[logicalform]

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Darn,
That makes two of us!


 

 
 Make that three!
 
 

 

[Thunder47]

just got mine!!!  these are my first real set of cans and I love them already.  things will just get better!

 

[Sennheiser]

Congrats on your purchase! Glad you like them 

 

[john57]

I just got my HD598 yesterday and I waited today because I wanted my hair cut before trying on the HD598. So far they sound very good with my tweaked Little Dot 1+ with the 408A tubes and 2107 op amp. I have another tube amp that I am rolling tubes to deside what can work better for the new headphone. I also will be trying out the new headphone with my Melos pre-amp and will compare it with my Stax setup as well. 

 

[logicalform]

 
Got mine and was a bit underwhelmed at first. After about 15-20 hours, though, they've started to open up a bit. I also had a bit of crackling/distortion at first, but that's clearing up slowly as well. These definitely have that smooth Sennheiser presentation (meaning pretty much zero fatigue) despite their relatively bright sound sig (relative to other Senns, that is). In contrast to my ear-bleed inducing SR80s, these are extremely comfortable to wear/listen to for extended periods. I do at times miss the amount of "gritty" detail I get from the Grados, but the smoothness of the 598s equals longer enjoyment time. The soundstage is pretty big, though not as jaw-droppingly large as I expected from some comments (better amplification will probably help that). The SS is big enough, though, that things can sound somewhat distant at times. They are somewhat bass light, but the bass is there when it needs to be (though not overpowering). I didn't expect to enjoy these with bass heavy music, but they're actually not that bad. I'm listening to some SBTRKT mixes right now and they definitely give a nice sense of ambience (with other electronic music as well; things like Shpongle). Classical and jazz are great with these, but harder genres (e.g. certain rock) can sound a bit too "polite". Sometimes a bit of grit is definitely called for.
I had been entertaining the idea of K702s for a while, but budget concerns led me to these for now. I'm still evaluating/burning-in but I think they will definitely do for now. I don't think they will stave off upgradeitis for a super long period of time, but I think they're a pretty great value at the prices they're going for.
 
edit: I'm also noticing a bit of graininess, which is more evident on some tracks than others. I guess time will tell if this will ease up. 

 

[john57]

I noticed at first my HD598 seems to need a bit of more power to drive them at first than I was excepting. Now they are becoming more efficient. I am also reexamine the tube rolling options in my OTL amp. I denfinitely like the smooth Sennheiser sound presentation.   

 

[Anaxilus]

Quote:

edit: I'm also noticing a bit of graininess, which is more evident on some tracks than others. I guess time will tell if this will ease up. 

That should be your music.  Perhaps all that detail you were missing w/ the SR80.  

  All Grados below the SR225 were grainier to my ears than most of all the phones I've owned.  
 

 

[tdockweiler]

About the grain issue (which really isn't an issue IMO)..
 
I think it can be the type of song and also the stock cable. I don't know why, but it seems more grainy when there is a larger soundstage and lots of stuff going on all at once in it. It's less noticeable in my music since I listen to a lot of vocal oriented music. It never was an issue for me at all and don't think I really bothered to pay much attention to it until I compared it to the HD-600. The HD-600 is like a tad less grainy in it's sound. Like when I compared them side by side to tell the difference, it was very very hard to spot. Then the HD-650 was less grainy than the HD-600, but that was an even bigger difference.
 
When I recabled my HD-598 with a Mogami (cheap) cable the sound really cleared up. The improvement was bigger than any other recable I've ever done. Enough to make me now like the HD-598 more than the K601!  After a recable I found myself not using the K601 as much. If you're satisfied with the sound, don't risk it though. The sound clarity of my HD-598 has dropped a bit ever since I tried my Canare cable so I need to switch back to Mogami. Mogami retains the natural HD-598 signature, but just improves it. I've found the Canare reduces the treble a tad.

 

[FlySweep]

That should be your music.  Perhaps all that detail you were missing w/ the SR80.

 
That's something I'm noticing more and more with the 598's.. they REALLY like well recorded/mastered music.  They don't make poorly recorded music sound bad, they just expose the flaws and it smakes the headphone sound like it's cheap sounding.. which in fact is not.  Well recorded jazz, soul, RnB sound simply glorious on these.  And the bass can hit if it's, again, well recorded & mastered.  With time they do become more efficient too.  I rarely use mine with an amp nowadays.

 

[logicalform]

Quote:

That should be your music.  Perhaps all that detail you were missing w/ the SR80.  

  All Grados below the SR225 were grainier to my ears than most of all the phones I've owned.  
 

Very well could be, but I've noticed it in flac recordings that I thought sounded very good before 

 It's a type of graininess that I noticed A LOT of with the hd238s, so I'm tempted to think it's an inherent part of the lower end Senns. Not too bothersome, though, and only seems to show up in certain loud/complex passages. I do like these phones a lot, though. Just being nit-picky 

 
@tdockweiler: I'm assuming you did your own recables, right? From what I've read there aren't really any premade cables available yet for the 5x8s because of the proprietary connector. How did you get around this? I've never recabled anything, but it sounds tempting. 

 

[tdockweiler]

Quote:

@tdockweiler: I'm assuming you did your own recables, right? From what I've read there aren't really any premade cables available yet for the 5x8s because of the proprietary connector. How did you get around this? I've never recabled anything, but it sounds tempting. 

When I made mine I just bought all the supplies online and did it myself. Cost me under $20. My soldering skills aren't even that good. One reason I did it was because my HD-598 wasn't being used as much as the K601 I had at the time and I was willing to risk it. Basically I removed every single wire inside and also removed the tiny board inside. Unless you're crazy and don't mind risking killing your headphone, I don't suggest it because there's no going back if you don't use the proper wire and screw up it's signature..or just don't like the resulting sound. It also voids your warranty. Very bad if you get a pair that has the cracking issue.
 
I remember when I first did mine I was so nervous and was pretty sure I'd kill my poor HD-598! Felt like performing brain surgery. When I was done I was shocked at the difference. I've said this before, but this is what made me get rid of the HD-650 I had at the time. Oh and you need to drill a hole to make the headphone dual entry. This is why I suggest to not bother if you're happy with how they sound. Drilling a hole took about 2 seconds and was easier than I thought.
 
BTW the HD-598 is kind of hard to solder a wire to. The soldering points are extremely tiny and then there appears to be two exposed wires (voice coil?) next to the soldering point! I remember on my 2nd recable of it, I accidentally heated the solder up too long and all of a sudden the board turned all white! I was so sure I killed something but it was 100% OK. A dual entry HD-598 is kind of an extra annoyance to some also. Doesn't bother me really.
 

 

[logicalform]

 
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I remember when I first did mine I was so nervous and was pretty sure I'd kill my poor HD-598! Felt like performing brain surgery. When I was done I was shocked at the difference. I've said this before, but this is what made me get rid of the HD-650 I had at the time. Oh and you need to drill a hole to make the headphone dual entry. This is why I suggest to not bother if you're happy with how they sound. Drilling a hole took about 2 seconds and was easier than I thought.
 
BTW the HD-598 is kind of hard to solder a wire to. The soldering points are extremely tiny and then there appears to be two exposed wires (voice coil?) next to the soldering point! I remember on my 2nd recable of it, I accidentally heated the solder up too long and all of a sudden the board turned all white! I was so sure I killed something but it was 100% OK. A dual entry HD-598 is kind of an extra annoyance to some also. Doesn't bother me really.
 

_-_  nvm... I'm pretty sure I would flatline mine in about 2.4 seconds...

 

[palmfish]

Quote:

Two things.  One, figure out why the Carver sounds the way it does w/ the 598 and act accordingly.  Two, try out a bunch of phones and see if you like those better.  Just too little information for someone to figure out what you are hearing and why.  There is obviously a difference between what you are hearing from two different setups.  Without knowing 'why' you could mess up the other system while fixing synergy w/ the carver.  Who knows.    
 

Thank you again so much for the opinions and advice Anaxilus. I ordered a pair of HD 650's to see if maybe a higher impedance headphone might match up better with my Carver and have now finally gotten a chance to break them in a little and listen to them.
 
I don't know if it's the higher impedance that made the difference, but the 650's sound absolutely wonderful on both of my systems. The flabby bloated bass that I heard on the Carver is gone with the 650 and the high freqs are sweet but smoother somehow. For me, the 650's just sound more natural and easier to listen to. I really love them.
 
The 598's are going back to J&R.
 

 

[john57]

I have not heard a impedance difference this extreme before. I also assume you getting good volume as well on both systems.

 

[palmfish]

Yes, volume is fine for both of them - basically a little lower on the dial (about 5 dB) than my speakers. Also, I expected the 650's to be harder to drive, but they are actually a smidge louder than the 598's. I had to turn the volume up about 2 dB for the 598's to match the 650's in volume.

This is with full-size 120 WPC amps though. I haven't tried the 650's with a portable device.