is really hot with an awesome body, but her ass is flat, barely able to fill any pair of jeans--would that still be...

(read more)

One of the best, but also one of the most picky headphones.

Posted 5/6/10

By Currawong

Pros: Huge soundstage, high speed, great with all types of music. Very comfortable.

Cons: Very picky about source and amp. Cable is arguably poor, so overall expensive to get the best results from. The painted plastic frame is a bit tacky.

I'm going to borrow a quote from jpelg who sumed them up nicer than I can in one of the meet threads: Quote: After finally hearing the HD800's (both balanced & SE), I can understand the varied impressions that resulted from these this past year. They are quite the chameleon, sharing qualities with the venerable HD650, as well as electrostats. Again, the reference quality is clearly evident, and they are very sensitive to changes in associated gear. I'd even go as far to say that they are a bit finicky, because one errant piece of gear, or even recording, can cause them to lack a certain cohesiveness. Still, they are top cans, and worthy of spending time & money...

(read more)

So Close

Posted 5/7/10

By The Monkey

Pros: Similar speed and agility to stats

Cons: No soul

An expensive, technically proficient headphone that has no soul. Does mate well with the Luxman P-1 or P1-u, but at that point, why not go electrostatic, which is what these are trying to be in the first place. Kudos to Senn for innovation, but these are just too steely for my tastes.

Smoothing out treble and giving more bass

Posted 5/21/10

By stainless824

Get a different cable. One fault is the stock cable of the hd800, it's 36AWG, perhaps the bottleneck you are finding with this headphone. Get a different cable because the anemic bass and the hot treble on this is mainly due to this fault in engineering, using 18awg will make it a lot better

The best headphones I've heard

Posted 3/25/13

By Takeanidea

Pros: Accuracy Comfort

Cons: Price- First hours of listening were a little worrying

Hi there, This review is based on my honest impressions of the HD800. I have no technical background little technical knowledge but I listen to music an awful lot. This comes from the heart and I in no way intend to cause any personal offence to any of the gear anyone else has. I simply wish to put on record what my personal findings have been on this set of phones and the reader can compare to other reviews out there. First of all, I have to say it has not been possible to find a way to give you an unbiased comparison of these headphones against any others on the market. This is because double blind testing only works when you are using ancillary equipment. If you know your existing...

(read more)

Amazing headphones that will reward you with every system upgrade!

Posted 6/1/10

By monsieurguzel

Pros: Bass, Mids, Highs, Soundstage, Solid Construction, Supreme Comfort

Cons: Needs better cable to excel, paint job a little fragile

What is there to say about the new flagship Sennheiser that hasn't already been said over the past year. With that in mind, I will give my impressions about this headphone and why I believe that most people that don't like it haven't listened to it properly amped and for long enough time. This is a headphone that easily wows for the first few minutes you try it on....often blowing away any other headphones you've heard before. However after that initial honeymoon is over, many are very bothered by the highs, lack of bass, large soundstage on certain kinds of music, and being overly analytical. To me, the HD800 is very much of a Chameleon, like the Stax SR-007 Omega, meaning...

(read more)

HD 800 Startles

Posted 5/8/10

By mikemalter

Just a short review to add my experience of the HD 800. There are times when I am simply startled at the aliveness of the music. There will be silence after a musical passage or between pieces, and when the music starts up again, it's like when someone walks into a room and you don't hear them and then they start talking to you. The sound is so real, so natural so alive, for that moment it is as if the ensemble were next to me. I did jetteson the stock cord and replaced it with a Cardas single ended for better results. I am very happy I got them.

HD-800

Posted 5/7/10

By dpmaui

Pros: Certainly Unique, Nothing else like it , however,

Cons: Sure have my "personal preferences" these aren't quite,,

Have tried them all now, after reading all of your fine reviews,,,,, whew,,, what an experience! HD-650, DT-990, AK-702, AD-2000, AH-D7000, and of course the HD-800. First, I am in complete agreement with SKYLAB's review,, remember it's mostly positive and I will write more later. My initial impressions? Give me the AH-D7000 with it's wonderful smooth, articulate mid definition, and a bit less "over" bass, give me the even consideration of the DT-990 with more of the air that the HD-800 offers and a whoop of the .AH-D7000 bass, and finally, please give me the HD-800 with all it's own built in delivery,,and a bit more of the wooomfy 7000 bass so low, even some of the even,...

(read more)

Rating Distribution

Rating Details

Member Reviews: Sennheiser HD 800 Headphones