hd650 scales very good. it just gets better and better, the better you feed it. that is not a myth. on the other hand, that don't mean they sound bad with cheap soundcarts...

Exactly as you stated. I now have an amp and the HD650 is excellent. I use the asus xonar.The HD650 has more bass and with a proper amp and the muddy veil is gone.
 
I enjoy both. If you do not have an amp, go with the HD600.

Hi everybody,
 
My situation is: I can have HD600 for 240eu, and HD650 for 275eu. It's a tough choice and I wandered around reading ppl opinion. But I still can't decide whether HD650 worths the extra 35eu?

Quote:

devildog said:

I own the 650s. They are fantastic. The only difference between them and the 600s, to me, is the 650s have more bass and are maybe a tiny, tiny bit more refined. If I had it to do over again, I'd probably go with the 600s. They seem more natural.
As far as the 800s, I've never heard them, but I'll say it's about a lot more than just the frequency range they extend to. I imagine the 800s beat the 600s and 650 in about every category.
As far as the veil, the 650s have less of one than the 600s, to me. Both the 600s and 650s excel with classical music, I'm not sure where you're getting that from. There may be better headphones for classical, but not by much. Their presentation, discussed as two or three rows back, make them perfect for classical.
You're going to need top notch equipment for any of these to even sound good. With the right equipment, there is no "veil." Also, your music will have to be of high quality.
I hope that helps.

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This is exactly what I found when I did my side by side comparison.  To my ears the HD650 is more refined sounding in that it has just a touch more sense of space and a tighter bass.

Compared the 600 with 650. To my ears, the 650 is better: warmer, but still with enough highs to satisfy the details nut in me. It's the most relaxed phones that I own. See my headphones page:
https://sites.google.com/site/audiomeisterssystem/audio-components/headphones
RazorDog Audio has a good deal on both the 600 and 650, with their discount code. Brian, the owner, is very good with customers, and knows his products well.

Honestly, I like the hd 650 more. The main difference for me is the hd 650 has a more thick and full sound if you like. It may sound a little, micro bit more dull to the hd 600 because of that. But I actually love my hd 650's more if I am studying or wanting a relax time. But if I am wanting to really listen, I will go ahead and grab my hd 600's. Both of them are great, maybe my usage would be helpful on deciding. Hd 650's more relax maybe more dull, hd 600 for LISTENING seriously. Edit: the hd 650 scales better with better amps, hd 600 doesn't change a lot.

IMO they are very similar, I feel HD650 a little bit warmer than 600! and got much more bass as well!

Right now I am trying to decide between the HD600, HD650, and the HiFiMAN HE-500.

I am really leaning towards the HE-500 as I have a potential deal coming my way for $450. I've had my eye on this can for a while, I am really interested in getting my first pair of orthos. But in the end, it's the sound that matters, so I'm still comparing these three as they seem like the best selections in this price range. If anybody could suggest some other headphones in this price range, please recommend them to me as I am still open to other options.

Currently, I would not be able to chose between the HD600 and HD650 because I can find the HD650 for $400, that's $100 less than what it used to be which is great. However, I think I would like the HD600 too and can't decide, but it's still selling for $400. It hasn't gone down in price.

I can afford any one of these three headphones as my budget is anything up to $550. I like how the HE-500 comes with a silver cable, but some people have said that it isn't that good and that it's stiff.

Also, I'm not sure about how easy it is to drive the HE-500s, but I've already read that the HD-650s need a good amp. My current amp is a Cayin C5 portable amp, is that powerful enough? My source was an iBasso DX90, but I returned that. I'm actually looking for a new source right now. Maybe FiiO X1. I wasn't satisfied with the DX90. It wasn't worth $400. Amp section was phenomenal, but I already have an external portable amp. DAC section sounded ok. Not as good as they made it seem, disappointing as the dual DAC was the main selling point.

I listen to a wide variety of music, ranging from jazz to EDM to heavy metal. I even listen to some classical music. I don't want a headphone that is catered more towards any one specific genre, but rather a versatile headphone that excels in most areas. Suggestions?

insatiable one said:

Currently, I would not be able to chose between the HD600 and HD650 because I can find the HD650 for $400, that's $100 less than what it used to be which is great. However, I think I would like the HD600 too and can't decide, but it's still selling for $400. It hasn't gone down in price.

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Keep an eye on this thread. Sennheiser has been running a lot of promos; there's been brand new HD650s selling for ~$320 at a few sites (assuming you're in the States). There's bound to be more. At that price it's a no-brainer. Even if you decide you don't like it you can resell it for little or no loss.

HD650s for 295 from an authorized distributor! Now's the time to buy them if you're gonna pull the trigger.

http://slickdeals.net/da/mem-i/p73691134/k70494/u3507458/r4

Anyways, I've had my HD600s for about a month now and here are my thoughts:

The headband hurts me after like half an hour or so of listening. The high-mids are a bit too prominent for me, so I equalized them with a slight drop around 2k and 4k, along with a tiny bass boost at 32 hertz because it seems to be a bit thin on the lowest bass frequencies. Actually I also slightly reduced 16k because it was a bit much for me. Other than that, they are really an all-around excellent pair of headphones. They really sound great with everything and are extremely honest, which means different methods of recording and mastering make very noticeable differences.

Just for more info: I listen to ALAC that I ripped myself using xACT and I listen from my 2010 MacBook Pro to a Fiio E09K.

beepover said:

  Exactly as you stated. I now have an amp and the HD650 is excellent. I use the asus xonar.The HD650 has more bass and with a proper amp and the muddy veil is gone.
 
I enjoy both. If you do not have an amp, go with the HD600.

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My experience exactly.  The HD650 requires a proper amp to lift the muddy veil. 
 
With the right amp, the HD650's sing.
 
Mike

chris_himself said:

HD600: Belgian ale

Treble centric so it's going to be crisp and accurate, can detect subtle notes in music that would otherwise be massaged over by the HD650's midrange. Can become shrill with bad recordings instead of smoothed over.

HD650: Whisky

Very warm midrange, bass is stronger than the HD600, yet artificial sounding due to the "veil". Audiophile purists frown at this but overall it's a very comfortable to listen to headphone for hours at a time and theres also the kicker that it has high amp requirements if you enjoy shopping for amps or if you have a high end one you've been trying to justify for a while

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This!

I haven't heard the 650's in a little while. So I don't remember too much except that they sounded very airy. I'd have to hear them again but I don't think my LCD2's sound as airy as them.
 
Can't comment on the 600's or the veil until I hear them again, which I could probably anytime. Someone I know has em.
 
*I don't have much right to throw my input it, especially when this bread is oooold.

,

I'm probably going to pick up a 600 or 650 sometime next year, as I want some kind of more relaxed headphone to contrast with my Q701. I do have the bass mod, so I would say that dept is currently covered. (they have the same amount of bass as my MDR-XB500, but waaaay deeper extension and clarity)  I do have an amp (Schiit Magni2), but am wondering if that would be enough to lift the debated veil on the 650 because I honestly don't think I could live with a pair of headphones that don't have the same amount of ridiculous detail in the highs as these do. It'll be a while before I pull the trigger, but just wondering on some input.