Sennheiser HD 380 PRO Headphones

I love these headphones. The design looks a bit odd but when you put them on its all about quality. I am using these for 3 years now, looking for maybe something better but its very very hard to find something similar especially for this price. 
 
The sound isolation is very good which has a lot to do with their thick pads. They block almost everything around
 
Trebles and Mids are clear and not intrusive as we are used to from Sennheiser product. I love HD25 but they are not comfortable and the bass is not deep enough for me. This is all fixed with HD380. They have very nice, punchy and soft sub-bass which makes you fall in love with them. At first they might sound harsh or weird but they just need a bit of burning and then all problems fixed. I am sure they are other headphones with better quality but I think in this case you would need to go 2-3 or more times higher with the price. 
 
Note that these also need good amp to get the best from them. Overall I love these and I decided to buy these for my father too as he is enjoying quality sound too. I recommend these to my friends and they are all thanking me for it.
 
There are few CONS as well:
 
* they might be too tight if you have big head (I dont
 
* the cord is coiled but a bit too heavy / bulky
 
* if you have to replace pads you MUST buy them only from Sennheiser as anything else will spoil them.
   The pads from Sennheiser are unique they isolate very well, are very comfortable but they wont last you over 1 year if you use them daily.
 
* built quality could be better - the pads cover peal of after some time and the plastic bits covering the screws on hinges fall after some time too, so be careful not to loose them.
 
Again other than these they are just perfect. If like Sennheiser sound and closed headphones you have to get them !

 
 
 
 
 
Introduction
 
HD380Pro - the first serious headphone that I owned. I actually bought HD380Pro together with an AKG K271MKII at that moment, but I decided to only keep HD380Pro as I preferred the better bass reproduction it offered. I found it in the meanwhile that the rather poor driving power of cowon J3 - wasn't really enough to properly drive the mighty K271MII and this is why I didn't really like the sound. I did return to K271MKII later, and it does sound very good, but you need a good DAP to drive it, either a FiiO X3ii or a FiiO X5ii or X5-3. 
 
My audio adventure was just starting when I got Hd380 and I'm glad I bought it as they were my companions for a long time, I had my HD380Pro when I was at my first live performance. It is a rather interesting headphone and it doesn't disappoint when it comes to comfort and how long they will last you, even with abuse.
 
The sound is interesting for sure and for their price is probably the best option out there but you can invest a bit more and get an even better sound (HD598 from Sennheiser, AKG K550, Ultrasone Dj One Pro, ATH-A700X, Grado 325, etc.)
 
About me
 
My name is George and I enjoy music a lot. I listen to music half of my free time, and I listen to a lot of music while working on my company's games. You can check out more on our pages here https://www.facebook.com/seventh.heart.studios/     and here https://twitter.com/7heartstudios . My love for music has had a little impact on our games as we price the music part of a game very high and we are committed to only use ogg -q10 as the encoding format for our music since it offers the best space to sound quality ratio.
 

First Impression
 
When I first listened to HD380Pro, I thought that I received a far more expensive headphone. Given that all the headphones I owned before them were either 30$ or less headphones and IEMs and something Behringer and a Sony XB-700, I gotta say that HD380Pro satisfied my listening tastes well at that moment. 
 
After an hour or so of using them, I still felt that they sound better than their price but some of that "whoa!" effect was gone, being quietly replaced by an effect of "So this is how this was supposed to sound..."
 
 
Packaging
Headphones and carry case, not a lot to say about the package. The carry case is nice, but rather awkward to use at times as it requires coiling the cable around the headphones and a very specific alignment. 
 
Technical Specifications
 
 
Build Quality/Aesthetics
They feel well built. I have owned a pair for about six years now and I can say that their lifetime will depend on your usage patterns. Mine took a good beating, being with me on live shows and being used in less than idea environments, but in the end they held very well for 4 years. I would only say it needs pads and a cable, and they would probably last another few years. There is no creaking and the operation is smooth, plastic feels nice to the touch.  The clamping force is good, you can hold a live performance with them on your head if need be.
 
They don't really look so nice in pictures because of that huge coiled cable, but they look and feel really nice in practice and when worn. They look exactly like a pair of headphones should look on your head and I prefer them to other more fashion oriented headphones - if anything, they look and feel professional. The headband has a nice look to it and Sennheiser being written all over it will only add to the feeling of professionalism around those headphones. 
 
Comfort
Very good, except for thee clamping force and pads being quite hard first two-five days of usage. The cups swivel and they can be packaged flat, the mechanism for adjusting the size is very precise with palpable clicks and is going to stick to the same setting. Headband is really comfortable, and the shape worked out very well with my head. Even with headphone aging, the headband stayed comfortable. The pads are okay in thickness, but the magical part is their depth. Sennheiser made the cups in such a way that they have more depth (the whole driver plate is angled), so unless you're trying to, you're not going to touch the driver plate with your ears. The isolation is much better than expected and they don't really leak any sound nor will you hear anything around you. HD380Pro is a fully closed model and after dissecting mine, I had noticed that the driver itself is encapsulated on its place, so you have one of the best isolating headphones in the world with this model. The one downside I felt while using them was the weight of the cable, which will ultimately affect the comfort. The coiled cable is long and heavy, you will know that it is on the left side, and it will drag the whole headphone down. I had ultimately fixed the situation by a few methods like pulling the cable under my shirt and fixing it with the collar or by holding the cable in my hand and twisting it in a loop around the upper part of my arm, but besides this, they are great. 
 
 
SOUND QUALITY
HD380Pro has an overall flat sound, rolled off at both ends, not overly detailed, with a pretty analytical tonality, treble that is slightly rolled off and linear bass. They are one of the best headphones you can find in this price range for monitoring, but they aren't as engaging as a colored sound headphone. If anything, their signature falls quite flat with the music and works very well with spotting any kind of issues in a master or live performance. Mids are pretty forward if you're coming from V-shaped or U-shaped headphones, which leads to the sensation that they are flat. They are very fast in their response, about as fast as a Grado SR80. 
 
The FR as measured by Golden Ears, using their own equipment:
 

 
 
Channel imbalance
After a short analysis of the graph from Golden Ears you will notice some channel imbalance in the graph response. This difference is not present in my pair and channel balance seems perfect to me.
 
Bass
Pretty good. It goes down to 50 Hz, but it's not over enhanced so you won't feel it rumbling your head. There is a slight hump at 100Hz and they might sound a bit boomy in that area, but there is a lot of impact and the fast bass speed makes the whole bass structure solid. Bass and midbass are not separated by gaps and it works well for drums, reason for which I would actually recommend HD380Pro for monitoring drum sessions. HD380Pro might not be for bassheads, but the bass can be heard if it is there, very helpful for proper monitoring and recording. It's good speed and flat presence makes it sound correct - you won't call them bass light, nor bass heavy. You will know that bass is there, it won't overwhelm you nor will be underwhelm you. If you would prefer a bassy signature, XB-700 might be your thing/ 
 
Treble
Treble is good, but there is a slight roll off. The cymbals have a full ring to them, but there is no glare and no metallic tint. Crashes don't last longer than they should, but some cymbal crashes are soft - so I would say that the top end can be considered smoother than neutral. Certainly not fully rolled off as some headphones roll off far eariler, but HD380Pro doesn't extent all the way either. The treble is pretty precise and it is clean, but it has a fabric like texture where it's not as fast as the bass but it's still not slow. The general sound is clear and you won't ask for more treble. Treble can be equalized for more treble and they will respond well to the equalization. 
 
You won't get every single detail there is, but you're getting a pretty good amount and for a pretty good price so I would say that you're in for a fair trade. HD380Pro is the best performer at its price point if you want a closed back well isolating headphone. 
 
Midrange
Midrange is the different part of HD380Pro. After testing and owning a few headphones, even more expensive, HD380Pro is different. They have a linear midrange that gives them a light sound, almost too open. Most headphones will apply a dip in the 2-5KHz area, but they don't apply this dip causing the midrange to be far more forward than most headphones. The texture in the midrange is really clear and might come as harsh at times - thing which is very good as you'll be able to track it inside a master. Since HD380Pro feel like they were made for recording and mastering, this midrange emphasis will expose any kind of problem in the midrange with ease. You will hear pianos and voices louder than on many other headphones, and you will get a texture out of those voices, even though it comes with a bit of grain. 
 
The midrange sounds rich as the 100Hz area isn't overly recessed so you'll find male voices to stay true to their tone and depth while female voices have enough air and don't loose too much warmth. Jill Tracy's voice can come as a bit cold at times, but is detailed.
 
Soundstage
Soundstage has a very good size and you can hear the placement of the instruments pretty well. The soundstage has a good width but it's shallow. Good for pointing out microphone arrangements but pretty bad for indicating the position of the microphones relative to each other and relative to the listener. Really silent and background instruments can sound really soft, and you will need to focus to hear them properly. The unique cup design makes the soundstage change a bit every time you reposition them on your head, but it's consistent to its width. Separation between instruments is okay but it's not enhanced so you might need a bit of focus to pick a certain instrument out of a complex composition.
 
Sennheiser Veil 
Sennheiser headphones are considered by some to suffer from an effect like a veil. With HD380Pro, it is slightly present, certain parts of each track being almost like covered by a veil, but considering the price, they are less veiled than the other options at 100$.
 
Conclusion
Studio headphones ready to take a beating, really comfortable with a really good studio-like sound. The soundstage is good and you'll notice it immediately, especially if you're comapring them with other closed back headphones, where the sound sometimes has the aspect of coming through a keyhole. The soundstage sounds close to a Sennheiser HD650, though it lacks some of HD650's depth. Clarity is okay and treble as well, but they don't have a bright signature like Grado headphones nor a bass heavy signature like Ultrasone or even other Sennheiser models (Ubranite, Momentum). For their price, HD380 hold up really well and will satisfy your needs, I think they are a good alternative to Ath-M50, if you're looking for a more expanded soundstage and a more linear sound. M50 has more bass and more treble, while the soundstage is congested, but their detail retrieval is pretty similar.
 
Having gone to Ultrasone Dj One Pro, for which I paid almost double the price, I would say that it's a matter of convenience and price, but HD380Pro are a very good contender to their own price area, and are fit to be a monitoring headphone albeit might lack some fun for recreational listening.

I first used these as monitoring headphones for recording. They quickly moved out of my home studio and now I use them everywhere. I have one pair at home and one pair at work. I also take them when I travel. 
 
Pros:
 
Comfortable- I wear these all the time. They are a little tight which helps with isolation. Sometimes they require a bit of repositioning to get back to comfortable. 
 
Good isolation- Great for recording. Also great at work and for travel. It blocks out a lot of noise
 
Good sound- I like the sound of these. For me I find that what I hear through these head phones translates well to the car and speakers. 
 
Good durability- Two years of heavy not always careful use and travel not a scratch, chip, flake, or fade.
 
Replaceable cable- Nice to have flexibility.
 
Cons: 
 
Needs new cable- The flexibility is nice but it really needs a new cable. When sitting at the computer plugged into an audio recording interface the coiled cable is nice for movement. In all other applications it is just too heavy and awkward. Fortunately it is very easy to replace the cable. 
 
Bland design- Perhaps not a con for some but they are plain black head phones with Sennheiser conspiculously written in three places.
 
Comparison:
 
The only other serious closed back over the ear headphone I have used extensively are the Sony 7509's. I think the sound from the Sennheisers translates better to speakers and the car. I also think the Sonys are less comfortable. The Sonys started to fall apart after the first year. Mostly the pads started to disintegrate and the chord (also a coil) stretched, twisted, and kinked to an almost unusable level.
 
A little about my setup:
 
I replaced the cable with a Dolce and Gabbana 1.2 meter cable this cable fits perfectly. I also have a replacement cable from the B&W P5. It fits well and has a remote for an iPhone which is nice when I'm not using a DAC. 
 
My preferred listening setup is lossless from an iPhone 6s through a lightning to USB connector to an AudioQuest dragonfly red.
 
For music creation I use a Mac Mini with and RME FireFace as an audio interface. I am mostly a Propellerhead Reason user for DAW software. All of my Mics are either Shures or AudioTechnicas. My guitars are all Fenders.
 
A little about my musical tastes:
 
I tend to listen loud. I listen to mostly alternative rock and mostly hard guitar centric stuff but not metal, think 311, Smiths or Less Than Jake. I also listen to some more synth oriented stuff; Depeche Mode, NIN, Prodigy. Occasional hip hop mostly Tribe Called Quest.  The music I make is mostly goofy alternative, a harder They might be Giants maybe.