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Comparisons: 36 of the Top Closed/Portable Headphones Around
Nov 25, 2013 at 4:52 AM Post #976 of 4,373
wallaby1170 said:
  The urge to compare the KEF M500 to the Sony MDR 7520 became so intense that I ordered a pair from Amazon with overnight shipping on Friday.  Some quick first impressions of the 7520's..
 
Packaging/Presentation: The box looks durable enough but what a hassle unpacking the headphones, even more of a hassle to package them back up.  Way too much plastic to deal with.  
 
Build Quality/Aesthetics: Solid.  Photos of the headphones don't do it justice.  
 
Comfort: Very good.  Was able to listen to the headphones for three hours with no discomfort issues.  The clamping force is strong but not too strong.
 
Isolation: Good enough.  
 
Sound quality: BRIGHT!  The treble output can be borderline jarring.  Music subjected to the loudness wars is especially fatiguing.  Overall I prefer the sound signature of the M500.  The M500 is more balanced across the entire frequency spectrum.  I did most of the 7520/M500 comparison on a MacBook Pro (unamped) listening to mostly Indie Rock with a combination of apple lossless and aac 256 audio files.  The 7520s sound a lot better when plugged into a HeadRoom Ultra Desktop Amp that I use with an iMac.  The 7520 still sounded bright but the bass and the midrange sounded a lot more fuller.  
 
The 7520s are the most analytical headphones I ever listened to.  Recording flaws become very apparent especially floor noise.  The bass is where I want it to be on the 7520, very controlled, not too much, not too little.  It's hard to gauge the midrange because of the brightness of the treble.  The 7520s probably are less than ideal with my audio setup and the type of music I listen to.  I have until the end of January to decide if I want to keep the them.  Gotta love Amazon for their generous return policy.
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Thanks for your impressions :) Interesting that you call them bright. I did find them to be extremely clear sounding (as in other headphones sounding veiled), but perhaps that really is what brightness is all about. I agree on the analytical part, you will hear everything in the recording. But that makes sense, given that the target market for these headphones are audio engineers and such, who *want* to hear everything in the music when mastering a recording.
 
Also, I think the 7520 scales well with a better amp/dac.
 
Nov 25, 2013 at 1:51 PM Post #977 of 4,373
wallaby1170 said:
  The urge to compare the KEF M500 to the Sony MDR 7520 became so intense that I ordered a pair from Amazon with overnight shipping on Friday.  Some quick first impressions of the 7520's..
 
Packaging/Presentation: The box looks durable enough but what a hassle unpacking the headphones, even more of a hassle to package them back up.  Way too much plastic to deal with.  
 
Build Quality/Aesthetics: Solid.  Photos of the headphones don't do it justice.  
 
Comfort: Very good.  Was able to listen to the headphones for three hours with no discomfort issues.  The clamping force is strong but not too strong.
 
Isolation: Good enough.  
 
Sound quality: BRIGHT!  The treble output can be borderline jarring.  Music subjected to the loudness wars is especially fatiguing.  Overall I prefer the sound signature of the M500.  The M500 is more balanced across the entire frequency spectrum.  I did most of the 7520/M500 comparison on a MacBook Pro (unamped) listening to mostly Indie Rock with a combination of apple lossless and aac 256 audio files.  The 7520s sound a lot better when plugged into a HeadRoom Ultra Desktop Amp that I use with an iMac.  The 7520 still sounded bright but the bass and the midrange sounded a lot more fuller.  
 
The 7520s are the most analytical headphones I ever listened to.  Recording flaws become very apparent especially floor noise.  The bass is where I want it to be on the 7520, very controlled, not too much, not too little.  It's hard to gauge the midrange because of the brightness of the treble.  The 7520s probably are less than ideal with my audio setup and the type of music I listen to.  I have until the end of January to decide if I want to keep the them.  Gotta love Amazon for their generous return policy.
Click to expand...

Did you just receive them? In my experience, all the Sony headphones and IEMs I've tried have had literally painful treble right out of the box, but settles down nicely after a few hours of use/burn-in.
 
Nov 25, 2013 at 1:58 PM Post #978 of 4,373
blueangel2323 said:
  Did you just receive them? In my experience, all the Sony headphones and IEMs I've tried have had literally painful treble right out of the box, but settles down nicely after a few hours of use/burn-in.
Click to expand...

Can confirm, the treble does seem to have relaxed a bit after some use (ie. burn-in).
 
Nov 25, 2013 at 4:14 PM Post #980 of 4,373
Did you just receive them? In my experience, all the Sony headphones and IEMs I've tried have had literally painful treble right out of the box, but settles down nicely after a few hours of use/burn-in.


 

I received them on Saturday.  That's good to know about the treble settling down after a few hours of use.  I noticed a difference in the sound signature this morning.  The bass and especially the lower midrange is pushing forward.  Now the 7520s sound slightly bright instead of headache inducing treble which is what I was getting on Saturday.  Thanks for letting me know.  
 
Nov 26, 2013 at 9:49 PM Post #983 of 4,373
Nov 26, 2013 at 10:09 PM Post #985 of 4,373
Nov 28, 2013 at 8:13 PM Post #987 of 4,373
Just because one has more bass does not make it muddier
rolleyes.gif

 
Nov 29, 2013 at 8:29 PM Post #990 of 4,373
Just sharing a promo for the m500. Is this the best price for Black Friday?

4. 20% OFF KEF M500 with code RAZORDOG20
www.razordogaudio.com

http://www.razordogaudio.com/collections/kef/products/kef-m500-hi-fi-headphone
 
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