Bass extension is already crazy good on the HD800 for being an open dynamic.  Wonder what kind of voodoo Sennheiser did to make it even better.  It takes more than some damping like the Anax mod to get more bass extension out of the HD800.  Maybe now the HD800 can compete with planars in bass depth.

tmraven said:

   
They've spent 6 years of exhaustive research and poured millions into the new damping scheme though, so we're going to see at least a 4,000 dollar asking price for this one.

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It's a headphone, not a  400 meter long cruise ship.

From the video it seems they haven't changed much, only enough to make people spend even more on a pair. Besides, the price they charge for the XLR cables is absolutely ridiculous! 

derbigpr said:

It's a headphone, not a  400 meter long cruise ship.

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He was being sarcastic, unless of course you are responding to his sarcasm with further sarcasm

.

wildcatsare1 said:

He was being sarcastic, unless of course you are responding to his sarcasm with further sarcasm

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No sarcasm here, I think that HD800s should cost the same as the HD800 because they just fixed the fault that should have never existed, being a new version should automatically mean it should be more expensive. I mean, that doesn't even happen in the car industry, but it seems like it became normal in the headphone world.

Actuall

derbigpr said:

No sarcasm here, I think that HD800s should cost the same as the HD800 because they just fixed the fault that should have never existed, being a new version should automatically mean it should be more expensive. I mean, that doesn't even happen in the car industry, but it seems like it became normal in the headphone world.

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Actually it should cost less. This was a small change & investment for senn and they already have the entire production chain in place. But that of course will never happen and I guess there's no need to say why.

prot said:

Actuall
Actually it should cost less. This was a small change & investment for senn and they already have the entire production chain in place. But that of course will never happen and I guess there's no need to say why.

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If it is not a driver fix, then yeah they should be able to ramp up production pretty fast.

What I am looking forward to doing is getting a pair of 800S and putting them next to my Anax modded, Norne Draug 2 cabled 800. The bass is extended, the soundstage "appears" to be larger, I think due to the dampening's impact on image specificity within the stage being improved dramatically.

So the "S" will be a tough sell, especially if there is a significant price difference.

It is certainly true that HP prices are getting well out of control at the moment, and it is likely that Sennheiser will play up to this by adding extra $$$'s to their latest and greatest. But...
 
There's a perfect opportunity for someone as big as Sennheiser to reign in the current pricing craziness by offering yet another defining HP that represents amazing value/quality rather than lots of extra $$$'s for marginal improvements.
 
Like the DAP market right now, there are plenty of new products and companies coming forward that are getting close to (or equaling) the highest priced units for basically a third of the cost, without really sacrificing anything in quality.
 
There's no reason why anyone should have to pay $2000+ for the best sound possible from a headphone, just good old fashioned greed.
 
I do so hope Sennheiser can be brave enough to buck the current trend, as there is a point in the future where their market (and all others) will be hugely disrupted by a product that does just that and kills the tradition markets. It's happened pretty much in every other tech arena, and it will surely happen here.
 
Come on Sennheiser! disrupt the market now by at least keeping the price the same and shaming the competition. Not least, you'll end up selling a whole lot more units because of it.

guitarrules said:

  If it is not a driver fix, then yeah they should be able to ramp up production pretty fast.

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Forgot to mention, Axel seemed to imply that the drivers are not identical between the 800s and 800.  He didn't elaborate, and I forgot to ask.  They're the same size driver, as the physical properties of the headphone (ear cup size, frame size.)
 
But they are already in production.

bobfiggins said:

   
If the 800S is $2000 or less, I will definitely be one of those selling my HD 800. If it's more, I will have to wait for some serious reviews to tell me it's really amazing, and an improvement.

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Then start saving...   They will surely cost more than the 800, and l guarantee you there will be tonnes of reviews hyping them up  

sgtbilko said:

  There's a perfect opportunity for someone as big as Sennheiser to reign in the current pricing craziness by offering yet another defining HP that represents amazing value/quality rather than lots of extra $$$'s for marginal improvements.
 
Like the DAP market right now, there are plenty of new products and companies coming forward that are getting close to (or equaling) the highest priced units for basically a third of the cost, without really sacrificing anything in quality.

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After experiencing a few weeks with my new Fidelio X2, I couldn't agree more with that... I've sacked a 3x more expensive LCD-2F as a result.
 
Thank you Philips for doing what you're doing while others do nothing but jack up the prices even more.

ninjahamster said:

Hope it's not $600 for two pieces of sorbothane!

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Lol!

peterchoi22 said:

That is a smart idea, I'd rather just buy the acoustic absorber from Sennheiser than mod the HD800.

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Good point!
There may be an upgrade option for current users if Senn is willing.
They would sell much more of that then the "S" version..

tmraven said:

They've spent 6 years of exhaustive research and poured millions into the new damping scheme though, so we're going to see at least a 4,000 dollar asking price for this one.

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Lol!
Translated:
They sat on their laurels for 6yrs before they decide to come up with scheme to jump on the "new headphone" wagon..
Sorry, but I have "been around the block" one too many times,
And so I can see right thru the hype.

I hold them up to a higher standard than this.
They ARE at least ONE of the best headphone company in the world, depending how you see it.
With todays technology and their superior resources at their disposal, it shouldnt take them more than 6months to come up with a new redesigned HD800 & implement it into reality in less than a year..
But Ill take an "acoustic absorber" upgrade for now...