There seems to be 3 schools of thought out there, some say the HD 600's are better, other people say their about the same, and a few think the 580's are a little better!?.... What I can't understand, is if they both have the same drivers how can there be any REAL difference. Could it be the enclosures, plastic vs. carbon fiber, or is there more to it then that? Thanks.

the only difference is plastic vs. carbon. and $100+. probably the difference is more perception then reality. HOWEVER, it is true the enclosure will affect the sound, but i wouldn't go for the 600 unless all my headphne amp and interconnects and source are all top of the line. diminishing returns, etc. i have not heard either.

hey,

i have posted a reply to a similar question before, but yeah i got really crazy once and bought both the HD-580 and HD-600 at the SAME TIME, let them burn in equally, and... did some A-Bing.

Well, first of all, the HD-600 are heavier, I don't know if that extra weight contributes to sound but yeah it just feels heavier on your head. Nothing really important.

Second, these may have been due to the slight differences in the pads of the two headphones (the 600 pads were slightly not-as-firm as the 580, i think that was just that particular model because a replacement 600 i got later had the same firmness of the 580) and thus the distance of the drivers from the ears but... whatever the reason is, when they were both broken in equally, the sonic differences I could hear were:

1. the 600 had bass that extended deeper. sound has more presence... perhaps this is what others mean when they say the 580 has tighter bass than 600, but the 600 definately has more lower bass and it wasn't necessarily out of control and loose... very tight and... "thicker"... that was the feeling I got. Thicker bass. That's it. Like a thick milkshake vs. coffee. Something like that.

(which, later i found out, when i checked out headroom and compared the freq. graphs... the 600's bass response is actually measured to be stronger than the 580's... i have some good faith in those fr graphs since then... hehe )

2. the 600 definately had a wider soundstage. this is not very obviously apparent but serious ABing allowed me to tell the soundstage difference between the two. i think this is mostly because of the steel mesh vs. plastic cover and the reduced resonance of the chamber... something like that. but whatever the reason is, there is that more openness that i found much more favorable than the 580s. like, sitting in a small room vs. a large room. this may be the 3db driver matching of the 580 vs. the 1db matching of the 600.

just as a side note... if grados are matched to ~0.05db... even 1db matching sounds like, well, not very *precise*... anybody have an opinion on that?

i think that the above observations is what most people agree on, but i had the chance to do a real fair (but not unbiased) a-b test and i DID hear the differences (i actually was very doubtful at first but was surprised to find some diff.) so i can confidently say that they are different enough... of course, which is better is upto the listener.

if you like smoother, warmer sound, then go with the 600.

if you like a more analytical sound, then go with the 580.

that's what i say.

i returned my 580 so i'm only left with a 600 now... haha too bad i can't do a-b anymore, but it was definately a fun experiment... while it lasted! hehe

I heard both. The HD600 has a different sound in comparison to the HD580. The differences are subtle and I would not go as far as saying one sounds better than the other. For most of the music I listen to, I prefer the HD580 sound better because it is more towards what I am use to listening to.

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YOWZA!

That must be been exhilerating.

haha yes it was indeed

i remember reading from somewhere... hit the wallet while it's still numb or something?

then, only then, is the marginal cost of the second phone (in this case it was 580 i bought the next day) outweighed by the marginal utility of that second phone and... consumer surplus is heightened...

but then.

none of that economic analysis explains the joy of being able to test both at the same time while relaxing in my room

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An experience that I myself will hopefully be sharing with you on Saturday

Do you happen to be a fan of the Aussie Rock band The Church? I have seen your moniker on their fan board.

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What's "YOWZA"?

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Nope. It's real.

doobooloo, that was great information. I guess my thoughts are due to *my* mis-perception. it seems many of the experieced head-fi'ers agree with you, that there is definately a difference - making the 600s preferable. I wish they were a little cheaper, but i don't think i will consider getting the 580s anymore.

In addition to the different materials, I once heard that the HD-600's have better matched drivers. Any comments on this?

austonia - i can't say that the 600s are clearly flat out better, like many other head-fiers think, the 580s somehow do have that more analytical sound. i personally feel it's less enjoyable, but that's just me, i guess.

also, yes the 600s have better matched drivers... 580s are matched to 3db but 600 are matched to 1db.

which is strange since grados are matched to 0.05db from sr-225 and up... even 1db seems like a lot to me.

does anyone know anything about driver matching standards? i would like to know... if 1db is actually sufficient or is noticeably inferior to 0.05db.

(quoting grado's website from memory, it says better matched drivers (from 0.1db to 0.05db) increases soundstage...)

Thanks guys for the posts, they were very informative. I decided to order the HD 580s over the 600s. A) Because they are $125 (from newegg.com) compared to $230-300 (various places) for the HD 600s. B) I can use the $100+ I saved and treat myself to a set of NOS tubes for my new ASL MG Head OTL. C) It seems to me that even the most ardent HD 600 proponent will admit they are at best 5-10% better than HD 580s, and even then you need REAL hi-end amplification, and sources to hear the difference. I feel either way (the 580s or 600s) should be a nice upgrade over my Grado SR 80s, especially so with the MG Head.

The HD580 vs HD600 topic must've came up at least once a month, but most people would agree that the HD600 uses more closely matched drivers. And IMO looks better + it has that cool box. Persaonlly I have both, and I actually only uses the HD580 as they sound very closely in terms of quailty. And I doubt anyone can tell the difference in normal everyday listenning with the crap recording the artist have these days. May be if I was listening well recorded classical music, then I might dig out the HD600 for the best quailty in sound.