[DrNope]

Just bought myself a new pair of sennheiser 650hd phones. Simply can not bear the idea of having to listen to the grados for one more day! However, when listening to them for five minutes at home through my iphone, they sounded very close to how the graods sound! Horror!
Really hope my burson headamp will bring up some low frequency and loosen up on the highs, but I dont tink I need to worry too much? Liked the senn hd580 I was able to use for a day, hope the 650's sound as those, hoping for a bit more air, and space i. The presentation.
A set of audeze lcdX can now wait for a while, letting me decide for which one without any hurry.

 

[olegausany]

Be aware HD650 are very picky with the gear you pairing them with. I heard them with many setups and Maverick Audio TubeMagic D1 is the only one I heard as  perfect match for them while they lacking deep sub-bass on all others

 

[DrNope]

just put them on for first time, really don't like to spend this kind of money without auditioning options or even  the model I've bought..... but with no time to spare and with a 3year-old on my arm I really really did not feel like sitting down in a hig-end HIFI store with headphones on my head and I already knew the HD580 is nice to listen to. Anyway, the new HD650 is only in wait for a set of audeze LCDx, guess I can stand them for half a year or so.....
 
There was a time when I really prefered the Grado SR80-sound instead of the Senn HD580-sound (I believe the HD650 are close to these?). More punchy bass and fun to listen to. Putting the HD650 on this morning still gives a slight pushy highs to my ears, "let love in" with Nick Cave has a very annoying digital signature to the voices for instance. Went on and listened to Dylans old "Highway 61 revisited" played by Dave Alvin (very nice version) and like it. Still think there's a bit too much treble in there...... Only reason replacing my Grados was due to piercing highs and the fact I could not listen to them for more then 1hour, IF finding a relaxed very well recorded record, so a bit scared those senns will be the same but different.
Put the Grados back on..... oh. my. god. Was this what I prefered? Screaming high-pitched squel with no body or low end! acoustic guitars doesn't even sound as a guitar in comparison.
 
Wonder what a few hours music does with the phones? Reduced treble? A bit more air inbetween instruments? More punch in the mid/low mids? Guess I need to wait and see.... But it's definetly what I did look for, something that makes me able to listen to music again.

 

[KG Jag]

An iPhone cannot adequately push the HD 650.

 

[DrNope]

Quote:

An iPhone cannot adequately push the HD 650.

 
Which is why I waited until today so I can use my Burson HA-160 with the Burson D-160 DAC as a source to see how they really perform, hope I'm not underpowering the headphones either from quality or power point of view?
 
I will not upgrade that amp in the near future, but do have a Woo audio WA22 on my whish-list.

 

[KG Jag]

Quote:

 
Which is why I waited until today so I can use my Burson HA-160 with the Burson D-160 DAC as a source to see how they really perform, hope I'm not underpowering the headphones either from quality or power point of view?
 
I will not upgrade that amp in the near future, but do have a Woo audio WA22 on my whish-list.

So how did they sound to you when powered by an $800 headphone amp?

 

[mironathetin]

Quote:

 
Wonder what a few hours music does with the phones? Reduced treble? 

these few hours will change the tonal characteristics of the HD650 from edgy and ugly to smooth and lush. Give them at least 100 hours. Just run them non-stop for a few days via any source that you have lying around. It is instructive to put them on every few hours while they are breaking in.
 
Btw: you would be the first who claims the HD 650 have a hot treble. I bet it is the initial harshness of the driver. It will disappear completely after the break in.
 
Oh, and yes: An iPhone cannot adequately push the HD 650 

 !!!!

 

[DrNope]

Quote:

So how did they sound to you when powered by an $800 headphone amp?

 
See post #3 above. But thats with 0.5-1 hour use of the phones. Remember that it might not be "hot" as in for normal people, but since I could not listen for more then perhaps one hour with the grados due to the treble response, I am focusing on this area way too much listening for anything that might be a problem... Looking forward to listening to them in a week or two.

 

[DrNope]

well, there must be something wrong my new headphones. Every CD I play distorts more or less.
 
Why even bother trying to get nice sound using high-end-ish DAC, Amplifier and good headphones when the only records you have has a dynamic range of 5dB and distors as soon as the singer tries to raise his/hers voice. And that is best case, worst case is a constant solid wall of distortion from an "unpluged" version. Now I remember why I stoped buying records and looking for a good system at home
 
But the drums and feeling of space in the music with those headphones is remarkable. Love it. Just think it lacks something in the upper end, sounds a bit damped. Piano-notes which at home hasa very nice shimmer sounds a bit muffled. But very nice and there is no way I'm listening to my Grado SR80s again.

 

[muscular]

well... so did u pair it up with the burson and listen thru it, it take quite a lot of burn in.
I've never seen anyone bash the hd650s that bad, they're smooth sound and if you find them harsh, there's really not a lot of options out there for u.

 

[DrNope]

Was only trying to say I hate that all record manufactures seems to be too occupied with loudness-war rather then producing well mastered records without distortion. Should perhaps been more clear that I wasn't really aiming on the phones themselfes, but they are good enough to show this very well.
 
As to amplification... I used the Iphone, the headphone output of the CD, a LittleDot2++ and the burson but can't really say there's much difference.... Well, I do prefere the sound of the Burson, but can't pin-point why... But with the little dot sounded as if the singer was more distant, not as clear I think. Could be sound level not matched though....
 
Love the phones and only regret is not getting them earlier. The punch in the drums is what's impress me most, and the sense of air and space is also very nice. But mostly, the drums.... Have been used for about 30hours I guess.....
 
edit:
I also think it's a problem that I listen to them for too long with no rest, perhaps 3-4hours, then wait 0.5 and on for 3hours again. That makes my ears tired, I think I should stop doing that. In the end of the day I can't listen to anything. And I start turning the sound down, but the only thing that gets quiet enough is everything but the voice, which is piercing. Just damaged  hearing and not related to the headphones. I really really like those. did I say I especially like thesound of drums?

 

[muscular]

Quote:

Was only trying to say I hate that all record manufactures seems to be too occupied with loudness-war rather then producing well mastered records without distortion. Should perhaps been more clear that I wasn't really aiming on the phones themselfes, but they are good enough to show this very well.
 
As to amplification... I used the Iphone, the headphone output of the CD, a LittleDot2++ and the burson but can't really say there's much difference.... Well, I do prefere the sound of the Burson, but can't pin-point why... But with the little dot sounded as if the singer was more distant, not as clear I think. Could be sound level not matched though....
 
Love the phones and only regret is not getting them earlier. The punch in the drums is what's impress me most, and the sense of air and space is also very nice. But mostly, the drums.... Have been used for about 30hours I guess.....
 
edit:
I also think it's a problem that I listen to them for too long with no rest, perhaps 3-4hours, then wait 0.5 and on for 3hours again. That makes my ears tired, I think I should stop doing that. In the end of the day I can't listen to anything. And I start turning the sound down, but the only thing that gets quiet enough is everything but the voice, which is piercing. Just damaged  hearing and not related to the headphones. I really really like those. did I say I especially like thesound of drums?

I see.
 
I have pair it up with difference sources, only critical listening will reveal the differences.
But I feel that more expensive amps like burson or any other offering is quite sensitive on hd650.
 
I have seen people pair it with $200 amp as well as $1000 amps, and i do believe they justify the amplifier's pricing.
Improvements i've heard mostly was less piercing trebles and also slightly more clarity, perhaps also bigger soundstage, ull need to change ur source around and give it critical listening to find the difference present.
While i'm at it, i must mention i have them with Twspc cables and they tighten up the sound by quite a margin.

 

[mironathetin]

Quote:

Was only trying to say I hate that all record manufactures seems to be too occupied with loudness-war rather then producing well mastered records without distortion.

 
Try Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab (MFSL) or Audio Fidelity recordings (if their selection suits your taste). They produce exceptionally good quality recordings from the original master tapes. Guaranteed without compression or clipping and with lots of headroom. If you don't like how this sounds, you have a weak link in your audio chain.
 
I recently heard bad distortion when I played music through my Airport Express. The reason was an accidental full-blast equalizer preamp setting in iTunes.

 

[DrNope]

What does original master really mean though? Because there are very few of my records that does not distort at least to some extent, some all the time, others only in sertain passages. Is this done in the mixing, and the master is allways " clean"?

Noticed that the more distortion, the shorter time I can listen to my head phones. Turning My burson down to first notch seems too loud. Or to put it in other words, the higher average level on the record, the more my ears bleed.

 

[mironathetin]

Quote:

What does original master really mean though? Because there are very few of my records that does not distort at least to some extent, some all the time, others only in sertain passages. Is this done in the mixing, and the master is allways " clean"?

 
I am not a sound engineer and I guess there is no guarantee that the master is always clean. But if the master had already clipping and compression in it, the original sound of the recorded music would be lost forever. No good sound engineer would allow that (I hope).
 
But it is a fact that the music of the labels I wrote about above is without any clipping and distortion. It is their selling point! I own several of their recordings. All sound brilliant. Especially with the HD 650, where the treble is a bit reduced by design, listening is absolutely free of fatigue. I also recommend to invest more money in first class recordings. They sound wonderful, even on last years top equipment.
 
I believe that your ears bleed, if there is no dynamic in the music. Ears need quiet passages to recover.