[BLacklWf]

I had my first experience with the HD-490 Pro today!



I just walked into my local Sennheiser dealer to ask if they were going to have a pair at some point but it was already there! I wasn't prepared to dedicate much time for listening today but I gave it 15 min through my smartphone and Tidal.
So these are my brief impressions, to be validated (or not) soon, with a properly organized listening and on-site comparisons.

1. It is a very light and comfortable headphone, to the point that I thought I could buy it only for that!

2. Materials definitely don't feel cheap but not luxurious either. The construction is excellent.

3. Microphonic noise is very effectively controlled with that little coil. Really a non issue with this headphone.

4. I was really impressed with the soundstage. Too often I felt the sound coming out of my head, and diffused in the room. Maybe the fact that the drivers are offset AND angled, combined with the very open design, are responsible for this effect. See below how the cups are asymmetrical (deeper at the rear side):



5. I listened only with the pre-attached velour "producing" ear pads. The sound was full, well balanced, very detailed, with a very extended bass, truly enjoyable as a whole and very able to entertain. I could never agree with some negative descriptions above. I listened to Dire Straits, Loreena McKennitt, and some very well recorded classical (Boston Symphonic Orchestra) and greek artists. At some point I thought that I heard a very slight sibilance in a female voice but I was listening through my smartphone.

Thus I can't say more about its sound; I'll bring my Lehmann Audio dac/amp in the shop another day and of course my trusted reference, the Neumann NDH 30. This will be an ultimate test, especially if I'll be able to listen for one or two hours. I am really curious if they will scale up to very high standards of naturalness and resolution. Either way they are winners for comfort!

Great review! Have you compared against your NDH 30? I was thinking of a new headphone for a voicework. NDH 30 was on my radar, and now HD490 Pro as well. I will look forward for your impression.

 

[Moukkis]

Basically, you buy silk mesh. I use a fine one (100 mesh) like this:

https://www.amazon.com/Yards-Screen-Printing-Fabric-Count/dp/B00G43RSQG/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?crid=3C8FFMLO43QXV&keywords=silk+mesh&qid=1706990044&sprefix=slik+mesh,aps,186&sr=8-4

Cut it to the shape of the earcups but size it so there's a bit of overlap w the clips around the driver.

Place it over the driver and clips and snap in the earpads. Easy peasy.

If you don't have some overlap over the clips, the mesh will move around or fall out, as there's nothing there to keep it in place. The trick is to cut the mesh to a size that fits over the clips enough but isn't so big it hangs outside of the earcup once the earpads are snapped back on.

Here's some picks. Good luck to those who try this. It's a super simple mod


Clips circled





Only thing w this mod to note is you lose a bit of cup space as the mesh kind of hovers a few millimeters over the diaphragm. It's not a drastic difference and the sound is improved so I hardly mind.



It's not just that lol. See above. I've done a version of this on my 6 series headphones btw

i made my own mod with voilee fabric(much cheaper and close to same), and yea it works those original ones dampens the sound quite a bit. it gets soo much more clearer and crisp when those are replaced. (im not audiophile) i might could use velour pads now

 

[equalspeace]

i made my own mod with voilee fabric(much cheaper and close to same), and yea it works those original ones dampens the sound quite a bit. it gets soo much more clearer and crisp when those are replaced. (im not audiophile) i might could use velour pads now

Velours will add more mid/low bass and will add more weight to notes. It's a very good blend once you've opened up the sound w the mod

 

[Rainblind]

Did anyone try pads form 490 on 600 / 650? Do they fit? And more interestingly - does this matching work soundwise?

 

[CammyFi]

Since nobody else is probably crazy enough to do this probably ever, I decided to liberate the drivers from the housing so people can use it as a reference and get a better look at what is being used. Again also. Part number indeed matches the SYS driver used in the 560s for anyone still wondering or didn't know!

 

[Terriero]

Since nobody else is probably crazy enough to do this probably ever, I decided to liberate the drivers from the housing so people can use it as a reference and get a better look at what is being used. Again also. Part number indeed matches the SYS driver used in the 560s for anyone still wondering or didn't know!

Thanks for your risk to show the drivers, at least they are not Focal Utopias

 

[CammyFi]

Thanks for your risk to show the drivers, at least they are not Focal Utopias

Yeah it still works haha, its just slightly cracked

 

[headstef]

Great review! Have you compared against your NDH 30? I was thinking of a new headphone for a voicework. NDH 30 was on my radar, and now HD490 Pro as well. I will look forward for your impression.

Actually, I did! Well, almost. I visited again the local Sennheiser dealer yesterday, in fear that the one pair in stock could be sold anytime - then I would have to wait for another to come in the store. I only had one hour to spend for listening and measurements (bad ideal). I had already prepared a backpack with my Lehmann Audio dac/amp, a personal CD player + optical connection, some exceptional CDs and my Neumann NDH 30. And of course a simple measuring set (Audio Tools app by Studio Six Digital, loaded on an iPad mini, with a matching iTestMic measurement microphone ($ 200) mounted on a special made wooden plate). Signals provided by Denon Audio Technical CD.

About measurements first: Unfortunately it was very time consuming to do it properly in the store. After a preliminary set of measurements with the two different earpads I put the measuring gear aside; I had to listen too. These preliminary measurements however, showed almost exactly that the relative difference of the FR using the two different earpads is as described in the recent DIY Audio Heaven review by Solderdude or as printed inside the box by Sennheiser. I must see in my iPad if the frames (screenshots) saved in haste are meaningful to upload here.

Listenings were made with tracks from exceptional recordings like "Famous Blue Raincoat"-J.Warnes/L.Coen, "Blessed"-Lucinda Williams, a Dire Straits collection and an Audio Physic Test CD (for an excellent piano recording). I had more fine recordings but there was no time for many tracks.

I listened for a while with the velour pads (producing). They are impressive with rock music, offering very extensive and informative bass. Mids and highs are very detailed and expressive but the bass was slightly too much, compared with the balance of my NDH 30. I changed to the fabric (mixing) pads which seemed more interesting for my taste. The high quality bass remained, but with a little (just a little) less quantity than with the NDH 30. It was fully extended though. The headphone sounded surprisingly resolving in the high frequencies even by NDH 30 standards. This was due to the brighter character of the HD 490 Pro compared with the Neumann. I generally dislike bright headphones but in this case it was a very noble brightness making instruments (hats, acoustics guitars) sounding extremely natural and delightfully extended. No harshness, sibilance or fatigue. Oh, I wish I had more time to listen! Some tracks were surprisingly fresh and crisp (in the best sense and very enjoyable) but only extended listening could really show if an ear fatigue would develop. Also, I dare to say it is a positive departure from the HD 6## series sound in terms of resolution, out-of-the-head sound and comfort. The NDH 30 sounded a bit more polite and smooth after the HD 490 Pro and maybe a bit more refined and balanced. Initially I really missed the HF expressiveness of the HD 490 Pro but very soon the NDH 30 reminded me how wonderfully natural and true the voices of singers sound.
A final word: the HD 490 Pro really makes music. I preferred the mixing pads for this and I think I could live happily with it if it was my only headphone. I am sure some will prefer the bassier velour pads and maybe so would I for older rock recordings (often bass light). Surely Sennheiser (pro) didn't waste its time designing this. But I must listen a lot more with it to judge its competence against the highly musical and super accurate NDH 30.

 

[Wah Wah]

Did anyone try pads form 490 on 600 / 650? Do they fit? And more interestingly - does this matching work soundwise?

No. The 490 and 600/650 pads are not interchangeable

 

[Wah Wah]

So I have about 2 weeks of comparing the 490 to my daily 650 (w/ ZMF solids and balanced cable) using sound jack, RU7, Little Dot MK2, TA-22, Hifi EF400, and Singxer SA-1. The ZMF pads darken and slightly muddy the sound in favor of a much improved low end. Keep that in mind while reading my impressions. I also own PC37x, PC38x, and HD6xx.

Overall, I am very impressed and love the 490.
Overall, the difference between the two headphones is not enough to justify owning both.

The 490 is a bit brighter, and because of the raised mids/highs feels a little more detailed. It has an impressive low end, probably better than stock 600/650, but not as much as 650 w/ ZMF pads. The stock cable sounds balanced. (I read the headphone is internally balanced) Given the lower ohms I was concerned it would be hard to drive -- I found the opposite -- the 490 is about 5db louder than the 650. Generally, music sounds great with clearer vocals; on some songs this works against you and the instruments get raised as well making the song sound harsh. Sound stage is about the same, with the singer maybe 1 foot further forward. The 490 pads and band are extremely comfortable, probably the most comfortable headphone I've listened to.

If I didn't own the HD650 already, I would strongly consider the HD490. I don't think you can go wrong with either headphone. Pair the 490s with some ZMF pads and I would argue it's the best Sennheiser headphone. (except maybe the HD800 which I have never heard)

 

[headstef]

No. The 490 and 600/650 pads are not interchangeable

Correct, they have different systems of attachment (similar philosophy though).

Speaking of pads, it is also correct that each of the "mixing" pads has two small recesses under the fabric, at the points where glass arms pass between the pad and the head. They can be felt by hand as softer spots on the pads. Consequently they need to be attached with the correct orientation. Their purpose is to allow full contact of the pads with the head to maintain the bass response. This is a nice feature since the mixing pads are already a little bass-light. I am not sure that the velour pads have this future but they surely don't need it since they are made with memory foam inside (very visible if you press a pad with fingers).

 

[brux]

Received our set of the 490 Pro here at the HAC office. I'm really enjoying these a lot. I like the QoL improvement of having a single entry cable that can go on either side. Going to use these as my daily driver (was previously using the HD560s) for a while. They're lightweight and comfortable for longer sessions which is a big plus for me.

If anyone is interested I went ahead and made a summary of the connector info / wiring for the cable for those shopping for or wanting to DIY a cable. Link to that here. Was also able to grab some pics for the site / updating our product listings:

Wiring info:

Overall really happy with these headphones so far. Pleasantly surprised that Sennheiser went with a non-proprietary connector and wired things in a standard way.

 

[BLacklWf]

Actually, I did! Well, almost. I visited again the local Sennheiser dealer yesterday, in fear that the one pair in stock could be sold anytime - then I would have to wait for another to come in the store. I only had one hour to spend for listening and measurements (bad ideal). I had already prepared a backpack with my Lehmann Audio dac/amp, a personal CD player + optical connection, some exceptional CDs and my Neumann NDH 30. And of course a simple measuring set (Audio Tools app by Studio Six Digital, loaded on an iPad mini, with a matching iTestMic measurement microphone ($ 200) mounted on a special made wooden plate). Signals provided by Denon Audio Technical CD.

About measurements first: Unfortunately it was very time consuming to do it properly in the store. After a preliminary set of measurements with the two different earpads I put the measuring gear aside; I had to listen too. These preliminary measurements however, showed almost exactly that the relative difference of the FR using the two different earpads is as described in the recent DIY Audio Heaven review by Solderdude or as printed inside the box by Sennheiser. I must see in my iPad if the frames (screenshots) saved in haste are meaningful to upload here.

Listenings were made with tracks from exceptional recordings like "Famous Blue Raincoat"-J.Warnes/L.Coen, "Blessed"-Lucinda Williams, a Dire Straits collection and an Audio Physic Test CD (for an excellent piano recording). I had more fine recordings but there was no time for many tracks.

I listened for a while with the velour pads (producing). They are impressive with rock music, offering very extensive and informative bass. Mids and highs are very detailed and expressive but the bass was slightly too much, compared with the balance of my NDH 30. I changed to the fabric (mixing) pads which seemed more interesting for my taste. The high quality bass remained, but with a little (just a little) less quantity than with the NDH 30. It was fully extended though. The headphone sounded surprisingly resolving in the high frequencies even by NDH 30 standards. This was due to the brighter character of the HD 490 Pro compared with the Neumann. I generally dislike bright headphones but in this case it was a very noble brightness making instruments (hats, acoustics guitars) sounding extremely natural and delightfully extended. No harshness, sibilance or fatigue. Oh, I wish I had more time to listen! Some tracks were surprisingly fresh and crisp (in the best sense and very enjoyable) but only extended listening could really show if an ear fatigue would develop. Also, I dare to say it is a positive departure from the HD 6## series sound in terms of resolution, out-of-the-head sound and comfort. The NDH 30 sounded a bit more polite and smooth after the HD 490 Pro and maybe a bit more refined and balanced. Initially I really missed the HF expressiveness of the HD 490 Pro but very soon the NDH 30 reminded me how wonderfully natural and true the voices of singers sound.
A final word: the HD 490 Pro really makes music. I preferred the mixing pads for this and I think I could live happily with it if it was my only headphone. I am sure some will prefer the bassier velour pads and maybe so would I for older rock recordings (often bass light). Surely Sennheiser (pro) didn't waste its time designing this. But I must listen a lot more with it to judge its competence against the highly musical and super accurate NDH 30.

Thanks for the amazing review and the comparison! Looks like HD 490 Pro is a no brainer for me since it's meaningfully cheaper than NDH 30. But, it makes a perfect sense that Senn or its parent company made NDH 30 a more refined version for true pros. HD 490 Pro appeals to lower the entry point yet offer three distinct flavors (including NDH 30 and two sets of earpads) to the consumers. I am thinking of ordering HD 490 Pro and with a mini 4-pin XLR to regular 4-pin XLR cable in order to use with my v281.

 

[BLacklWf]

Received our set of the 490 Pro here at the HAC office. I'm really enjoying these a lot. I like the QoL improvement of having a single entry cable that can go on either side. Going to use these as my daily driver (was previously using the HD560s) for a while. They're lightweight and comfortable for longer sessions which is a big plus for me.

If anyone is interested I went ahead and made a summary of the connector info / wiring for the cable for those shopping for or wanting to DIY a cable. Link to that here. Was also able to grab some pics for the site / updating our product listings:





Wiring info:



Overall really happy with these headphones so far. Pleasantly surprised that Sennheiser went with a non-proprietary connector and wired things in a standard way.

Hi Hart Audio,

You have almost the exact cable I need, and they look beautiful. Do you offer a male 4-pin mini XLR (I suppose this goes into HD 490 Pro I suppose) a female regular 4-pin XLR (to connect to to a XLR balanced amp) cable? In your website, I don't think I saw a full size 4-pin XLR option.

 

[brux]

Hi Hart Audio,

You have almost the exact cable I need, and they look beautiful. Do you offer a male 4-pin mini XLR (I suppose this goes into HD 490 Pro I suppose) a female regular 4-pin XLR (to connect to to a XLR balanced amp) cable? In your website, I don't think I saw a full size 4-pin XLR option.

Hey! It's kind of counter intuitive but the connector going to the 490 is a female mini-xlr. If you go to that link in the previous post, any of the 'HC-8' models linked at the bottom of the page will work with the 490 cans. For a full size 4 pin xlr on the source side (your balanced amp's XLR output) just make sure to choose [M] 4-pin XLR in the drop-down on whichever product page you end up using .

Hopefully that made sense . Away from my desk at the moment or else I could provide some more links / pictures.