Got the HD600s (formerly pulling the trigger thread)
Jun 27, 2008 at 10:15 AM Post #31 of 204
I just came back from listening then switching back and forth between both cans (ad2k and hd600).

Let me first say that these cans are the new version with the white material near the drivers. Ive had the old 580s before (around 1993) and this just blows those away to oblivion... Unless my taste has changed so much in 15 years or my audiolab is a match made in heaven for these. These HD600s are just right in perspective plus they are tighter and more coherent sounding than the more laid back 580s from memory. These are also more extended in the highs. Bottom line is that I prefered my sr80s to my hd580s at the time while these make all the grados ive had pure doodoo. Of course thats not much of a statement since ive only owned sr60s,80s, and ms1s and heard the 325s

Now lets compare them with the AD2000. What can I say? I'm blown away. These hd600s just sound right. They sound natural. They seem to be the headphone my ad2000 tries to be when I eq them in rockbox hehehe. Now when listening to audio cds out of my audiolab amps headphone jack... The ad2000s are FAST, TIGHT, SNAPPY, yes, yes yes.... But... The instruments playing on the hd600 sound REAL, REAL, REAL with a slight touch of cream aaaaahhhh. I always loved my hd595s for its relative neutrality vs the ad2000 but it lacked punch and sounded weird with Rock. With the hd600s, goodbye 595 weaknesses with all its strengths improved. Listening to a really great piano solo on jacintha's "moon river" is startlingly real sounding on the hd600! They sound flat and fake on the ad2000. I already want to say "AD2k for sale". Trying out madonna, patricia barber, phil collins, etc... has showed me the extension of the senns highs vs the muffled ad2k. Vocals are so clear and seductive on the hd600s ooooh. One thing the ad2ks do though is give snap and crunch to drums where the hd600s seem a little soft in comparison. The attack on bass/upright bass is punchier on the ad2ks but.... The ad2k gives this artificial sounding slam to all music which is not a good thing. The artificial thing the senns add is not a veil but a slight creaminess. I hear NO VEIL on the hd600s. The AD2000 is veiled and muffled in comparison. The only time that artificial hard snap of the ad2k is welcomed is with old recordings of funk music like weather report and the like.

In the end, I never wanted to take the hd600s off with any music while the ad2ks were like yeah ok "snappy, punchy"... skip to the next song

Now Guess Which One wins for Me
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One Thing to Add... These probably aren't even fully burned in
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MORE IMPRESSIONS ON POST#74
 
Jun 27, 2008 at 11:13 AM Post #34 of 204
Ok, it didn't take me many songs to hear a little veil on the hd600s directly out of the ipod. But then again the ad2000 gets veiled on the ipod also. Its not the cans fault. Volume on the hd600s though is not quite enough for active listening. Only good enough for bedtime volumes. The ad2k is freakin loud on the ipod. Whats weird though is that the ad2ks are not much more sensitive than the hd600s coming out of my audiolab integrated. They seem to be close in sensitivity to my sr60s from the amp while the grados are louder than the senns on the ipod.

I would Not recommended the hd600s to those without any form of external amp. Unless I hit the jackpot of synergy with the audiolabs, I can say that they don't seem to be picky of amps as long as you have one.
 
Jun 27, 2008 at 12:23 PM Post #36 of 204
Instead of playing cds, I connected my ipod via cheap line out cable(nyko) to the audiolab amp and did some listening. Wow, the hd600 reveals flaws in mp3s you wouldn't notice on the ad2ks. I think it is because of the ad2ks rolled off highs. Anyway, CDs sound better but even though flaws are revealed... They are served to you in a very creamy and forgiving sennheiser style mmmmm delicious. AD2k is definitely punchier and will actually benefit from the ipods slightly softer sound than my harder more defined sounding cd player. Listened to A-ha's 2003 live album on mp3 and the ad2000 gives it a realistic rock concert live punch the hd600s lacked. But...hehehe I feel it is a fluke. The recording isn't audiophile by any means and just happened to match better with the ad2ks. The ad2ks basically colors the sound of the a-ha cd to sound better than the hd600s.

I'm gonna try harder to like the ad2ks looking for more possible cds that it can sound better at but it looks like it doesn't really matter that much now since it failed in my critical preference of correct timbre of instruments.

AD2000 Goodbye, Off you go to the Sale Forums
 
Jun 27, 2008 at 2:08 PM Post #38 of 204
Quote:

Originally Posted by donunus /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Let me first say that these cans are the new version with the white material near the drivers. Ive had the old 580s before (around 1993) and this just blows those away to oblivion... Unless my taste has changed so much in 15 years or my audiolab is a match made in heaven for these. These HD600s are just right in perspective plus they are tighter and more coherent sounding than the more laid back 580s from memory...


Well... that would be the "old" version of the HD580s, and a different set up. The "old" version of the HD600s were the same.

The "new" version of the HD580/600s sound the same... and... they do not have the rolled off, laid back, veiled sound of the "old" version - much more like what you describe.
 
Jun 27, 2008 at 2:22 PM Post #39 of 204
Quote:

Originally Posted by donunus /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Now lets compare them with the AD2000. What can I say? I'm blown away. These hd600s just sound right. They sound natural. They seem to be the headphone my ad2000 tries to be when I eq them in rockbox hehehe. Now when listening to audio cds out of my audiolab amps headphone jack... The ad2000s are FAST, TIGHT, SNAPPY, yes, yes yes.... But... The instruments playing on the hd600 sound REAL, REAL, REAL with a slight touch of cream aaaaahhhh. I always loved my hd595s for its relative neutrality vs the ad2000 but it lacked punch and sounded weird with Rock. With the hd600s, goodbye 595 weaknesses with all its strengths improved. Listening to a really great piano solo on jacintha's "moon river" is startlingly real sounding on the hd600! They sound flat and fake on the ad2000. I already want to say "AD2k for sale". Trying out madonna, patricia barber, phil collins, etc... has showed me the extension of the senns highs vs the muffled ad2k. Vocals are so clear and seductive on the hd600s ooooh. One thing the ad2ks do though is give snap and crunch to drums where the hd600s seem a little soft in comparison. The attack on bass/upright bass is punchier on the ad2ks but.... The ad2k gives this artificial sounding slam to all music which is not a good thing. The artificial thing the senns add is not a veil but a slight creaminess. I hear NO VEIL on the hd600s. The AD2000 is veiled and muffled in comparison. The only time that artificial hard snap of the ad2k is welcomed is with old recordings of funk music like weather report and the like...


The HD580/600s do have a bit warmer, richer, more weighty sound than the AD2000s, which have a bit faster, cleaner sound.

The AD2000s, with the right setup, have lots of tight bass with impact, and have a precise, detailed, clarity, with lots of space and air around the instruments - without being veiled, or muffled... none whatsoever - very much like the Stax phones.

They tend to separate the sounds better than the HD580/600s... the AD2000s seldom sound "congested" with complex pieces. In that respect, as well as their speed, PRAT and clarity, they sound more like the RS-1s, than the HD580/600s. In fact... the AD2000s sound very much like a combination of the RS-1s and HD580/600s.

But... like the RS-1s, they do benefit from a low impedance amp, which can provide lots of current, in contrast to the HD580/600s, which need lots of voltage to sound their best.
 
Jun 27, 2008 at 6:29 PM Post #40 of 204
Quote:

Originally Posted by Gradofan2 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
The HD580/600s do have a bit warmer, richer, more weighty sound than the AD2000s, which have a bit faster, cleaner sound.

The AD2000s, with the right setup, have lots of tight bass with impact, and have a precise, detailed, clarity, with lots of space and air around the instruments - without being veiled, or muffled... none whatsoever - very much like the Stax phones.

They tend to separate the sounds better than the HD580/600s... the AD2000s seldom sound "congested" with complex pieces. In that respect, as well as their speed, PRAT and clarity, they sound more like the RS-1s, than the HD580/600s. In fact... the AD2000s sound very much like a combination of the RS-1s and HD580/600s.

But... like the RS-1s, they do benefit from a low impedance amp, which can provide lots of current, in contrast to the HD580/600s, which need lots of voltage to sound their best.


x2

From what I've tried, AD2000 really like tube amp such as Single Power and Millett. With my previous own Corda Opera, AD2000 sounds surprisingly great too.
smily_headphones1.gif
 
Jun 27, 2008 at 6:45 PM Post #41 of 204
Quote:

Originally Posted by Gradofan2 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
The HD580/600s do have a bit warmer, richer, more weighty sound than the AD2000s, which have a bit faster, cleaner sound.

The AD2000s, with the right setup, have lots of tight bass with impact, and have a precise, detailed, clarity, with lots of space and air around the instruments - without being veiled, or muffled... none whatsoever - very much like the Stax phones.

They tend to separate the sounds better than the HD580/600s... the AD2000s seldom sound "congested" with complex pieces. In that respect, as well as their speed, PRAT and clarity, they sound more like the RS-1s, than the HD580/600s. In fact... the AD2000s sound very much like a combination of the RS-1s and HD580/600s.

But... like the RS-1s, they do benefit from a low impedance amp, which can provide lots of current, in contrast to the HD580/600s, which need lots of voltage to sound their best.



The hd600 sounds more weighty at the bottom but is airier at the same time because of the upper highs having more extension than the ad2ks. I think the AT flavor midrange coloration is what turns me off most with the ad2000. It has a headphoney "cupped" sound to it that made me describe them as having a hornlike coloration in my ad2000 thread. This is what congests the mids.
 
Jun 27, 2008 at 7:23 PM Post #42 of 204
Quote:

Originally Posted by WittyzTH /img/forum/go_quote.gif
x2

From what I've tried, AD2000 really like tube amp such as Single Power and Millett. With my previous own Corda Opera, AD2000 sounds surprisingly great too.
smily_headphones1.gif



No doubt the ad2ks are great cans, they just sound unnatural compared to the hd600.
 
Jun 27, 2008 at 8:00 PM Post #44 of 204
That and probably your tastes have evolved.

Actually, donunus. If you really like HD600 even in single-ended mode (they do change quite a bit when balanced), you should really consider at least trying Stax SRS-005a pairing (doubt you can just 'try' Omega 2). I am saying this because I find tonalities HD600 and the Stax SR-003 very very similar, but SR-003 holds the technical superiority by a large margin (much faster, more detailed, higher resolution, and better extension downwards).
 
Jun 27, 2008 at 10:29 PM Post #45 of 204
Malo MaloS Malo Malo Bad Bad hehehe wallet wallet run run
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hahaha anyway now I'm getting trade offers for my ad2000s. hmmm what amp would make the hd600 stay juicy and wouldnt color them. Im getting offers like gilmore lite with dps and the cayin HA-1A
 
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