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Exceptional in Every Detail: Say Hello to the IE 600
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Sennheiser IE600 - First Impressions
Disclaimer: This unit was sent directly to me by Sennheiser and it is part of two tours arranged by themselves, one in Europe and one in the U.S. This unit will be sent back to Sennheiser after my assessment to be sanitized and sent to the next person in line. Sennheiser asked for nothing else but a full review and opinions, without giving any incentives or influence over them, so as always, what you are about to read are my own thoughts and opinions. Thanks once again to the Sennheiser team for giving me this opportunity.
Disclaimer no. 2: I have a personal unit coming, shipped in the beginning of April, but that seems to be lost or missing, as I have no further updates since then, and as of today, this is the first time I am hearing the IE600. Keep in mind this is a first take of a review that will be out soon, but my opinions might change over the next few days.
The ramble
Sennheiser needs no introduction. This German based company has proven over the test of time why they are considered one of the top dogs at the game - their full-size headphones are some of the most recommended and acclaimed pairs all over the internet (I still haven’t heard any, so shame on you nymz, what a joke).Last year, during the summer, the world skipped a beat, as two single-DD IEMs were announced: the now (in)famous IE300 and IE900. Sennheiser’s plan was simple: take a shot at the fabled tale of great top-tier DDs with the 900, while giving the crowd a more budget approach to taste it.
To my sadness, I never had a chance to try any of these, as only the IE900 appealed to me, but the hefty price tag did not, as it’s still $1500 for a single dynamic driver IEM. Those who had a chance to try them, mainly complained about the relatively recessed pinna gain, affecting the mid-range of the replay, while others grabbed their tinfoil hats and started speculating how there would probably be another release between the 300 and the 900 later down the road. Half a year later, the tinfoil hats were thrown into the air like students after graduation, and there was the announcement.
The Sennheiser IE600 is a 7mm single dynamic driver IEM kicking in at 700 USD (according to the official website). Following the same form factor as the other 2 predecessors and with a 3D printed shell made of a special metal, the footprint is small and the weight is marginal.
As I’ve rambled enough already for a quick take, and before we delve into what really matters, I would just like to touch on an important non-sound aspect, as the others will be fully covered in my full-review: the fit and the tips.
At first I had fit problems. I thought it was related to the small form factor but I quickly realized it wasn’t - the fit on these is heavily tip related. I was having problems even sealing with the stock tips, and at first I was bummed, as these tips have tuning foams inside it - a last line touch of tuning that Sennheiser used to achieve the intended sound. As you might guess, this is a major problem because if I’m having fit and seal problems if I move around, I need to change tips, so that would affect sound, right?
Long story short, not by much. In fact, due to the better seal I got, rolling tips into Final E (large size) open up the sound even more, giving me a sense of my controlled mid and upper treble, with more impactful bass, and as of that, the following impressions and most likely my follow review are not based on stock tips but using Final E tips. If you end up buying this, beware, as you might need to tip roll a lot.
The Tonality
I’m feeling frisky, so I will start by the end: I like these a lot. Are they perfect in the first passages? No, as in no transducer is. But I like them a lot-lot for a single dynamic.
The moment I turned this on and adjusted the volume, my reviewer instinct came in, so I knew what I was experiencing - I sitted back, relaxed and grabbed the controller.
The amount of clarity and sheer detail you get thrown at, for a single DD, it’s impactful and deserves respect. Sennheiser did it and IE600 is the most technical single DD I have experienced to date, and I knew it in the first 30 seconds of my take.
It’s actually pretty obvious how they are achieving this - besides all the work inside the shell and the driver itself, - if you look at the mid to upper treble region. I’ve been extra kinda so time to cut the candy talk and rip the band-aid: These will be too hot for some people and/or music genres.
As a lower treble sensitive person and fond of darker sets, me liking this level of elevation in the treble region surprised even myself. After further looking in the FR graph, I would attribute this to the dip from the upper mids into the lower treble, a region where it makes or breaks an IEM for me.
The boosted region, above 8k hertz, it’s tiring for long sessions, and the first thing that came to my mind was the UM Mest brothers, who instantly overloaded me with too much detail, which I appreciate, just not the usual hours I listen to music everyday. Despite this fact, I respect the hustle, as it was cleverly done in my opinion.
Everywhere by Fleetwood Mac shuffled and here I am, mesmerized by how the intro of this song could describe this set: a beautiful bunch of stardust flying around, that can be too much for some, but beautiful nonetheless.
Now, with these being a mild-V or U-shaped IEM, you can’t talk about the treble without talking about the bass and, in a word, it is goooood, especially after rolling the tips. While listening to “Playing God” by Polyphia, both aspects come alive. The level of treble presence and detail bring a new level of micro-details to the song, while the bass around the 28s drop just feels prominent. Both are a bit on the overemphasized territory in comparison to the mid-range, but still leave out a clinical taste on your lips, without bleeds whatsoever.
Tracks like “Why So Serious?” show that, just like the treble, bass extension is one of the show stoppers. At around 3 minutes and 26 seconds, the world will just rumble at your feet - funny fact, it happened to me while picking groceries.
Despite the mountain of elevation in the low end, the mid-bass is impactful but clean. It isn’t a real Slam Jam party, but it pushes some air that together with the elevation, you can bet you will feel it, but it won’t over shadow the track, at least not as much as the treble or the sub-bass. The pedal played by Elise Trouw on her live loop of “How To Get What You Want” is a nice proof of that, and correctly balanced with her voice.
Speaking of vocals, let’s quickly transition into the mid-range, or as expected, the weakest link. I will be honest, I was expecting much worse mids, and way more recessed. They are a bit recessed, but still just south of neutral to my ears. I still find the need to increase the volume a bit as I am a mid-head and on very balanced tracks like the famous version of MTV Unplugged’s “Hotel California”, where Eagles performance needs a touch more mids in comparison to the treble sparkles and the monotonous bass punch. Despite not being as balanced, it was one of my favorite replays of the track so far, so touché.
Given the ultra transparency of this mid-range, pianos sound great and very detailed, just like Hania Rani - Glass can show us - all the wood sounds are there, and just right and well separated, without a blur.
Vocals are, in my opinion, the weakest link, but despite not being anything to write home about, they are far from bad. They are transparent, clinical and very detailed. Sometimes I miss my RSV’s organic presentation, that just fits me better in this regard, but you can’t have the cake and eat it at the same time.
The female vocals sound better than male do, having more bite but without feeling ever into the shout territory (Adele - Oh My God and Lykke Li - Silent My Song). Michael Bublé’s performance on “Feeling Good” gives a slight feeling of something missing, maybe some weight and presence, again, just south of neutral.
The Intangibles
Sennheiser quality is undeniable, but let’s be realistic here, no one will be paying IE600 price just for tuning itself, as I’m still a preacher that tuning is free.So, how are the technicalities of the set? In sum, a fallacy of composition - The whole comes out as great, as some of the weakest characteristics get blended in by the others, resulting in a better outcome.
Time to rip the band aid off, once again: the stage and imaging. Soundstage is size is modest and in some tracks it may be too close to your head, showing that it could use more depth and even width. Its height, just like Imaging, feels above average, passing the test easily. The holographic representation kicks in and is very well done, precise to be exact, when the track demands it (Yosi Horikawa - Bubbles).
So how do these flaws get masked? For starters, and once again, the sheer detail is excellent, giving you a sense of micro and macro queues everywhere. Following the line, comes the dynamics of the driver, which are clearly up there with a fast tight response, with sharp transients. To close the formula, comes its timbre, something that I’ve been taking into consideration more and more nowadays, that despite not being the best in class, is well above the pack.
The wrap-up
Despite being first impressions, I feel I am now in position to say that IE600 is the most technical single dynamic driver I have experienced to date, and for that, it already comes out as a winner.
Again, every set has its flaws and Sennheiser or not, this is no exception. I feel this set won’t work with every ear and every preference, and most will find it tiring after long periods of time. This won’t be a mid-heavy set, and I found it to work much better with the electronic side of my library, like techno and house, than it did with the more relaxed tracks.
In the formal review I will compare directly and talk about how I expected this set to rival my other single DDs like the Dark Magician and Zen Pro, but I came to the conclusion they are all different sizes of the same tool, with the application and strong suits being library dependent.
To quickly answer the question I will be asked the most after reading this: Yes, I think IE600 is worth the price when compared to other sets in the market, for my tastes and library. Now, if spending hundreds on a single DD IEM is worth it, that’s up for you to decide.
To me, as a recently slave to the single DD performances, what a time to be alive!
Value Rating: 4.5 out 5. Provisional personal ranking: 9 out 10.
Disclaimer no. 3: All the notes were done through a variety of sources, but the final taker was the iFi xDSD Gryphon using the stock 4.4mm cable. If you are into that, I feel that sources on the warmer side will be a better fit for this set, but as always, YMMV.
Thanks for reading!
InvisibleInk
Headphoneus Supremus
TIL that my IE 300 is infamous! Hoo-yah!
Anyway, it seems like Sennheiser has a winner here.
Anyway, it seems like Sennheiser has a winner here.
Ahah, both IE300 and IE900 seem to be polarizing, but hey, which great sets arent?
Great review Nymz! Does the IE600 have the best bass response under 1000 bucks? Probably a toss between the IE600 and Zen Pro.
frix
500+ Head-Fier
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Those are good first impressions and are in line with how I experience the IE600 as well. People should be aware it may be the most neutral of the IE family but it's still far from being a neutral set. As a consequence it's not an allrounder. The treble being the biggest issue here. I'm using an EQ with a highself @7000hz, -4dB, Q1,25 and it's still lots of treble but helps making it more versatile.
Lightspeed12
500+ Head-Fier
Google grandado.com they have a lot of clear silocine cases. Don't take the sp1000m one out of my cart though
Hi guys! Please advise a proper DAP for sennheiser ie600. I own Astell&Kern AK JR. Like the sound, but now want to have streaming services (Deezer Hi-Fi) and more storage (ak jr supports only 64gb cards). Looking into Astell&Kern SR25 and Shanling m6 21. But have no possibility to listen to them.
Please advise, thanks in advance.
Please advise, thanks in advance.
LazyPenguin
New Head-Fier
Hi guys, not sure if this has been said yet, but please try the Symbio W Peel tips on these…. it reduces the “hot” area of the treble region while not affecting the rest of the frequencies for me (maybe a tad bit less bass?). Comfort is also greatly improved compared to stock tips. If you want alternative tips closest to the sound of the stock tips, AET07 are those tips for me. The comfort and seal is also a lot better compared to stock.
what cable is that? Can I use any MMCX cable with them?Hi guys, not sure if this has been said yet, but please try the Symbio W Peel tips on these…. it reduces the “hot” area of the treble region while not affecting the rest of the frequencies for me (maybe a tad bit less bass?). Comfort is also greatly improved compared to stock tips. If you want alternative tips closest to the sound of the stock tips, AET07 are those tips for me. The comfort and seal is also a lot better compared to stock.
That's a powerhouse rig right there!Hi guys, not sure if this has been said yet, but please try the Symbio W Peel tips on these…. it reduces the “hot” area of the treble region while not affecting the rest of the frequencies for me (maybe a tad bit less bass?). Comfort is also greatly improved compared to stock tips. If you want alternative tips closest to the sound of the stock tips, AET07 are those tips for me. The comfort and seal is also a lot better compared to stock.
The MMCX connector in the earpiece has a slightly recessed housing to add some stability. Here's a visual with measurements (applies to IE 300 / 600 / 900)
Lightspeed12
500+ Head-Fier
I use the astell&kern sp1000m for my ie600 & its perfect.
Has anyone tried ie600 with Sony NW-ZX507? How do they work together?
Last edited:
@ericpalonen What does that V66 mean on the box?
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