The Sennheiser HD 800 S Anniversary Edition
(Descended From The Headphone That Crashed Head-Fi For A Day)
The Sennheiser HD 800 (2009)
At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January, 2009, Sennheiser unveiled what was one of the most significant headphones launched since Head-Fi's founding in 2001 -- the Sennheiser HD 800. What made the Sennheiser HD800 so momentous was the incredible engineering that went into it, resulting in technical performance from an electrodynamic headphone that had not been previously achieved.
The HD800 employed the first-ever (in a headphone) ring radiator driver -- a headphone driver type that is still solely the domain of the HD800 and its siblings (the HD800S and the HD820). In my opinion, the sheer technical performance of the Sennheiser ring radiator driver remained unchallenged in the realm of electrodynamic headphones for
many years after its launch.
To attain the performance levels they wanted from the HD800 meant Sennheiser had to sell it for a price that was far more expensive than other electrodynamic headphones then, with a retail price of around $1500. Keep in mind this meant there was a kilobuck-wide canyon in pricing between the new HD800 flagship and the $500 HD650 that it displaced at the top of their line. This was also market-transforming, as the HD800's pricing forever shifted the price our community was willing to pay for flagship headphone performance in significant quantities.
In order to get the first listen to the HD800 at CES, a staff member of one of the exhibiting companies let me borrow his name badge so that I could sneak into Sennheiser's exhibit during show setup. (The last name on that name badge was Cohen, which had some friends at Sennheiser laughing, as it's fair to say I probably don't look like most Cohens.)
When CES finally opened and the HD800 was formally announced, my early listen gave me the opportunity to post the very first news and impressions of the new Sennheiser HD800. And it literally crippled Head-Fi, that one thread bringing our servers to their knees. You see, back in 2009, our little servers were simply not suited to shoulder the traffic load that one thread generated in the hours following the launch. Those who remember browsing Head-Fi that day probably remember the site was crashing constantly. All day I was on the phone with the guys back in Michigan who were desperately (and mostly unsuccessfully) trying to keep the site up.
Here are a couple of photos I took on the official opening day of CES 2009:
(Above) Tyll Hertsens (then of HeadRoom Corporation, later the editor of InnerFidelity, and now retired) listens to the Sennheiser HD800 for the first time.
(Above) Drew Baird of Moon Audio was listening to one HD800 while holding another HD800 to figure out how Moon Audio would make aftermarket cables for it.
The Sennheiser HD 800S (2015)
In October 2015, I went to the Fujiya Avic Tokyo Headphone Festival for the surprise launch of the Sennheiser HD800S. Axel Grell (then of Sennheiser, and the lead behind the HD800, HD800S, and many other Sennheiser headphones) let me borrow a pre-production HD800S for a couple of nights in my hotel room.
According to Axel Grell, when asked to describe the differences between the HD800 and HD800S, said:
"The HD800S is an improved version of the HD800. It has an acoustical absorber like the IE 800, and as a result the frequency response that is more extended, but smoother--fewer peaks. Also, the low-bass is also more extended--not necessarily more bass, but deeper extension."
Upon listening to the HD800S, I strongly preferred it to the HD800, with treble I found to be every bit as detailed as the HD800, but with significant refinement and smoothness up top. To this day, the Sennheiser HD800S remains one of my favorite headphones of all time, still a
very strong performer in a market that's grown increasingly (and fiercely) competitive at the flagship level.
Here are some photos from that Tokyo trip, including the first public photos ever posted of the HD800S with its drivers exposed:
(Above) A pre-production Sennheiser HD800S in my hotel room that Axel Grell let me borrow to get a first listen in Tokyo.
(Above) Axel Grell, then with Sennheiser
(Above) Axel Grell held the HD800S for the first-ever public photos of the Sennheiser HD800S's exposed drivers.
The Sennheiser HD 800S Anniversary Edition (2020)
Sennheiser was founded in 1945, and as part of the celebration of their 75th Anniversary, Sennheiser will be unveiling a Sennheiser HD 800S Anniversary Edition limited to only 750 units worldwide. This special edition HD800S comes in an exclusive matte gold colorway, and each unit is laser-engraved with the individual serial number on the headband.
Sennheiser surprised us at Head-Fi HQ with one of the HD 800S Anniversary Edition headphones. (We only learned of it very shortly before it arrived.) Given how tightly woven the HD800 and HD800S are in our community's fabric -- and how important those models are to me personally in my journey in this hobby and industry -- I'm absolutely thrilled about this one. Thank you, Sennheiser.
Following are some photos we took of the HD 800 S Anniversary Edition. Happy 75th Anniversary, Sennheiser!
