[bagwell359]

Gotcha. I'm eager to try his EQs based on various measurements sites to compare. This reveals how accurate the measurements really are.

One thing it will never do - account for unit to unit variations, of course no other comparison method will either - unless you have the samples in question in hand.

Then of course is the source(s) used, volume/power tested at...

Still, enough good points have been made that I'd like to try it myself.

 

[ADUHF]

I just A/Bed every HD600 PEQ on the AutoEQ GitHub, here are the results:
I used foobar with the MathAudio Headphone EQ plugin. Wasapi Push output, 9038S DAC/Amp, pretty new pads, very old drivers

Spoiler: Results:

The only good ones:​

rtings

nice bass boost and takes some of the edge off, link

ReferenceAudioAnalyzer

similarly great bass boost, retains the original bite up top, link

The bad ones:​

Crinacle

sounds veiled, link

Innerfidelity

honky, very weird sound, that 6K peak is a bad idea, link

oratory1990

unnatural, blunt, drastic treble reduction is a bad idea, link

Headphone.com

veiled, unnatural

I hope that, despite my very short descriptions, this summary will prove useful to some and I'd love to hear if you agree with my findings.
Cheers!

I haven't had much luck increasing the bass on open-back headphones, like the HD 600, with an EQ. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think you can really increase something that doesn't exist to begin with.

The only way I know to increase the bass extension on open-back headphones is to close them up. Either completely, or partially. Which may alter their sound signature in some other ways as well.

 

[SilverEars]

I haven't had much luck increasing the bass on open-back headphones, like the HD 600. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think you can really increase something that doesn't exist to begin with.

The only way I know to increase the bass extension on open-back headphones is to close them up. Either completely, or partially. Which may alter their sound signature in some other ways as well.

I'm curious to see measurements of HD600 after EQ of the subs. Anybody seen anything like that can post? I get a feeling it's really difficult to increase subs for a headphones like HD600.

Is it possible to get the HD600 to the level R70X with EQ, I would be amazed. Without EQ BH Crack's amp bass boosting is the best I believe HD600 can gain.

By the way, if anybody wants to try a closed-back that sounds like HD600, I'd recommend AKG K371. It has the bass.

 

[ADUHF]

If you don't want to close up the backs, then you could try using some different earpads. I have seen some potentially encourging results with that on other headphones. Whether it would work with Senns like the HD600, I do not know.

The Monoprice M650 is open-back, for example. And here is a FR plot made by Brent Butterworth of SoundStage showing the difference in response with leatherette vs. velour pads.

https://www.soundstagenetwork.com/i...ments/monoprice_monolith_m650/fr_two_pads.png

Both falloff noticeably in the sub-bass, but the leatherette pads increase the bass response pretty substantially above that. More plots from this headphone here...

https://www.soundstagenetwork.com/i...monolith-m650-headphones&catid=263&Itemid=203

 

[staticV3]

I never knew the M650 has such bad treble extension...
Regarding different pads, the internet has led me to believe that most aftermarket pads will ruin the sound of the HD6X0/HD6XX.
The only one I might gamble on is the one from Yaxi.

 

[SilverEars]

If you don't want to close up the backs, then you could try using some different earpads. I have seen some potentially encourging results with that on other headphones. Whether it would work with Senns like the HD600, I do not know.

The Monoprice M650 is open-back, for example. And here is a FR plot made by Brent Butterworth of SoundStage showing the difference in response with leatherette vs. velour pads.

https://www.soundstagenetwork.com/i...ments/monoprice_monolith_m650/fr_two_pads.png

Both falloff noticeably in the sub-bass, but the leatherette pads increase the bass response pretty substantially above that. More plots from this headphone here...

https://www.soundstagenetwork.com/i...monolith-m650-headphones&catid=263&Itemid=203

I can see the limitations of the 'Pinna and Cheek simulator' they use. It does seem to be cut-off at about 8k like the general medical grade equipment. Paul Barton mentioned this about the 'Pinna and Cheek simulators.' Perhaps why Tyll's measurements has roll-off around that treble region? I wonder how Rtings has mitigated this?

As far as the M650, I disliked the treble response, and the general warm-ness of the mids which was too much.

 

[CaptainFantastic]

I never knew the M650 has such bad treble extension...
Regarding different pads, the internet has led me to believe that most aftermarket pads will ruin the sound of the HD6X0/HD6XX.
The only one I might gamble on is the one from Yaxi.

I read and heard the same things about aftermarket pads. I tried the Dekoni and the Yaxi. The Dekoni improved the sound for me, the Yaxi did not. I recommend the former. Strongly. YMMV

 

[staticV3]

I read and heard the same things about aftermarket pads. I tried the Dekoni and the Yaxi. The Dekoni improved the sound for me, the Yaxi did not. I recommend the former. Strongly. YMMV

That is very valuable information. Thank you.
Exactly which pads are you using?

Fortunately, Dekoni regularly publishes measurement data of their pads using various headphones.
With the HD650, it seems like all pad types boost the 20Hz to 1000Hz frequency band evenly by 4-8db, depending on the exact pad used
https://dekoniaudio.com/sennheiser-hd650-measurements/

Spoiler: measurement results

With the HD600. the results seem to be much of the same:
https://dekoniaudio.com/frequency-response-curve-new-dekoni-sennheiser-hd600-pads/

 

[Majestyk]

I haven't had much luck increasing the bass on open-back headphones, like the HD 600, with an EQ. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think you can really increase something that doesn't exist to begin with.

The only way I know to increase the bass extension on open-back headphones is to close them up. Either completely, or partially. Which may alter their sound signature in some other ways as well.

My HD600's sound almost identical to the 650's with my vintage receivers bass set at 2 and treble set at -1. So, yes, you can get more bass out of them. That's why the 600's are usually the headphone of choice with vintage receiver owners. (IE: Plenty of bass)

 

[CaptainFantastic]

That is very valuable information. Thank you.
Exactly which pads are you using?

The Elite Fenestrated Sheepskin.

 

[staticV3]

The Elite Fenestrated Sheepskin.

Got it. They seem to be the least bassy out of Dekoni's lineup

 

[ADUHF]

My HD600's sound almost identical to the 650's with my vintage receivers bass set at 2 and treble set at -1. So, yes, you can get more bass out of them. That's why the 600's are usually the headphone of choice with vintage receiver owners. (IE: Plenty of bass)

There is bassy. And then there is bassy though, Majestyk. I'm sure you're not trying to suggest that the HD 600 can sound as bassy or well-extended in the low-frequencies as some of the better close-back HPs. Because that would be utter nonsense... unless maybe you're willing to close them up.

 

[ADUHF]

My HD600's sound almost identical to the 650's with my vintage receivers bass set at 2 and treble set at -1.

I agree btw that tone controls are still useful. And can be handy for tweaking the sound for different types of music as well. I wouldn't use my current HPs without them, or at least some basic type of equalization.

 

[ADUHF]

This has probably been mentioned here before, but since we're on the topic, Schiit makes a standalone unit for adjusting tonal response, called the Loki.

https://www.schiit.com/products/loki

If you're not into software-based solutions, or using analog sources where they're less practical, then this might be one possible solution. A decent mixer will give a similar set of controls for bass, mid-range, and treble adjustment. SQ may not be as good though as the Loki.

 

[SilverEars]

This has probably been mentioned here before, but since we're on the topic, Schiit makes a standalone unit for adjusting tonal response, called the Loki.

https://www.schiit.com/products/loki

If you're not into software-based solutions, or using analog sources where they're less practical, then this might be one possible solution. A decent mixer will give a similar set of controls for bass, mid-range, and treble adjustment. SQ may not be as good though as the Loki.

I've been curious about this. How does the boost sound with this? Does it sound on the clean side or more distorted for headphones like HD600?