GlendaleViper
Yep, words.
- Joined
- Feb 10, 2006
- Posts
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A little backstory is in order, since my desire to attain these headphones was never really verbalised. Back at the Toronto meet in November, somewhere in between trying to get a chance at the Darkvoice amp (which apparently crapped out - I hope this ended up fixed
) and shaking off the drool and sweat the Ultrasone 2200ULE left me with, I stealthily popped on a pair of the inconspicuous cans (Redleader's, I believe) and just kind of drifted away.
I am not a fan of the Sennheiser sound. This runs consistent with the stereotype: I am, afterall, a rabid (if subdued) Grado die-hard. I never really gave the HD25 so much as a second thought. I had basically sworn off closed headphones and wasn't planning on looking back. Ten minutes with Philodox's famous (infamous) Frankenstein AKG K340s and later the Ultrasone ProLine 750s made me reconsider. Here it was that I realised a closed chamber could sound nice without having to resort to big ticket items like Sony's R10 or CD3000.
My biggest gripe with every single closed headphone I've ever heard is a simple, but critical flaw: Sucked out mids and a condensed sound. The K340 and ProLine 750 proved without a doubt that isolation with mids was absolutely possible for a modest price. It was with quiet admiration that I removed the HD25 and went on with the festivities.
Here I am three months later, perusing the FS forums when I discover those little Sennheisers being sold (at a very nice price I might add) by a well respected member of our community. I scooped them up. No - that's not true...
... I sold my beloved Grado SR225s to obtain them!
And here I am, a week later still, happy as a (insert inappropriate similie here). Buying the RS-1 yesterday probably helps this feeling a little bit, but the Senns are no slouches either.
Finally, I have a headphone that sounds good and lets me keep the volume down on the train. I won't lie, compared to the SR225 the HD25 leaves a lot to be desired. The tradeoffs, however, make the little Sennheiser a clear winner if I am to compare based on values beyond pure sound quality.
Given that the HD25 is a very well established headphone and the fact that I haven't spent more than 10 hours headtime with the cans, I won't be reviewing here. I do want to point out some specific pros and cons for prospective buyers, since older phones tend to get less of the spotlight for prospective buyers in its pricepoint/purpose. This will not be comparitive.
Cons:
- Incredibly microphonic cable. Mercifully (and surprisingly), this doesn't pose much of an issue while on the move with them.
- Big heads beware: Clamp force is massive and their supra-aural design accentuates this. Thankfully, some playing around with the split headband design can greatly reduce the pressure and thusly extend listening sessions.
- Mids are sucked out, just a little. The HD25 doesn't completely avoid falling victim to the closed can signature, condensed sound and all, but they perform well for what they are and the deficiency here is tolerable with every genre I've thrown at them thus far except classical.
- Hyper, hyper sensitive. This isn't really a con, per se: Straight out of an ipod's headphone jack, they drive to impressively loud volumes, with hiss only (distractingly) present at the top 20% to maximum. An amp and lineout eliminates this completely. Out of my Marantz integrated however, the HD25 is unlistenable. Hiss overpowers the music even at very loud volumes.
[EDIT] Disclaimer: It is my personal opinion that the HD25 above 80% volume on an average modern (see: hot) recording with an iPod is dangerous, borderlining on insane. My hiss test was done without music playing. Please be careful!
Pros:
- Great extension in the low and high range. These headphones have solid, warm bass with some excellent punch when called for and the treble response, while not hyper extended, is not terribly rolled off to these ears. The overall signature is warm, but fast. They are not extraordinarily detailed, but certainly not smeared or muffled either. Despite my complaint in the mids, the overall tonal balance is nicely musical - you can definitely groove to these babies!
- Isolation. I get better ambient noise attenuation from these headphones than I did with the V-moda Vibe. Granted, those have ported chambers, but for a closed circumaural, the isolation the HD25 provides is absolutely top notch. This is an amazing commuter option.
- This thing is built like a tank. The HD25 looks all but indestructible - but do not fear: Most major parts are user-replaceable and readily available from Sennheiser. The cable is user replaceable too. Bonus!
- Split headband. I must admit, my first thought was that I would simply wear it like it was a single band, but using its functionality adds so much more stability (especially when walking or even jogging) and can help to alleviate some pressure, as it widens the focal point of the clamping force.
Typical of my threads, this is getting long winded for a non-review, so I'll leave it at those main points. I hope anyone thinking of a closed portable solution finds this informative (despite the anecdotes in the early half
). The Sennheiser HD25-1, while expensive at retail, can be obtained for a very reasonable price used - and even new when the right sale comes along. They make for a great Rock/Rap/IDM can, but handle many genres well. Acoustic music sounds very nice, but I would personally stay away if your main interests are Classical and to some extent Jazz. There just isn't enough airiness to do them justice. From a portable perspective, these are compact, light, isolate incredibly well... and are basically bulletproof.
Highly recommended as a compromise between a quality listening experience and portability/isolation.
I am not a fan of the Sennheiser sound. This runs consistent with the stereotype: I am, afterall, a rabid (if subdued) Grado die-hard. I never really gave the HD25 so much as a second thought. I had basically sworn off closed headphones and wasn't planning on looking back. Ten minutes with Philodox's famous (infamous) Frankenstein AKG K340s and later the Ultrasone ProLine 750s made me reconsider. Here it was that I realised a closed chamber could sound nice without having to resort to big ticket items like Sony's R10 or CD3000.
My biggest gripe with every single closed headphone I've ever heard is a simple, but critical flaw: Sucked out mids and a condensed sound. The K340 and ProLine 750 proved without a doubt that isolation with mids was absolutely possible for a modest price. It was with quiet admiration that I removed the HD25 and went on with the festivities.
Here I am three months later, perusing the FS forums when I discover those little Sennheisers being sold (at a very nice price I might add) by a well respected member of our community. I scooped them up. No - that's not true...
... I sold my beloved Grado SR225s to obtain them!
And here I am, a week later still, happy as a (insert inappropriate similie here). Buying the RS-1 yesterday probably helps this feeling a little bit, but the Senns are no slouches either.
Finally, I have a headphone that sounds good and lets me keep the volume down on the train. I won't lie, compared to the SR225 the HD25 leaves a lot to be desired. The tradeoffs, however, make the little Sennheiser a clear winner if I am to compare based on values beyond pure sound quality.
Given that the HD25 is a very well established headphone and the fact that I haven't spent more than 10 hours headtime with the cans, I won't be reviewing here. I do want to point out some specific pros and cons for prospective buyers, since older phones tend to get less of the spotlight for prospective buyers in its pricepoint/purpose. This will not be comparitive.
Cons:
- Incredibly microphonic cable. Mercifully (and surprisingly), this doesn't pose much of an issue while on the move with them.
- Big heads beware: Clamp force is massive and their supra-aural design accentuates this. Thankfully, some playing around with the split headband design can greatly reduce the pressure and thusly extend listening sessions.
- Mids are sucked out, just a little. The HD25 doesn't completely avoid falling victim to the closed can signature, condensed sound and all, but they perform well for what they are and the deficiency here is tolerable with every genre I've thrown at them thus far except classical.
- Hyper, hyper sensitive. This isn't really a con, per se: Straight out of an ipod's headphone jack, they drive to impressively loud volumes, with hiss only (distractingly) present at the top 20% to maximum. An amp and lineout eliminates this completely. Out of my Marantz integrated however, the HD25 is unlistenable. Hiss overpowers the music even at very loud volumes.
[EDIT] Disclaimer: It is my personal opinion that the HD25 above 80% volume on an average modern (see: hot) recording with an iPod is dangerous, borderlining on insane. My hiss test was done without music playing. Please be careful!
Pros:
- Great extension in the low and high range. These headphones have solid, warm bass with some excellent punch when called for and the treble response, while not hyper extended, is not terribly rolled off to these ears. The overall signature is warm, but fast. They are not extraordinarily detailed, but certainly not smeared or muffled either. Despite my complaint in the mids, the overall tonal balance is nicely musical - you can definitely groove to these babies!
- Isolation. I get better ambient noise attenuation from these headphones than I did with the V-moda Vibe. Granted, those have ported chambers, but for a closed circumaural, the isolation the HD25 provides is absolutely top notch. This is an amazing commuter option.
- This thing is built like a tank. The HD25 looks all but indestructible - but do not fear: Most major parts are user-replaceable and readily available from Sennheiser. The cable is user replaceable too. Bonus!
- Split headband. I must admit, my first thought was that I would simply wear it like it was a single band, but using its functionality adds so much more stability (especially when walking or even jogging) and can help to alleviate some pressure, as it widens the focal point of the clamping force.
Typical of my threads, this is getting long winded for a non-review, so I'll leave it at those main points. I hope anyone thinking of a closed portable solution finds this informative (despite the anecdotes in the early half
Highly recommended as a compromise between a quality listening experience and portability/isolation.
