Okay HD600s first impressions. This is with the LCD-2.2s in memory and the X1's still in my arsenal. I should say I'm using a Focusrite Scarlett Solo interface as an "amp" and it seems to be doing an admirable job.
1) Holy crap this cable is long.
2) The bass is lighter than the Audeze and Philips. No way around it. But that comes with an asterisk. In the case of the Audeze, this mainly shows up in the subbass because the Audeze had that ridiculous ruler-flat extension from 1000Hz all the way down to freaking 5Hz. Versus the X1s, it leaves the HD600s feeling less "thick". I'm not calling this a negative. For a lot of music you will not find yourself going "where's the bass" by any stretch even if you come from the aforementioned. The "veil" is almost an anti-veil if you're accustomed to warm headphones.
3) Honestly the first word that pops in mind is VOCALS. Any voice-prominent music just WOKE UP here. I recall having this feeling with the Audeze as well, because although those were warm versus the neutral feel here, mids weren't recessed. As for the highs, nothing superlative, but nothing bad. They're there and they do what they should.
4) These are way more "wearable" than either the Audeze or X1. By a longshot. They're light, the clamp is awesome, and I can move around without dislodging them. It's a similar idea to my experience with the HD800 where they're like a big ol' helmet that makes music. I just love how much of the head these things cover.
5) I don't think I'm the kind of person to talk about soundstage, because I have no clue how this ranks. Just that everything sounds pleasantly spaced out. I mean no matter what there are speakers less than inch from my ears, I never felt like any headphone was "spacious" per se. These are quite "roomy" I suppose. It's never something that really pops out to me.
6) For gaming and movies I feel like these will just be a case of ohhhhhhh lord yes. Fired up two games and some quick movies on Netflix. Loved 'em all. Much more "transparent", like these headphones weren't trying to get in my way and were just going to let me listen to what's on screen without much coloration.
7) These things just look sharp. I don't care what anyone says. They're visually attractive. I love the marbled look.
All in all, these are seriously fantastic. For $260 I cannot find fault. Are they better than the X1? I think so. In nearly every regard beyond the X1 having more bass (and even that's not a plus or minus inherently). The LCD-2.2? Of course not, that's not really fair. However, I don't feel, owning these, any yearning for those summit-fi levels any more.
