[Trinkle]

CrossFeed will cure that affect, it has more to do with the recording than the headphones themselves.

Thanks !

 

[ST33L]

Survey completed. FYI typo: “4.What type of headphone design to you prefer? (choose one)”

 

[TomSix]

A point I forgot to mention in my first comment regarding my experience with HD 800S.
I noticed for some songs the transition of sound from left driver to right or vice versa is too stark, as if there is nothing in-between. At one point there is sound in the right and the next moment its on the left which seems a bit unnatural. I am not sure what causes this effect, but have seen reviewers praise the Goldplanar GL1200/ Raal Requisite sr1a as one where the transition between drivers is very smooth.
At 11:47 of this video

You should check carefully elsewhere in your system.

What you are describing is a either a product of some particular recordings and/or ancillary equipment other than the HD800S.

It is also possible you had/have one of your channels phase-inverted somewhere in the chain.

The HD800S is known to have particularly excellent sound-staging, and the unnatural L/R staging you mention is actually not a known issue with the 800 series.

 

[ST33L]

Omg HD800S2 confirmed?

The survey is strangely focused heavily on comfort, considering the biggest criticism 800 series receives is about the bass response, or lack thereof. And for the love of kittens please get rid of the awful lemo connectors and go standard dual 3.5mm or even the HD6X0 series connectors if you must stay in-house. Not only is it a complete pain to remove, my recent purchase straight out of the box had varying degrees of wobbliness between the L/R so it's not even a solution for durability.

^^^ This, and I’d trade the box for better cables… and offer cable options, i.e., 4-pin XLR, 4.4mm, etc.

 

[TomSix]

^^^ This, and I’d trade the box for better cables… and offer cable options, i.e., 4-pin XLR, 4.4mm, etc.

The inclusion of a proper, good-quality hard plastic case with latches and a carry handle would be a nice change IMO

 

[headblid]

@ericpalonen, what happens after the survey closes?
I can’t imagine this survey being the start of the development of a new Sennheiser flagship.
I am hoping it’s rather to help narrow down existing things that are somewhat ready to come out and we actually see a new flagship soon.
Speculations aside, would be good to know if the survey is intended to help with specific somewhat imminent decisions or if it is just general community feedback request…

 

[SlothRock]

@ericpalonen, what happens after the survey closes?
I can’t imagine this survey being the start of the development of a new Sennheiser flagship.
I am hoping it’s rather to help narrow down existing things that are somewhat ready to come out and we actually see a new flagship soon.
Speculations aside, would be good to know if the survey is intended to help with specific somewhat imminent decisions or if it is just general community feedback request…

I think an HD800S2/HD900/etc is already well in development with a myriad of improvements. Probably trying to see what improvements they should focus on for marketing purposes that will really draw people

 

[K3cT]

"A lot of us are simply those who've been promised that new iterations on older designs are "improvements," yet are disappointed time and time again when they actually aren't."

I can't speak to the entire consumer spread as a monolith, and I don't want to. But my experience in the community (in places Sennheiser has no eyes, which could be a failing on both of our parts; willing to work with you to remedy this if you are interested) has been that many *many* people feel this way about the products I mentioned earlier (660S, 660S2, HD820, HD8XX).

In my experience, audiophiles absolutely do not want more bass extension, soundstage, etc. out of an HD6 or HD8 series if it has to sacrifice what makes those headphones special (or downright legendary) in the first place to get there.

For HD660S and S2, Sennheiser sacrificed the midrange and treble of arguably the most legendary midrange and treble headphone of all time (HD650).
In my and others' opinions, there is *nothing* you could've gotten in return that would've made that tradeoff remotely worth it.

With HD820 and 8XX, you added pressure chamber and acoustic impedance problems to a design whose claim to fame was having an incredibly low acoustic impedance while still being based on a dynamic driver principle. This fact about HD 800(S) is hugely responsible for the almost unilateral praise it receives for it's "soundstage" (surprising for any headphone, given headphones are fundamentally devices of in-head localization.)

I was recently asked what my "Mount Rushmore of headphones" would be, if I had to pick four.

I cannot overstate how unique and special it is that after hearing (basically) everything out there, Sennheiser has two of the four entries locked.

Out of all of the headphones out there for all time, HD600 (sharing a spot with HD650) and HD800 get two out of the four spots.

Sennheiser has captured lightning in a bottle, not once, not twice, but three times! Most brands don't even do it once, and if they do, it's either an accident/something that they cannot replicate, or something they eventually get tired of and "improve upon." (The other two are HE6 and Focal Utopia OG, in case you're wondering.)

That is why Sennheiser is my favorite brand...

...and it's why I can't help but be disappointed when things like HD8XX are even taken seriously, let alone touted as an improvement or "next step forward."

...or why I'm so disappointed by the fact that 660S2 (which no doubt fixed some problems of the original 660S) are seemingly available in stores nationwide for people to try, while the HD600 and 650 are seemingly impossible for consumers to find for demo in stores.

I don't mean to come off as aggressive, accusatory, or overly negative. This is Head-Fi, I am a passionate consumer of headphones who cares enough about these products to type lengthy posts that I know will likely fall on deaf ears and never get anywhere near the people who actually make decisions.

The embarrassment of earnestly yelling into a void is worth it if there's even .1% chance of stopping HD 800S from being succeeded by another misstep in a market filled with them.

Please reach out in DMs if you are actually interested in seeing these places and meeting the people who are unhappy with the modern direction that's led to HD 660S, HD 660S2, HD 820, and HD 8XX, because they generally don't come to Head-Fi. We are all massive (arguably the biggest) fans of Sennheiser and we'd love to actually have our voices heard by the brand we hold in such high regard. I'm happy to answer any additional questions if you have them as well.

Ah yes let’s hyper focus on a bunch of “superfans” whose opinions don’t necessarily reflect the HF community as a whole and come up with another disaster like the HD8XX.

 

[listenerwww]

Ah yes let’s hyper focus on a bunch of “superfans” whose opinions don’t necessarily reflect the HF community as a whole and come up with another disaster like the HD8XX.

I'm sorry, did a single thing I suggest sound anything remotely like HD8XX?

I'll answer that: no it didn't. In fact, quite literally every suggestion I posed was to it's contrary, acoustically.

I prioritized ideas that could work feasibly and easily with the existing acoustic design (and it's limitations) while potentially improving sonic performance (at worst, leaving it basically the same), while still working towards the goal that Sennheiser is clearly working towards with the new design (improved comfort).

"Superfan" is not a dirty word. I care deeply about HD 800, it was my dream headphone as a kid and as an adult it is still (IMO) the greatest headphone ever made. I care more than any of the other "reviewers" that have had their hands in development of 8XX, and am not ashamed of being fully invested in the 8x0 series being improved in realistic and acoustically-predictable ways to benefit the largest amount of people possible. It just so happens the best ideas on how to make that happen don't come from Head-Fi.

I'm not sure catering wholesale to Head-Fi as a market segment makes sense, as they're much more scattered preferentially than the superfans I represent. I'm coming at it with earnest suggestions based on the experience of many HD800 fans who are actually on the same page, and Head-Fi (if we can refer to them as a monolith) is by and large either agreeing with me, making suggestions unrelated to sonics (better cable, better accessories, better ergonomics) or making unrealistic suggestions (more bass extension/boost).

If you have a problem with my suggestions.... That's Nice™.

I still believe in my ideas, and until you provide meaningful critiques to the contrary instead of denigrating the input of "superfans" (otherwise known as "people who care deeply") I will regard your take with exactly as much respect as it deserves.

 

[pbui44]

I think an HD800S2/HD900/etc is already well in development with a myriad of improvements. Probably trying to see what improvements they should focus on for marketing purposes that will really draw people

Please someone tell me that at least one worthy Post-Axel-Grell-successor was included in the Sonova sale. The HD660S S2 is not enough proof in the pudding.

 

[listenerwww]

Please someone tell me that at least one worthy Post-Axel-Grell-successor was included in the Sonova sale. The HD660S S2 is not enough proof in the pudding.

I'd say search around for pics/impressions of the headphone Grell himself was showing off at CanJam. It's the only headphone I've ever felt was similarly "open/big" sounding as HD800, but had a more pronounced bass response, more accurate midrange (a la HD560S) and... well the treble was pretty bad, but it had potential!!!

Apparently it's a Drop collab and will be around 6x0 pricing. I'm very excited for it but I'm (similarly to this thread) begging them to not overdamp the thing and just focus on finding the right driver.

 

[buffer]

I own the HD800, the 800S, and a number of other Sennheisers. I am a fan, but I always felt the HD800 and HD800S midrange was slightly recessed, or maybe better put, I felt the mids were not as present as they should have been. I guess I felt the bass was also lacking a bit of punch and the headphone could have used a bit more slam generated, not necessarily with more midbass, but with proper upper midrange. one of my favorite headphones is the Final Audio D8000 Pro. Relatively well balanced, though a little scooped in the midrange and a little to rounded sounding. My point is i like a neutral, crisp, well balanced sound with excellent clarity and resolution. While I never got the wide soundstage feeling with the HD800 that everyone raves about I had a friend who thought on orchestral the sound floated in air. I think any flagship should handle all genres by providing a musical, but balanced frequency response.

Also, many audiophile headphones boost lower midrange causing vocals to be slightly warm and congested. Please do not let this happen. You actually have access to a headphone I think is very well balanced. I cannot stand the Neumann NDH 20, but I love the NDH-30 (when positioned all the way back on my ears - front of ear nearly touching front inner portion of ear pad). Would maybe like a slight bit more treble extension and very slightly more upper mids (which can add perceived clarity, air and separation), but overall I think the frequency balance is near perfect. Just make a unit with a larger driver than the NDH30, with same frequency response, slightly more spaciousness soundstage like the HD800 has, and you would be on to something amazing.

Whatever you do, please make sure the headphone is not so position sensitive like the NDH 30 is. Well, that is my 2 cents.

 

[twofires]

The cable is fine but far too long for me and most importantly, PLEASE USE A DIFFERENT CONNECTOR.
The connectors have been a pain point for many for years, I really hope this gets changed to something like mini-XLR or 3.5mm. The less proprietary connectors or connectors only used on 1-2 headphones we have the better.

Definitely this. I can understand hesitance with 3.5 as there are different wiring schemes out there (Hifiman vs Audio Technica for example) and someone is bound to use the wrong cable, but I think something non-proprietary should be considered.

 

[headstef]

I think an HD800S2/HD900/etc is already well in development with a myriad of improvements. Probably trying to see what improvements they should focus on for marketing purposes that will really draw people

It has been stated by @ericpalonen a couple of weeks ago that an HD-800S2 or HD-900 is not coming. (Yesterday too, for an HD-800S2). Also, that the HD-800S sells as good as ever (or more, I don't remember the exact words). Thus, I wouldn't be surprised if something totally new appeard as a flagship (or even a parallel one, with the beloved HD-800S continuing to be offered to its lovers).
However, no matter how loved the HD-800/800S is or how devoted it's fun-club is, some (minor?) shortcomings have been widely commented and documented. Worshipping a fine flagship as @listenerwww almost suggests does not bring progress. We might as well have stayed with the HD-600/650, judging by widespread worshipping! Then the 800/800s would have never appeared.
Let's move forward, keeping everything good from past and present.
(In the end, names mean nothing. A hypothetical new flagship could be called anything from HD-850S to HD-1000 and still retain the 800 series basic recipe.)

 

[IXOYE]

I am mostly afraid that the price increase will be in relation to what you did with the 660S2, ie, the vast majority of people will not be able to afford them, myself included.