Senn HD580 or Beyer DT931?

These very different headphones. I'd say the Beyers are more detailed, brighter, have a tighter bass, and probably a more open sound. The Senns have a warmer, more euphonic sound, with more bass I suppose. I prefer the Beyers easily, but I think I'm in the minority here on Headw.. err.. I mean...what's this place called, anyway?

That review monk posted really does highlight the strengths and differences of both phones concisely...And they are indeed totally different choices.

The Beyers are more detailed and lively, and IMO more transparent at the cost of being sometimes bright depending on source, amp, recording, your mood!

Personally I wouldn't mind a bottom-mid half of a Beyer with the top half of Senns...

But still these are very different phones and the differences are made clear in that review...one is long-term listening and smooth and one is lively and detailed but at the cost of being more fatiguing, again depending on source, amp, recording, and your mood.

You don't gain anything from picking either, you just have to choose what better fits your listening style...or get both!

I was pretty picky in finding a nice full-size pair of headphones and now realize that the phones I ended up with are pretty picky themselves. It is strange how I can hook it up to a low-impedance amp and listen to FM radio...but dread it with the CD player...or one recording to the next.

By picking the 931s, you get a brighter, more forward, somewhat more detailed, leaner sound.

Some of us call it Head-Fi [Headwizers are to Headwize as Head-fiers are to Head-Fi]
I've been wondering, after Headwize is up and running again, what happens to this place? Is it gonna still be up, but less popular, or is it going to be completely shut down with directions to Headwize? [In other words, is this a temporary solution, or a permanent alternative?]

The intention is for Head Fidelity (Head-Fi) to be permanent. I encourage headphone enthusiasts to visit both. I'll still be posting at HeadWize, and hope Chu will also continue to post here too. It's likely that both will continue to evolve individually in unique ways. We've got some pretty cool stuff planned over here, and I'm sure Chu has some cool stuff planned for HeadWize too. The more resources we headphoners have, the better shot we've got at having permanent meeting places.

The headphone enthusiast community is a fast-growing community. Conversion to our insanity is quicker than, say, with $20,000+ room-filling hi-fi rigs. Simply throw your good headphones on the ears of anyone who appreciates good music, and (unless they're sporting one of the fancy hi-fi rigs) they'll likely say they've never heard music sound so good out of electronics before. People with little or no experience with hi-fi are more easily convinced to purchase a good pair of headphones than to make monumental initial investments in a big hi-fi system (of course, they'll likely find out later that this hobby will carry them closer to budget-busting audio equipment investments).

What's my long-winded point? My point is that this generally more affordable form of hi-fi is a far more communicable contagion than the often much pricier big rig hi-fi, especially as a start. The headphone hi-fi hobby shrinks the barriers to entry into the traditional world of hi-fi. It's my firm belief that this hobby's only going to get significantly more popular.

My point, again, is that, due to the obvious growth of our hobby, the more resources we have, the better.

Stick around. It's only going to get more fun.

More expensive as well if you get tempted easily

Damnit... lol.. You're not kidding when you say its addictive..

This thread has shown me a new light at the end of this never ending tunnel in the quest of audio perfection...

These Beyer 'phones sound interesting... I started on the long and winding headphone world with a pair of Beyer DT-311s back in 1993... and, well... it could be interesting especially with the comparison between the Beyers, and the Senns to go back to the Beyer sound...

Damn Damn Damn Damn... (Lets hope my modem dies so I can't come online for about... erm... 8 years )

Duncan, that modem better not die before you do a full review of your X-CANv2 review with both your CD1700's and HD-580's!

Thanks everyone for the DT931 comments

I am a Sony MDR CD3000's lover. However they are closed, and have caused some hair-raising moments and missed phone calls. I was looking for an open phone that would create a lively response with tight bass and some punch.

The Senn 600's were a little too laid-back for my tastes so I auditioned the Grado SR-325, and found them rather harsh in the treble. The RS-2's were smooth with rolled-off highs, and the RS-1's were unexciting (IMO) for the price.

I think I will take advantage of Jan Meier's unbeatable price of $180 for the Beyer DT-931's, and spring for his assembled Corda Amp. I encourage people to do a search and read his fine review of the 600 & 931 coupled with the Corda Amp.

Thanks for everyone's comments.

I have both and love both. I think I use different cans for different CDs so that I can compensate for the evils of equilization and/or bad recording. Senns are more forgiving. I experimented for 5-6 weeks (no kidding) and couldn't make up my mind as to what is better.

I would be very interested in trying out Beyers with a tube amp. They often sound too "analytically cold". Couple the usually high output impedance of a tube amp with their usually occuring treble rolloff and euphonic distortion and you might get something really good. I don't know...