[SkyBleu]

They arrived!

Paired with the X1, that leans a bit north in terms of bass, makes it just sufficient.

SHP9500 + Beyerdynamic padding + V-Moda cable

 

[luedriver]

" Beyerdynamic padding "
 
 
was it easy to take off the original padding?
 
also has the sound changed?

 

[SkyBleu]

" Beyerdynamic padding "


was it easy to take off the original padding?

also has the sound changed?

It's just an add-on onto that strap that's attached under the actual headband. Google "beyerdynamic removable headband" and you'll see what I mean. It's one of those clip on ones.

Sound should still be the same since no mods have been done.

 

[luedriver]

It's just an add-on onto that strap that's attached under the actual headband. Google "beyerdynamic removable headband" and you'll see what I mean. It's one of those clip on ones.

Sound should still be the same since no mods have been done.

 
 
I thought you changed the ear pads...
 
couldn't tell for sure in the photo, it looked like it was different...

 

[hakushondaimao]

Surprise! These are on Massdrop again... Been listening to mine quite a bit recently, and for $59 they're a steal!

 

[yangian]

A very successful product. Really great headphones. Approach, though not close to HD600.

 

[MarcoGV]

  Surprise! These are on Massdrop again... Been listening to mine quite a bit recently, and for $59 they're a steal!

I noticed that you have the HD-598. So do I 

, and it is my main open office headphone.   How do the SHP9500 and HD-598 compare?  In particular, I am worried that the SHP9500 may be brighter.  Is it?
 
I am also impressed that you have the K7XX and still listen to the SHP9500.

 

[s4tch]

hi guys, these are available on massdrop once again for $60, so i have some quick questions:
- how's isolation on these cans? i know they are open, i'm not expecting perfect silence, but still, are these some loud headphones for the surroundings?
- would you consider these for guitar oriented music (rock, metal)?

 

[hakushondaimao]

  I noticed that you have the HD-598. So do I 

, and it is my main open office headphone.   How do the SHP9500 and HD-598 compare?  In particular, I am worried that the SHP9500 may be brighter.  Is it?
 
I am also impressed that you have the K7XX and still listen to the SHP9500.

 
HD598 is probably going to my mom soon. Love it for classical, but find the lack of bass makes it unsatisfactory for most everything else. SHP9500 to me (so far) is comparable to the HD598, but with better body down low. Perhaps a little brighter, but not in an uncomfortable way (IMO). I've been really busy the last 6 weeks or so, and received both the K7XX and SHP9500 in that time, so haven't really had the chance to do any A/B comparisons, or give either a REAL workout. My life will free up in late May, at which point I'll be diving into that task with vigour.

 

[MarcoGV]

 

  I noticed that you have the HD-598. So do I 

, and it is my main open office headphone.   How do the SHP9500 and HD-598 compare?  In particular, I am worried that the SHP9500 may be brighter.  Is it?
 
I am also impressed that you have the K7XX and still listen to the SHP9500.

 
HD598 is probably going to my mom soon. Love it for classical, but find the lack of bass makes it unsatisfactory for most everything else. SHP9500 to me (so far) is comparable to the HD598, but with better body down low. Perhaps a little brighter, but not in an uncomfortable way (IMO). I've been really busy the last 6 weeks or so, and received both the K7XX and SHP9500 in that time, so haven't really had the chance to do any A/B comparisons, or give either a REAL workout. My life will free up in late May, at which point I'll be diving into that task with vigour.

Thank you.  I listen to classical music a lot and find the HD598 to be very good for that.  I am not a bass-head and am sensitive to treble-oriented presentations.  I like the sound signature of the Philips SHL5500 and would like to try an open Philips headphone.  Decisions, decisions...

 

[hakushondaimao]

 
Thank you.  I listen to classical music a lot and find the HD598 to be very good for that.  I am not a bass-head and am sensitive to treble-oriented presentations.  I like the sound signature of the Philips SHL5500 and would like to try an open Philips headphone.  Decisions, decisions...

 
When I say SHP9500 have better body down low, I don't mean they're bass heavy. I'm also not a bass-head, but I do like some tight punch at the low end for non classical. At 60 bucks, to me they're a no-brainer purchase. If you don't like them, you can easily put them on EBay and get your money back.

 

[DangerClose]

  I noticed that you have the HD-598. So do I 

, and it is my main open office headphone.   How do the SHP9500 and HD-598 compare?  In particular, I am worried that the SHP9500 may be brighter.  Is it?
 

 
SHP9500 is brighter than a foam-modded 558 if that helps.  People say a 598 is a little brighter than a no-foam 558.  
But it's not as big a difference as I expected.  
 
The bigger difference is more the bass and overall fullness.  
Doing +3db eq on 250hz and lower, and -2db on 8k and higher on the 9500 makes them both pretty close overall.  I'd say the main differences then is the no-foam 558 still puts vocals a little more forward, and the SHP9500 easily has more clarity.  If a a crowd is clapping along with a song, the no-foam 558 and its "smoothness"/blurriness kind of makes it sound like one tonality clapping and that most people are clapping together.  You can pick out some off-time people here and there, but overall, they sound pretty much in unison.  
 
The SHP9500, even with that eq setting that hurts clarity and separation, it's easier to hear different tones of claps and hear the people who aren't clapping at the same time as everyone else.  It's actually surprising to hear most everyone clapping together on the no-foam 558, and then switch to the 9500 and then have your attention drawn to thinking about how many of the people are clapping off time.  
 
Maybe different eq would make them even closer.  This is from A-B'ing them for 15 or so minutes.  
 

hi guys, these are available on massdrop once again for $60, so i have some quick questions:
- how's isolation on these cans? i know they are open, i'm not expecting perfect silence, but still, are these some loud headphones for the surroundings?
- would you consider these for guitar oriented music (rock, metal)?

 
SHP9500 is so open that they're probably louder on the outside than on the inside.    
 
Depends how you like your rock.  Detailed and clear guitar notes?  Yes.  Richness/fullness of guitar chords?  You're going to need to add some eq.
 
I'd say they have a solid bass/kick drum.  Sometimes I see people recommending bassy headphones for rock, but a lot of rock and metal has a strong bass/kick drum, and then it's like those headphones are constantly hitting me in the head with a hammer.

 

[MarcoGV]

 

  I noticed that you have the HD-598. So do I 

, and it is my main open office headphone.   How do the SHP9500 and HD-598 compare?  In particular, I am worried that the SHP9500 may be brighter.  Is it?
 

 
SHP9500 is brighter than a foam-modded 558 if that helps.  People say a 598 is a little brighter than a no-foam 558.  
But it's not as big a difference as I expected.  
 
The bigger difference is more the bass and overall fullness.  
Doing +3db eq on 250hz and lower, and -2db on 8k and higher on the 9500 makes them both pretty close overall.  I'd say the main differences then is the no-foam 558 still puts vocals a little more forward, and the SHP9500 easily has more clarity.  If a a crowd is clapping along with a song, the no-foam 558 and its "smoothness"/blurriness kind of makes it sound like one tonality clapping and that most people are clapping together.  You can pick out some off-time people here and there, but overall, they sound pretty much in unison.  
 
The SHP9500, even with that eq setting that hurts clarity and separation, it's easier to hear different tones of claps and hear the people who aren't clapping at the same time as everyone else.  It's actually surprising to hear most everyone clapping together on the no-foam 558, and then switch to the 9500 and then have your attention drawn to thinking about how many of the people are clapping off time.  
 
Maybe different eq would make them even closer.  This is from A-B'ing them for 15 or so minutes.  
 

Thank you for this very detailed comparison.  I appreciate the use of the "clapping test" to illustrate the clarity issue.  If I understand correctly, your assessment is that the foam-modded HD558 is bassier and fuller than the SHP9500; I did not expect the bassier part from other posts.

 

[DangerClose]

  Thank you for this very detailed comparison.  I appreciate the use of the "clapping test" to illustrate the clarity issue.  If I understand correctly, your assessment is that the foam-modded HD558 is bassier and fuller than the SHP9500; I did not expect the bassier part from other posts.

 
No-foam 558 is easily fuller/thicker/warmer. 
I just A-B'd some bass drum in a rock song and metal song, not much else was going on in the songs at that time, and I'd say they're pretty close in volume with flat eq.  The 9500 has a tighter and firmer and quicker, and I guess louder, bass drum.  The no-foam 558's bass drum is looser and more diffused.  They're pretty close in volume, but I think the tightness of the 9500's bass drum makes it just a little louder since it hits with more impact due to less diffusion or "smoothness."  It's like the bass drums are similar volume overall, but the SHP9500's tightness makes it spike more, and so is a little louder at that moment due to that, while the no-foam 558's is a little more mushy and sticks around a little longer.  
 
Pretend the bass drum note on the 9500 is a big meatball in front of you.  Now crush it with your hand to make it look like a hamburger.  The overall volume is the same, but one is mushier and spread out more.  ...(I wonder if that's the first time anyone has described sound by using a meatball/hamburger analogy.)
 
The big difference is in the overall fullness/thickness/warmness and clarity of the headphones.  Maybe it's more a mids thing when it comes to something like guitar chords, but I was having trouble eq'ing the mids to get them to sound similar in the time I messed with them so far.  Though eq'ing the bass up and the highs down on the 9500 does affect the mids anyway.
 
I tried a rap song that has low booom booom sub bass.  The 9500, I'd say it produces the note, but it's pretty far from that lingering boooom booom kind of bass that hangs around.  It's not a whole lot boomier than the bass/kick drum I was talking about on the rock/metal songs.  It's not hard to eq the sub bass up to get more "sub bass ambiance" to warm and thicken up the overall sound, but the sub bass still isn't going to hit like a 15" subwoofer.
 
The no-foam 558 has more lingering boooom booom.  I don't think either are close to how it sounds on something like Monoprice 8323, but I don't have my pair of those at the moment to make sure.  ...But I do have FA-004/HM3.  That has more booom booom rumble and more bass/kick drum than both of these.  That's a closed can though.  JVC HA-S400 (also closed) has more boom too, though the mids muddy it all up and make it sound bad.
 
I think comparing bass volume on these isn't the best way to look at them.  The 9500 has good volume kick drum bass, but it's delivered firm and tight and quick.  (Perhaps too quick.)  The no-foam 558 is more diffused on kick drum and sub bass, (and I guess has more sub bass), and everything is warmer and thicker and "smoother"/muddier overall.  The SHP9500 easily wins on clarity, even when eq'd to be warmer.  I'll enjoy the no-foam 558, but then I'll put on the 9500 and wonder where all those little extra notes I'm now hearing came from.  
 
I can understand people liking the "smoothness," but I kind of think for how relatively expensive the 558 is that its price is that high to pay for the jar of vaseline it comes with to smear over the notes.  And that's the no-foam 558.  The stock 558 is worse.  
 
Just my opinions at this time.  

 

[s4tch]

SHP9500 is so open that they're probably louder on the outside than on the inside.    
 
Depends how you like your rock.  Detailed and clear guitar notes?  Yes.  Richness/fullness of guitar chords?  You're going to need to add some eq.
 
I'd say they have a solid bass/kick drum.  Sometimes I see people recommending bassy headphones for rock, but a lot of rock and metal has a strong bass/kick drum, and then it's like those headphones are constantly hitting me in the head with a hammer.

thanks for your detailed answer. the price looked tempting, but due to the complete openness, these are probably not what i'm looking for at the moment.
 
as for the sound, i'm with you about bassy headphones and rock. i prefer tighter, faster, more controlled bass.