[Jono3642]

Todd got them to me in great time, he's a great guy and so far it's been a great experience overall. Got to give props where props are due and I believe Todd could challenge Headroom in time

Anyway, for you prospective buyers here are my impressions.

XP7: Simply gorgeous. Feeling of quality from the turn of the volume control to the clean layout of the circuit-board. It looks minimalist in the best sense of the word. Nothing unnecessary in the design, nothing gregarious, just a little piece of art.

Does sound really matter when something feels this solid and qualitilicious. Well if you must know:

The first thing you notice with this amp when combined with 650 is the bass. It is tight, fast and perfect. I hate bass in its flabby and excessive forms, this amp made me a bass lover, when done well, bass adds a feeling of emotion and "thereness" that just makes music a joy. The treble seems detailed and smooth, I wouldn't say this amps digs for details like some headphone amps do but it keeps the emotion and musicality of the song, and if that isn't the most important thing I don't know what is.


When you listen to good vinyl, no instrument protrudes or eclipses the others, it is natural. CD's tend to show you every instrument in upfront fashion, artificially separating instruments and missing the overall feeling of the song. In this way, this amp is accurate and very lively.
Overall I think this is a fantastic amp for its price, I have found no fault so far

As regards to op-amps. The amp came with the AD825's and so far I have preferred them to the AD797's I rolled later. The AD797's sounded thinner and as soon as the music got complicated they simply fell apart. I know very few (if any) have had these experiences so maybe my pair are defective because from what I heard the 797'S were objectively worse.

On to the HD650's Now remember these puppies have had about 10 hours of burn-in so still a work in progress.

However, so far they are brilliant. I originally bought the HD600 but sent it back due to its analytical sound and recessed treble, I felt the veil big time. I probably should have upgraded the cable, but I cannot imagine it would have had the difference that the 650's bring to the table.

The mid-range is now full and transparent, (veil is history) the treble is recessed but that is sennheiser style, I have been listening to grados for the past six months and with those the treble is being injected into the center of your head, hey I like it, but the Sennheiser has me changing my mind as to whether that "in your head' sound is a good thing. I believe if you used one word to describe these it has to be natural. Instruments sound like their real life counterparts, that ineffable sense of digital-sound has gone. With Grados there is something in your head telling you that this is not how instruments sound, with the 650 I hear music, not a CD. That is the true test of high-end equipment.

The bass is tight and strong in the mid and high-end but I find it a little too strong and excessive in the low end. It just punches in there now and again and feels off whack with the rest of the sound. In live music low-end bass is not that strong. Maybe this will cease with burn-in. And it's a small complaint.

Overall, these are clearly a huge step up from the stock HD600. They change the intrinsic sound of the Sennheiser and I can find now real strong fault. The bass thing is really minor. These get very close to perfect, very close indeed.

To me, these are easily the best headphones in their price range, everything else in the $400 range cannot touch these at the moment. I believe the CD3000 argument is now mute, unless you are looking for a specific kind of treble or "hi-fi sound" If you want a musical sound that sounds like the real instruments and people they represent without being even slightly analytical (in fact very emotional) then these are simply the best dynamic headphones in the world in the sane price range bracket

Anyway, work in progress will burn them over night and see how good they will get. Any questions or responses I would be happy to answer.

 

[gpalmer]

I have the HR-2 which I frequently use with the HD650s and you're right, these two are an excellent combo! I would guess you will be going through some interesting changes in the future as the 650s burn-in, I certainly did. there were points at which I wanted to throw the 650s but in the end, they turned out well. At least personally I found I liked them even better with the Moon Audio Silver Dragons, but it sounds like you probably have a little while before you'll be interested!

EDIT - Note I am assuming that the XP-7 sounds very similar to the HR-2 from the impressions I have seen posted. I just wanted to make sure that my responding to your XP-7 review with a comment about the HR-2 didn't seem too odd!

 

[tourmaline]

will pick up a pair this afternoon.
i was offered a r10, but in the end i didn't take it.
why? i do think it was premium priced and since i owned a top end stax rig, i think i like neutral, detailed phones better and saving me the trouble of having to sell the r10 again and loosing money.also, the omega 2 is better sound/price performance.
i didn't like the rs-1 to much either and sold it.
hope i won't regret bying the hd650 instead and keeping some extra money to do some other things.

(maybe buying an omega 2 in the future)

but hey, i made someone very happy because now he can have the r10.

in the end, i think the r10 might not be king anymore for such a long time. think the hd650 comes really close with good amping (about 90-95 percent?).

i think i will go with an aftermarket cable as well, like i did with the hd600.
i allready have my eye on the silver dragon.
gpalmer: thanks for letting me know it's a very good sounding cable. now i know for sure wich one to get.(was also thinking of the ZU mobius).

remember, this is just my humble opinion.

 

[lindrone]

Quote:

As regards to op-amps. The amp came with the AD825's and so far I have preferred them to the AD797's I rolled later. The AD797's sounded thinner and as soon as the music got complicated they simply fell apart. I know very few (if any) have had these experiences so maybe my pair are defective because from what I heard the 797'S were objectively worse.

Hmm.. the reason why some people had to roll to the AD797's were for more sensitive, lower impedance headphones. I wonder if that has to do with the fact that 797 didn't work as well for you as the 825's.

Then again, HR-2 comes standard with 797... hmm... it's all speculations.

 

[Anders]

Congratulations for your new system! I have HD650 and the Prehead and like it very much, not exactly the same system but many of your impressions are similar to mine.
If you like that op-amp it might be right for you! If they sell it with different op-amps, all ought to be good choices depending on system and personal preferences, I assume.
It takes at least 100 hours to burn in HD650. The bass will not be reduced but faster and better integrated after a while. I don't think there is too much bass in HD650 but wondered a little in the beginning. It only appears when there is much bass in the recording and is not a general characteristic of the headphone. The bass becomes more controlled and accurate with a Zu cable.

 

[tourmaline]

Quote:

Originally posted by Anders Congratulations for your new system! I have HD650 and the Prehead and like it very much, not exactly the same system but many of your impressions are similar to mine. If you like that op-amp it might be right for you! If they sell it with different op-amps, all ought to be good choices depending on system and personal preferences, I assume. It takes at least 100 hours to burn in HD650. The bass will not be reduced but faster and better integrated after a while. I don't think there is too much bass in HD650 but wondered a little in the beginning. It only appears when there is much bass in the recording and is not a general characteristic of the headphone. The bass becomes more controlled and accurate with a Zu cable.

anders:

do you know how the zu compares to the silver dragon?
i really would like to know. thanks.

 

[Anders]

tourmaline, sorry no. The only I know is what Tuberoller wrote in his review and my main choices were Zu and Silver Dragon. The latter seemed to be a little smoother with less emphasised treble (my impressions of the review).
I don't perceive the Zu as overemphasised in the treble but it is very transparent and can be revealing of problems earlier in the chain.

 

[JaZZ]

Jono...

...congrats on a great system. I'd like to hear the HD 650 with the XP-7 or the HR-2 -- which would be hard to do since I live in Europe --, but find it also very appealing with my EMP and HA-2.

Well, 10 hours is nothing... wait until it reaches the 200-hour mark!

Astonishing enough that you describe the positive points quite accurate the same way I perceive them now, in an advanced state. As to the bass: that's the part which has improved most with break in -- better integration, control, attack and extension. I too didn't like it that much in the beginning (expressed in my review), but now I'm very happy with it.

Enjoy!

 

[Dimitri]

Congrats--you have an outstanding setup!

 

[markl]

I wonder if the AD797s need to be burned in in the XP-7? I believe Ray burns in his amps with stock op-amps for 100 hours, maybe the AD825s had the advantage there. To these ears, the AD797s are the antithesis of "thin", but maybe we are using the word in two different ways. Also, maybe the op-amps are directional, I always put them in with the little indentation on the AD797 facing forward toward the front of the amp. I found the AD825s to be subjectively "brighter" than the AD797s, which may make them a better choice for the laid-back 650s which from what I've read have even less treble than the 600s.

Oh well, anyway, glad you are enjoying your new system!

Mark

 

[john_jcb]

I am tempted to get the HD650's soooooo tempted. I could tell my wife I got them so we could sit and listen together, that might be a plan.

 

[tourmaline]

just got my hd650 today.
right out of the box it really sounds great.

the bass isn't that great at the moment. a bit boomy and uncontroled and not to well articulated.
i can comply with the others who got the hd650.
the mids are much better.
no veil and the drive is a little better as well. it sounds more natural and alive.

however, i do feel the need for an aftermarket cable.
in comparison to the cardas cable, i am missing some extension
at the top and bottom and a better control at the bottom as well.

i think i will go for the silver dragon, wich seems to be the best choice for the most detailed and controled sound.

i did test the hd650 out of the box with the grado ra-1. i didn't think it was a great combination. it didn't impress me one bit.
maybe the source wasn't that great as well.

i wonder if the break-in will be the same as the others who got their hd650 at the same time.

right now i am playing bass-rich music at an audible level. will cranck up the volume in a few days to break it in evenly.

would love to try them out with a good tube amp. i think they make them even more shine.

the bass is by the way cd-dependent. not all bass is played boomy, depends on the recording.
so far, i like it much better then the hd600/cardas setup.


keep you all posted on how the break-in goes.

 

[tourmaline]

Quote:

Originally posted by john_jcb I am tempted to get the HD650's soooooo tempted. I could tell my wife I got them so we could sit and listen together, that might be a plan.

i would recommend them any time.
i listened (and owned) to a variaty of headphones, i like the top stax headphones best(omega 2), then comes the hd650.
think with a good source and good amping, they are really great for the price. even getting closer to the elektrostats.

 

[Geek]

Jono3642,

I concur with you. The HD650 is an excellent headphone. It sounds like real music, which is what audiophile equipment is theoretically supposed to do (as opposed to sounding "hi-fi," it should sound "real," "organic," and "transparent").

I haven't heard the Emmeline but it's supposed to be one of the best deals on the market right now for headphone amps, primarily because it sounds great with a variety of different headphones as opposed to being "synergistic" as a lot of other amps are.

Enjoy

Cheers,
Geek