Originally Posted by scompton /img/forum/go_quote.gif It's been too long since I've listened to either to give a completely accurate comparison. Basically, for me the HD280 doesn't have enough bass to accurately portray instruments like bassoon and double bass. The HD485 has a slightly elevated bass, but not so elevated as to drowned out the mids.
Here's the graph from Head Room, comparing both the the K501 which is close to ideal for acoustic music IMO.
I don't know how to interpret the graph. Is a "Flatter" graph better?
Is the altec lansing one not good? It has "Studio Grade 40mm High
Power Neodymium Drivers".
Flatter is better. Although the graphs can only give a guide. I find they correlate to what I hear. I'm not familiar with the AL headphone. I'd take manufacturer claims with a grain of salt. They don't tell you how they come up with that number. Neither the HD280 or HD485 needs an dedicated amp.
Just to confuse you more
I thought of another to consider. The Equation RP21. It's a studio monitoring headphone like the HD280. It doesn't have the bass roll off of the HD280 but doesn't have as much as the HD485. It costs around $100 and you might find a local store that sells them EQUATION AUDIO :: Beyond Equal
They are easily driven by an iPod, so should be fine from the computer as well.
Originally Posted by scompton /img/forum/go_quote.gif Flatter is better. Although the graphs can only give a guide. I find they correlate to what I hear. I'm not familiar with the AL headphone. I'd take manufacturer claims with a grain of salt. They don't tell you how they come up with that number. Neither the HD280 or HD485 needs an dedicated amp.
Just to confuse you more
I thought of another to consider. The Equation RP21. It's a studio monitoring headphone like the HD280. It doesn't have the bass roll off of the HD280 but doesn't have as much as the HD485. It costs around $100 and you might find a local store that sells them EQUATION AUDIO :: Beyond Equal
They are easily driven by an iPod, so should be fine from the computer as well.
I hope it's okay to bump this venerable thread again, since there's another good classical headphone thread going on right now, and others might find this valuable.............
This thread just keeps rising from the dead every few months.
OK guys. I will see about gearing up for an update of this shootout over holiday break. The only phone left from the original battle is the HD600 – all of the others have been sold. I still have the Fisher tube amps, so the tests should be at least somewhat consistent, with the HD600 being the link between the new and former tests. If anyone wants to send me a copy of one of the previously reviewed phones (or any other phones I guess), I would enter them into the mix and send them back to you. Also, if anyone wants to listen with me, you would be welcome. I have two restored Fisher amps to use, and lots of space.
The new combatants will be some vintage phones and one current model. The Stax Lambda, Stax SRX-MKiii (maybe), Stax SR-404, and two copies of the Yamaha YH-1 – one stock and one with mods.
There has been some mention of the YH-1’s relatively small soundstage. To me (with mods) it is very natural and in proportion to the space in which the music is being made. If anything, on some recordings perhaps the soundstage seems to collapse a tiny bit in the upper registers, but it might just be the mixing of the recording. In any case, the imaging is excellent, but the most remarkable trait of the modded YH-1 is the incredibly immersive midrange ambience, a wide bloom to the sound that is never boomy or thick, and at no expense to the treble detail. This is a characteristic of the Fisher tube amps themselves, but indeed the modded Yamahas have a pretty similar sound with a SS amp as well. I’ll have to admit that the modded YH-1 will be the preseason favorite going in. I haven’t listened to the stock ones for a very long time.
The Stax SR-404 is on loan from fellow HeadFier Earjam. Since I sold my Stax pro bias adaptors and Stax tube amps, I will power the 404 with his Stax SRM-313 SS amp, but fed from the Telefunken 12AX7 preamp stage on the Fisher X-100B amp. The low bias Stax phones will be fed from the Fisher’s speaker taps through a Stax transformer.
Awesome review. I agree with OP's findings for the most part except the AD2000 and K501 since I don't have those. Actually, K501 is on the way so I'll be able to hear how it fairs on Classical music myself.
I found most of those comments to be spot-on with my own experiences, less the AD2000's. In fact, I have been enjoying them ever since I got them for the exact opposite qualities than BinK describes
Perhaps it is because I run them balanced, but in my experience the AT's are significantly more detailed than both of the Sennheiser offerings in the comparison, and they work miracles with both the male and female voice.
my quick take on classical music, since i do listen to it in abundance, for a few headphones i own/owned.
- HD600: clear sound and good balance but a bit forward at times and light on texture.
- HD650: great layering, bass, and heft but some may want more clarity
- HE60: almost perfect for classical. no shortage of detail. voices and strings sound great. soundstage could be larger and lacks resonance.
- DT880: great highs (female vocals and violin) but overall brightness can be distracting.
- K501: airy presentation, huge soundstage but incredibly bass shy and overall thin sounding
- K701: nice presentation top to bottom. fairly neutral can. good soundstage. yet find myself reaching for HD600/650 more often
- Grados: never use for classical. too upfront, narrow soundstage, aggressive.
- O2: think they actually perform better at rock, jazz.
of what i've heard, i think the HD650 and HE60 are my favorite headphones for classical. well, the R10 is really the best but i don't own that so i'll have to refrain from putting it on the list.
Originally Posted by billinkansas /img/forum/go_quote.gif This thread just keeps rising from the dead every few months.
OK guys. I will see about gearing up for an update of this shootout over holiday break.
Any chance of throwing in a few comments about the Denon D2000s? I just noticed them in your sig and would be interested to hear how they fare with classical and how they compare to the HD600s.
Originally Posted by billinkansas /img/forum/go_quote.gif This thread just keeps rising from the dead every few months.
OK guys. I will see about gearing up for an update of this shootout over holiday break. The only phone left from the original battle is the HD600 – all of the others have been sold. I still have the Fisher tube amps, so the tests should be at least somewhat consistent, with the HD600 being the link between the new and former tests. If anyone wants to send me a copy of one of the previously reviewed phones (or any other phones I guess), I would enter them into the mix and send them back to you. Also, if anyone wants to listen with me, you would be welcome. I have two restored Fisher amps to use, and lots of space.
The new combatants will be some vintage phones and one current model. The Stax Lambda, Stax SRX-MKiii (maybe), Stax SR-404, and two copies of the Yamaha YH-1 – one stock and one with mods.
There has been some mention of the YH-1’s relatively small soundstage. To me (with mods) it is very natural and in proportion to the space in which the music is being made. If anything, on some recordings perhaps the soundstage seems to collapse a tiny bit in the upper registers, but it might just be the mixing of the recording. In any case, the imaging is excellent, but the most remarkable trait of the modded YH-1 is the incredibly immersive midrange ambience, a wide bloom to the sound that is never boomy or thick, and at no expense to the treble detail. This is a characteristic of the Fisher tube amps themselves, but indeed the modded Yamahas have a pretty similar sound with a SS amp as well. I’ll have to admit that the modded YH-1 will be the preseason favorite going in. I haven’t listened to the stock ones for a very long time.
The Stax SR-404 is on loan from fellow HeadFier Earjam. Since I sold my Stax pro bias adaptors and Stax tube amps, I will power the 404 with his Stax SRM-313 SS amp, but fed from the Telefunken 12AX7 preamp stage on the Fisher X-100B amp. The low bias Stax phones will be fed from the Fisher’s speaker taps through a Stax transformer.
Should be fun.
How did you find the Hd650? You gave it pretty high ratings in Handel's messiah. How do you find it compare to the HD600?
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