[Clamsquad]

Hi. First post here =) I was just wondering if anyone else has this pair of headphones (sennheiser HD 428)
I've had it for a few months now, it seems unusually quiet compared to my old terrible headphones (Sony MDR XD200)
 
Has anyone else noticed this? I know it's not just my pair because i have a friend who also has Sennheiser HD 428 and it's the same.
If so, what should i be looking to get next in the distant future? I bought these because they were around $100 and sounded way better then my broken old pair. Any recommendations?

 

[jackwess]

Quote:

Hi. First post here =) I was just wondering if anyone else has this pair of headphones (sennheiser HD 428)
I've had it for a few months now, it seems unusually quiet compared to my old terrible headphones (Sony MDR XD200)

They are quiet? care to elaborate? 
are you looking for more bass, or a fun headphone to listen to? 

 

[Clamsquad]

 

Quote:

They are quiet? care to elaborate? 
are you looking for more bass, or a fun headphone to listen to? 

​

 

My inexperience prevents me from being able to elaborate properly here. It simply sounds way quieter compared to my broken old pair, or when i play the music on stereo.

Basically, i can have a song as loud as possible and it's still barely satisfactory (though sounds much better). I could never boost the old set up all the way because it would damage my ears from being so loud. I can't say i'm looking for more bass or a "fun headphone" i'm just after a good all-around pair in general. Obviously didn't have the money to drop for crazy audiophile headphones =(

 

[barleyguy]

Some headphones are less efficient than others.  So yes, they will be less loud on the same volume setting than other headphones.  This is determined by the impedence, the sensitivity, and can also be influenced by the frequency response.
 
EDIT:
 
I looked at the specs for the Sennheisers, and they are 32 ohms impedence, but they quote the sensitivity at a 1V level, which is unusual since many are quoted in mW.  So they are probably really inefficient headphones.
 
To run the HD428's well, you may need a headphone amplifier.
 

 

[Clamsquad]

Thank you for the helpful answer. I've gotta say, this surprises me quite a bit since i've tried two different Senn HD 428s (buddy also owns a new pair) and i can confirm they are much quieter on the same songs, same computer. It's not a loud environment, its dead silent. Just my room :O
I've never heard of a headphone amplifier, i'm definitely going to look into it because yes it's my only problem. I realize they aren't the newest but they sound better than any headphones i've had in my life haha.
 
Thanks bro

 

[barleyguy]

Quote:

Thank you for the helpful answer. I've gotta say, this surprises me quite a bit since i've tried two different Senn HD 428s (buddy also owns a new pair) and i can confirm they are much quieter on the same songs, same computer. It's not a loud environment, its dead silent. Just my room :O
I've never heard of a headphone amplifier, i'm definitely going to look into it because yes it's my only problem. I realize they aren't the newest but they sound better than any headphones i've had in my life haha.
 
Thanks bro

I edited my response.  It turns out that Sony quotes their sensitivity in mW and Sennheiser quotes their sensitivity at 1V, so in fact the Sennheisers are super inefficient.
 
You're welcome BTW.
 

 

[GeneralSmirnoff]

My 428's greatly benefit from my vintage sony amplifier.

 

[koolkat]

Quote:

My 428's greatly benefit from my vintage sony amplifier.

Hey did you go through with the recable?

 

[koolkat]

Quote:

Hi. First post here =) I was just wondering if anyone else has this pair of headphones (sennheiser HD 428)
I've had it for a few months now, it seems unusually quiet compared to my old terrible headphones (Sony MDR XD200)
 
Has anyone else noticed this? I know it's not just my pair because i have a friend who also has Sennheiser HD 428 and it's the same.
If so, what should i be looking to get next in the distant future? I bought these because they were around $100 and sounded way better then my broken old pair. Any recommendations?

Hey clamsquad,
 
I have the HD438 and I agree that the sound doesn't go very loud. If you feel that the volume is too low even at max, then an amp will do you good. Fiio E7, E10, E6, E11, Cmoy and PA2V2 are some good sub-100 amps. But please don't drive your headphones too hard. At very high volume, the HD4X8 headphones will start vibrating and it'll sound really distorted. This happened once when I put my amp volume at 80%. lol. 
 
 

 

[Clamsquad]

Thank you guys!
I'm going to buy one soon as its really becoming a problem. I just wanted to come back to say thank you :3
 
If anyone is thinking of buying this set, don't even. They are obviously way too quiet, and the adjustment band for each ear gets loose VERY quickly. It feels like I paid $30 for a 100$ pair of  garbage headphones. Anyways, stay away from these

 

[Tomppa]

I think you should be saying don't buy them unless you have a headphone amplifier or proper soundcard.

 

[Clamsquad]

Quote:

I think you should be saying don't buy them unless you have a headphone amplifier or proper soundcard.

I have a proper soundcard. Plus its the same when plugged into an ipod.
Sure, I could've said don't buy them unless you have a headphone amplifier. But I didn't.
It's not that I don't love them.. It's just that I didn't expect to have to pay extra money after the $100 for an amplifier, or that the adjustment part would wear out after less than half a year. I don't understand why I would recommend them to anybody when I could've just spent the extra i'm going to spend on the amplifier for a better set. I suppose i should point out my previous headphones were extremely cheap and didn't have either of these problems. They worked perfectly for years
 
Anyways thanks again guys for your expertise

 

[OneSec]

Have you tried working on the sound card settings? See if there is a place you can increase the gain.