[SuryA]

Ok I basicaly found some old headphones, wich I suspect my brother used during the 90 s. Cant seem to find any info about them, and I m just interested in them. Anyone had them? What are they worth, any good? They are full sized jacks, and pretty beaten up, should i even get a fullsize jack to small jack to try them?

 

[syncmaster68]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SuryA /img/forum/go_quote.gif Ok I basicaly found some old headphones, wich I suspect my brother used during the 90 s. Cant seem to find any info about them, and I m just interested in them. Anyone had them? What are they worth, any good? They are full sized jacks, and pretty beaten up, should i even get a fullsize jack to small jack to try them?

As far as I know it was a respectable pair of cans in the 90's. I owned the hd530 which were very, very similar to yours. They are high impedance headphones, hence would surely benefit from a nice amplifier, provided that they are not too worn out. They sound warm and detailed. Typical Sennheiser mould.

 

[SuryA]

Well they seem worn out enough. I would have to get new earpads, as well as repair the whole head band some way or the other, as the metal part wich actually holds onto your head is missing... As for the foam inside, could you tell me what is underneath the earpads? I can see a sort of piece of paper covering the driver. It looks like htre was maybe another layer of thins black foam over this. Do your remember? Why am i talking in english with you, je suis aussi francais... d'ailleur il me semble que ce modèle etait plus rependu en France qu'ailleur, d'apres mes quelques recherches...

 

[syncmaster68]

I live in France but my mother tongue is not French, I'm afraid...

Anyway, the first thing to do is checking out whether the drivers are still up to it. If not, don't tinker any more, it's not worth the expense. And it depends on your taste and musical preferences, if you're a Sennheiser-type sound lover or a Grado potential fan.
I'm over simplifying things a bit, but it might save you some time and money.

Anyway, the driver protecting film was made of some sort of loose paper. Nothing gorgeous, you can easily replace it by stockings with better results.
You can buy replacement pads either from Germany or from Ebay, they surface quite regularly. In fact, I think even headbands and cables are still being manufactured somewhere, I remember seeing it on the web.

 

[SuryA]

I currently own a MS1 wich is quite vivid, but I would also like to have some nice senns. I tested them out, and no harm has been done (the paper is intact to, so I suppose the drivers are fine), but I couldnt test for quality as I only had a radio with a full size jack. Do you think they are worth getting new earpads, a new headband, aswell as a new cable (they are screwed) and a dac amp for that (probably total bithead)? My plan was to get a pair of hd580 with that same amp, but I dont have all the money right now. Do you think I should wait to get the money and get 580 and the amp, or should I go ahead now and get the spare parts for the 540 and the amp? Basically, how do they compare to 580s?

 

[Dept_of_Alchemy]

Get the 580's and be done with it.

 

[syncmaster68]

Even if you did change so many parts and provided the drivers were in pristine condition, I wouldn't expect them to sound better than brand new HD580's!

If I were you, I would stack up euro upon euro and get the new ones. Let's not forget that the 580's were the top of the line Sennheiser cans some time ago...

I don't have the MS1 but since you say they are quite energetic, the Senns may not be your cup of tea. The HD5xx family - people say that the HD6xx too - share some common sonic features: delicate treble, sweet mids, nice but not exaggerated soundstage. There's a lot of discussion on this forum related to the Sennheiser sound.

Personally I think it is a relaxed presentation of music, focusing on the whole rather than on the minutest parts of it. Senns seem to be tuned for music-lovers who want to concentrate on music for long periods of time, and they try to reproduce the concert - hall acoustics. They are not studio headphones, therefore may not satisfy those who want to hear every imperfection of the master tape. Well, they sound a bit "distant" compared to the most detailed cans around. The only partial exception being the HD595 which I am currently using, and I can testify that its presentation is noticeably more upfront but with slightly narrower soundstage.

Listen to the 580's before buying, if possible, of course (yeah, I know the Fnac people who don't let you listen to the audio gear...as if they sold potatoes...try some small high-end distributors, you should find some in big cities. If not, beg, borrow or steal

).

I hope it helps.