[Beagle]

You haven't really responded to my key point though: the difference between the HD820 and HD800S is lots of 'extra stuff': damped acoustic chambers, protein leather/fabric hybrid pads, newly designed chassis, concave gorilla glass back plate, more cable connections. I still don't understand why you don't concede that this means it will cost more. It seems self-explanatory to me that it will.

Well, that probably adds up to $35 dollars of it..

 

[kman1211]

These are just headphones people are going to need to be patient and wait to listen to them.

Im curious what they have to offer and how they stand in the closed-headphone market new and old.

I’m actually really impressed with the new HD 660 S and hold a different opinion than many others who have tried or reviewed it. I’m genuinely curious what changes in sound the HD 820 has over its open siblings and how it sounds in general.

 

[AxelCloris]

Let's please keep the thread on-topic and posts within the guidelines. Thanks everyone.

 

[gb21011971]

Who are these targeted towards? The price tag of $2,400 is outrageous for a pair of closed headphones. The only place I could see these plausible is at someone's job. Sennheiser stick to open headphones.

With all due respect, IMHO this is nonsense. There are lots of people, including myself, who have a real need for totl closed cans for whatever reason, including work / office, as you mentioned. I spend most of my day at the office and my headphones get a lot more head time there than at home. At home, very often family does not want to be bothered.

Furthermore, why is this too expensive for a CLOSED headphone? Given that it is much more difficult to produce a good closed headphone than an open one, a higher price might be justified.

I haven't found a real closed headphone yet that I really like. Have sold my Beyer T5p.2 and Sony Z1R's. From what I read, the Audeze LCD XC is not for me. Haven't had the chance yet to audition the Ether C and AFC, which might be promising. Denon AH-D7200 are fun, but not really neutral.

So yeah, bring it on Sennheiser. Can't wait ti listen to them.

 

[Beagle]

With all due respect, IMHO this is nonsense. There are lots of people, including myself, who have a real need for totl closed cans for whatever reason, including work / office, as you mentioned. I spend most of my day at the office and my headphones get a lot more head time there than at home. At home, very often family does not want to be bothered.

Furthermore, why is this too expensive for a CLOSED headphone? Given that it is much more difficult to produce a good closed headphone than an open one, a higher price might be justified.

I haven't found a real closed headphone yet that I really like. Have sold my Beyer T5p.2 and Sony Z1R's. From what I read, the Audeze LCD XC is not for me. Haven't had the chance yet to audition the Ether C and AFC, which might be promising. Denon AH-D7200 are fun, but not really neutral.

So yeah, bring it on Sennheiser. Can't wait ti listen to them.

Z1R raised the bar for closed at $2200. I assume this is Sennheiser's answer to that.

 

[Redcarmoose]

Closed headphones have a sound character, even the Fostex line is in reality semi-closed, but normally they DO have a different bass character not achievable by open headphone design. And while no headphone is perfect there is also no perfect sound signature to please everyone.

I'd say that just like Noble IEM making co-flagships, we can enjoy a company like Sennheiser making multiple flagships offering multiple tunings. The consumer wins in the end having more choices, Sennheiser wins getting more market share.

It may have been in the past that a makers statement headphone was regarded as their flagship sonic statement product, but we never had Head-Fi as a group 100% onboard with that one sound. Now we live in the age of flagship-tunes.


This choice bothers some folks because they want to own this single pinnacle product, when in reality none such thing exists.

 

[Beagle]

Closed headphones have a sound character, even the Fostex line is in reality semi-closed, but normally they DO have a different bass character not achievable by open headphone design.

I think volume level plays a big role. If you listen at low levels, a closed is probably less likely to "feed back" the sound that is not escaping through the back.

This choice bothers some folks because they want to own this single pinnacle product, when in reality none such thing exists.

Very true. Unless there is one taste and one set of listening criteria, this cannot happen.

 

[AlwaysForward]

I couldn’t agree more. To me, the perfect 800S would have more sub bass with far less roll off, the exact same mid bass, slightly more forward mids, and less peaky treble that could also be 2-3 decibels lower. And don’t mess with the soundstage at all. It’s perfect just the way it is.

And that would be pretty much the perfect headphone for me. Here's hoping they knocked this outta the park.

 

[noplsestar]

Z1R raised the bar for closed at $2200. I assume this is Sennheiser's answer to that.

Except the Z1R is not truly closed. So this point will definitely go to the Senns.

 

[banco-sg]

Except the Z1R is not truly closed. So this point will definitely go to the Senns.

Not truly closed? I dont know where you got this idea, but Z1R is fully closed and the isolation is very good. Unless, you are mistaken it with Fostex TH900, which is not fully closed.

 

[noplsestar]

Not truly closed? I dont know where you got this idea, but Z1R is fully closed and the isolation is very good. Unless, you are mistaken it with Fostex TH900, which is not fully closed.

Oh, then maybe I´m misinformed, because someone owning it told me it doesn´t isolate that well, not as good as MrSpeakers closed cans.
But I hope the 820 will be very good in isolation!

 

[Alcophone]

Oh, then maybe I´m misinformed, because someone owning it told me it doesn´t isolate that well, not as good as MrSpeakers closed cans.
But I hope the 820 will be very good in isolation!

The measurements on InnerFidelity.com seem to confirm that (more so for the ÆON than the Ether C Flow), but that doesn't mean the Sony is not a fully closed headphone (that's a statement about the design).
Anyway, off-topic.

 

[AnakChan]

Oh, then maybe I´m misinformed, because someone owning it told me it doesn´t isolate that well, not as good as MrSpeakers closed cans.
But I hope the 820 will be very good in isolation!

Z1R isolates, but it also leaks. That Canadian pulp is quite thin.

I guess we'll find out soon enough if the HD820 is the same too or not.

And as per Alcophone as per off topic, more info can be found :
Z1R thread here.
Aeon Flow thread here.

 

[Mediahound]

The Z1r is fully closed, semi-sealed. It has a small port on the top of the ear cups but it’s mostly sealed.

Also, don’t get get confused on the terminology:

 

[gb21011971]

Oh, then maybe I´m misinformed, because someone owning it told me it doesn´t isolate that well, not as good as MrSpeakers closed cans.
But I hope the 820 will be very good in isolation!

The Z1R is fully closed, but has a small port at the top of each driver unit. However, from my experience - I owned it for about 6 months - the Z1R isolates very well. Leakage is at very low levels, listening to music at high volume is possible without others in the room hearing it.