[Arcamera]

  Originally Posted by eugenius 
 
No information was given during this video.
 
 
Agreed.

On the contrary for me: The information I received was what some of the leadership style at Sennheiser is like, what they claim to care about, how they put that into reality--e.g. new buildings/research parks, the way they structure their organization, their commitment not just to popular trends, but to pushing the sonic envelope, etc. Then there was the non-verbal information received. I also found it worthwhile beyond just information-- it was reasonably entertaining, and re-affirming for those of us who are fans of Sennheiser. All in 8 or so minutes. Thanks Jude for sharing.

 

[563]

I'm actually a fan of Senheuser, but that said, I learned absolutely nothing new from the interview. It is what it is.

 

[TwoEars]

  No information was given during this video.

 
 

  Originally Posted by eugenius 
 
No information was given during this video.
 
 
Agreed.

 
 

I'm actually a fan of Senheuser, but that said, I learned absolutely nothing new from the interview. It is what it is.

 
 
That is what I got reading between the lines:
 
1. The are currenlty focusing a lot of their attention on the "lifestyle" part of the market. Sennheiser momentum and so on since that is where the majority of the money is to be made. This may not be news but it's important since it's not the classic sennheiser that made the HD580, HD600 and HD650. The old sennheiser was more of an audiophile brand only, this new sennheiser is for audiophiles but it's also one that plays on the consumer market. An important distiction.
 
2. They are only going to bring out a new flagship product if it incorporates new technology. That means probably no HD850 anytime soon.
 
3. If they bring out a new flagship product it will most likely it will based on a lot of reasearch and it will incorporate new technology, probably something else than the ring driver. Maybe stats, maybe othos. Who knows.
 
Maybe I'm reading too much into it but that's my take.

 

[jude]

I'm actually a fan of Senheuser, but that said, I learned absolutely nothing new from the interview. It is what it is.

 
Alex, sorry if it was a let-down for you. Sitting with the president of Sennheiser, I wanted to ask more about the general direction(s) the company is moving in, along with a little look back for context. Daniel was a very interesting, very sharp, very nice guy, and he had a very genuine passion for the company, for sound (capturing it and playing it), and for the future of it all.
 
If I was sitting with Axel Grell, I'd probably have very different questions. Then again, I've tried asking Axel about what they may or may not be working on in Sennheiser's secretive labs, and he's a closed vault. 

 

On the contrary for me: The information I received was what some of the leadership style at Sennheiser is like, what they claim to care about, how they put that into reality--e.g. new buildings/research parks, the way they structure their organization, their commitment not just to popular trends, but to pushing the sonic envelope, etc. Then there was the non-verbal information received. I also found it worthwhile beyond just information-- it was reasonably entertaining, and re-affirming for those of us who are fans of Sennheiser. All in 8 or so minutes. Thanks Jude for sharing.

 
Thank you, Arcamera, for the comments. I also found the discussion with Daniel (both on-camera and off-camera) very reassuring as a fellow Sennheiser fan.
 

  That is what I got reading between the lines:
 
1. The are currenlty focusing a lot of their attention on the "lifestyle" part of the market. Sennheiser momentum and so on since that is where the majority of the money is to be made. This may not be news but it's important since it's not the classic sennheiser that made the HD580, HD600 and HD650. The old sennheiser was more of an audiophile brand only, this new sennheiser is for audiophiles but it's also one that plays on the consumer market. An important distiction.
 
2. They are only going to bring out a new flagship product if it incorporates new technology. That means probably no HD850 anytime soon.
 
3. If they bring out a new flagship product it will most likely it will based on a lot of reasearch and it will incorporate new technology, probably something else than the ring driver. Maybe stats, maybe othos. Who knows.
 
Maybe I'm reading too much into it but that's my take.

 
TwoEars, I think you and I essentially came to the same conclusions.

 

[563]

Thanks Jude for replying (and forgive me for the typo misspelling Sennheiser!)....  No worries, I know your hands were kinda tied on this one - it was really frustrating to hear how vague Daniel was - it would have been great had he thrown a bone or two our way, rather than basically saying, "we care about the community and have some things coming down the road."   I think some of us would love to have had him give us a teaser of things to come - think, electrostat   
 
That said, I love your interviews and film clips, so hopefully I didn't give the impression that I was criticizing you or your interviewing skills!

 

[jude]

  ...it would have been great had he thrown a bone or two our way, rather than basically saying, "we care about the community and have some things coming down the road."   I think some of us would love to have had him give us a teaser of things to come - think, electrostat   
 
That said, I love your interviews and film clips, so hopefully I didn't give the impression that I was criticizing you or your interviewing skills!

 
Alex, thanks for the nice comments, man. As for throwing a bone or two our way: Axel did a Q&A once, and others were asking him about future products, electrostats, new flagships, etc., and he gave up nothing on any upcoming stuff. LOL. Like I said, he's a closed vault on discussion involving products not already announced, which, given how competitive the landscape is (and how it's become a faster moving space), I can totally understand.

 

[fiascogarcia]

  Thanks Jude for replying (and forgive me for the typo misspelling Sennheiser!)....  No worries, I know your hands were kinda tied on this one - it was really frustrating to hear how vague Daniel was - it would have been great had he thrown a bone or two our way, rather than basically saying, "we care about the community and have some things coming down the road."   I think some of us would love to have had him give us a teaser of things to come - think, electrostat   
 
That said, I love your interviews and film clips, so hopefully I didn't give the impression that I was criticizing you or your interviewing skills!

 
I think maybe I prefer his style over that of some of the smaller companies (Hifiman, Fiio, Oppo for example) that might leak information or demos, or even announce product releases, then tease you for weeks or months on end with delays due to testing or manufacturing glitches.  Leaks do, however, create lively thread conversation on Head-Fi!!

 

[TwoEars]

   
  TwoEars, I think you and I essentially came to the same conclusions.

 
Interesting.
 
I do hope I'm wrong though.

 
A HD850 would be nice and not that hard to do, all the HD800 needs are a few subtile tweaks.
 
(you listening Sennheiser? I'll even tell you what to change if you want!)

 

[jude]

  Interesting.
 
I do hope I'm wrong though.

 
A HD850 would be nice and not that hard to do, all the HD800 needs are a few subtile tweaks.

 
Perhaps I misunderstood your point then. What I mean is that I also think that Sennheiser is definitely going after the lifestyle headphone market, but has no intention of letting up when it comes to high-end headphones. As for any future headphones of the HD600/650 class or type, again, there was no discussion of specific upcoming models (nobody at Sennheiser gives up that information, in my experience).

 

[TwoEars]

   
Perhaps I misunderstood your point then. What I mean is that I also think that Sennheiser is definitely going after the lifestyle headphone market, but has no intention of letting up when it comes to high-end headphones. As for any future headphones of the HD600/650 class or type, again, there was no discussion of specific upcoming models (nobody at Sennheiser gives up that information, in my experience).

 
Well - listening to the interview it sounded to me like an HD850 would be unlikely and that they would rather take bigger strides forward in terms of technology.
 
So rather than doing something incremental like a HD850 they would dedicate their efforts towards something completely new for the high-end market.
 
But I am reading a lot into it here...  just a gut feeling from the interview on my part really.

 

[iancraig10]

My feeling after seeing the interview is that we as Headfiers are a minority who try very hard to get that 'perfect' headphone which unfortunately, the majority don't appreciate.
 
Many people like a big bass and firms like Sennhesier are now thinking about trying to please both markets. The problem is that most typical headphone listeners won't pay the prices that many of us are prepared to pay, so the market demands that Sennheiser looks more into the consumer market.
 
There has been a surprise with Beats becoming a massive seller; also at a premium price. Its selling point is the huge bass that it creates. To Headfiers this really isn't good, so sennheiser are kind of 'piggy in the middle'. In effect, trying to tread a path that keeps audiophiles happy as well as keep their fair share of the market.
 
It's all very well to have an 'ideal' for headphone response, but ultimately, if it doesn't sell enough, then it's the end of the headphone as far as the companies that make them go.
 
Sennheiser make great headphones and are in a position to perhaps 'educate' youngsters as to what exactly good sound is. They need to be weaned off of things like Beats so headphones need to look good and also make some compromises (at first) for a market that demands big bass for mostly poor quality files/downloads.
 
A difficult path to tread for a major headphone company, since if you ask most kids if they know what Sennheiser, Beydyanamic or AKG make, they couldn't tell you. However, they all know what beats are unfortunately (even fake Beats are popular) and that company is dominating the headphone market, even at premium prices.
 
So Sennheiser need to penetrate that market if they can, so that they can continue to produce the audiophile products for the minority. Unfortunately, that's us!!

 

[TwoEars]

Originally Posted by iancraig10 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
There has been a surprise with Beats becoming a massive seller; also at a premium price. Its selling point is the huge bass that it creates. To Headfiers this really isn't good, so sennheiser are kind of 'piggy in the middle'. In effect, trying to tread a path that keeps audiophiles happy as well as keep their fair share of the market.

 
I like your points but the real reason beats became so big is that they became a fashion accessory for the "in-crowd".
 
They looks good, shiny and expensive hanging around your neck and that's the main point really, it has very little to do with sound.
 
It's the same reason teenagers want the latest iPhone, wears oakleys, polo t-shirts or custom converse sneakers.

 

[mrtim6]

No information was given during this video.

Agreed I like headfi tv however this was very thin on information