Bought HD598, was dissapointed BUT... (updated impression after 5-10h~ish of use)

[Hevan]

Hey everyone,
 
I just bought a Sennheiser HD 598 headphone, coming from a Steelseries Siberia.
I have a sound card Club 3D Theatron Agrippa (exactly same as Auzentech X-Plosion).
 
I expected this headset to be very good, but instead, it doesn't sound any better then my siberia :S

Does anyone have any suggestions for me what I should do? Should I return it or? :/
The Siberia was arround 50 euro's, and for this one I paid 150 euro, I was hoping it'd be a very good headphone after reading all the positive reviews but I was deeply dissapointed.
My ears also get kinda hot, and it feels rather heavy and cheap plastic~ish, I don't mind plastic but it feels so fragile compared to my 50 euro plastic siberia.
 
Thx in advance for any tips,
 
Hevan
 
UPDATE (10+ hours of use):

The headphones start to feel more alive, and they now definately sound BETTER then my siberia headphones.
It feels like the sound is flying arround my head, also it starts feeling tight and dynamic, I really like how it's starting to turn out, will update every few hours

 

[Arleus]

You say it doesn't sound any better, but does it at least sound different to you? I have no idea what the siberia sounds like, but it's possible you've bought a headphone you don't like the sound signature of, if you can hear a difference but don't like it. If you can't hear any difference at all, then something fishy is up, and more investigation is required.

 

[Canadian411]

I personally don't like Sennheiser headphones, even their top line HD800.
 
Try Beyerdynamic, Denon, AKG, Ultrasone or sony headphones.

 

[Hevan]

Thx a lot for the replies guys much appreciated
 
Quote:

You say it doesn't sound any better, but does it at least sound different to you? I have no idea what the siberia sounds like, but it's possible you've bought a headphone you don't like the sound signature of, if you can hear a difference but don't like it. If you can't hear any difference at all, then something fishy is up, and more investigation is required.

I'm trying hard to recognise a difference, switching all the time between the two, but I can't hear a noticeable difference :/
 
 
Quote:

I personally don't like Sennheiser headphones, even their top line HD800.
 
Try Beyerdynamic, Denon, AKG, Ultrasone or sony headphones.

Do they have any open headphones? The close ones give so warm ears easily.
 

 

[Arleus]

 
Quote:

I personally don't like Sennheiser headphones, even their top line HD800.
 
Try Beyerdynamic, Denon, AKG, Ultrasone or sony headphones.

This isn't helpful advice. It's possible he LOVES the Sennheiser house sound, but doesn't realise it yet because he's watching 240p youtube videos of rock concerts recorded on a mobile phone. We need more information before reaching any conclusions.
 
 
edit: the replies come thick and fast here! The 598 is an open headphone, but it's certainly quite a snug fit. What are you playing through the headphones? If it's quite good quality music files, the differences should be apparent unless there's something horribly wrong with your soundcard. If you've only just got them, I would spend a few days with them getting used to their sound, then switch back to the Siberias to see if you can notice one then. And if not, perhaps the Siberia is a much better headphone than I'm giving it credit for.

 

[Hevan]

I'm listening now to 320 kbps sound, this should be decent right?

 

[Arleus]

320kbps mp3 is very good quality, and I'm pretty sure I would not be able to distinguish it from a lossless file. Hopefully someone else will come into this thread who's more familiar with your current gear than I am. Aside from that, I can only suggest you stick with it for a few days and get used to the 598s. Oh, and switch off any equalisers or audio effects you might use, for the moment, in case they're ruining the sound.

 

[Hevan]

I have everything standard, didn't change any audio settings, do you think the improvement from a 50 to 150 euro headphone should be noticeable for a non-audiophile like me?

 

[Nick01]

ooohh.."steelseries siberia" ...very interesting name...I'm gonna google it now...

 

[Hevan]

It's few years old already, no special headphones, but that's the only comparison material I got atm.

 

[Hevan]

The HD 598 mid's sound kinda "flat", and lows sound kinda "dull", I was hoping for crisp/clear mids, and deep/in depth lows
The Siberia sounds overall a bit flat, but less flat then the 598 in the mids, and it's not very engaging as I was looking for.

 

[Lord Soth]

Quote:

It's few years old already, no special headphones, but that's the only comparison material I got atm.

Hi there,
 
For anyone who is thinking of getting good source material for testing your audio systems.
 
Try this link
 
http://www.nuforce.com/hp/media/Nuforce%20Demo1/index.php
 
In case you are worried about trojans and viruses (and don't want to click on that link), go to the nuforce.com website.
Then click on "Support" on the top right, followed by "Audio Concept Demo".
 
These are mostly 96kHz audio files.
 
The differences in audio quality will definitely show up.
 

 
 

 

[Nick01]

Okay, I think you need to get a Grado or Alessandro, those are very exciting to listen to. And they're the open-backed type, which is what you want.
Adjectives I use to describe their sound are: rich, full, engaging, sweet, dynamic, punchy, and fun.

 

[Hevan]

@ Lord Soth, thx a lot, downloading now, is like 1 GB so will take few mins
 
@ Nick01 for what kind of music is that? I like trance music

 

[Graphicism]

Have you tried the phones on a different source, such as through a receiver or DVD player... it could be that your soundcard and/or settings aren't good.
 
What happens when you turn them up loud, do they distort?