[stevenlongs]

Thanks for the write up palmfish

 

[VALIENTE]

Quote:

My conclusions by the end of the day were clear:
 
4. The Sennheiser HD 600 is still a terrific headphone. You can spend a lot more money and still not necessarily get better sound.
Tune in next week for my opinion of powering the HiFiMAN headphones from 130WPC speaker taps!

 
Palmfish, what rate will you give to HD 600 when compared to HE 500 in terms of performance? Say, 1 as the least and 10 as the best. 

 

[Mad Dude]

Quote:

My conclusions by the end of the day were clear: [...]

 
Thanks for the excellent write-up. I'm always very glad to see comparisons/reviews with a reasonably objective approach (level matching!) and without the usual excitement about how awesome such-and-such equipment is. Head-Fi needs more of this.

 

[palmfish]

"Palmfish, what rate will you give to HD 600 when compared to HE 500 in terms of performance? Say, 1 as the least and 10 as the best."
 
That's tough to say. There are things that each does better than the other, and it is very subjective. I prefer the frequency response of the HD600 for it's better balance, but the HE-500 is more "fun" with more authoritative bass and slightly smoother and more refined sound. The HE-500 suffers in comparison for it's bloated midrange (which some enjoy as lushness, but I personally find tubby sounding). If I was forced to give each one a single number, I would rate the HD600 a 7.5 and the HE-500 a 7. The Denon D2000 also gets a 7.5 and the D7000 I give an 8.
 
"palm have you measured impedance of both pairs?"
 
No, I have not measured impedance.
 
Here is a chart that includes the HD600 (aqua trace):

 

[.Sup]

HE-500 is more detailed than HD600.

 

[palmfish]

That's a matter of opinion.

 

[Misterrogers]

As is most of what we deal with in this hobby 

 

[LugBug1]

Nope, it's mostly Tyll's opinions

 

[Zoom25]

Anybody tried out the HE-500 with Little Dot 1+ and Little Dot Mk VII?
 

 

[palmfish]

I assembled my XLR to banana plug cable today and finally got to sample my HE-500's from my receivers speaker taps.
 
It sounds exactly the same as the headphone jack to me.
 
Funny thing though, I was traveling for work all week and didn't listen to any music while I was gone. So I assembled the cable and started listening to my go-to tracks with the HE-500's. All those treble details I couldn't hear last week - now I can hear them today. The mids still sound a little thick to me, but possibly not quite as thick as before.
 
And so it goes...


Edit: So, a couple hours later and I couldn't resist and switched to my D7000's for a comparison. Definitely sounded bright to me, and I didn't listen to them long enough to acclimate. Switched back to the HE-500's and once again they sounded a little dull and bloated. I kept listening for a while until my brief exposure to the D7000's "wore off" and the HE-500's sounded balanced again.

If this isn't an example of the brain compensating, I don't know what is.

Another thing I'm considering now is the Fletcher Munson Curve. I do tend to listen at modest levels (about 80-85 dB), and I'm starting to think that these two headphones are tuned for a different listening volume. The HE-500's do sound dull when played more quietly and seem to wake up when I crank up the volume. The D7000's on the other hand, sound lively and dynamic (without any exaggeration) at the lower volumes I normally use. I'm going to think about this more as I continue to listen and compare them over the next few days.

 

[captouch]

Quote:

I assembled my XLR to banana plug cable today and finally got to sample my HE-500's from my receivers speaker taps.
 
It sounds exactly the same as the headphone jack to me.
 
Funny thing though, I was traveling for work all week and didn't listen to any music while I was gone. So I assembled the cable and started listening to my go-to tracks with the HE-500's. All those treble details I couldn't hear last week - now I can hear them today. The mids still sound a little thick to me, but possibly not quite as thick as before.
 
And so it goes...

Edit: So, a couple hours later and I couldn't resist and switched to my D7000's for a comparison. Definitely sounded bright to me, and I didn't listen to them long enough to acclimate. Switched back to the HE-500's and once again they sounded a little dull and bloated. I kept listening for a while until my brief exposure to the D7000's "wore off" and the HE-500's sounded balanced again.
If this isn't an example of the brain compensating, I don't know what is.
Another thing I'm considering now is the Fletcher Munson Curve. I do tend to listen at modest levels (about 80-85 dB), and I'm starting to think that these two headphones are tuned for a different listening volume. The HE-500's do sound dull when played more quietly and seem to wake up when I crank up the volume. The D7000's on the other hand, sound lively and dynamic (without any exaggeration) at the lower volumes I normally use. I'm going to think about this more as I continue to listen and compare them over the next few days.

 
And what's the latest on 5LE - have you listened to it after burn-in through the speaker taps as well?

 

[palmfish]

And what's the latest on 5LE - have you listened to it after burn-in through the speaker taps as well?

No, I haven't. I had pretty much given up on them but now that you bring it up, I will try them on the speaker taps tomorrow.

 

[captouch]

Quote:

No, I haven't. I had pretty much given up on them but now that you bring it up, I will try them on the speaker taps tomorrow.

 
Aw, that's too bad.  Based on the initially perceived dullness/rolled off treble of 500's, I thought the 5LE's would be a better fit.  They're still too sibilant?  
 
I finished repairing my latest vintage receiver (65wpc) and listened to both 500 and 5LE via speaker taps this afternoon.  Still enjoy both of them a lot.  I actually think the 5LE bass is tighter than that of the 500, so was surprised to hear that the bass was loose on yours.

 

[palmfish]

Aw, that's too bad.  Based on the initially perceived dullness/rolled off treble of 500's, I thought the 5LE's would be a better fit.  They're still too sibilant?  

I finished repairing my latest vintage receiver (65wpc) and listened to both 500 and 5LE via speaker taps this afternoon.  Still enjoy both of them a lot.  I actually think the 5LE bass is tighter than that of the 500, so was surprised to hear that the bass was loose on yours.

Yes, regarding the 5LE it does seem like we're describing two completely different headphones. I will listen to them on my speaker taps tomorrow and let you know how it sounds.

 

[palmfish]

I did some more listening this morning with the 5LE from speaker taps and headphone jack, and then some casual comparisons between the 5LE, 500, and D7000.
 
First off, the 5LE's sound the same to me from the speaker taps and headphone jack. I also switched cables back and forth between the 500 and 5LE and didn't hear any differences.
 
Finally, my opinions of all three headphones is basically the same, but a little tempered from my first impressions. Here's a chart I drew that reflects my subjective opinion (not scientific at all, just my visualization) of how each headphone sounds as compared to my idea of neutral and in comparison to each other:
 

 
Denon D7000. I hear a deeper bass that is more "one-note" sounding than the HE-500, but with a slightly sharper point that gives more impact than the HiFiMAN headphones. Bass is too prominent for my tastes though. Midrange sounds about perfect to me - not recessed and not bloated. Treble sounds just a hair on the bright side of neutral - enough to bring out some detail without adding sibilance.
 
HE-500. Bass is very close to the Denon's (and also more prominent than I like), but with less very low frequency rumble and less impact - although layering seems better (less "one note" sounding). The upper bass blends into the mids for me, causing a muddiness in voices - instruments in this region seem to conflict with vocals to reduce clarity and air. Treble detail is actually almost as good as the Denon's although overall they are a little dimmer. Most of the details in the Denon's are audible with the 500, they are just quieter and more recessed.  Music in general sounds smooth and detailed, but a little clouded and missing some high frequency percussive detail and sparkle.
 
HE-5LE. On paper this should be what I'm looking for, however the frequency response sounds out of whack to me. Less bass energy than the other two should sound tighter and prevent midrange bloating, but it doesn't. The bass lacks impact and bleeds into the midrange more uniformly, causing them to sound bloated to me (though noticeably clearer than the HE-500). The treble is definitely brighter and more sparkly than both other headphones, but the transition from slightly cloudy mids to bright treble seems too abrubt - as if there's a hole between the midrange and treble. Overall the treble brings out more percussive detail than both the D7000 and HE-500, but sometimes cymbals and snares sound "tizzy" and "S" sounds are too sibilant.