I am in search of a pair of low impedence headphones which can go well with my Santa Cruz sound card, and wonder if the HD-497 is a good choice. Forget Grado, the cord is a big annoyance. So, what do you guys think about the HD-497? Thanks a lot for your advice!
I just got a pair of these, and for the price I am surprised just how good they are. They have a really nice crisp sound quality, nice powerful bass, and seem equally at home whether watching movies or listening to music. For me, the dynamics of these phones are particularly impressive considering my lack of dedicated amplification. They are connected to my Santa Cruz, and go as loud as I could ever wish.
after 40hr's burn-in, the sound quality is good. enough base, good mid range. but i don't like it's high, even not as good as my $15 Jensen trash. my ears feels very painfull when listening to high rich content. and high is not clear, it's 'foggy'. And the position of sound also seems have problem, I am easily got confused.
I can't make myself love this headphone, so now I have to return it.
Today I bought the HD 497's at CC (Circuit City) out of impulse. I was originally shopping for new work clothes (and eventually bought them somewhere else, since CC doesn't carry anything but electronics and software - DUH!
). The HD 497's cost $69.99 plus tax... I couldn't f**kin' believe that they soundly WHOOP all of the other 'phones that CC sells!! (Including the cheaper HD 477's, of course - and especially the $99.99 and $149.99 closed Sonys and the $69.99 HD 490's!) I tested the 497's on my Sony D-EJ1000 PCDP, with AND without my TAH amp.
To me, the HD 497's aren't horribly uncomfortable, but they're not super-comfortable, either. And the sound? Out of the box the mids are a little recessed, and the bass a bit boomy - but the HD 497's have that classic trademark Sennheiser sound (like they sound like mini-HD 580's), something that had eluded most of Sennheiser's recent low-priced offerings.
I will give them a break-in, and then I will keep them with my main commuting portable rig (for use in situations where I can't use my Etymotic ER-4S canalphones, such as walking down the sidewalk from the bus stop to work and back).
just wait till those 497's burn in good...the sound gets alot better....and for anyone else who might be considering a pair and doesn't mind ordering off of the internet..they can be found alot cheaper online...
i guess its kind of sad..my HD600s are sitting on the bed and i'm listening with my HD497 right now lol...
And here's another thing that I've found with my new HD 497's:
They leak less sound to the outside of the 'phones than many other open-back headphones - you'd feel less embarrassed to take those 497's on the bus than you would had you taken many other open-back headphones on the bus.
I found these extremely tight and painful on my ears when I first got them. I finally fixed the problem by sliding the earpads down as far down as they would go on the band, and then moving them back up until they just started to feel snug. Now they feel fine and I can listen to them for extended periods with no significant discomfort.
Originally posted by Eagle_Driver They leak less sound to the outside of the 'phones than many other open-back headphones - you'd feel less embarrassed to take those 497's on the bus than you would had you taken many other open-back headphones on the bus.
Tha'ts true. I won a pair of 497s off eBay a couple of weeks ago for the princely sum of $28 and the sound quality amazed me as well as the low sound leakage. I had been using my Grado SR80s as my commuting phones, then switch over to Senn 495s. The 495s sounded good, but were just too damned hard to drive off a portable plus they leak a lot....
The 497s are wonderful for commuting and *very* easy to drive, even from an MP3 player.
And I've found my 497's more comfortable when I position the pads so that the entire oval cushioning sits directly on my ears - thus making the 'phones completely supraural on me. Previously, I tried them with the back of my ears just inside the cushions, but they felt somewhat uncomfortable in that position.
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, cuz don't wanna spend a fortune on the headphones connected to a soundcard 
