colmustard
100+ Head-Fier
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- Dec 7, 2010
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Hey guys, this is my first headphone review here, so let me know what you think! I posted this review on my blog earlier today and thought I'd let head-fiers know about it!
Sennheiser is known as one of the top premier headphone manufacturers worldwide. The Sennheiser HD595 from the middle of the price range of their audiophile line is no exception to this reputation. I purchased a pair of the hd595 from Amazon for roughly $130, along with a FiiO e7 DAC + e9 amp system (which I used for the duration of my listening). However I would like to note that you can purchase the similiar hd555 for roughly $50 less and mod it into the hd595 in less than 5 minutes. Well enough of this filler intro stuff, lets get to the review!
Design & Comfort
Let me just say it, the hd595 feels much cheaper than it is. This is due to the lightweight plastic material it’s made out of. However there is solid reasoning behind this. This is one seriously lightweight headphone, and don’t let the plastic fool you, it’s very sturdy. For a pair of full sized over the ear can’s, I can’t believe how natural and unobtrusive they feel. I can honestly say that I can wear these all day without discomfort, a very rare feat for headphones. Though it needs to be noted that these are very tight fitting headphones, they practically clamp to your head. The headband is very comfortable and solid, with a soft cushioned leather pad to rest against your head. The drive heads have a very soft and comfortable velor padding, which works perfect with the open back design which allows your ears to breathe. I feel if it weren’t for the open back design my ears would get very hot and uncomfortable with these pads.Speaking of the open back design, these headphones will leak sound. At the same time make sure your using them in a quiet environment, because they also let alot of sound in which I feel seriously disrupts my music. If you’ve never worn a pair of open backed headphones, be prepared for these to feel completely different than anything you’ve ever worn before (in a good way). The only thing that really bothered me about the design was the adjustable headband. It seems to always tighten up on me while I’m wearing them, which bothers me more than it hinder’s their performance. I would have definitely liked to have seen more of a self adjusting strap like on most of AKG’s headphones (particularly the k701).
- Design Score: 3.8 / 5
- Comfort Score: 4.4 / 5
Sound
Let me first talk about the sound stage, instrument separation, and overall sound quality before I dive into the specifics. First of all, these can’s have a seriously narrow and tight sound stage. It sounds like the instruments are right next to me. This isn’t a good or a bad thing, it’s all about personal preference. I prefer the wider laid back sound stage of my k701′s to the front row seating of the hd595′s but that’s just me. Instrument separation I found to be well above average but nowhere near flawless. Overall sound quality is fantastic. The narrow sound stage add’s an impressive punch to these headphones which combined with the neutral laid back sound Sennheiser is famous for is quite enjoyable.Treble
To test out the treble on these headphones, I listened to “Comets” by Fanfarlo, “M79″ by Vampire Weekend, and “Epilogue” by The Antlers. The strings and horns from Comets seemed almost a little bit rolled off, but without even a hint of Sibilance at higher volumns – a big plus. What I loved most about this was that the high’s didn’t seem to impede any of the other ranges, which was expected as their advertised as a more neutral headphone. The strings from M79 was much more of the same as from comets. They sounded great, but certainly lacked the upper registry sparkle that my k701′s possess. Once again no hint of sibilance or distortion, and guess what, the cymbals actually sound like cymbals! I was very pleased with the sweetness of the highs, but more with their balance. Moving onto Epilogue, which is a very special song to me. I felt that these headphones brought out the best in Silberman’s vocals. I can just about feel the texture of the strings on the guitar as they strum and pick. In other words, listening to this song on these headphones is a memorable experience. The treble is detailed but not to the extent that it isn’t enjoyable. However I certainly still feel that a little bit more emphasis could have been placed on the higher register.
- Treble: 3.8 / 5
Midrange
For Midrange I chose “Bartles + James” by Band of Horses, “Lisztomania” by Phoenix, and “Don’t Forget Me” by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. In Bartles + James, the vocals are incredibly detailed and vivid. When the chorus ended and the guitar and drums hit, I was nearly blown out of my seat. Wow where’d that come from? To put it simply the midrange in these headphones truly sparkle. The snare drums and electric guitar suit these can’s perfectly. While listening to Lisztomania it became clear that what I had thought when listening to Bartles + James is true. There is an upper mid range that sounds absolutely fantastic. I would place it in the snare drum or cowbell range, and when you hear it you will know. Instantaneously any notes in this range take center stage. While listening to Phoenix I can feel the percussion, a rare feat for headphones that arn’t supposed to be bass heavy. Oh and lets not forget the Chili Peppers. Don’t Forget me sounds like a song that was made for these headphones. The lyrics take the spotlight here, but are closely followed by strong percussion and sublime sounding guitar. I found the instrument separation on this sound specifically to be fantastic. The midrange on the hd595 certainly is the most noticeably prominent range, and I find myself coming back to these over and over again to listen to “Teardrop” by Massive Attack to hear the snap and punch of the drums.
- Midrange: 4.4 / 5
Bass
Now whether we admit it or not, we all love some thumping energetic bass in our headphones. To test out the bass response I chose “Angel” by Massive Attack, “Shadow Stabbing” by Cake, and “Zombie City Shake” by the Black Hat Brigade. Listening to Angel, I felt that the hd595 did a good job accurately keeping pace with the bass, but not a fantastic job. It seems right off the bat that they struggle a little bit with the lower end of the bass spectrum, while the upper end with the kick drum drum sounds fantastic. The punch from the kick drum even shook the frame of these headphones a little bit, and I could feel my ear lobs vibrate. This upper bass registry keeps pace even as the song picks up and doesn’t get shoved to the background unlike the lower registry. Moving onto Shadow Stabbing I can say that the bass is detailed and accurate. It certainly add to the musicality of the song, and isn’t lacking. Yet at the same time it remains clear and unobtrusive to the midrange and treble. It can at times be slightly overpowered but I found this to be rare. Listening to Zombie City Shake, the bass response was absolutely perfect. This is what I’m talking about with the upper bass registry, the bass kept it’s clarity and impact throughout the song. Coupled with the kick and snare drumming, I found that this song in particular sounded very balanced. In the end I wouldn’t recommend these as bass head can’s by any stretch, yet expect to be quite satisfied with the detail and warmth from the bass.
Bass: 3.8 / 5
Final Thoughts
Overall these are some very high quality neutral sounding headphone’s that I feel are well suited with nearly any genre of rock. I found both acoustics and vocals to be phenomenally crisp, yet the upper midrange takes the cake here. For the $130 I spent on these headphones, they are an excellent value. While there is an evident difference between the hd595 and my k701′s, I still find myself coming back to these from time to time – especially for that midrange, wow! Just keep in mind that there are better headphones in this price range depending on your music taste. But if your looking for a premier pair of neutral headphone’s for under $200 that can give a strong performance for nearly all forms of rock, look no further (unless of course you prefer the warmer sound of grados). Don’t forget that you can also purchase a pair of hd555′s andmod them into a pair of hd595′s by simply removing a small piece of foam from the drive head that retards the bass response. This is a great way to get the sound of the hd595′s while saving yourself about $50, nice try Sennheiser!- Overall Score: 4.2 / 5
*I’d like to note that I did all my listening on my FiiO e7 DAC + e9 amp system, with recording at either 320 kbps or lossless FLAC. I also put about 100 hours of pink noise through these headphones before this review.
Check out my website where this review was originally published! http://breakthenetwork.com/2011/01/18/sennheiser-hd595-review/
