[yangian]

  Just sold my 9500 and repurchased an X2. I find the 9500 by and far the best value headphone on the market. Big comfortable pads, smooth neutral sound but lacks bass impact to my ears. I am by no means a true basshead but I listen to tons of techno, house and hip hop which all demand some bass.

Ok. Thanks.

 

[Jefafa77]

I would really like to jump in and ask (if it hasn't been asked) between the HD598, HD558, and the SHP9500.....what are the thoughts between the three?
 
And of course, which is best? To clarify "best" I mean most neutral. I listen to mostly rock but have plenty of classical and "coffee house" songs that don't need bass, so bass is still important.
 
I'm just a college student looking for a good open pair for my room.
 
 
They will be powered from a Fiio E10K connected to my computer. If anyone has a better recommendation for a headphone under or around $150 I'd gladly like to hear your suggestion!

 

[dtp1981]

   
Starting with Bass, the SHP9500 produce less than the V6s and the SR850s. The difference is quite dramatic. I'm talking more mid bass, not sub bass, as I don't think any of these cans produce sub bass sufficiently. With the E10k's bass boost, the lower end is enough, but not overpowered. I actually preferred the Samsons to these for hip hop and rap for this reason. Listening to the new Logic album, the Samsons are clearly more V-shaped, and fun to some extent.

 
Thanks, this was exactly the type of input I was looking for. I listen to a fair amount of hip hop and EDM and was hoping the bass boost on my E10K would enhance the bass on the SHPs to an acceptable level for those genres. I'll probably look elsewhere now.

 

[yangian]

  Just sold my 9500 and repurchased an X2. I find the 9500 by and far the best value headphone on the market. Big comfortable pads, smooth neutral sound but lacks bass impact to my ears. I am by no means a true basshead but I listen to tons of techno, house and hip hop which all demand some bass.

Returned X2. Like 9500 more than X2. 9500 sounds more natural than X2. Overall, SQ od X2 is better, but not very much. 9500 is pretty picky of source. It sounds trival on many budgeted DAC, including Modi1. But with a good enough amplifier, it shine on Explorer (mine is just E1, but line out to an amplifier). On this setup, X2 is limited better than 9500 and 9500 has better middle and high. I listen to symphony/classical.

 

[Bloos]

Can someone comment on the difference in soundstage between the shp9500 and the hd 598 or 558 with foam mod?

 

[lesp4ul]

  I would really like to jump in and ask (if it hasn't been asked) between the HD598, HD558, and the SHP9500.....what are the thoughts between the three?
 
And of course, which is best? To clarify "best" I mean most neutral. I listen to mostly rock but have plenty of classical and "coffee house" songs that don't need bass, so bass is still important.
 
I'm just a college student looking for a good open pair for my room.
 
 
They will be powered from a Fiio E10K connected to my computer. If anyone has a better recommendation for a headphone under or around $150 I'd gladly like to hear your suggestion!

ISK HD9999

 

[analogsurviver]

  ISK HD9999

While I am not keen on closed back headphones, these do look interesting.
 
However, when I found what else ISK has to offer, I was - delighted.
 
So , a BIG THANK YOU  for mentioning the ISK in the first place !!!

 

[lesp4ul]

 ISK HD9999

While I am not keen on closed back headphones, these do look interesting.
 
However, when I found what else ISK has to offer, I was - delighted.
 
So , a BIG THANK YOU  for mentioning the ISK in the first place !!!

Haha you're welcome, i also have e10k, hifimediy sabre usb dac, for headphone: shp9500, brainwavz hm5, athm50. I was surprised how isk hd9999 sound on my dap (hidizs ap100) and pc, good detail, soundstage, balance to warmish, nice classic model like AKG K271 MK2, extra pads, extra cable, semi hard case. very worth for the price. You will like these, couple of friends tried my hd9999, one owns ath-m50x and one owns grado sr125i, they both like it.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

 

[analogsurviver]

Haha you're welcome, i also have e10k, hifimediy sabre usb dac, for headphone: shp9500, brainwavz hm5, athm50. I was surprised how isk hd9999 sound on my dap (hidizs ap100) and pc, good detail, soundstage, balance to warmish, nice classic model like AKG K271 MK2, extra pads, extra cable, semi hard case. very worth for the price. You will like these, couple of friends tried my hd9999, one owns ath-m50x and one owns grado sr125i, they both like it.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

I became particularly interested in their recording gear

- their mics seem to be unbeatable in price/performance ratio

.
 

 
There are many more sample videos recorded with ISK mics - I chose the one that might be the most familiar to headfiers due to the popularity of the performer.
ISK cans also in this one... - and below - in Russian, but the smile they produced hardly needs any translation : 
 

 

[fourrobert13]

I got the 9500's for Christmas. So far I really like them. They are in between my HD558 and my SR60e sound wise. They work well with heavy metal. Once I get more time with them, I'll post more detailed review/comparison.

 

[djmuzi]

Can someone comment on the difference in soundstage between the shp9500 and the hd 598 or 558 with foam mod?

I think the 558 with or without mod has the more refined smooth sound and it is more spatious. Just my opinion. There are a few guys there who like the 9500 more it's all matter of taste.


For Rock music the 9500 will sound more aggressive and "faster", the 558 will provide deeper bass.


For a long time I was not sure which to prefer, but when I realized that the 558 has deeper bass my decision was easy - 558.

 

[Change is Good]

Well, my Shure 1840 velour pads finally arrived and I can confirm that these are a perfect fit after ripping off the stock pads and excess material. Just slip the pads over the ring that pops off the driver (make sure to remove rubber around the ring, as well).
 

 
 
The plain velours keep the stock sound as is, with maybe... just maybe a little more bass. I can assume that 1540 alcantara pads will make them warmer while taming some of the treble. My first intention was to get those, but I opted for the cheaper velours to test the fit and sound, first.

 

[jermy4]

How's the comfort with those pads?  They're smaller than stock but have a nicer material, right?

 

[Change is Good]

 
How's the comfort with those pads?  They're smaller than stock but have a nicer material, right?

 
Comfort is exceptional. My ears no longer touch the drivers, and (yes) the material is much softer on the skin.

 

[luedriver]

   
Comfort is exceptional. My ears no longer touch the drivers, and (yes) the material is much softer on the skin.

how much did you pay for them? I find them at amazon at almost as much as the headphones themselves, or did you buy the generic pads which are almost a tenth of the price?