I just got the HD598, I'm guessing they're close to the 558---and I love them, everything you said here describes them well, except they're plenty agressive for me on Rock.

Thanks everyone for the replies.  I don't think this is a preference sort of thing in my case (although that's also possible), there's actually a drop in sound quality going to the 650's on this amp (slightly more distortion, especially with high notes).

I have some HD650's for work, and HD595's at home, but the 595's broke so I decided to try out some new home headphones. After reading through scores of reviews, I decided to try ATH-M50 and HD598, and since I got a little license from my wife to upgrade a bit, I got a FiiO E7/E9 combo.  I let...

Slides: My 595s were very underwhelming coming from my stock computer sound card, so I got an amp/dac (Bithead) to bypass the card. Problem solved! So you may want to check out your source before sending back the headphones.

Sennheiser hd565 Ovation. I think those were the only headphones where my head was MORE comfortable while wearing them than with nothing at all.

This isn't exactly an inexpensive option ($90k for a full set), but if you're looking for something that can equal some of the best headphones out there, I have heard reports that these speakers equal the detail and sound quality of the UE-10 Pro: http://www.sonicweld.com/products.html...

NO to the 570s. Not even close to being in the same class as these other headphones. Unless you can get them for around $40, then maybe they are okay.

Quote: Originally Posted by m_memmory Or how about 80% of scientific research is just stating the obvious. They may as well say that 50% of the speed of your car is breaking the speed limit.... which would then say what type of road? uphill/downhill? type of car? what gear? This...

I personally like the hd595s better than the 580s because of their more forward presentation. And the 595s DO scale up nicely with the right amps.

I like it fine, but I don't do much with it. I felt that there was an improvement in sound quality when I changed to iTunes 7. Whether that's imagined or not, I'm happy.

I'm pretty happy with my Headroom Total Bithead (2006 edition). I like it because for me it's a source upgrade as well as a pretty good amp. Before, I was listening through the PC onboard soundcard, and while my hd595s were an improvement over my previous headphones, I still felt like something...

It's not just the volume, though. It seems like there's more separation and texture to the music now. I feel like the music as a whole is more alive through my hd595s. On second thought, I don't want to know whether it's real or imagined, because I'm really enjoying myself as it is.

I swear all my music sounds a notch better in iTunes 7. Am I just imagining things?

Yeah, listening to music through the bithead at home sounds like the music is coming through a plastic tube or something. It's pretty bad (sounds worse than straight out of the SBlive).

The PCI usb ports is a great idea! Donunus: The pcdp does sound pretty good, but nothing compared to the Bithead plugged into my work computer. So, probably not.

I don't know how good the Sound Blaster Fatality(?) card is, but I just upgraded from my onboard sound card to a '06 Headroom Bithead so I could upgrade the source and add an amp at the same time. I wouldn't say that the difference in my hd595 is night and day, but it's pretty darn close. In a...

Thanks. I won't be listening to it on the home computer that much so it shouldn't be that big of a problem. I've only got 2 usb ports on the home computer, and the other one is being used. And yes, it is a pain to have only 2 ports. I'm always unplugging/plugging things depending on what...

Got the Bithead plugged in at work and listening to it now. Sounds great. So even if it's not the USB 1.1 problem, there's obviously something wrong with my home computer that makes it sound worse. Thanks for all the feedback/info, folks.

Quote: Originally Posted by afobisme the low sound quality is probably from your crappy soundcard.. so no. how old can your computer be? USB 2.0 became widespread in 2000 or so, can it really be more than 6 years old? The low sound quality comes when I bypass the sound card by...

I just bought a used 2006 bithead, and it sounds great! At least it does when I'm using the line out from my CD player. I expected that getting the sound directly from the USB and going through its DAC would improve the sound even more. Unfortunately, while the sound is awesome just using the...

Russdog: I think he's referring to you saying you had "unrecommended" the product to some people without having used it yourself. Maybe you just meant that you retracted the high praise for it that you gave them, but it did sound like you thought it was now a product to be avoided.

Asr: Even with the gain switch turned to "high" it still isn't loud enough? I've also heard of people getting additional juice out of it by combining the USB plug and the battery power at once. Just bought one from Ricksome, I'm excited to get it. I don't expect I'll have the same problem as...

I bought a pair of hd595s a month or so ago, and I had some negative reactions to them at first. First, they were too tight on my head. This resolved itself over time though---they are much more comfortable after many hours of wearing. Second, they just didn't sound like I had imagined...

So is it just generally a bad idea to buy IEMs or earbuds on ebay, since they would be easier to fake and there's a risk? (I know there's still a debate on whether they actually ARE fakes) I've been thinking of getting some CX-300s off ebay, but all the ones I see there are the same cheap...

1995: I was seventeen, and my cheapie Sony headphones broke. I went down to Circuit City and saw a pair of Sennheiser hd565 headphones for $200. I was curious as to what could be so great that any headphone could be worth that much. I had money to burn, so I tried them out. They blew me away...