[Argyris]

How many times over the years have I read about the "rolled off" and "too polite" sound of the HD 600. To be fair, this was said more often about the HD 650, and it might have then been retroactively applied to the HD 600 as well, but until that IF article I just accepted the characterization because everybody was saying it. In fact, after Tyll published that article, it seemed like the negativity finally started to dissolve, or at least shift to the HD 650 exclusively.

This should serve as a good lesson about the echo chamber associated with any hobby. If enough people start repeating something, it eventually becomes "fact", and sometimes it's a good idea to investigate the claim again just to verify if it's still (or ever was) true, or if it's just something people say because everyone who thinks otherwise or was even around when the notion first came about has moved on. A lot of people from the early days of Head-Fi have long since left (probably happily listening to their HD 6x0 or K70x or RS1 these days); much of what I read about the HD 600 was written by people who came into the hobby after the HD 800 and the Audeze and HiFiMAN flagship lines were a thing. To them, the HD 600 was a tired old former flagship that couldn't compete with modern offerings. I wonder how many of these people had actually heard an HD 600 recently, or at all, when they said this; and if they weren't just predisposed to prefer the newer headphones because they're newer, and more expensive, and because maybe they bought one.

Whatever the case, the HD 600 has to be one of the longest running headphone models, after the DT48 (though discontinued years ago now), the MDR-7506/V6 and the PortaPro. Clearly there's a reason they keep making it.

 

[BobG55]

How many times over the years have I read about the "rolled off" and "too polite" sound of the HD 600. To be fair, this was said more often about the HD 650, and it might have then been retroactively applied to the HD 600 as well, but until that IF article I just accepted the characterization because everybody was saying it. In fact, after Tyll published that article, it seemed like the negativity finally started to dissolve, or at least shift to the HD 650 exclusively.

This should serve as a good lesson about the echo chamber associated with any hobby. If enough people start repeating something, it eventually becomes "fact", and sometimes it's a good idea to investigate the claim again just to verify if it's still (or ever was) true, or if it's just something people say because everyone who thinks otherwise or was even around when the notion first came about has moved on. A lot of people from the early days of Head-Fi have long since left (probably happily listening to their HD 6x0 or K70x or RS1 these days); much of what I read about the HD 600 was written by people who came into the hobby after the HD 800 and the Audeze and HiFiMAN flagship lines were a thing. To them, the HD 600 was a tired old former flagship that couldn't compete with modern offerings. I wonder how many of these people had actually heard an HD 600 recently, or at all, when they said this; and if they weren't just predisposed to prefer the newer headphones because they're newer, and more expensive, and because maybe they bought one.

Whatever the case, the HD 600 has to be one of the longest running headphone models, after the DT48 (though discontinued years ago now), the MDR-7506/V6 and the PortaPro. Clearly there's a reason they keep making it.

Well said Argyris.

 

[Midgetguy]

How many times over the years have I read about the "rolled off" and "too polite" sound of the HD 600. To be fair, this was said more often about the HD 650, and it might have then been retroactively applied to the HD 600 as well, but until that IF article I just accepted the characterization because everybody was saying it. In fact, after Tyll published that article, it seemed like the negativity finally started to dissolve, or at least shift to the HD 650 exclusively.

This should serve as a good lesson about the echo chamber associated with any hobby. If enough people start repeating something, it eventually becomes "fact", and sometimes it's a good idea to investigate the claim again just to verify if it's still (or ever was) true, or if it's just something people say because everyone who thinks otherwise or was even around when the notion first came about has moved on. A lot of people from the early days of Head-Fi have long since left (probably happily listening to their HD 6x0 or K70x or RS1 these days); much of what I read about the HD 600 was written by people who came into the hobby after the HD 800 and the Audeze and HiFiMAN flagship lines were a thing. To them, the HD 600 was a tired old former flagship that couldn't compete with modern offerings. I wonder how many of these people had actually heard an HD 600 recently, or at all, when they said this; and if they weren't just predisposed to prefer the newer headphones because they're newer, and more expensive, and because maybe they bought one.

Whatever the case, the HD 600 has to be one of the longest running headphone models, after the DT48 (though discontinued years ago now), the MDR-7506/V6 and the PortaPro. Clearly there's a reason they keep making it.

My headphone starting point was the Sony MDR-V600 (not to be confused with the 7506 or V6) and it was okay, a bit too much treble. From there, sampled my bro's HD650 and was then interested in why the HD600 existed (lower number and all that). Bought one for myself several years ago, owned it ever since. Prefer it to the HD650. Listened to much pricier headphones since then too: HEK, HEX, HE560, Elear, Utopia, SR007, SR009, LCD2, TH900, HD800. Don't get me wrong, they all sound good, but to justify how much more it costs compared to the HD600, I just can't do it. I have the HD600 and the TH-X00 as my headphones to stay, though I'll happily try out others if they happen to pass by. While they both may be considered mid-fi these days, I think they do still sound exceptional and I'm not gonna pay 2x-3x or more to get the extra 10% performance.....unless I win the lottery. And even then, probably would buy some real estate first .

The HD600 is a longstanding headphone for good reason. No marketing, no gimmicks, just solid sound. It's what keeps headphones around for a while; the MDR7506/V6 has stuck around for its value and monitoring qualities and the PortaPro (recently refreshed with a MassDrop coat of paint) presents a similar proposition of sound quality for money. This expression fits the HD600 like a glove: "an oldie, but a goodie".

 

[DavidA]

My headphone starting point was the Sony MDR-V600 (not to be confused with the 7506 or V6) and it was okay, a bit too much treble. From there, sampled my bro's HD650 and was then interested in why the HD600 existed (lower number and all that). Bought one for myself several years ago, owned it ever since. Prefer it to the HD650. Listened to much pricier headphones since then too: HEK, HEX, HE560, Elear, Utopia, SR007, SR009, LCD2, TH900, HD800. Don't get me wrong, they all sound good, but to justify how much more it costs compared to the HD600, I just can't do it. I have the HD600 and the TH-X00 as my headphones to stay, though I'll happily try out others if they happen to pass by. While they both may be considered mid-fi these days, I think they do still sound exceptional and I'm not gonna pay 2x-3x or more to get the extra 10% performance.....unless I win the lottery. And even then, probably would buy some real estate first .

The HD600 is a longstanding headphone for good reason. No marketing, no gimmicks, just solid sound. It's what keeps headphones around for a while; the MDR7506/V6 has stuck around for its value and monitoring qualities and the PortaPro (recently refreshed with a MassDrop coat of paint) presents a similar proposition of sound quality for money. This expression fits the HD600 like a glove: "an oldie, but a goodie".

Had a different start to headphones but I seem to be in a similar situation these days. Started with a Stax SRD-34 and HD-455 and used them for 25+ years before I decided to get more involved with headphones about 5 years ago. Still have my MDR-7506 but only use it for traveling and started with the HD650 before the HD600 only because it was on sale for a cheaper price along with a HE400. Finally got around to getting a HD600 in Nov of 2015 and really liked them at first but after a month or so I noticed that my ears hurt after listening with the HD600 and someone finally explained to me that I might be sensitive to the small peak at 4-5khz of the HD600 since other headphones with bigger peaks but at higher frequencies didn't seem to have the same effect as the HD600. Sad to say the HD600 has been sold but I still consider them one of the all time best along with the HD650.

I agree about the pricier headphones sounding great but at a cost that is hard to justify. I guess I'm a little more fortunate to be able to own a few of them but these days I'm liking the DIY stuff that I've gotten into since they don't need an amp to sound great, something that can't be said for most of the pricier headphones.

 

[Midgetguy]

Had a different start to headphones but I seem to be in a similar situation these days. Started with a Stax SRD-34 and HD-455 and used them for 25+ years before I decided to get more involved with headphones about 5 years ago. Still have my MDR-7506 but only use it for traveling and started with the HD650 before the HD600 only because it was on sale for a cheaper price along with a HE400. Finally got around to getting a HD600 in Nov of 2015 and really liked them at first but after a month or so I noticed that my ears hurt after listening with the HD600 and someone finally explained to me that I might be sensitive to the small peak at 4-5khz of the HD600 since other headphones with bigger peaks but at higher frequencies didn't seem to have the same effect as the HD600. Sad to say the HD600 has been sold but I still consider them one of the all time best along with the HD650.

I agree about the pricier headphones sounding great but at a cost that is hard to justify. I guess I'm a little more fortunate to be able to own a few of them but these days I'm liking the DIY stuff that I've gotten into since they don't need an amp to sound great, something that can't be said for most of the pricier headphones.

Don't need an amp, don't need a small fortune, but you keep 100% of the happiness. Where's the downside, am I right? It's great to listen to all those flagship headphones, but with the kinda pricing structure we have these days, the so-called mid-fi is absolutely where you really want to be.

 

[kman1211]

How many times over the years have I read about the "rolled off" and "too polite" sound of the HD 600. To be fair, this was said more often about the HD 650, and it might have then been retroactively applied to the HD 600 as well, but until that IF article I just accepted the characterization because everybody was saying it. In fact, after Tyll published that article, it seemed like the negativity finally started to dissolve, or at least shift to the HD 650 exclusively.

This should serve as a good lesson about the echo chamber associated with any hobby. If enough people start repeating something, it eventually becomes "fact", and sometimes it's a good idea to investigate the claim again just to verify if it's still (or ever was) true, or if it's just something people say because everyone who thinks otherwise or was even around when the notion first came about has moved on. A lot of people from the early days of Head-Fi have long since left (probably happily listening to their HD 6x0 or K70x or RS1 these days); much of what I read about the HD 600 was written by people who came into the hobby after the HD 800 and the Audeze and HiFiMAN flagship lines were a thing. To them, the HD 600 was a tired old former flagship that couldn't compete with modern offerings. I wonder how many of these people had actually heard an HD 600 recently, or at all, when they said this; and if they weren't just predisposed to prefer the newer headphones because they're newer, and more expensive, and because maybe they bought one.

Whatever the case, the HD 600 has to be one of the longest running headphone models, after the DT48 (though discontinued years ago now), the MDR-7506/V6 and the PortaPro. Clearly there's a reason they keep making it.

Agreed, there is a reason they have made the HD 600/650 so long, they are tried and tested and are honestly headphones I could always go back to if I ever have to sell off my other headphones. A couple others to add to the list are the DT 100(from the 1960's originally) and the DT 150(from the 1980s). The AKG K240(70's) also but it's gone through dramatic revisions. Many people make the mistake in thinking newer is better, the best deals I've come across have been the older flagships. What's so great about the HD 600/650 is how little drawbacks they have to their sound, there is no need to modify them or anything, they are great as is plus they scale up so nicely with gear. And honestly I view the HD 600 like many others are a benchmark for a neutral sound in a headphone and when I mod and dampening my headphones(only do this if I feel it's absolutely needed) I often try to achieve a similar balance to the HD 600. There are higher fidelity headphones than the Senns but so many of the higher fidelity headphones need some sort of correction to even properly realize their inherent fidelity. The HD 800 mods for example.

I actually plan on reacquiring a HD 600 because I want to have what I consider the neutral benchmark in my headphone stable. I do like the HD 650 more in some ways but I always felt it suffered a bit in the vocals and snap compared to the HD 600. Plus the Beyer Amiron Home replaces the HD 650's role as a laid-back and relaxing listen for me.

 

[Midgetguy]

This track sounds simply incredible on the HD600. It's beautiful and powerful, even more so during the section of the game this piece shows up in.

 

[Xtraforcz]

Guys, I have a question here. Is the damping material around the driver easy to break? My nail scratched it a little bit when i tried to remove the earpad but there is no visible marks.

 

[tgh5000]

This track sounds simply incredible on the HD600. It's beautiful and powerful, even more so during the section of the game this piece shows up in.

Hi! I went to your profile. Does the TEAC 301 have good synergy and enough power for HD 600?

 

[FumblingFoo]

Edit: Greetings all, this is my first post in the Full-Sized Headphones Forum .

Out of all the headphones I own, I use the HD 600's the most. I have to say, they are polite compared to my T90's and HE-1000's (v1), but they're such a fun listen for me. Liquid smooth sound, excellent resolution, tonally neutral but perhaps slightly dark (definitely no HD 650 here), forgiving treble. They may not have the soundstage of the HD 598's, but I'm a terrible judge of sounstage except for 3D binaural/stereoscopic sound (I've never really understood soundstage as it applies to recorded music). I even got a balanced cable from surfcables to pair the HD 600's with the violectric v281, but I still use the single-ended stock cable a lot so I can switch back to tube rolling with the Lyr 2.

 

[DavidA]

Hi! I went to your profile. Does the TEAC 301 have good synergy and enough power for HD 600?

While I don't have my HD600 anymore the 301 does sound pretty good with my HD650, its just a touch warmer than I like so I think it might be better with the HD600 due to the HD600 being a bit brighter than the HD650 to start.

 

[Midgetguy]

Hi! I went to your profile. Does the TEAC 301 have good synergy and enough power for HD 600?

While I don't have my HD600 anymore the 301 does sound pretty good with my HD650, its just a touch warmer than I like so I think it might be better with the HD600 due to the HD600 being a bit brighter than the HD650 to start.

Right you are David, the TEAC does pair better with the HD600 than the HD650. The HD650 already has warmth to it and since the the AI-301 is also warm, it overdoes it a bit with the HD650, but I think it's fantastic with the HD600. Certainly enough power for the HD6xx series; they're not THAT difficult to drive.

Anyway, short answer is yes, great synergy with the HD600 IMO and yes, plenty of power for the HD600. I listen to mine with the volume dial a very slight bit below the 9 o'clock mark.

 

[DavidA]

I actually have the UD-301, didn't think about the AI-301 but from your comments I think the headphone outputs are very similar. I also have the older version of the AI-301 called the AH-01 and its a great amp for both headphones and a speaker setup with a sub plus the remote has spoiled me.

 

[Midgetguy]

I actually have the UD-301, didn't think about the AI-301 but from your comments I think the headphone outputs are very similar. I also have the older version of the AI-301 called the AH-01 and its a great amp for both headphones and a speaker setup with a sub plus the remote has spoiled me.

I believe so. They seem like they're very similar in nature, but with different output interfaces. And the AI301 has BT capability. But I wouldn't be surprised to learn the headphone circuitry inside is the same.

 

[tgh5000]

I was watching Tyll's review on the 650/ 600 the other day. He said the 650s are a bit more "resolving." What does "resolving " mean in this case? Many others say the 600s are a touch "brighter." Aren't "more resolving" and "brighter" the same thing?