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Unamped Sennheiser HD 598

post #1 of 37
1/28/12 at 2:33am
Thread Starter 

So I'm getting a new pair of sennheiser HD 598s soon but I cannot afford an amp. Will they still sound good? I currently own a pair of Philips SBC HP400. Will I notice a difference?

 

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Gear mentioned in this thread:

Sennheiser HD 428 Headphones
FiiO E7 USB DAC and Portable Headphone Amplifier (Black)
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Sennheiser HD-598
post #2 of 37
1/28/12 at 2:53am

Should be ok without an amp but they will sound better with one.

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post #3 of 37
1/28/12 at 2:56am
Thread Starter 

Thanks for the reply. I just want to know if they will be a decent upgrade from my philips SBC HP400 :)

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post #4 of 37
1/28/12 at 3:00am

Oh yea, I have the new HD 428's and am happy with my Yamaha HT receiver amp.

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post #5 of 37
1/28/12 at 2:27pm

 

Quote:
Thanks for the reply. I just want to know if they will be a decent upgrade from my philips SBC HP400 :)

 

Its a joke ?biggrin.gif

 

Of course, the HD598 is much much better and better again with an amp,lol.

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post #6 of 37
1/28/12 at 3:29pm
Don't run them without an amp. Without an amp they are very boomy, grainy, and lifeless sounding. Unfortunatly I didn't have an amp at hand when I tried them, but they sounded really under-powered. Still, its one of the best textured phones I've heard even un-amped, but I didn't hear any redeeming qualities in it for a metalhead at least. If you like a natural, textured sound with a massive soundstage(bigger than amped AD900) you'll love them.
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post #7 of 37
1/28/12 at 4:45pm

Nothing wrong with the HD-598 without an amp, although it's not suggested.

I use them all the time with a portable CD player and a tiny Sansa Clip and they're still quite good.

 

You don't need an expensive amp for them and even a portable amp would be fine.

IMO a long as they're driven well enough, I haven't found that they benefit much from amp upgrades.

Not like the HD-650 or even HD-600.

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post #8 of 37
1/28/12 at 6:42pm

I've got a pair that sounds acceptable on my iPad 2/iPod classic. They do have more clarity and detail with my FiiO E7 in between.

 

You won't ruin them without an amp unless you're blasting them at ridiculously high volume.

 

<edit>

I can't really recommend the E7 after two months of use. The output jacks both shorted out, leaving me with a bad taste in my mouth. cMoyBB seems to be a good alternative.

</edit>


Edited by 4-HGeek - 2/26/12 at 9:00pm
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post #9 of 37
1/28/12 at 7:08pm

You might want to look at the HD 558 instead, and use the extra cash to get a good/affordable amp. Mike at Headfonia reviewed both the HD 598 & HD 558 and, at the end of his review, he shows how by (easily) removing a piece of black tape from the 558s you get essentially the same sound signature of the 598s, with a bit more mids + bass, which he qualified as "better sound".

 

http://www.headfonia.com/sennheisers-new-hd558-and-hd598/3/

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post #10 of 37
1/28/12 at 7:35pm

If you do a lot of music listening on your desktop. I highly suggest the inexpensive and very good sounding Asus Xonar DG.  It has a built in headphone amp. I've had for a week and it's been working nicely and I happen to have a hd598 (borrowed). The card drives it nicely and smoothly.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829132020&Tpk=xonar%20dg

 

There is a $10 rebate. Rebate also works with amazon purchase as it may be cheaper there.

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post #11 of 37
1/29/12 at 5:32am
Thread Starter 

Hey guys, I just got them, but I have a problem. They play some songs really well, but others not well at all.

EDIT: It works now, maybe it needed to burn in. :D However, when I plug it them into my desktop, sound only comes out from one ear, when I plug them into my ipod, they work fine. Help? :(


Edited by markzi - 1/29/12 at 7:16am
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post #12 of 37
1/29/12 at 7:44am

sounds like you might have a defective audio out jack on your computer, or it might have some little bit of fabric or other garbage that makes you unable to get the plug all the way into the jack?

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post #13 of 37
1/29/12 at 8:20am
Thread Starter 

It's okay, I'm using them on my laptop and they work. Only one problem. My old 40$ headphones sound better confused.gif. I mean, they sound different, but my Sennheisers tend to make unwanted noises at high volume. I'm letting them burn in at the moment. Maybe that will resolve the issue.

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post #14 of 37
1/29/12 at 10:09am
They really need amping. They do not run well at all through computer jacks.
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post #15 of 37
1/29/12 at 1:34pm
Thread Starter 

Ok so, when I got them, bad quality songs sounded horrible, really horrible. But good quality songs sounded great, with some cool effects in terms of panning. Then After about 10 mins I played the headphones at full volume just to see how high they could go. Then the bad quality songs started sounding better, but the good quality ones lost those cool panning effects I was getting. Did I damage the headphones by playing too high? Or is that just the burn in effect?

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Gear mentioned in this thread:

Sennheiser HD 428 Headphones
FiiO E7 USB DAC and Portable Headphone Amplifier (Black)
Powered by NexTag
Sennheiser HD-598
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