[Uncle Erik]

I didn't like the HD-650 until I got the Zana. That changed everything. I haven't heard a Woo amp, but I strongly suggest you wait for it before making a final judgment. Amplified correctly, the HD-650 is wonderful.

 

[saintalfonzo]

If you're looking for the mids to shine you went with the wrong cans

 

[mcmyers]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jon L /img/forum/go_quote.gif x4. Even with extreme source and $$$$ balanced amps, HD650 at best sounds "OK, good" to me.

I think it's all a matter of preference. My HD650s sound decent to me even out of my iPod and they're the best thing I've ever heard out of my Predator, even though that's apparently not even close to doing them justice. But that may be because I prefer a darker sound. If you don't like their sound signature, you may not like them no matter how you amp them. I have heard that they scale better than almost any other headphone in their price range, but I wouldn't spend too much time trying to fix their sound with an amp. If you don't like them out of the darkvoice, just sell them here and get something else.

 

[Deadneddz]

i found the hd 595s to be too veiled for me.

Will the 650s worse since they sound even darker?

im thinking audio technica ad2000, or stax

Those REALLY INTEREST me

 

[LUMIERE]

I agree too... the 650's have never really come around for me either. I've got several hundred hours on mine... and frankly from the beginning I was not all that enamored with the sound.
Yes, they will change a bit after burn in... but the sennheiser veil will still be there... you can alleviate some of that with aftermarket cabling, and removing some of the foam... but, it's still not the cat's meow.

They are great headphones for many... but, it's a personal thing for everyone and what someone else hears or values in terms of sound is very dependent on many factors.

 

[ADD]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcmyers /img/forum/go_quote.gif If you don't like their sound signature, you may not like them no matter how you amp them.

I think is very true. The thing with the HD650 is that whilst it is not accurate, to many it can sound good, perhaps because in many cases it attempts to compensate for the (mostly) very poor audio engineering standards employed in recordings. It certainly would be a very poor choice for monitoring a live recording though, since by doing so I would end up with a terribly unbalanced recording.

I think the best way I can describe the HD650 is that it tells a lie, it's just that happens to be a lie that many people seem to want to hear. For me, I would rather have a headphone that is accurate to the soure material and then expend the effort on getting the source and source material right - rather than smoothering the source in um...sauce.

 

[GreatDane]

This certainly isn't a love thread for the HD 650

My HD 650 is my most listened to HP. It does everything right for my ears. It's a good thing we don't all have the same ears.

This place would be pretty boring if we did.

 

[McPanse]

I'm still somehwhat agnostic on the whole burn in debate if only because I've never subjected the proposition to proper empirical scrutiny. But I will tell you this: when I first got my Beyer DT-880s a few weeks ago, I was completely underwhelmed, preferring my Grado SR-60s that I've had about a year. Well, I took the advice I read here and left them on all night a couple days in a row. They grew on me, I'll tell you that much. People here talk about headphones opening up after they've been running x number of hours. With some recordings they sound fantastic. I couldn't ask for more (at least not without sounding greedy). At other times, however, they left me completely underwhelmed.

The Beyers are my first taste of the "high end" so I don't really know how much more to expect. I know I bought them because they were highly rated in some quarters (mixed reviews here, to be honest) and Amazon was selling them for a great price.

But I hate to be penny wise and pound foolish so today I ordered a pair of Sennheiser HD-600s upon recommendations here. They're due to arrive Monday which will give me the better part of two weeks to evaluate them before having to return the DT-880s.


Sure, I'll eat the return shipping on one or the other. But $20 is a small price to pay to get the sound you're looking for.

So to sum up, give them a week or more. If they still don't trip your trigger, try something else. Hopefully you bought them from a dealer that permits returns. Even if it costs you $20 or so in "wasted" shipping, just stop and remind yourself how easy it is these days to waste $20 (Non-U.S friends, can do the conversions here: Currency Converter for 164 Currencies).

 

[Audio-Omega]

What are those accurate headphones ?

 

[Golden Monkey]

You haters are nuts, lol...

The HD650 is not perfect, but what the hell is? They sound great with almost everything (musicwise) in my system...They are detailed without sounding dry or brittle (K701), warm without sounding slow, deep articulate bass without sounding muddy...a great phone, but I can see how they wouldn't be everyone's fave...

 

[rds]

I'll add that I think the hd650 is a wonderful headphone, and I have no love for Sennheiser.

 

[olblueyez]

No Amp = No Good Sound! Wait!

 

[Nocturnal310]

Guess what ... I plugged newly arrived HD650 into a portable Amp (GoVibe Magnum) ...still they sounded dull.


so dont judge HD650 without an Amp.

 

[QQQ]

Hd 650 can't sound terrible. Even out of weakest dap.

 

[ast]

After I got HD600, I haven't listened to HD650 for a long time. My impression was the same with many others --- HD650 is a little too 'dark' and the mid is noticeably recessed.

You know what, I pull out HD650 tonight and I'm listening to it as I'm writing this post, A/B'ing with HD600, I suddenly DON'T feel 650 is dark anymore!!! 650 is a little less efficient than 600 so need to turn up the volume a little. So when I run both out of the same amp, that won't work as 600 will sound louder. Now I plug them into two separate amp then try my best to match the sound level, viola, 650 sounds great!

Life is a mystery......