Thrang
Head-Fier
- Joined
- Dec 3, 2014
- Posts
- 55
- Likes
- 23
After having asked and received for a wonderful Christmas gift, the Oppo PM-1 and Oppo HA-1 amp (based on the overall great feedback here and elsewhere) - I found that I was Scroogily-disappointed with the PM-1’s. Not sonically, but simply for their poor comfort. I was seeking relief after 20 minutes generally.
That led to getting three additional headphones (while the PM-1 was still in-house), and what follows are my comparative experiences with the following:
Oppo PM-1 (Modified Leather Pads)
Sennheiser HD-700
HiFiMan HE-560
Sennheiser HD-800
Note too that preceding all of this, months earlier, was a few days with Audeze LCD-3. While they had a great warm signature and an engaging sound, they were sadistically uncomfortable - very heavy, odd cup angle, clamping pressure, and appreciable headband pain. Once I toyed with the idea of retaining an attorney to defend me in case I randomly assaulted someone during these bouts of head and ear pain, I knew it was time to move on.
Listening Environment:
- iMac 5k running the latest version of OS X Yosemite and iTunes
- 24 GB RAM
- Pure Music 2.02 (Pro-Q2 EQ enabled - modest, variable settings based on headphones, usually bell and shelf)
- Oppo HA-1 via async USB / Single Ended / Normal Gain
Music Selections from:
Brian Eno - Just Another Day On Earth
Brian Eno - Drums Between the Bells
Brian Eno - Lux
Chet Atkins & Mark Knopfler - Neck and Neck
Bobby McFerrin - Beyond Words
Daniel Lanois - Shine
Aphex Twin - Syro
Aphen Twin - Selected Ambient Works Vol 2
Bill Bruford’s Earthworks - All Heaven Broke Loose
Jon Hopkins - Contact Note
Laurie Anderson - Big Science
Uakati & Philip Glass - Aguas Da Amazonia
World Drummers Ensemble - A Coat of Many Colors
FFWD - FFWD
Wynton Marsalis - Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson
Trio De Guitares De Montréal: Garam Marsala
Talking Heads - Sand in the Vaseline
Red Hot Chili Peppers - What Hits!
Steve Reich - Music for 18 Musicians
Jon Hassell - Fascinoma
- all files full resolution AIFF or ALAC 44.1
My Goals:
- High quality headphone set-up for in-home use - no portable requirements
- Accurate, engaging, and non-fatiguing sound
- Comfort (for 1-2 hours of listening)
- investment of $1,500 to $2,500 for all gear and cabling
Summary of Ratings:
(Note: My scoring method is either pure genius or, as Jeremy Clarkson would say, complete rubbish. The baseline for being best in each category is 10 points. Finishers below that earn 9.5 to 0 depending upon how close or how far they are from the best. This allows, I hope, a cumulative scoring rank of which you can pick and choose what is important to you an calculate away)
Ratings like this are very dependent upon what one thinks is important, so the individual and final tallies cannot really be some absolute. If you find the PM-1’s very comfortable for example, my rating of 6 is not meaningful to you. And so on…
Anyway….
Points Headphone
1 - Physical Comfort
10 HD-800
8.5 HD-700
8 HE-560
6 PM-1
1 Audeze LCD-3 (sorry, had to stick that one in there)
The HD-800 wins overall for the generous, ergonomic cup size, light weight, and modest claiming pressure. The ear pads and headband feel a tad softer to touch than while wearing them, but I can easily wear them for hours without much fuss. While lighter still, the HD-ear cup size made me a bit more aware of them throughout listening. The 560’s initially feel the nicest and softest on the head, and their headband is excellent, but after a while, it weights on me and clamps a touch much.
The PM-1’s just don’t work for me at all - ear feels quite cramped, headband seems luxurious, and I felt a good amount of pressure after modest listening sessions, and clamp pressure was too high. They were also the hottest to wear by far.
The 560’s had the worst cabling location I though, so its not uncommon to have the connectors press into your shoulders if you are relaxing in a chair and you tilt your head a bit. I also felt the cable isolation from physical touching wasn’t the best.
2 - Overall Sonic Quality
10 HD-800
8.5 PM-1
7 HE-560
6.5 HD-700
For the reasons stated in the specific categories below, the HD-800 was the most complete headphone out of all I tested. Nothing’s perfect, and all headphones have a signature. But what some call bright I call pure.
The PM-1 is a very well balanced headphone, though even with the modified ear pads, the higher registers weren’t has pure
The 560 was a warmer, second cousin of the LCD line, but one that has been in trouble with the law and not always invited to family get togethers.
The 700 was my least favorite, sounding relatively compressed compared to the others (smaller driver?), and more strident more often.
3- Low Frequency Performance (articulation, attack)
10 HD-800
9 PM-1
8 HE-560
7 HD-700
I’m sure some will raise eyebrows here, putting the HD-800 first in this category. Perhaps its the amp - perhaps the HA-1 drives the HD-800 very well. But I found it’s LF performance very spot on and quick. PM-1 was also very good, it a touch softer around the edges. 560 was a touch softer still. The 700 on rare occasions resembled me after Thanksgiving dinner - full, though not terribly agile.
4 - Low Frequency Performance (weight, palpability)
10 PM-1
9 HE-560
8.5 HD-800
8 HD-700
I give the nod to the PM-1 here, perhaps because its semi-open design helps, the better articulation it has over the 560 gives greater emphasis to the LF weight. The 800’s surprised me with the prodigious bass they could deliver when the material presented it, perhaps because some many have led me to believe otherwise. While certainly not a “warm” speaker, I heard organic qualities that would not lead me to describe it as a purely analytical can.
The 700 was not as rich in the lower registers to me.
5 - High Frequency Performance (articulation, attack)
10 HD-800
8.5 PM-1
7.5 HE-560
7 HD-700
Not much to be said here - the 800 is the king of the high end., with fantastic rendering of complex musical elements without every straining. The PM-1 is quite similar in its responsiveness. The 560 continues to be called warm, but in an engaging way. The 700 sounded horn-like at times.
6 - High Frequency Performance (air, extension)
10 HD-800
8.5 PM-1
8 HD-700
7.5 HE-560
The 800 was extraordinarily effortless at all registers, with no grain or grit. Similar with PM-1, but it did not extend as high to me. The 700 presented a bit more high frequency than the 560
7 - Soundstage
10 HD-800
8.5 HD-700
8 PM-1
8 HE-560
Both breadth and depth of the imaging was best with the 800. The 700 was also very good in this category, given the similar design. All were very good in this category I thought, though the 800 was in a different league.
8 - Dynamics
10 HD-800
9.5 PM-1
8.5 HE-560
8.0 HD-700
Again, the 800 seemed to deliver the quietest and loudest passages best, creating a very visceral experience. PM-1 was outstanding in this area as well.
9 - Build Quality/Materials
10 PM-1
9 HD-800
8 HD-700
7.5 HE-560
Oppo has really done a fantastic job with all aspects of the phone, the wood case, and providing not one but three difference ear pads with different sonic characteristics in the package. It has the highest luxury feel of them all, reminding me (in attention to detail) to the B&W P7 which my daughter uses. The Senns are very well built, but there’s not denying their high-tech, engineering first feel. Nothing wrong with that, but I wouldn’t call them luxurious. The 560’s look like the Professor on Gilligan’s Island built them from coconut shells. No, just kidding. They are very well made, especially for the price, but at times, it looks a little an American car manufacturer trying to make something look like a Mercedes. It’s a decent copy, but it’s a copy.
Totals
87.5 HD-800
78 PM-1
69.5 HD-700
63 HE-560
While I don’t see dead people, I do hear things I've never heard before with the 800’s. Once you hear them, you can go back and find them with the other cans, but that only helps define the differences.
On Bruford/Eartherworks “Nerve” there is a percussion whip that oscillates throughout most of the song. Its texture is most refined the 800’s, more subdued with others. Brian Eno often layers multiple live takes of the same lyric to achieve a slight imprecision in the recordings, and those subtleties are best represented with the 800’s. The complexity in Gavin Harrisons’ double bass drum work in “Futile” is all the more remarkable with the 800’s. The ambience of Atkins/Knopfler’s “Neck and Neck” is exquisite, and the percussive attacks in Reich’s “Music for 18 Musicians” and Glass’ "Aguas Da Amazonia” are palpable and deeply layered without ever losing definition and space. Even “Syro,” which contains a lot of complicated electronic rhythms and layered treatments, along with Eno’s ethereal “Bottomliners” playback equally and exceedingly well. Close mic’d vocals (McFerrin, Lanois, and titles on Eno’s “Drums Between the Bells”) feel live.
Putting aside, for me, the PM-1’s comfort, one could be happy with any of these phones. I’m perhaps accentuating differences to help convey them. But when you do compare them side by side, you can appreciate the capabilities and musicality of the 800’s. With the right setup and quality source material, they are immersive and transportive.
I've orded a balanced cable for the 800's - the balanced output was better for the PM-1's, so I'm presuming I will see similar gains with a balanced set-up for the 800
Hope this was helpful to some.
As with anything, more time might refine this opinion and scoring, as I've spent a few days with all the phones. If there are any noticeable revisions to this opinion I'll update this thread accordingly
That led to getting three additional headphones (while the PM-1 was still in-house), and what follows are my comparative experiences with the following:
Oppo PM-1 (Modified Leather Pads)
Sennheiser HD-700
HiFiMan HE-560
Sennheiser HD-800
Note too that preceding all of this, months earlier, was a few days with Audeze LCD-3. While they had a great warm signature and an engaging sound, they were sadistically uncomfortable - very heavy, odd cup angle, clamping pressure, and appreciable headband pain. Once I toyed with the idea of retaining an attorney to defend me in case I randomly assaulted someone during these bouts of head and ear pain, I knew it was time to move on.
Listening Environment:
- iMac 5k running the latest version of OS X Yosemite and iTunes
- 24 GB RAM
- Pure Music 2.02 (Pro-Q2 EQ enabled - modest, variable settings based on headphones, usually bell and shelf)
- Oppo HA-1 via async USB / Single Ended / Normal Gain
Music Selections from:
Brian Eno - Just Another Day On Earth
Brian Eno - Drums Between the Bells
Brian Eno - Lux
Chet Atkins & Mark Knopfler - Neck and Neck
Bobby McFerrin - Beyond Words
Daniel Lanois - Shine
Aphex Twin - Syro
Aphen Twin - Selected Ambient Works Vol 2
Bill Bruford’s Earthworks - All Heaven Broke Loose
Jon Hopkins - Contact Note
Laurie Anderson - Big Science
Uakati & Philip Glass - Aguas Da Amazonia
World Drummers Ensemble - A Coat of Many Colors
FFWD - FFWD
Wynton Marsalis - Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson
Trio De Guitares De Montréal: Garam Marsala
Talking Heads - Sand in the Vaseline
Red Hot Chili Peppers - What Hits!
Steve Reich - Music for 18 Musicians
Jon Hassell - Fascinoma
- all files full resolution AIFF or ALAC 44.1
My Goals:
- High quality headphone set-up for in-home use - no portable requirements
- Accurate, engaging, and non-fatiguing sound
- Comfort (for 1-2 hours of listening)
- investment of $1,500 to $2,500 for all gear and cabling
Summary of Ratings:
(Note: My scoring method is either pure genius or, as Jeremy Clarkson would say, complete rubbish. The baseline for being best in each category is 10 points. Finishers below that earn 9.5 to 0 depending upon how close or how far they are from the best. This allows, I hope, a cumulative scoring rank of which you can pick and choose what is important to you an calculate away)
Ratings like this are very dependent upon what one thinks is important, so the individual and final tallies cannot really be some absolute. If you find the PM-1’s very comfortable for example, my rating of 6 is not meaningful to you. And so on…
Anyway….
Points Headphone
1 - Physical Comfort
10 HD-800
8.5 HD-700
8 HE-560
6 PM-1
1 Audeze LCD-3 (sorry, had to stick that one in there)
The HD-800 wins overall for the generous, ergonomic cup size, light weight, and modest claiming pressure. The ear pads and headband feel a tad softer to touch than while wearing them, but I can easily wear them for hours without much fuss. While lighter still, the HD-ear cup size made me a bit more aware of them throughout listening. The 560’s initially feel the nicest and softest on the head, and their headband is excellent, but after a while, it weights on me and clamps a touch much.
The PM-1’s just don’t work for me at all - ear feels quite cramped, headband seems luxurious, and I felt a good amount of pressure after modest listening sessions, and clamp pressure was too high. They were also the hottest to wear by far.
The 560’s had the worst cabling location I though, so its not uncommon to have the connectors press into your shoulders if you are relaxing in a chair and you tilt your head a bit. I also felt the cable isolation from physical touching wasn’t the best.
2 - Overall Sonic Quality
10 HD-800
8.5 PM-1
7 HE-560
6.5 HD-700
For the reasons stated in the specific categories below, the HD-800 was the most complete headphone out of all I tested. Nothing’s perfect, and all headphones have a signature. But what some call bright I call pure.
The PM-1 is a very well balanced headphone, though even with the modified ear pads, the higher registers weren’t has pure
The 560 was a warmer, second cousin of the LCD line, but one that has been in trouble with the law and not always invited to family get togethers.
The 700 was my least favorite, sounding relatively compressed compared to the others (smaller driver?), and more strident more often.
3- Low Frequency Performance (articulation, attack)
10 HD-800
9 PM-1
8 HE-560
7 HD-700
I’m sure some will raise eyebrows here, putting the HD-800 first in this category. Perhaps its the amp - perhaps the HA-1 drives the HD-800 very well. But I found it’s LF performance very spot on and quick. PM-1 was also very good, it a touch softer around the edges. 560 was a touch softer still. The 700 on rare occasions resembled me after Thanksgiving dinner - full, though not terribly agile.
4 - Low Frequency Performance (weight, palpability)
10 PM-1
9 HE-560
8.5 HD-800
8 HD-700
I give the nod to the PM-1 here, perhaps because its semi-open design helps, the better articulation it has over the 560 gives greater emphasis to the LF weight. The 800’s surprised me with the prodigious bass they could deliver when the material presented it, perhaps because some many have led me to believe otherwise. While certainly not a “warm” speaker, I heard organic qualities that would not lead me to describe it as a purely analytical can.
The 700 was not as rich in the lower registers to me.
5 - High Frequency Performance (articulation, attack)
10 HD-800
8.5 PM-1
7.5 HE-560
7 HD-700
Not much to be said here - the 800 is the king of the high end., with fantastic rendering of complex musical elements without every straining. The PM-1 is quite similar in its responsiveness. The 560 continues to be called warm, but in an engaging way. The 700 sounded horn-like at times.
6 - High Frequency Performance (air, extension)
10 HD-800
8.5 PM-1
8 HD-700
7.5 HE-560
The 800 was extraordinarily effortless at all registers, with no grain or grit. Similar with PM-1, but it did not extend as high to me. The 700 presented a bit more high frequency than the 560
7 - Soundstage
10 HD-800
8.5 HD-700
8 PM-1
8 HE-560
Both breadth and depth of the imaging was best with the 800. The 700 was also very good in this category, given the similar design. All were very good in this category I thought, though the 800 was in a different league.
8 - Dynamics
10 HD-800
9.5 PM-1
8.5 HE-560
8.0 HD-700
Again, the 800 seemed to deliver the quietest and loudest passages best, creating a very visceral experience. PM-1 was outstanding in this area as well.
9 - Build Quality/Materials
10 PM-1
9 HD-800
8 HD-700
7.5 HE-560
Oppo has really done a fantastic job with all aspects of the phone, the wood case, and providing not one but three difference ear pads with different sonic characteristics in the package. It has the highest luxury feel of them all, reminding me (in attention to detail) to the B&W P7 which my daughter uses. The Senns are very well built, but there’s not denying their high-tech, engineering first feel. Nothing wrong with that, but I wouldn’t call them luxurious. The 560’s look like the Professor on Gilligan’s Island built them from coconut shells. No, just kidding. They are very well made, especially for the price, but at times, it looks a little an American car manufacturer trying to make something look like a Mercedes. It’s a decent copy, but it’s a copy.
Totals
87.5 HD-800
78 PM-1
69.5 HD-700
63 HE-560
While I don’t see dead people, I do hear things I've never heard before with the 800’s. Once you hear them, you can go back and find them with the other cans, but that only helps define the differences.
On Bruford/Eartherworks “Nerve” there is a percussion whip that oscillates throughout most of the song. Its texture is most refined the 800’s, more subdued with others. Brian Eno often layers multiple live takes of the same lyric to achieve a slight imprecision in the recordings, and those subtleties are best represented with the 800’s. The complexity in Gavin Harrisons’ double bass drum work in “Futile” is all the more remarkable with the 800’s. The ambience of Atkins/Knopfler’s “Neck and Neck” is exquisite, and the percussive attacks in Reich’s “Music for 18 Musicians” and Glass’ "Aguas Da Amazonia” are palpable and deeply layered without ever losing definition and space. Even “Syro,” which contains a lot of complicated electronic rhythms and layered treatments, along with Eno’s ethereal “Bottomliners” playback equally and exceedingly well. Close mic’d vocals (McFerrin, Lanois, and titles on Eno’s “Drums Between the Bells”) feel live.
Putting aside, for me, the PM-1’s comfort, one could be happy with any of these phones. I’m perhaps accentuating differences to help convey them. But when you do compare them side by side, you can appreciate the capabilities and musicality of the 800’s. With the right setup and quality source material, they are immersive and transportive.
I've orded a balanced cable for the 800's - the balanced output was better for the PM-1's, so I'm presuming I will see similar gains with a balanced set-up for the 800
Hope this was helpful to some.
As with anything, more time might refine this opinion and scoring, as I've spent a few days with all the phones. If there are any noticeable revisions to this opinion I'll update this thread accordingly
