[Duncan]

Just been noseying around the Sennheiser website and came across something interesting...

HD580...

http://sennheis.4ecommerce.com/mivas...egory_Code=H39

HD600...

http://sennheis.4ecommerce.com/mivas...egory_Code=H40

look at the cost for a SINGLE drive unit on the two pages... Why, if these drivers are identical (just more closely matched) are the HD600 replacement drivers $50 more EACH?

Interestingly... the HD580 Jubilees that reportedly used HD600 drivers...

http://sennheis.4ecommerce.com/mivas...tegory_Code=HJ

The same cost as the HD600 drivers... Do you see my point here?

(I think I want to lay my hands on a pair of Jubilees!!)

 

[Voyager]

Perhaps they are the same but sennheiser just charges more for the elements if you select the HD 600's elements instead of the HD580's elements.

On another note, do you think Sennheiser would be angry if someone used their drivers to make home-made headphones?

 

[mbriant]

hmmmmmm.

Jan mentioned that Senn 580's and 600's are very close in price to each other in Europe ( as opposed to the spread in North America)

As this is a U.S. site, they may very well be simply following the same marketing/pricing strategy.

If they're going to charge considerably more for the 600's in North America, they couldn't very well charge similar prices for 580/600 parts.

Or perhaps they are made to closer tolerances....or perhaps they are indeed different.

 

[dhwilkin]

More than likely, Senn. USA is just applying the corporate pricing strategy to the drivers as well as the headphones, to keep market confusion to a minimum.

 

[Duncan]

I can live with that... but, then, why are the Jubilee drivers the same cost as the 600s? wouldn't they be somewhere in the middle to make the HD600s seem that little bit more lucrative?

 

[mbriant]

If they marketed Jubilee phones as having 600 drivers, then they would charge for 600 drivers as replacements. The headband prices are still different.

Anything is possible.

Does anyone recall the big stink a couple of years ago when Bouche & Lombe ( I know I'm way out on the spelling here....the large optics company ) was convicted of massive fraud?

They were selling 1 day disposables, 30 day disposables, and 1 year permanent contact lenses at vastly different prices. It came to light that the contacts were identical in each package. People had been throwing away contacts on a daily basis which were good for at least a year.

I'm not suggesting that Sennheiser is up to these sort of antics, but it shows how even a huge, respected manufacturer can play games with marketing/pricing.

Voyager: If they are charging $280 for a pair of drivers only, they are likely making as much or more profit as they would make selling the complete headphones. So I doubt they'd be unhappy. However, Fender guitars for many years sold replacement necks but found that too many people were using their necks to build their own guitars. So for several years, you would have to return your worn Fender neck before they'd sell you a replacement. I don't know if they still practice this procedure or not.

 

[KR...]

From Headroom :

Quote:

What's the difference between the 580s and the 600s?--There are four main difference between the 580s and the 600s: 1) the drivers of the 600s are more closely matched. 2) the bales of the 600s are made of carbon fiber and the 580s are made of plastic. 3) the grills of the 600s are made of stainless steel and the 580s are plastic. 4) the 600s come in a cool storage box.

 

[KR...]

BTW, the Jubilee's were the prototype for the 600's.


Also here are some specs on the 580 and 600, again from Headroom:

The HD-580 :
Technical Characteristics

Transducer Type: Dynamic
Acoustic Principle: Open
Earpiece Type: Circumaural
Frequency Range: 12Hz- 38Hz
Impedance: 300 Ohms
Sound Pressure Level: 97dB
Cord Length: 10 Feet
Wearing Weight: 9 Oz.
Adapter Included: yes
Termination: Mini

The HD-600 :
Technical Characteristics

Transducer Type: Dynamic
Acoustic Principle: Open
Earpiece Type: Circumaural
Frequency Range: 12Hz - 38 Hz
Impedance: 300 Ohms
Sound Pressure Level: 97dB
Cord Length: 10 Feet
Wearing Weight: 9 Oz.
Adapter Included: yes
Termination: Mini

 

[Braver]

i think its the matching of drivers, like noted in KR's quote. Drivers come in pairs and closer matched drivers cost more than "regulars". Same drivers, but more time spend on selection and thus higher cost.

 

[raymondlin]

Is there any chance that by pure luck, a pair a 580 will have a near perfect match pair? may be close to the 600.

 

[Braver]

well, if the drivers are the same, pairs matched at below a certain amount of dB across the spectrum will become hd600's. so you could get a hd580 matched just below the value of a hd600, in theory. If a pair fo drivers have a near perfect match, they'll go in a hd600 shell. I don't know how closely they're matched axactly, but if it, for a hd600, were 0,05dB and for a hd580 0,1dB, you coulde get a hd580 matched at 0,06 dB.

If the drivers were different (they're not), you could get a 100% match, in theory.

Those high-end Senns are matched very closely anyway. You'll probably need an hour of A-B testing to pick the closest match out of a pair.

I hope there's any coherency in my post, had an evening of free drinks...you know how it goes

 

[MacDEF]

>I can live with that... but, then, why are the Jubilee drivers the
>same cost as the 600s?

The Jubilees were basically the enclosures of the 580s with matched drivers (like the 600s).

 

[lini]

Just a thought - maybe the "matching" also includes some selection, like it's done with processors: The marking depends on what speed test it passed. (But after a while, when the manufacturing process has stabilized, the dies have often enough the same quality - but they get different markings, anyway, which is very good for profit.

)

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini

 

[Braver]

someone call Senn-HQ!

 

[skippy]

didn't the jubilees also have the metal grill too?