Today I just purchased a pair of the HD600s, and I will strongly disagree with my earlier statement that it needs an expensive amp just to sound good. In fact, they sound GREAT out of anything better than the headphone jack of a gutless portable!
Speaking of where I purchased my new HD600s from, I bought them from
The Great Indoors home-furnishing superstore in Lombard, across the street from Yorktown Mall. I had to specifically ask the salesperson in the home audio department of that store for the HD600s; the other corded Sennheisers that are displayed on the sales floor are the following models:
- HD400, $39.99
- HD470, $59.99
- HD490, $69.99
- HD500, $99.99
- HD570, $149.99
- HD590, $249.99
- HD265, $199.99
And the price that I paid for my new HD600s? $249.99 (the same price as the HD590s in that store)!!
Right now I'm listening to my NEW HD600s from my TAH amp that's connected to my Sony D-EJ1000 PCDP. I merely had to turn up the TAH's volume control to a slightly higher setting than I had been doing with my HD590s, so I know that the HD600s aren't anywhere near as inefficient as I thought they would be. And they're very comfortable for me to wear, though they put a bit more pressure on the sides of my head than my HD590s.
As for construction, the HD600s are obviously more durable than the HD590s, but the HD590s aren't at all flimsy to begin with. The headband is metal on the HD600s, versus plastic on the HD590s.
And how do the HD600s sound on upscale portable gear? Well, much better than I thought they would sound. I had thought the HD600s would sound a bit murky and laid-back on anything less than an astronomically expensive Class A headphone amp - but instead, they sound very much "together" (coherent), highly accurate, and "black" in between the notes.
Going back to my HD590s, the HD590s are noticeably lacking in comparison! First, some of the notes out of the HD590s blend into one another. And another thing I noticed with my HD590s (compared to my new HD600s): The lower mids predominate the low-end, and the upper mids just aren't there (they're recessed compared to the rest of the audible spectrum). And the highs are a bit bright - and can be harsh at times. And the bass? It just doesn't go down as low as the HD580s and HD600s.
NOTE: Keep in mind that I'm comparing both Sennheisers with their stock cables.
As a result, my new HD600s are definitely keepers - and my HD590s (and several of my other full-sized headphones, as well) are going on either the For Sale forum here or on eBay.
My overall ranking for these Sennheiser headphones (with my Etymotic ER-4S canalphones scoring 100%) is:
HD600: 99%
HD590: 83%
HD580: 95%
Randall