[saikat1729]

  Amazon sent me a replacement HD 598SE because of the headband peeling and I have been comparing both pairs. There is no doubt, the new ones definitely sound different!
 
The replacement pair is a bit warmer and the soundstage is slightly wider. It sounds more alive if that makes sense. The serial number of the old pair is 11XX and the new pair is 22XX.

Which one did you have before? HD 598 or HD 598SE?

 

[saikat1729]

  Amazon sent me a replacement HD 598SE because of the headband peeling and I have been comparing both pairs. There is no doubt, the new ones definitely sound different!
 
The replacement pair is a bit warmer and the soundstage is slightly wider. It sounds more alive if that makes sense. The serial number of the old pair is 11XX and the new pair is 22XX.

I have just received my HD 598SE a week before. Do I need to worry about the headband? 

 

[VeggiePopper]

I have just received my HD 598SE a week before. Do I need to worry about the headband? 

I've been using my SE for nearly two months, took them to work a couple of times, they were tossed inside a tiny backpack, and I even work out everyday with them on (yes, I know they're not meant to be used under those circumstances, but what the hell), and everything is perfect. You'd think that my sweaty head (and I sweat A LOT during exercise) would tear apart the band already, but nope, it has stood my daily abuse so far.

---------------

Now that I must have reached the 100 hour mark, I think it's time for some definitive impressions.

First off, the bass. Back when I posted my first impressions, I mentioned my HD 598 SE sounded very bassy. However, as I kept on listening, trying several songs and switching equipment (I moved in to a new apartment with my gf right after new year, so bye bye to my dad's fancy receiver, hello consumer level Sony stereo), I can say that the bass is not as overpowering as I initially perceived. Instead, I feel it's just there, so it depends on the source and it turned out I simply did my first impressions on a bassy recording.

I noticed this one time when I just decided to play my entire smartphone library in a row, alphabetically, which allowed me to, if I had a song repeated, to listen to both versions back to back. And so it happened - Like a Rolling Stone (original studio version from the Highway 61 album) by Bob Dylan. My G4 decided to play the stereo version first, then the mono one. The stereo mix had a very flat mastering, maybe a little bright; all instruments sounded good, nothing stood out, a very good listening. Then, as soon as the sond ended, the opening riff kicked in again, this time in mono, and it was sooo different: now, the bass was really heavy and fat, even a little too much for my taste (it never sounded bloated, though). Once the song ended I played both versions again, back to back, this time directly from the CD's, on my PC and without headphones, and yes, the mono version is very bass boosted. The 598 handled the bass boost quite accordingly and with good control (as I said, as loud as the bass is, it never became bloated).

Mids continue to be brilliant, I do think they're this set's best. Every voice shines so perfectly, and the highs never become sibilant or harsh. Even Dylan's high pitched voice and his ear piercing harmonica sound so clean and crips on the 2003 version of Blonde on Blonde, which is famous for how screeching it was mastered. And yet, it's not fatiguong at all for me when I listen the record with my 598's.

Now for those who believe in burn-in, in addition to my regular listening, I let them play overnight from time to time. During this burn-in period, I played the entire Beatles (mono) discography from start to end, then did the same with U2's, Queen's, Radiohead and George Harrison, in this order, one artist per night. Like I said, that's without taking into account my regular playing of whatever I wanted to, in my spare time.

So far, I've listened to Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Bob Dylan, Café Tacuba and the Flaming Lips the most, but I also have a couple of hours of Taylor Swift, Adelle and even some tracks by Steve Aoki and Daft Punk, plus ocassional sessions of classical (mainly Beethoven and Mozart) and other orchestrated/instrumental music in the form of video game and film soundtracks.

Speaking of which, I've also plugged my 598's to my WiiU GamePad and played many hours of Zelda; and to my 3DS for some Pokémon training, not to mention the rampages I had in GTA V with them on. And that's so awesome! Even though I don't have a dedicated amp and instead have my TV just connected to my stereo, with the headphones connected to the latter's headphine jack, but it still provides a great soundstage with perfect sound detection. I really reel like I'm part of the game's world!

So, if burn in exists, I think my Lennons went through a very healthy one (maybe I missed some contemporary and fast music, but whatever, that's not my priority), and after all these music, I can say that they sound really good. I really love them.

Upon my first impressions, my biggest concern was that when plugged to my PC and smartphone they didn't sound as open as when I tried them on my father's receiver to play some LP's. To thos day, I can say that the soundstage did improve a little bit, but not too much, when played from my PC and smartphone. They still sound slightly closed compared to when I plug them to my dad's receiver. Their retro appearance (at least of the standard version) is not just for the looks: these ARE intended to be used in old equipment, for listening to vinyl records.

I assume my PC sessions should be better with a good DAC (and probably even better if I add an amp as well), and to that effect, I intend to buy a Modi2/Magni2 combo for them. However, that is a very long, long, long term goal, since, as I mentioned at the beginning of this post, my girlfriend and I just moved in to a new home to start a new life together, and as such we have a lot of basic stuff to buy (furniture, dishes, appliances...). Therefore, we're basically broken, and any purchase outside of the basics is currently out of question and until several months when we settle down properly.

So, my final veredict for the 598SE is that it's perfect for playing vinyls, great for playing video games, and really good for playing digital files from so-so sources. Adding a DAC/amp combo should improve the latter, but so far I am unable to provide a true impression of such improval.

 

[saikat1729]

I've been using my SE for nearly two months, took them to work a couple of times, they were tossed inside a tiny backpack, and I even work out everyday with them on (yes, I know they're not meant to be used under those circumstances, but what the hell), and everything is perfect. You'd think that my sweaty head (and I sweat A LOT during exercise) would tear apart the band already, but nope, it has stood my daily abuse so far.

---

Now that I must have reached the 100 hour mark, I think it's time for some definitive impressions.

First off, the bass. Back when I posted my first impressions, I mentioned my HD 598 SE sounded very bassy. However, as I kept on listening, trying several songs and switching equipment (I moved in to a new apartment with my gf right after new year, so bye bye to my dad's fancy receiver, hello consumer level Sony stereo), I can say that the bass is not as overpowering as I initially perceived. Instead, I feel it's just there, so it depends on the source and it turned out I simply did my first impressions on a bassy recording.

I noticed this one time when I just decided to play my entire smartphone library in a row, alphabetically, which allowed me to, if I had a song repeated, to listen to both versions back to back. And so it happened - Like a Rolling Stone (original studio version from the Highway 61 album) by Bob Dylan. My G4 decided to play the stereo version first, then the mono one. The stereo mix had a very flat mastering, maybe a little bright; all instruments sounded good, nothing stood out, a very good listening. Then, as soon as the sond ended, the opening riff kicked in again, this time in mono, and it was sooo different: now, the bass was really heavy and fat, even a little too much for my taste (it never sounded bloated, though). Once the song ended I played both versions again, back to back, this time directly from the CD's, on my PC and without headphones, and yes, the mono version is very bass boosted. The 598 handled the bass boost quite accordingly and with good control (as I said, as loud as the bass is, it never became bloated).

Mids continue to be brilliant, I do think they're this set's best. Every voice shines so perfectly, and the highs never become sibilant or harsh. Even Dylan's high pitched voice and his ear piercing harmonica sound so clean and crips on the 2003 version of Blonde on Blonde, which is famous for how screeching it was mastered. And yet, it's not fatiguong at all for me when I listen the record with my 598's.

Now for those who believe in burn-in, in addition to my regular listening, I let them play overnight from time to time. During this burn-in period, I played the entire Beatles (mono) discography from start to end, then did the same with U2's, Queen's, Radiohead and George Harrison, in this order, one artist per night. Like I said, that's without taking into account my regular playing of whatever I wanted to, in my spare time.

So far, I've listened to Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Bob Dylan, Café Tacuba and the Flaming Lips the most, but I also have a couple of hours of Taylor Swift, Adelle and even some tracks by Steve Aoki and Daft Punk, plus ocassional sessions of classical (mainly Beethoven and Mozart) and other orchestrated/instrumental music in the form of video game and film soundtracks.

Speaking of which, I've also plugged my 598's to my WiiU GamePad and played many hours of Zelda; and to my 3DS for some Pokémon training, not to mention the rampages I had in GTA V with them on. And that's so awesome! Even though I don't have a dedicated amp and instead have my TV just connected to my stereo, with the headphones connected to the latter's headphine jack, but it still provides a great soundstage with perfect sound detection. I really reel like I'm part of the game's world!

So, if burn in exists, I think my Lennons went through a very healthy one (maybe I missed some contemporary and fast music, but whatever, that's not my priority), and after all these music, I can say that they sound really good. I really love them.

Upon my first impressions, my biggest concern was that when plugged to my PC and smartphone they didn't sound as open as when I tried them on my father's receiver to play some LP's. To thos day, I can say that the soundstage did improve a little bit, but not too much, when played from my PC and smartphone. They still sound slightly closed compared to when I plug them to my dad's receiver. Their retro appearance (at least of the standard version) is not just for the looks: these ARE intended to be used in old equipment, for listening to vinyl records.

I assume my PC sessions should be better with a good DAC (and probably even better if I add an amp as well), and to that effect, I intend to buy a Modi2/Magni2 combo for them. However, that is a very long, long, long term goal, since, as I mentioned at the beginning of this post, my girlfriend and I just moved in to a new home to start a new life together, and as such we have a lot of basic stuff to buy (furniture, dishes, appliances...). Therefore, we're basically broken, and any purchase outside of the basics is currently out of question and until several months when we settle down properly.

So, my final veredict for the 598SE is that it's perfect for playing vinyls, great for playing video games, and really good for playing digital files from so-so sources. Adding a DAC/amp combo should improve the latter, but so far I am unable to provide a true impression of such improval.

Hey! that was truly a great review. Unorthodox and original.
I wish you two a great new beginning and you are right, you need to settle down first.
Love and life both comes ahead, way ahead of this audiophile's hobby.
 
So good luck man and in the mean time just enjoy your 598SE as I do and I still can't believe how good mids sound with these.

 

[LazyListener]

  Amazon sent me a replacement HD 598SE because of the headband peeling and I have been comparing both pairs. There is no doubt, the new ones definitely sound different!
 
The replacement pair is a bit warmer and the soundstage is slightly wider. It sounds more alive if that makes sense. The serial number of the old pair is 11XX and the new pair is 22XX.

On the box, under the UPC code, there's a date string ending in "Rev02" or something like that.  Can you let us know what is that date string for each of your SEs?  I'm just curious.
 
Now that we've seen several people post stating that 2 pairs of supposedly the same headphone sound different, I think it's fairly safe to say that there are some significant variations in manufacturing and/or design.  Sennheiser has stated that they made no changes in design other than color.  If true, they are having some significant issues with manufacturing, and I hope Sennheiser looks into it and fixes it.  Anyone with a basic understanding of product design and manufacturing knows that manufacturing tolerances are specified in a tight enough range so as not to yield significant variations in the final product.  If the listener can hear an obvious difference between 2 cans of the same model line, then that is a significant variation in the final product, and indicates poor manufacturing and quality control (again, assuming all else equal and no design changes were made).
 
I really hope someone at Sennheiser reads these threads and takes action on this.

 

[Letmebefrank]

3 or 4 people hearing a difference between two sets of headphones with various amount of hours on them is not definitive evidence that any significant number of them sound different or off. If sound stops for even 1 second your mind can start to hear what it wants to hear. Just reading that someone else heard a difference can effect the way you hear them. Just my 2 cents.

 

[therealjustin]

I have my original HD598 SE from December, and a replacement that arrived in mid-January. Both boxes are marked 20150623REV01.
 
The new pair has more bass too.

 
 
The headband is not really an issue but I figured I would get a replacement while I still could. In fact the new pair actually has the same thing going on where the cushion doesn't fit tightly against the pleather band.

 

[LazyListener]

3 or 4 people hearing a difference between two sets of headphones with various amount of hours on them is not definitive evidence that any significant number of them sound different or off. If sound stops for even 1 second your mind can start to hear what it wants to hear. Just reading that someone else heard a difference can effect the way you hear them. Just my 2 cents.

What you say is true, but I never claimed definitive evidence or a significant number.  However, let's consider a few things.
 
1.  3 or 4 people so far on these forums out of how many that actually were able to compare 2 sets back to back?  Probably not many people have had a chance to compare 2 sets of HD 598 and/or 598SE back to back.  The vast majority of owners out there (probably 99.99999%) will only ever listen to one set of these cans and never have the opportunity to compare 2 sets back to back.  So we have several people that heard a difference out of probably a relatively small number that have had a chance to compare them back to back.  So it's not several people out of thousands, but several people hearing a difference out of maybe a dozen or two.  Plus, these people didn't have to listen to 100 sets before they found one that sounded different.  They only had to listen to 2 sets to hear a difference.  All this makes this pretty significant.
 
2.  Various amount of hours?  The 2 sets (one HD 598, one SE) I had that I compared back to back both had about the same amount of hours on them.  "therealjustin" also had relatively new sets.  Don't recall the other folks.  Plus the differences are so apparent that I doubt it's due to burn in.  I believe my SE did sound a bit smoother in the treble after about 20 hours or so, but it still sounded very different from my Ivory 598.
 
3.  Is it all in my head?  Short answer:  absolutely not.  The differences were too obvious and apparent.  Each one of us has his or her own cutoff line of where we "think" we "may" hear a "small" difference and where we "know" we hear an "obvious" difference.  That line may vary from person to person, but when someone tells me they know they hear an obvious difference without a doubt and it's not just in their head, I tend to believe them.  Otherwise, you can use the "it's all in your head" excuse for every comparison of every headphone ever made, and we know for a fact that headphones do sound different from one another and it's not just in our heads.
 
4.  Peer influence.  Yes, I agree, reading how others hear something or that they hear a difference may have an effect on what one thinks one hears.  I even mentioned this phenomenon in one of my earlier posts.  However, this may be true when it comes to small differences in sound.  It would be hard to convince someone that HD 598s have more bass than V-Moda M-100s, all else being equal.  If someone tells me they hear something a certain way, and I have no scientific way to prove or discount peer influence, then I have to take things at face value.  Otherwise, we can throw out every review about anything ever made.  Plus, how do you explain that some people, even after reading a review, will hear a can very differently?  It goes both ways, so if I can't prove it or discount it, or measure it in any meaningful way, then I have to ignore the potential of peer influence, and just go with what that person is telling me.

 

[saikat1729]

 
What you say is true, but I never claimed definitive evidence or a significant number.  However, let's consider a few things.
 
1.  3 or 4 people so far on these forums out of how many that actually were able to compare 2 sets back to back?  Probably not many people have had a chance to compare 2 sets of HD 598 and/or 598SE back to back.  The vast majority of owners out there (probably 99.99999%) will only ever listen to one set of these cans and never have the opportunity to compare 2 sets back to back.  So we have several people that heard a difference out of probably a relatively small number that have had a chance to compare them back to back.  So it's not several people out of thousands, but several people hearing a difference out of maybe a dozen or two.  Plus, these people didn't have to listen to 100 sets before they found one that sounded different.  They only had to listen to 2 sets to hear a difference.  All this makes this pretty significant.
 
2.  Various amount of hours?  The 2 sets (one HD 598, one SE) I had that I compared back to back both had about the same amount of hours on them.  "therealjustin" also had relatively new sets.  Don't recall the other folks.  Plus the differences are so apparent that I doubt it's due to burn in.  I believe my SE did sound a bit smoother in the treble after about 20 hours or so, but it still sounded very different from my Ivory 598.
 
3.  Is it all in my head?  Short answer:  absolutely not.  The differences were too obvious and apparent.  Each one of us has his or her own cutoff line of where we "think" we "may" hear a "small" difference and where we "know" we hear an "obvious" difference.  That line may vary from person to person, but when someone tells me they know they hear an obvious difference without a doubt and it's not just in their head, I tend to believe them.  Otherwise, you can use the "it's all in your head" excuse for every comparison of every headphone ever made, and we know for a fact that headphones do sound different from one another and it's not just in our heads.
 
4.  Peer influence.  Yes, I agree, reading how others hear something or that they hear a difference may have an effect on what one thinks one hears.  I even mentioned this phenomenon in one of my earlier posts.  However, this may be true when it comes to small differences in sound.  It would be hard to convince someone that HD 598s have more bass than V-Moda M-100s, all else being equal.  If someone tells me they hear something a certain way, and I have no scientific way to prove or discount peer influence, then I have to take things at face value.  Otherwise, we can throw out every review about anything ever made.  Plus, how do you explain that some people, even after reading a review, will hear a can very differently?  It goes both ways, so if I can't prove it or discount it, or measure it in any meaningful way, then I have to ignore the potential of peer influence, and just go with what that person is telling me.

Can you tell which one was better? In terms of sound stage and highs reproduction? Looking for a smooth treble. I own 598 SE and feel like highs are less detailed than I expected.

 

[LazyListener]

  Can you tell which one was better? In terms of sound stage and highs reproduction?

In terms of soundstage, the Ivory 598 sounded more spacious and 3-dimensional, the 598SE flatter and more closed in.  In terms of highs reproduction, the 598SE was definitely the brighter sounding can, some may say clearer.  However, I prefer a warmer sounding can with smooth non-fatiguing highs so I preferred the Ivory 598.  I found the highs on the 598SE too bright and fatiguing and on some tracks even slightly harsh and sibilant, especially at louder volume.  When listening to the 598SE, it's hard to describe, but the upper mids and highs were too much for me.  It sounded shouty and I could feel my ears straining to listen, like there was too much sound coming at them, and too much pressure building up inside.  I could feel my inner ears something like vibrating in rejection.  That's the best way I can describe it.  Also, the sound of the 598SE seemed to fall apart quite a bit at higher volume, whereas the Ivory 598 just sang smoothly.  So yes, the 598SE sounded brighter and clearer in the highs, and the Ivory 598 warmer and smoother.  However, I also auditioned the Q701 and the DT 880, both cans known for clear highs, and neither of those were fatiguing to me like the 598SE.  Something about the 598SE was just off.  A little too much in certain upper mid/lower treble frequencies.
 
Hope that helps.

 

[saikat1729]

 
In terms of soundstage, the Ivory sounded more spacious and 3-dimensional, the 598SE flatter and more closed in.  In terms of highs reproduction, the SE was definitely the brighter sounding can, some may say clearer.  However, I prefer a warmer sounding can with smooth non-fatiguing highs so I preferred the Ivory.  I found the highs on the 598SE too bright and fatiguing and on some tracks even slightly harsh and sibilant, especially at louder volume.  When listening to the 598SE, it's hard to describe, but the upper mids and highs were too much for me.  It sounded shouty and I could feel my ears straining to listen, like there was too much sound coming at them, and too much pressure building up inside.  I could feel my inner ears something like vibrating in rejection.  That's the best way I can describe it.  Also, the sound of the 598SE seemed to fall apart quite a bit at higher volume, whereas the Ivory just sang smoothly.  So yes, the 598SE sounded brighter and clearer in the highs, and the Ivory warmer and smoother.  However, I also auditioned the Q701 and the DT 880, both cans known for clear highs, and neither of those were fatiguing to me like the 598SE.  Something about the 598SE was just off.  A little too much in certain upper mid/lower treble frequencies.
 
Hope that helps.

yeah! that was definitely helpful. One more thing did you use the shorter cable when using the 598SE or the longer cable with quarter inch jack and 3.5 mm clip on adaptor?
 
I was using the shorter cable for a long time and yesterday I decided to try the longer cable and surprisingly the sound stage was better with the longer one. 

 

[LazyListener]

  yeah! that was definitely helpful. One more thing did you use the shorter cable when using the 598SE or the longer cable with quarter inch jack and 3.5 mm clip on adaptor?
 
I was using the shorter cable for a long time and yesterday I decided to try the longer cable and surprisingly the sound stage was better with the longer one. 

Initially, I was using only the short cable with the 598SE.  Then after a couple of weeks, I tried it with the long cable with plug adapter, hoping it would improve the sound, and I "think" it did, marginally.  I'm pretty sure the long cable marginally improved the sound over the short cable.  It smoothed out the mids/treble a bit and like you said, improved the soundstage, expanding it a bit.  Again, the sonic differences between the 2 cables were marginal but noticeable.  I'm about 70% sure I heard a difference between the 2 cables.
 
The Ivory HD 598 still sounded very different (and better IMO) than the 598SE, even with the long cable with plug adapter used for both.  The sonic differences between these 2 sets of cans were quite obvious, apparent, and distinct, regardless of the cable used.  I'm 100% sure I heard a difference based on the 2 sets of cans alone.  I can see some listeners not hearing a difference between the 2 cables, although I'm pretty sure I did, and I read others had as well.  However, I'm quite confident most listeners would easily hear the difference between the 2 sets of cans I compared back to back, the Ivory HD 598 and the black 598SE using the same cable.

 

[saikat1729]

 
Initially, I was using only the short cable with the 598SE.  Then after a couple of weeks, I tried it with the long cable with plug adapter, hoping it would improve the sound, and I "think" it did, marginally.  I'm pretty sure the long cable marginally improved the sound over the short cable.  It smoothed out the mids/treble a bit and like you said, improved the soundstage, expanding it a bit.  Again, the sonic differences between the 2 cables were marginal but noticeable.  I'm about 70% sure I heard a difference between the 2 cables.
 
The Ivory HD 598 still sounded very different (and better IMO) than the 598SE, even with the long cable with plug adapter used for both.  The sonic differences between these 2 sets of cans were quite obvious, apparent, and distinct, regardless of the cable used.  I'm 100% sure I heard a difference based on the 2 sets of cans alone.  I can see some listeners not hearing a difference between the 2 cables, although I'm pretty sure I did, and I read others had as well.  However, I'm quite confident most listeners would easily hear the difference between the 2 sets of cans I compared back to back, the Ivory HD 598 and the black 598SE using the same cable.

Thanks! and yes I too hear the treble gets smoother with the longer one so I guess you should be more than 70% sure and that means Ivory definitely sounds better.
 
I was actually wondering from where those great reviews about the great sound stage comes from about HD 598 assuming HD 598= HD 598SE but now I have a pretty good idea why I was feeling like it doesn't have a great sound stage and have a too bright treble.
 
I was searching for answers for couple of days. Thanks for answering. Disappointed!! Thought both of them would be the same. I should start to consider returning the cans.

 

[saikat1729]

And more thing about HD 598SE. In higher volume it's just plain noisy. Don't know if you have noticed.

 

[LazyListener]

  Thanks! and yes I too hear the treble gets smoother with the longer one so I guess you should be more than 70% sure and that means Ivory definitely sounds better.
 
I was actually wondering from where those great reviews about the great sound stage comes from about HD 598 assuming HD 598= HD 598SE but now I have a pretty good idea why I was feeling like it doesn't have a great sound stage and have a too bright treble.
 
I was searching for answers for couple of days. Thanks for answering. Disappointed!! Thought both of them would be the same. I should start to consider returning the cans.

Well, I can only say that the 2 pairs of Ivory 598s I've had sounded much better than the 1 pair of 598SE I had, based on my personal preferences.  That's not to say all Ivory 598s sound similar to each other and different from all 598SEs.  There's definitely something going on with sonic differences in this model line based on several posters now.
 
My advice, if you're not happy with the 598SE, is to give them at least 20 hours burn in time.  If still not happy, try to audition another pair of Ivory 598s or 598SE (if you don't like Ivory color/style), either by ordering them or borrowing from someone, back to back against the 598SE.  I wouldn't return the 598SE until I've had a chance to compare them back to back with another pair.  It's possible that my experience may not be similar to your experience, and you may end up hearing the exact same thing with a replacement pair, or something entirely different.  Also, try different sources/amps and songs.  Source equipment and recordings can and in most cases will have an impact on the soundstage and other sound characteristics.  Of course, when comparing any headphones, you want to make sure all else is equal.
 
Good luck!  Let us know how it turns out.