[Old Dirty Puppy]

Personally I would forget the Grados just based on comfort. I owned a pair of grado 325i and i hated them. I couldn't wear them for more than 20 minutes without having ear pain. If you can stretch your budget a bit I recommend a pair of HiFiMan HE400s with upgraded pads (angled HM5 pads, HiFiMan FocusPad or ZMF Ori pads). They are a very easy to drive headphone that does not require an amp. They do scale up pretty well so if you do decide to get them I would suggest getting a good DAC and amp in the future. HE400s are around 300 new but black friday is coming soon so their price may drop.

 

[orian]

Personally I would forget the Grados just based on comfort. I owned a pair of grado 325i and i hated them. I couldn't wear them for more than 20 minutes without having ear pain. If you can stretch your budget a bit I recommend a pair of HiFiMan HE400s with upgraded pads (angled HM5 pads, HiFiMan FocusPad or ZMF Ori pads). They are a very easy to drive headphone that does not require an amp. They do scale up pretty well so if you do decide to get them I would suggest getting a good DAC and amp in the future. HE400s are around 300 new but black friday is coming soon so their price may drop.

Thank you for answering
I in the end ordered the hd6xx with schiit magni 3 that should drive them well...
If i dont like the 6xx i could easly sell them again and not loose money since i got them for really cheap and look for other headphones

 

[Creeping Doom]

Been wondering about these myself , especially with the Massdrop drop going on about another 19 days . Listen to mostly metal myself , such as Amon Amarth , Orden Ogan , Nevermore , Megadeth , KISS , etc . I can get the HE-400I for about $20 more .

 

[cossix]

Been wondering about these myself , especially with the Massdrop drop going on about another 19 days . Listen to mostly metal myself , such as Amon Amarth , Orden Ogan , Nevermore , Megadeth , KISS , etc . I can get the HE-400I for about $20 more .

I would imagine the 400i being better for more aggressive music, but both deserve a good amp

 

[Creeping Doom]

I would imagine the 400i being better for more aggressive music, but both deserve a good amp

Thanks ! Leaning a bit to the 400I , it would be my first planar magnetic , & I've read it might be a better choice for metal .

 

[cossix]

Thanks ! Leaning a bit to the 400I , it would be my first planar magnetic , & I've read it might be a better choice for metal .

I haven't heard it, but I have the 650 and would agree with that statement. 650 is nice and relaxed, which makes metal less enjoyable IMO

 

[Creeping Doom]

I haven't heard it, but I have the 650 and would agree with that statement. 650 is nice and relaxed, which makes metal less enjoyable IMO

I had read about the 650's & metal , some on Reddit & a couple other sites , this site included , if my memory serves . Far as reading that here , my memory may be akin to my hair line , basically non existant I have the DT990 Pros right now . They sound great with metal , to me .

 

[ProtegeManiac]

Thanks ! Leaning a bit to the 400I , it would be my first planar magnetic , & I've read it might be a better choice for metal .

It has a lot less to do with driver type and more with your preferences.

A lot of people don't like the Sennheiser HD6xx series for metal because they're "too laid back." They'd recommend Grados instead, and relegate the Sennheisers for jazz.

But on symphonic power metal with all those layers of instruments going on, the peaks on Grados' response coupled with non-existent imaging makes everything sound like the band is throwing everything off the stage and onto the audience (you). Think of playing Street Fighter as first person view VR and you're up against E.Honda who then starts using his fast hand slaps.

By contrast less layered music like smooth jazz and vocal jazz actually sound great out of Grados if you don't mind not having any attempt at imaging. Not exactly high fidelity given the response curve but they impart a degree of raw-ness that boosts the midrange and makes the vocals stand out more.

 

[Creeping Doom]

It has a lot less to do with driver type and more with your preferences.

A lot of people don't like the Sennheiser HD6xx series for metal because they're "too laid back." They'd recommend Grados instead, and relegate the Sennheisers for jazz.

But on symphonic power metal with all those layers of instruments going on, the peaks on Grados' response coupled with non-existent imaging makes everything sound like the band is throwing everything off the stage and onto the audience (you). Think of playing Street Fighter as first person view VR and you're up against E.Honda who then starts using his fast hand slaps.

By contrast less layered music like smooth jazz and vocal jazz actually sound great out of Grados if you don't mind not having any attempt at imaging. Not exactly high fidelity given the response curve but they impart a degree of raw-ness that boosts the midrange and makes the vocals stand out more.

Never been thrown off the stage , at least by my own accord . I do remember falling off a couple times as a roadie for my friends back in the day . Anyhow , When I primarily used my HD598SE's , I could articulate everything in the music , no problems . As for my DT990 Pros , same there , with more bass , & the highs are super sharp , to the point of giving me a headache on more than one occasion (despite being eq'd) , last week being the most recent . In contrast , my 598SE's did none of that , & the sound is/was ok . Last night , just as a goof , I broke my Superlux HD330's out of mothballs , & did a quick a/b with my DT990Pro's . To me , the only major difference , was the highs weren't quite as , I guess I could say , clear in their quality .

Back to topic (sorry) , I realize preference is subjective . Based on all that I have read , I would probably be quite content with the HD6XX for my needs . As for the possibility of the HE-400I , it was/is a thought , based on reading reviews . I have an amp that is considered by some as "entry level" ( a Bravo Audio Ocean . Don't laugh too hard , it's all I could afford at the time . My family ALWAYS comes first) . I can power my DT990 Pro's out of my speaker's control pod just fine , but I imagine the HD6XX are probably more demanding . Perhaps a new tube for my amp (have a Sylvania vintage 60's military spec tube . Haven't used the amp in ages it seems) would help . I can eq with my sound card & music player .

 

[Monsterzero]

I had read about the 650's & metal , some on Reddit & a couple other sites , this site included , if my memory serves . Far as reading that here , my memory may be akin to my hair line , basically non existant I have the DT990 Pros right now . They sound great with metal , to me .

The HD650 isnt a great choice for metal,for reasons listed above,and for the fact that they can sound muddy if youre into faster genres of metal(speed,thrash,death,melodeath)
I also did not like the DT990 for metal.Found the mids to lack texture and were too recessed,but since you do like em you might give the 400i a shot,as theyre both a brighter headphone vs. HD650.

Lots of folks like the Meze 99s,original HE-400 and HE-560s for metal.I prefer the ZMF Atticus and AKG K240 sextetts for metal.I just did a video review of the Sextetts(link in my signature below)

 

[ProtegeManiac]

Never been thrown off the stage , at least by my own accord . I do remember falling off a couple times as a roadie for my friends back in the day

Well I did say everything. Technically, the roadies are not "things."

Perhaps another mental image can help. The way the sound comes at the listener kinda feels like this.

Or this for those of us on the other side of Iran (and share their choice of primary weapon before gunpowder came along).

Last night , just as a goof , I broke my Superlux HD330's out of mothballs , & did a quick a/b with my DT990Pro's . To me , the only major difference , was the highs weren't quite as , I guess I could say , clear in their quality .

That has to do with the really strong bass response (something in common with the HD650, just worse) as well as the spiky response curve (something in common with Grados, but as with the other, also slightly worse). This doesn't clear up which way to go though since it basically takes both kinds' weaknesses and makes them worse, albeit for $50 it's a good headphone (as opposed to a slightly smoother but narrower response with an early bass roll off that sounds worse with just a little bit of peakiness in the high frequencies, aka some cheaper monitoring headphones).

Back to topic (sorry) , I realize preference is subjective . Based on all that I have read , I would probably be quite content with the HD6XX for my needs . As for the possibility of the HE-400I , it was/is a thought , based on reading reviews . I have an amp that is considered by some as "entry level" ( a Bravo Audio Ocean . Don't laugh too hard , it's all I could afford at the time . My family ALWAYS comes first) . I can power my DT990 Pro's out of my speaker's control pod just fine , but I imagine the HD6XX are probably more demanding . Perhaps a new tube for my amp (have a Sylvania vintage 60's military spec tube . Haven't used the amp in ages it seems) would help . I can eq with my sound card & music player .

If you have teh 250ohm DT990 the HD6XX will be comparable if not easier to drive. It's 300ohms but the extra ~2dB/1mW of sensitivity more than makes up for that. That said, I'd much rather drive either with the Bravo Ocean than the "speaker pod," which I assume is a control knob with a headphone output for a multimedia speaker.

 

[Creeping Doom]

Well I did say everything. Technically, the roadies are not "things."

Perhaps another mental image can help. The way the sound comes at the listener kinda feels like this.

Or this for those of us on the other side of Iran (and share their choice of primary weapon before gunpowder came along).

That has to do with the really strong bass response (something in common with the HD650, just worse) as well as the spiky response curve (something in common with Grados, but as with the other, also slightly worse). This doesn't clear up which way to go though since it basically takes both kinds' weaknesses and makes them worse, albeit for $50 it's a good headphone (as opposed to a slightly smoother but narrower response with an early bass roll off that sounds worse with just a little bit of peakiness in the high frequencies, aka some cheaper monitoring headphones).




If you have teh 250ohm DT990 the HD6XX will be comparable if not easier to drive. It's 300ohms but the extra ~2dB/1mW of sensitivity more than makes up for that. That said, I'd much rather drive either with the Bravo Ocean than the "speaker pod," which I assume is a control knob with a headphone output for a multimedia speaker.

Well aware I am , that a roadie is more than a "thing" . I remember busting my backside for my friends . I got to see the show , & hang with my friends , that was enough . I did get what you were going after , but do quite appreciate the visuals . I do have the 250 ohm DT990's . Should've specified . Your assumption is pretty much spot on . My "speaker pod" is a control pod for a set of Boston Acoustics 5.1 speakers , that were included with some higher end Gateway built computers back in the day . I found a Mullard tube cheap enough for my Bravo Ocean , $25 I think . A Genelex Gold Lion was another $10 , & I found a Slyvania made tube used in Ballwin organs .