[labratoire]

Hi,
 
I've got 2 questions. Is there any coloration in sound of ESP 950? & Is there any warmness in the sound, like the sound of HD600?
 
Thanks in advance

 

[obobskivich]

Hi,

I've got 2 questions. Is there any coloration in sound of ESP 950? & Is there any warmness in the sound, like the sound of HD600?

Thanks in advance

Coloration - very minimal. There is no "ideal sound" and they certainly do not sound the same as live music or the spoken word, but they get pretty close (probably as close as you're gonna realistically get). They, like any 'stat and a few rare dynamics, have a more "ethereal" presentation, which makes things sound very light and airy (you "pluck" notes out of the air); that might be "colored" for some (especially if your reference is something like a Grado or AT that has a very congested/closed-in midrange).

Warmness - it's there, but nowhere near the level of the HD 600. They're much lighter and more balanced, and the tilt is a lot less dramatic. They sound like a grown up HD 600 (that's a really rough and bad analogy) - you get more detail at either extreme, and the mids are more present; they aren't *as* warm as a result. But they aren't cold or perfect flat either (I'd consider cold to be something like the MDR-SA5000, and flat to be something like the HD 595 or K701, to the point of sounding almost lifeless). They're somewhat "happy" though - like the HD 600, and as a result, fairly forgiving of minor flaws in a recording or compression. The HD 580/600 is probably the closest "fit" to the ESP/950 you'll find in a dynamic (the MDR-F1 is closer in terms of etheral/effortless-ness), but the ESP/950 have better extension, speed, impact, and staging. They just do everything better (to varrying degrees - for example they don't *tons* more bass impact, but it is there; they have much better mids though).

 

[hodgjy]

People keep calling the HD600 as warm.  I disagree with this.  I don't think it's warm.  I would describe it as smooth and laid back because of the slightly rolled off treble.  But it doesn't have an overly warm presentation and I would call it neutral.  I think people call it warm because it isn't as clinical as the DT880 (and others), so it seems warm in comparison. 
 
I guess we all hear things differently.
 

 

[labratoire]

Thanks obobskivich.
 
After reading tons of threads/reviews here and there, If I want to conclude briefly:
 
AirinessT880>ESP950>HE400>HD600
DeatilednessT880>ESP950>HD600>HE400
NeutralityT880>ESP950/HD600>HE400
AccuracyT880/HD600/ESP950>HE400
Soundstage Depth:ESP950>HD600>DT880>HE400
Soundstage WidthT880>ESP950>HD600>HE400
Sub-bass:HE400>DT880>ESP950 & HD600
Bass Impact:HE400>HD600>DT880>ESP950
Bass Quality:ESP950>DT880>HE400>HD600
Mids Quality:ESP950>HD600>DT880>HE400
Treble ImapctT880>ESP950>HE400>HD600
Treble Quality:ESP950>DT880>HE400>HD600
Warm to Cold:HD600>HE400>ESP950>DT880
Coloration:HE400>HD600>ESP950>DT880
FatigueT880>ESP950>HE400>HD600
Instrument Separation:HE400>DT880 & HD600
Imaging:?
Center area:?
Build QualityT880>HD600>HE400>ESP950
Comfort:ESP 950>DT880>HD600>HE400
 
Is there anything wrong in my personal conclusion?
 

 

[obobskivich]

People keep calling the HD600 as warm.  I disagree with this.  I don't think it's warm.  I would describe it as smooth and laid back because of the slightly rolled off treble.  But it doesn't have an overly warm presentation and I would call it neutral.  I think people call it warm because it isn't as clinical as the DT880 (and others), so it seems warm in comparison. 

I guess we all hear things differently.

 

I could agree with this as well. The HD 580/600 (and the ESP/950) are imho fairly neutral all things considered, but I'd say they're slightly tilted towards warmth. They're somewhat off-centered if you will. There are certainly much warmer headphones out there. It's all relative.

Thanks obobskivich.

After reading tons of threads/reviews here and there, If I want to conclude briefly:

AirinessT880>ESP950>HE400>HD600

DeatilednessT880>ESP950>HD600>HE400

NeutralityT880>ESP950/HD600>HE400

AccuracyT880/HD600/ESP950>HE400

Soundstage Depth:ESP950>HD600>DT880>HE400

Soundstage WidthT880>ESP950>HD600>HE400

Sub-bass:HE400>DT880>ESP950 & HD600

Bass Impact:HE400>HD600>DT880>ESP950

Bass Quality:ESP950>DT880>HE400>HD600

Mids Quality:ESP950>HD600>DT880>HE400

Treble ImapctT880>ESP950>HE400>HD600

Treble Quality:ESP950>DT880>HE400>HD600

Warm to Cold:HD600>HE400>ESP950>DT880

Coloration:HE400>HD600>ESP950>DT880

FatigueT880>ESP950>HE400>HD600

Instrument Separation:HE400>DT880 & HD600

Imaging:?

Center area:?
Build QualityT880>HD600>HE400>ESP950

Comfort:ESP 950>DT880>HD600>HE400

Is there anything wrong in my personal conclusion?

 

Probably a lot is wrong with that, I'd say go out and try them for yourself and decide based on the experience - building comparisons based on mixed user reviews is usually like building your house in the middle of a hurricane, you're chasing a moving reference.

 

[labratoire]

Quote:

Probably a lot is wrong with that, I'd say go out and try them for yourself and decide based on the experience - building comparisons based on mixed user reviews is usually like building your house in the middle of a hurricane, you're chasing a moving reference.

Really? Can you tel me some of my mistakes, please? I've only heard DT880 & HE400.

 

[obobskivich]

Like I said, the best advice is for you to try things out on your own and form your own opinion based on experience.

But the quick'n'dirty is that you won't find a dynamic that can beat up on a 'stat in terms of speed, accuracy, etc and I think you're reducing very complex systems to overly simple comparisons. There is no simple linear answer where you can rank every headphone out there. You can compare A to B. But not A to B to C to D to E to F etc.

 

[amigomatt]

Quote:

Really? Can you tel me some of my mistakes, please? I've only heard DT880 & HE400.

And which do you prefer?  These are the very 2 phones I'm considering upgrading to from my HD598s - http://www.head-fi.org/t/641390/disappointed-with-my-sennheiser-hd598s-thoughts-about-this