Back to Back: Introducing the HD 550

[s2kphile]

Looks like this discount doesnt work on the HD550 like it did on the HD505.

First Responders, Teachers, Students, Government Workers, and Medical Professionals are eligible for a 20% discount off

I am in the process of returning the HD505 within the 30 day window due to how sibilant the treble is when gaming. Bullets, explosions, etc have a harshness to my ears no matter what source I use including tubes.

I was hoping the HD550 would be a great replacement but seeing the price point. I'll wait until they come on sale or when the 20% discount code works.

 

[ericpalonen]

As an exercise in exploring the new naming convention, in an ideal world where Sennheiser could go back and rename all their current production 500 series headphones, how would they be named? Something like this?

HD505 --> remains HD505
HD550 --> remains HD550
HD560S --> HD500 (probably classified as a more neutral tuning)
HD569 --> ?
HD599 --> HD560 (probably classified as a warmer tuning)

This raises a couple other questions about the new naming convention:

• Will there be any way to distinguish the cheaper models in the series? For example, would 5x0 be the flagship of the series with that "x" tuning, and then maybe 5x1, 5x2, etc. would indicate models with similar tuning but decreasing price points? Not sure how many numbers would be needed for this, as it probably doesn't make sense to have SO many models in the 500 series lineup, but I imagine Sennheiser might want to preserve something like the current HD569 to hit a lower price point.
• When it's time to release an update to an existing model, for example the HD550, how would the updated headphone be named? Doesn't seem like there are enough digits to capture this information, so would you do something like HD550S2? HD550p2? HD550 Mk II?

That's a pretty good take on what the older models could be. In time as more models are released we'll likely work in suffixes or digits as required, but I don't want to commit to that quite yet. At the moment there aren't many 500 series models, but they certainly have accumulated over time (HD 598 is no longer sold, etc).

@ericpalonen I have a question about the naiming. Am I understanding right that 00s & 50s would fit in the spectrum of neutrality, but the 00s would leans more "true neutral" and 50s would go closer to "neutral warm"?

Pretty spot on! HD 650 and HD 550 for example are neutral but when compared to an analytical headphone may have traits of warmth.

Naming doesn't matter. People will learn a little about the product and buy what they need or want. No one is out there buying a car based on the name. I don't understand the constant worry about naming. Let it go.

We'll take the critique on the chin and it is fair. The feedback truly is important. That said, it is still the lesser of evils to try and consolidate and reset. It just takes time.

The 550 look very exciting

Thank you! We would argue they sound even better haha

I’ll get these only if they are better than my 660s2 which are my favorite sennheiser headphone and my favorite headphone ever…. Unless sennheisers makes an hd660s3 which I’m waiting for.

Thank you for putting them in your lineup and on your head! "Better" is always going to be a prioritization of sonic preference, performance, and price, as everyone's take on those 3 factors varies a little bit. The S2 is really heating up lately. It grows on you!

I'm sorry but you sound like a marketing boy. Empy words.

Is there any sennheiser that can compete with the Utopia and the ZMF's ? For how many years they let the competition taking the lead without even trying to do anything about it?
The hd800s were released in 2010.
In 15 years the whole market has dramatically shifted, and they did (almost) nothing.

What happened to them?

I'm not even sure they want to try to compete with the other big boys.

@Drrizzt the criticism is all fair and in the end, what you like is correct for your own ears and wallet. We have great mutual respect for the competitors in this space (ZMF and Focal were the two referenced earlier), and we all innovate at our own pace. I will, however, continue to challenge claims that should be quantified. Its easy to say your preferences are not being met by a certain model/brand/setup, but to assume that everyone feels the same way is a tough sell around here. There is certainly a lot of awesome, innovative things happening in audio and its a great time to be an audiophile. Respect to all the brands and sponsors, we love seeing you at CJ and even have awesome friendships with some of them

Welp, ordered a pair. I also bought the HD505 at launch and love them- though I do find them just a tad dry. It sounds like the HD550 might be a better fit.

I still love the HD560s, but I'll likely decide which of the 3 I like best and keep that one. Time will tell!

Thank you!! IMHO the HD 550 still has some of that dryness as a characteristic, but think the bass oomph balances it out. I rarely do this on the forums, but my [current] favorite demo track for the HD 550 is "Say Something" by Justin Timberlake and Chris Stapleton. Try it on the HD 550 to see how it multitasks percussion, vocals, panning, acoustic guitars, and bass extension all at once. Please share some of your fav test tracks when you can!

This looks awesome. If only it came with a modular cable. I guess there are plenty of after market cables out there.

I'm going to have to get one.

@Drrizzt

I've never enjoyed a ZMF can. Ever.
Not a fan boy of Sennheiser either. But it's not necessary to spend over £1000 to get good sound. Yes, there are so many options for great sound. I do agree Sennheiser can do more. But they also keep the price reasonable. I'm not up to spending Meze or Focal money. And ZMF are really not that great tbh. It's hype I can live without.

Even Hifiman didn't wow me and I listened to the Susvara and others. Didn't blow my mind.

Well, it is modular and there are plenty of 3rd party options (and we have a few of our own). It's a twist-lock but it is not proprietary at all. 'Appreciate the feedback. The 550 and 505 were made to open the gates to the hobby--doesn't mean those models are the period at the end of the sentence. We're confident they are going to perform really, really well.

It does look similar with the main differences the HD 550 having more presence in the 4-6khz region which should help to add some clarity to the sound and also deeper reaching subbass. Of the new HD 5xx headphones this is the one I want to try out the most even though I do personally prefer the black/copper color way of the HD 505.

The timbre on both is indeed related--you can hear it right away. But after just a few minutes of A/B you'll have a clear favorite, I promise.

 

[Beagle]

Fantastic value headphone, and a noticeable step up from both the HD 560S and the HD 505

What about the HD400 Pro?

 

[kman1211]

The timbre on both is indeed related--you can hear it right away. But after just a few minutes of A/B you'll have a clear favorite, I promise.

The HD 550 driver and baffle design seems to share more in common with the HD 620S than any of the other HD 5xx headphones at least visually. I can't help but notice the similarities visually.

I do get the feeling I will like the HD 550 more between the HD 550 and HD 505 based on what I've seen and read so far.

 

[Anticipator]

Thank you, but I'm more than happy with my HD 490 Pro.

 

[volly]

Sennheiser, you hiding any other releases....

Literal explosion of these 560s variants....may wait for the 550 Pro Mk2 SE ultra!

 

[jbarrentine]

wow you release same crap for 13th time WITH SAME DRIVERS AND DESIGN amazing very innovative oh wow

Not only is this wrong, it doesn't go over well here. Grow up.

 

[JonM78]

I'm sorry but you sound like a marketing boy. Empy words.

Is there any sennheiser that can compete with the Utopia and the ZMF's ? For how many years they let the competition taking the lead without even trying to do anything about it?
The hd800s were released in 2010.
In 15 years the whole market has dramatically shifted, and they did (almost) nothing.

What happened to them?

I'm not even sure they want to try to compete with the other big boys.

Sennheiser sells FAR more headphones than ZMF and Focal by a considerable mile. You'll sell far more $200-300 headphones than you will $800+ headphones. That's common sense.

 

[Moon5123]

I have seen some of videos on 550. There is very minimal comparision between and every one seems to like their tunning.
But it's wired to see the comparison in all those videos are on just Sennheiser lines of headphones.
There is no proper comparision between other headphones from other company or even graph compared, except from GadgetryTech as he did atleast a minor comparision. Seems like videos on embargo are mostly guided or sponsored. I have no problem with that as this was a very secretive project.

I am very curious if new 550 fixes the distortion in bass and grains in highs of 560s on slightly high amplification.
I really like the tunning of 560s even more than Focal Clear OG, Sundara and 660S2. But distortion or maybe bad performance in bass and grains in highs on bit of high volume is very noticeable once you identify it. I still love my 560s on low volumes but was looking at 550 for an upgrade from 560s with fixes to this.

All review suggests 550 is more of a tunning side grade but no mention of any fixes on the issues with 560s.
Hope if any one not guided/sponsored by Sennheiser have tried the headset can provide feedback on technical performance of 550?

And will Sennheiser again play the same game as 660S2? Release 550 at 300$ and after few months price will go down to 150$ or lower. This is a big L to customer who love Sennheiser and want to support them but this difference in launch price and final price after some time sometime pushes your own customer away with a distrust.
I really hope 550 would have released at its intended price rather than ripping off your dedicated customer base or some doing price skimming.

 

[Terriero]

Short answer is that each region has a bit of autonomy for promotions, but those promotions are dictated by other factors like available stock, local laws, consumer demand, and a dozen other things.

I lost my interest in the 620-S because they were 250 $ in USA and here in Europe (where Sennheiser develops the headphones) the minimum price were around 300 €... And I can't understand that...

And, is even worse, because 250 $ are around 230 €...

 

[Tenlow]

I lost my interest in the 620-S because they were 250 $ in USA and here in Europe (where Sennheiser develops the headphones) the minimum price were around 300 €... And I can't understand that...

And, is even worse, because 250 $ are around 230 €...

You can easily get them for 230 - 250€ here in Germany…

 

[Ika]

I appreciate the enthusiasm and feedback. I like to ask this so please take no offense: what data do you have to support the claim about taking the lead?

Don’t know about general data, but in my experience the tightnesses/ impact / clarity / audio bliss of the bass I’m able to achieve on my Bathys (connected via dac mode to LG V60 and EQd on PowerAmp) is on another level.

I could never replicate that on my beloved HD650 or HD598 (using various amps and dacs, such as PHA3+ Pontus II, etc.).

 

[Moon5123]

This looks awesome. If only it came with a modular cable. I guess there are plenty of after market cables out there.

I'm going to have to get one.

@Drrizzt

I've never enjoyed a ZMF can. Ever.
Not a fan boy of Sennheiser either. But it's not necessary to spend over £1000 to get good sound. Yes, there are so many options for great sound. I do agree Sennheiser can do more. But they also keep the price reasonable. I'm not up to spending Meze or Focal money. And ZMF are really not that great tbh. It's hype I can live without.

Even Hifiman didn't wow me and I listened to the Susvara and others. Didn't blow my mind.

I guess he was just hoping for a new 800 series to be released as per the rumors and got frustrated when he saw entry level 550.

I do agree Sennheiser releases their products as reasonable prices but those reasonable prices gets cut down to half some time in just few months. So I am bit conflicted if the prices on release dates are reasonable or the avg prices those product will have after few months is reasonable

I don't know about new Hifiman launches but older launches are well recieved by community and frankly it's just preference.
My view is:
Classical/Vocals/Vintage: Sennheiser
Modern Music/Jazz/Rock/EDM: Hifiman

 

[ericpalonen]

Seems like videos on embargo are mostly guided or sponsored

We have not sponsored any videos on HD 550, and other than a press release, those reviewing do so independently. We answer questions if they arise and that's it. When everyone else sees the video for the first time, we see it for the first time too.

 

[Moon5123]

We have not sponsored any videos on HD 550, and other than a press release, those reviewing do so independently. We answer questions if they arise and that's it. When everyone else sees the video for the first time, we see it for the first time too.

I really hope so, all the videos have same theme, topics and same comparision and same timing of release and Sennheiser's team in comments section.
I hope these are just co-incidences.
Anyways I will wait to see if these are actually an upgrade or sidegrade to 560s and weather this matched 6X0 lineup like the many initial reviews has pointed to(which is very sus)

Anyways thanks to confirm, hope the hype is real.