[donlin]

   
 Same. I don't hear the veil everyone is talking about. Maybe it's on the older models? Or maybe it's because they are underpowering them.

Back when the HD650 first came out over 10 years ago, there were a lot fewer choices available for high quality headphones.  The two TOTL phones that people constantly argued about on Head-fi then were the Sennheiser HD600 and the Grado RS-1.  Those along with the Beyers and Stax phones of the time were all pretty bright in the treble.  The HD650 came along with a much darker signature and the myth of the veil was started at that time mainly from Grado fans.  Now days there are so many choices available running from very dark to very bright but the idea of the veil still sticks.

 

[Arniesb]

If it was darker than now i could agree. Right now it is not veiled... period...

 

[CanadianMaestro]

Let the mythical veil prevail....
 
..........they don't know what they're missing. 

 

 

[Zuvio]

Exactly. Once I heard them, besides just LOVING their sound, I also thought - there is no veil whatsoever.

They are indeed something special.

 
I listened to the 650 intently today alongside many other headphones. It has moderate veil: dark, warmish, lacking 'air' in the top end, and bass is a bit grungy/boomy,. All this adds up to less than satisfactory for me. Now i know why people prefer HD600.

 

[Solrighal]

There's no veil on the later 650's with silver drivers. They also need to be amped properly. I have no idea what I would upgrade to if I ever wanted to. And I don't.

 

[Badfish5446]

   
I listened to the 650 intently today alongside many other headphones. It has moderate veil: dark, warmish, lacking 'air' in the top end, and bass is a bit grungy/boomy,. All this adds up to less than satisfactory for me. Now i know why people prefer HD600.

The right tubes and amp help both of these "characteristics" of the HD650.  With the right gear my only complaints about the HD650 are woolly bass thats peak is too high in the spectrum for me and a lack of "speed" (bass transients).  Fantastic for long haul listening.

 

[Syliano]

For some reason these are so much more comfortable than the HD600, I always forget I'm wearing them

 

[connieflyer]

If you are experiencing "the veil" you read to much in reviews, you also do not have enough of an amp.  If you think the 600's are better than go ahead and trade the 650's in.  If you are not satisfied, why bother with them at all.

 

[Syliano]

   
I listened to the 650 intently today alongside many other headphones. It has moderate veil: dark, warmish, lacking 'air' in the top end, and bass is a bit grungy/boomy,. All this adds up to less than satisfactory for me. Now i know why people prefer HD600.

 
 

There's no veil on the later 650's with silver drivers. They also need to be amped properly. I have no idea what I would upgrade to if I ever wanted to. And I don't.

 
Exactly what Solrighal says, no veil at all in the part I bought a week ago tbh. I prefer the HD650's sound over the HD600's sound any day of the week. The HD600 sounds less "dynamic" to me tbh. 

 

[raybone0566]

I own both 600 & 650's. The 600's are a bit thinner sounding. The 650's are more engaging. That's the first time I've ever read that they weren't airy enough, I feel they are & they scale well. But as most 650's owners on this thread know matching them with the correct amp. Is very important. I personally couldn't audition any headphone for an hour or two & say it's unsatisfactory. Matching components with headphones can really change the way those phones perform. Once you get it right it's magical

 

[Solrighal]

For the record, I EQ my 650's. I EQ them very well and they are stunning.

 

[Koolpep]

I listened to the 650 intently today alongside many other headphones. It has moderate veil: dark, warmish, lacking 'air' in the top end, and bass is a bit grungy/boomy,. All this adds up to less than satisfactory for me. Now i know why people prefer HD600.

What's your reference/benchmark? How did you drive them and with which sources, genres of music? Your profile is empty so I have no idea what headphones you were/are exposed to. But if you don't like the HD650 that's fine too. Lacking air at the top end. Well, I really wonder what your reference is. I have T90, T1, HE-560, LCD-2F, D7100, K7XX and other headphones and don't find it to be the case.

But then it's hard to tell without knowing anything about the listening conditions.

Cheers,
K

 

[Rdrcr]

There's no veil on the later 650's with silver drivers. They also need to be amped properly.

 
Much agreed.
 
Mike

 

[Sal1950]

  For the record, I EQ my 650's. I EQ them very well and they are stunning.

My Emotiva Stealth DC-1 DAC comes from the factory with a built in 2db bass boost at 20 hz in the headphone amp, (defeatable if prefered) I think the eq was done with the HD 650s in mind, the slight extra punch at the bottom is perfect.
I beleive those who think the 650s are veiled just prefer a can that is very bright on the top, not my cup of tea.
To me the 650 with the very slight bass boost and flat eq in the rest of the range is just perfect.

 

[Zuvio]

  My Emotiva Stealth DC-1 DAC comes from the factory with a built in 2db bass boost at 20 hz in the headphone amp, (defeatable if prefered) I think the eq was done with the HD 650s in mind, the slight extra punch at the bottom is perfect.
I beleive those who think the 650s are veiled just prefer a can that is very bright on the top, not my cup of tea.
To me the 650 with the very slight bass boost and flat eq in the rest of the range is just perfect.

 
I myself hate the "bright", even slight bright bugs the hell out of me, so as anything not neutral is a pain, either from dac or headphone. Any slight warmth seems to annoy me i found. I would say 'air' and 'brightness' are two different things.