bizkid
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Be aware that you need a torx screwdriver to change the cable. Does anyone know the exact size?
Sennheiser HD25 Aluminium 25th anniversary edition review
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coolcat37
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kinda lame not using an Philips crew. the exact size is torx T6 (thats the one on the amperior, so it should be the same on this model too)
btw the fake leather pads have become available as spare parts if anyone want to do some padsurfing and post some thoughts
Headphonia's review of the Alu's :
http://www.headfonia.com/the-best-evolution-yet-hd-25-aluminium/
http://www.headfonia.com/the-best-evolution-yet-hd-25-aluminium/
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I have all three HD25. The standard version is my favorite.
wrightanswer@ear
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maricius
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Can anyone compare these to the ATH-ES10? Even if you haven't heard one or the other, maybe a theoretical comparison would give me a better view on what to get as a portable. Things to consider: bass response, speed, articulation.
Thanks if ever!!
Thanks if ever!!
RASeymour
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Just received these and am pleased with the sound.
I have a pair of DT1350 but wanted headphones that were a bit more durable as I used them for walking around, etc. and shove them into my pack and pockets. The DT1350 seemed as if they would get bent easily, so I wanted to switch before doing irreparable harm. Also, the cord of the DT1350's seemed fragile and became quite stiff in the cold (currently 0 degree F outside). One other difference, albeit unknown before purchase, was the reduced microphonics of the HD25 Alu. The 1350's cable was quite noisy, esp. with quieter songs. I also wear a hood (see temperature above) and the 1350 cups rubbing on the inside of my hood can be heard much more than with the HD25's. Bonus!
The sound is quite different as well. I usually listen to more neutral cans, with the Ety4s being my main listening experience, along with Audo Technica AD900. As a previously reviewer noted, these are more "fun." The bass is much more pronounced than the 1350's but not at the expense of the mids and treble. I don't know whether I'd like to listen to classical music on these but they are great for classic and modern rock.
Isolation is about the same for both. Hard to tell on overall comfort as the 1350's are well broken in. The clamping of HD25's is noticeably tighter but that may relax with use. The cord is over 7 feet long, which is too long for me. I'm looking forward to subbing out a new and shorter cable.
FWIW, I am using an amp, the Headstage (2G I think). I put up the impedance a notch, kept crossover and gain at 0 and am experimenting with the bass switch between 0 and 1 (2 is too too much). These are basically the same settings as with the 1350 but I definitely needed the bass switch on 1 for the 1350's.
Good deal, looking forward to the new sound.
I have a pair of DT1350 but wanted headphones that were a bit more durable as I used them for walking around, etc. and shove them into my pack and pockets. The DT1350 seemed as if they would get bent easily, so I wanted to switch before doing irreparable harm. Also, the cord of the DT1350's seemed fragile and became quite stiff in the cold (currently 0 degree F outside). One other difference, albeit unknown before purchase, was the reduced microphonics of the HD25 Alu. The 1350's cable was quite noisy, esp. with quieter songs. I also wear a hood (see temperature above) and the 1350 cups rubbing on the inside of my hood can be heard much more than with the HD25's. Bonus!
The sound is quite different as well. I usually listen to more neutral cans, with the Ety4s being my main listening experience, along with Audo Technica AD900. As a previously reviewer noted, these are more "fun." The bass is much more pronounced than the 1350's but not at the expense of the mids and treble. I don't know whether I'd like to listen to classical music on these but they are great for classic and modern rock.
Isolation is about the same for both. Hard to tell on overall comfort as the 1350's are well broken in. The clamping of HD25's is noticeably tighter but that may relax with use. The cord is over 7 feet long, which is too long for me. I'm looking forward to subbing out a new and shorter cable.
FWIW, I am using an amp, the Headstage (2G I think). I put up the impedance a notch, kept crossover and gain at 0 and am experimenting with the bass switch between 0 and 1 (2 is too too much). These are basically the same settings as with the 1350 but I definitely needed the bass switch on 1 for the 1350's.
Good deal, looking forward to the new sound.
headyonch
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These cans are irresistible. When are these up for sale?
maricius
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They already are!! You just have to be lucky enough to find a retailer that already have them…
maricius
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I just got mine today!! It just so happened that I had a few relatives who went to Hong Kong this past week so I checked the Hong Kong Head-Fi thread, checked some of the listed stores, found these on the DMA Audio, and told them to buy it for me. My only concern with them without regarding the sound is that I found the cable a little too long for portable use.
Pedro Oliveira
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The Amperior and HD25 Aluminium comparison.
I will try and give my best explanation of the differences I’m hearing between these two headphones. I wouldn’t call myself an audiophile but rather someone who appreciates good sound quality, so if I don’t provide a detailed enough explanation of the sound that is why.
So after receiving these headphones I right away sat down gave them a three hours listening period with my usual music selection consisting of various rock artists. The first thing that came to mind was how similar they sounded to the Amperiors (I know shocker) but the bass seemed to have a little more impact and the sound overall was warmer than the brighter more aggressive Amperiors.
Having logged approximately 100 hours on my Amperiors I decided to allow some burn in with the HD25’s to give a more balanced comparison. Whether you believe in this or not I found the Amperiors changed a bit over time with the treble relaxing a bit and the bass tightening up. After letting them burn in for about 24 hours on a slightly elevated listening level and having my first listening session still fresh on my mind I found once again the bass seemed to tighten up where the treble remained the same with a warmer presentation than the Amperiors.
So from this point I decided to A / B them the best I could which consisted of hooking them both up with a Y adapter (by Grado) to my Schiit Asgard 2 and Bifrost uber. The first thing I noticed was how at the same volume level the Amperior sounded louder than the HD25 which makes sense with the Amperiors lower impedance. Secondly how more aggressive the Amperiors were with the treble and the mids.
From here I decided to swap out the ear pads and see how this would impact the sound. The HD25 still had a warmer sound while the Amperiors maintained that brighter sound signature but the bass did change a little on the Amperiors with some added bass. I believe this happened because I was getting a better seal with the pleather material which I can relate this with my experience with IEM’s and changing out different ear tips to achieve that better seal (isolation). Personally the Amperiors ear pads were more comfortable though.
In conclusion, I believe Sennheiser achieved what they were looking for with the Amperiors and having them easily driven with an iPod but still sounding similar to their HD25’s. In my opinion if you already own the Amperiors I would just stick with them and purchase the pleather ear pads for your own comparison. For myself, I like both and appreciate their fine differences and plan on keeping the HD25’s for use at work with my Schiit M&M stack and using my Amperiors for on the go.
Hi there oracle. Sorry to bother but i have to make this question....
Right now i have a pair of over ear momentums and a pair of hd25s... I am about to sell my momentums because although i do love them i loose the seal very easily while on the move (i have 67mm ears) (i bought them as a over ear Outside/home use alternative to my hd25's with a more laidvack and more refined sound but unfortunately they only work at home for me because of the seal issues while on the move or moving my head).
I was thinking of getting a pair of amperiors for 140 euros with the money of the momentums or even to sell the hd25's and buying a pair of amperiors and a pair of hd598's or akg k550's for home use and as a replacement for my momentums (this way the hd25s or the amperiors would be my choice for outside use and also for more agressive styles like edm and rock and the hd598's or the akg's for more calm and relaxed styles).
Since i already own the original hd25s (for 2 momths now) do you think its a smart move to buy a pair of amperiors or hd25 alu? Is the improvement on any of the two that big or is it just a subatancial improvement over the original hd25s and should i just stick with my pair?
Cheers...
maricius
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I know that this wasn't addressed to me but I'll answer it anyway. The original HD25, the Amperior, and the aluminum version in my opinion, have noticeable but small differences. If you're really into the HD25 sound, I find the Aluminums to be slightly better that the other two.
My suggestion is to demo the Amperiors as the price is considerably lower now and if you find the sound to be more preferable, sell your original HD25 and buy them. Also, I do suggest you get the HD598 first with the money you already have as it's better to have a contrasting pair rather than just purchasing an "upgrade."
Pedro Oliveira
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Thank you very much maricius....
Unfortunatelly i can only do blind purchases since these headphones are not available for testing in any store here in Portugal.
I can only test the hd598's.... the rest will be bought on amazon...
By the way.... i listen mainly to pop, rock and edm....
The pricings for the headphones i can get right now is....
120 for a pair of mint conditioned hd598's with box and documents for warranty purposes for 120 euros
the akg k550's with shipping and taxes would cost me 140 euros on amazon and the amperiors also 140 on amazon new.
So would you say that the amperior is more noticeable on the hd25 vs hd25 alu comparison than on a h25 vs amperior comparison?
Do you think that differences are worthy enought to give up my hd25 ( i can seel them for 100 euros) and drop some more money on the amperiors..?
thank you very much once agin...
Oracle
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I had the same problem with the Momentum over ear headphones I just couldn't get a good seal. I even bought the Momentum on ears to compare with the HD25's Alu and Amperiors but the Momentums couldn't compete with either in sound, construction or comfort.
To your question I've never owned the original HD25's and the Amperiors were the first iteration followed by the HD25 Alu for these headphones. But depending how you plan on using these and what your using to drive them I found the Amperiors to handle being plugged directly into my phone or iPod better than the HD25’s, where the HD25’s sounded better out of my desktop setup. The HD598’s with the bigger soundstage do to the open back design would probably make the biggest improvement in sound quality though.
maricius
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Thank you very much maricius....
Unfortunatelly i can only do blind purchases since these headphones are not available for testing in any store here in Portugal.
I can only test the hd598's.... the rest will be bought on amazon...
By the way.... i listen mainly to pop, rock and edm....
The pricings for the headphones i can get right now is....
120 for a pair of mint conditioned hd598's with box and documents for warranty purposes for 120 euros
the akg k550's with shipping and taxes would cost me 140 euros on amazon and the amperiors also 140 on amazon new.
So would you say that the amperior is more noticeable on the hd25 vs hd25 alu comparison than on a h25 vs amperior comparison?
Do you think that differences are worthy enought to give up my hd25 ( i can seel them for 100 euros) and drop some more money on the amperiors..?
thank you very much once agin...
I suggested the Amperior with regards to the pricing. From what I see other people to be saying, the Amperior is more of a side-grade, while the HD25 Aluminum is the upgrade. I mention this as of course, this is dependent on what you hear. In my own opinion, I do find the HD25 Alu to be better than both but I was actually hesitant at first due to its higher price as compared to the other two.
Referring to your original post, what did you mean by "calm, relaxed styles"? The HD598 aren't the heaviest in bass (neither is the K550, even if it's a close back) but I do recommend them over the K550. In fact, if you choose the K550 over the HD598, may I also suggest reading on the SoundMagic HP100 (as compared to the K550)?
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