[bikerboy94]

So I was listening to my Senns about an hour ago, and it was that moment when everything just seems right and you get that unprecedented experience, nearing euphoria. Just to take it a step further, I rotated the volume knob half an hour to the right, and man... the details... the spatial imaging... It felt like a different pair of phones altogether. My only concern was that it might damage my hearing. You see, the volume level was now almost identical to that of what I used to have when listening to IEMs, but as they are full-sized cans, the sound pressure gave an exaggerated perception. So guys, is it "safe" to listen to them at this level, or should I tone 'em down a bit?
The sound was real juicy though.

Some info for you. I read somewhere that if you snap your fingers by ears  and can hear it your ok. Not sure how accurate that is. You can also get a SPL meter for your phone it will give you a pretty good reading.

 

[Midgetguy]

 


Some info for you. I read somewhere that if you snap your fingers by ears  and can hear it your ok. Not sure how accurate that is. You can also get a SPL meter for your phone it will give you a pretty good reading.

The snap finger thing seems like it would be extremely variable. Like, it would depend closed or open headphones or isolation levels of IEMs. It's kinda hard to figure out, there's a balance between exterior noise and all that whatnot. Volume changes all the time for me.

 

[sicko]

So I used an SPL app, as suggested, on my phone. It might not be in accordance with the audiophile standards, but just to get a rough estimate, I used it anyway. I used 2 apps actually; both vary from each other markedly. With the higher (newer) volume setting, one app gave me a reading of 75 (max), while the other gave me a reading of 97 (max). Just to be on the safe side, I'll assume the higher is the less inaccurate one. Then according to the provided figures, I can listen to the Senns for about an hour at an average of 94 dB. I think I can make do with that.

P.S. I'm using a Nexus 4.

 

[paulguru]

  @paulguru: I am saying that the HD 650 sounds darker than the 600 because of the higher amount of upper bass and ground tone and the recessed area around about 3.8 kHz where the HD 600 has an emphasis (which is by the way the only minor flaw).
In short, the HD 650 sounds warmer to me.
 
Imo you should read Brooko's review again, imo it is very detailed and I also agree with what he wrote there.

this darker factor is clear or slight ?

 

[HiFiChris]

@paulguru:
 
Quite a lot of time has passed since I've heard the HD 650 the last time, but from what I remember the audible difference was there, but the tonal difference between an AKG K701 and Sennheiser HD 600 is much bigger than the 650's compared to the 600's. The HD 650 sounds warmer (and without that peak in the lower treble) but it can easily be associated with the Sennheiser HD 6x0/59x family.
The best way would be that you order either the 600 or 650 (or both) to see which one suits you better, as unless you haven't heard them yourself you won't be able to know whether you like them or not. Knowing which headphones and iems you've already owned or listened to and what particular things about their tonality you liked would also be helpful to narrow down which of the two could be the better match.

 

[betula]

Deleted.

 

[bikerboy94]

 
The snap finger thing seems like it would be extremely variable. Like, it would depend closed or open headphones or isolation levels of IEMs. It's kinda hard to figure out, there's a balance between exterior noise and all that whatnot. Volume changes all the time for me.

The snapping thing was ment for the HD600 as this is a thread for that. Would prob work with any open headphone but like I said just a guideline thing I had read about. It works for me.

 

[Midgetguy]

  The snapping thing was ment for the HD600 as this is a thread for that. Would prob work with any open headphone but like I said just a guideline thing I had read about. It works for me.

Directed at the HD600, then yeah, I'd probably agree with you. I'd say it's a good enough measure of whether or not you're listening to music too loudly with the HD600s.

 

[jbarrentine]

Ok, I couldn't stop thinking about the damn hd600 after sending the first pair back to Amazon so I reordered them. 
What they do right they do REALLY right.

 

[PinkyPowers]

Amazon must love you.

 

[jbarrentine]

Got it in. A COMPLETELY different (and better) headphone with the Project Polaris. All the good things it did under amped with the Vali are now better with the Polaris. Everything is much more full. The whole "hd600/650 really need a bigger amp" thing isn't a lie. More is better. 

 

[StanD]

  Got it in. A COMPLETELY different (and better) headphone with the Project Polaris. All the good things it did under amped with the Vali are now better with the Polaris. Everything is much more full. The whole "hd600/650 really need a bigger amp" thing isn't a lie. More is better. 

Exactly what part of more are we talking about? There are many people using HD800's that are thrilled with the Vali.

 

[Tuco1965]

Exactly what part of more are we talking about? There are many people using HD800's that are thrilled with the Vali.

I'm curious about this as well.

 

[jbarrentine]

  Exactly what part of more are we talking about? There are many people using HD800's that are thrilled with the Vali.

 
I don't know how that's possible. Both my T90 and HD600 are noticeably more full sounding with the Polaris. 
Why the hell would they run a Vali with an HD800 anyway? The noise floor was noticeable even with my T90, I know it's got to be horrible on the HD800.

 

[betula]

   
I don't know how that's possible. Both my T90 and HD600 are noticeably more full sounding with the Polaris. 
Why the hell would they run a Vali with an HD800 anyway? The noise floor was noticeable even with my T90, I know it's got to be horrible on the HD800.

I have a similar experience.
Vali is an amazing budget amp. I loved it for a long time.
And then I changed it for an iFi Micro iCan. While the Vali has a more opened space, a bit bigger and wider soundstage it does sound thin sometimes compared to the Micro iCan. The iCan has a bigger sound, livelier with more (adjustable) bass. I still would choose Vali for classical music, mainly for the space and cleanliness of the sound. But everything else sounds more enjoyable on the iCan. It is just a "bigger" sound with more "wow" factor. Just to use these hyper audiophile expressions.