[ToTo Man]

The 600 never came near exhausting my Rag, no need to come out of Class (4 wpc). It does sound better with the balanced hook up vs the SE (about 3x more power).

Well if 800-850 mW is enough, then there is something about the tube circuit. I never warmed up to all tube amps, did have two hybrid tube pre-amps in the 80-90's.

About 15 months ago a buddy from here lent me the BH Crack specifically for the 600. Certainly deeper bass, and a sort of jagged but well wider sound stage, and of course that subtle/sweet harmonic decay in the treble thing. I bought a kit and just got back to it. It's useless w/ planars, so for me, just the 600.

Adding or allowing a little THD in is a regular trick/design of SS outfits that sweetens up the sound. See Pass amps among others. Don't understand tube circuits/design criteria well. Could be I got into a cult. That would mean a can with bass flat to 20 Hz is liable to sound fat on the BH Crack. OK for me because all my cans that play low bass are planars and they don't work on the BH Crack.

I recently demoed a Woo Audio WA8 Eclipse, a SET tube headphone amp. Despite all my headphone amps sounding different to my ears, they all measure exactly the same FR on the miniDSP EARS. The WA8 is the first amp I've tested that actually measures different! Bass is boosted by +1.5dB between 20Hz-70Hz and treble rolls-off above 12kHz. It is a very distinctive sounding amplifier. Would be interesting to hear how the BHC compares...

 

[bagwell359]

In the early days of my audio affliction it was common to pair this speaker with that amp, or this cartridge with this speaker or tone-arm (which yes is important). So in 1978 when Cizek 1's debuted they went really well with the Dynaco 410 (a 400 with no meters, etc.). Cooler stacked. Nothing else had the same bass kick for an amp (but the Dyna 416 which was much more expensive).

Or an KLH6, not good on the Marantz 1060 (high end too meek), better on a Technics or Onkyo Integrated - more life.

It still happens, but to a lesser extent, maybe they are a pair that shines no better with other partners. At least 5-6 folks here have ID'd it as a special combo. It's not according to Hoyle, but ears aren't after all objective.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

In the early days of my audio affliction it was common to pair this speaker with that amp, or this cartridge with this speaker or tone-arm (which yes is important). So in 1978 when Cizek 1's debuted they went really well with the Dynaco 410 (a 400 with no meters, etc.). Cooler stacked. Nothing else had the same bass kick for an amp (but the Dyna 416 which was much more expensive).

Or an KLH6, not good on the Marantz 1060 (high end too meek), better on a Technics or Onkyo Integrated - more life.

It still happens, but to a lesser extent, maybe they are a pair that shines no better with other partners. At least 5-6 folks here have ID'd it as a special combo. It's not according to Hoyle, but ears aren't after all objective.

Yeah, I have an old Onkyo integrated somewhere and I used to run a pair of Sennheisers off it with total satisfaction.

Those were the days...

 

[Mightygrey]

Yeah, I have an old Onkyo integrated somewhere and I used to run a pair of Sennheisers off it with total satisfaction.

Those were the days...

I plug my 600's straight into my old NAD 3020e when spinning vinyl. It sounds great and is super convenient when I'm not doing overly-critical listening.

 

[Edward777]

Is it just me, or does no one ever post in this thread? Anyways, I got my HD600s probably about a year ago. I've been listening to them a good amount lately and enjoy them a lot. I use a Schiit stack to drive them (Magni 2 Uber and Modi 2 Uber). I don't really have many headphones to compare them to. My last main headphones were the Grado SR-60s (before the i and e models were a thing), but those broke, so I can't really compare them to the Sennheisers. I also have a Sony MDR-7506, but I like the fit of the Sennheisers better, so I use them for most of my analytic listening (when I listen to an album for the first time all the way through).

Sometimes I wish they had a bigger soundstage, from what I read of everyone talking about how good having a wide soundstage is, but that's probably all in my head anyways. How is everyone else enjoying their HD600s? I will say that I'm not BLOWN AWAY by them, but then again, there is probably no headphone that would blow me away. I would still like to get some speakers whenever I have my own house, but when living with my parents, which I currently do, it's nice to have a pair of headphones to put on and relax.

 

[pbarach]

I still enjoy my 600's. Headphones with a bigger soundstage, e.g., HD-800/800s, tend to have angled drivers.

 

[Midgetguy]

Is it just me, or does no one ever post in this thread? Anyways, I got my HD600s probably about a year ago. I've been listening to them a good amount lately and enjoy them a lot. I use a Schiit stack to drive them (Magni 2 Uber and Modi 2 Uber). I don't really have many headphones to compare them to. My last main headphones were the Grado SR-60s (before the i and e models were a thing), but those broke, so I can't really compare them to the Sennheisers. I also have a Sony MDR-7506, but I like the fit of the Sennheisers better, so I use them for most of my analytic listening (when I listen to an album for the first time all the way through).

Sometimes I wish they had a bigger soundstage, from what I read of everyone talking about how good having a wide soundstage is, but that's probably all in my head anyways. How is everyone else enjoying their HD600s? I will say that I'm not BLOWN AWAY by them, but then again, there is probably no headphone that would blow me away. I would still like to get some speakers whenever I have my own house, but when living with my parents, which I currently do, it's nice to have a pair of headphones to put on and relax.

I'm not really all that surprised not many post here. Unlike some of the more active threads, this thread has been solely for HD600. There's not a new product to discuss, there's nothing new about it. It's the same headphone it's always been and yet it still has nearly 1400 pages of talk. It's always great to see anyone new coming in to post about their experiences with the HD600, whether positive, negative or somewhere in between, but it doesn't happen as often anymore. There's a lot of other shiny new headphones people flock to in today's fast-moving culture; everyone's always going towards the new thing.
The HD600 is, in a sense, just old reliable, always present and never making any fuss. Every headphone these days comes out and people will be all about it, but wait a couple of years and it not only fades back out, the manufacturer discontinues the model outright or replaces it with some sort of successor, always claiming it to best the previous iteration at the same price. Meanwhile, the HD600 has existed with no changes aside from a lower price, a paint job, and a different box.....after over 20 years of being on the market. How many headphones have you seen in recent memory where the brand continues to make it and leaves it virtually unchanged for even just 5 years?

 

[Edward777]

I'm not really all that surprised not many post here. Unlike some of the more active threads, this thread has been solely for HD600. There's not a new product to discuss, there's nothing new about it. It's the same headphone it's always been and yet it still has nearly 1400 pages of talk. It's always great to see anyone new coming in to post about their experiences with the HD600, whether positive, negative or somewhere in between, but it doesn't happen as often anymore. There's a lot of other shiny new headphones people flock to in today's fast-moving culture; everyone's always going towards the new thing.
The HD600 is, in a sense, just old reliable, always present and never making any fuss. Every headphone these days comes out and people will be all about it, but wait a couple of years and it not only fades back out, the manufacturer discontinues the model outright or replaces it with some sort of successor, always claiming it to best the previous iteration at the same price. Meanwhile, the HD600 has existed with no changes aside from a lower price, a paint job, and a different box.....after over 20 years of being on the market. How many headphones have you seen in recent memory where the brand continues to make it and leaves it virtually unchanged for even just 5 years?

I love it for that reason! Old reliable. To be honest, today, listening to disc 1 of James Brown's Star Time on ALAC rips off my iPhone X, was really the first time I was blown away by the accuracy of these headphones. Listening to the tiny details of the cymbal hits on some of these songs, as well as the astonishing clarity of James Brown's vocal punch, was such just a visceral experience! Usually, I just either like the music or not, but today I got really into the sound! Can't wait to listen to the remaining 3 discs of this wonderful box set for the first time on these great headphones! I don't really see much reason to get new headphones ever, although I remember wanting something from HiFiMan at some point, but there's certainly no rush.

I agree with you that we certainly live in a culture (especially in this headphone world) of more, more, MORE, and it amazes me how much money some people on here spend on headphones, and just how frequently they get new ones, but I'm sure I'd do the same if I had the money, haha. I think this was a case of I'm finally used to the sound of these headphones and I'm beginning to love them!

 

[BugmenAndBoxes]

Is it just me, or does no one ever post in this thread? *snip*

Almost 1400 pages and you're lamenting why no one posts here?! How much more praise needs to be put on these headphones, timbre kings at the under $500 budget as far as I'm concerned.

Funny thing, when I first got these headphones, I didn't like them compared to my 4xx and 95x, thought there was a veil. However, after getting speakers and realizing what music is supposed to sound like, I sold the rest of my stuffs just because they sounded plastic in comparison.

 

[OneOddPhoton]

Ha!

I have high-end Stax and HiFiman cans and still listen to my 600s and 650s on a regular basis. Particularly when I just want to listen to the music and not the technical (wow) of the cans. They always sound...just right to me.

I think one could easily get a pair of 600s/650s, a decent Amp and call it a day.

 

[BobG55]

I second the above statement.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

I second the above statement.

Ditto, except I don't have any Stax unless you include Sam and Dave

 

[mobbaddict]

Just got a set of Dekoni fenestrated leather pads for my HD600. I was a bit curious to see the effect since I like the HD600 in its stock form but wouldn't mind a slightly darker sound signature. And it does make it sound quite a bit darker! A bit similar to what you would expect from a dynamic SR-007 or a LCD2. Very nice deep bass that doesn't get too boomy, a slightly dark midrange that sounds a bit less transparent than in stock form, and a very smooth top end. Bass impact in particular is quite spectacular and fun, it compares well with my Quad Era-1. I think the overall tone might shock many long-time HD600 listeners. It's very enjoyable but quite dark. Not sure if I could live with this headphone on the long term but it's an interesting take.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Thanks, I was thinking about the fenestrated sheepskins if those are the ones you meant. I would not like to change the timbre all, I found your post very useful, thank you!

 

[mobbaddict]

Thanks, I was thinking about the fenestrated sheepskins if those are the ones you meant. I would not like to change the timbre all, I found your post very useful, thank you!

Yes these are those pads. I'm still trying to evaluate if it's an improvement. I would say yes for overall tone and presentation (soundstage depth is very nice as well), but it's a bit of a trade-off if you care about timbre. I have to try the stock pads again to compare because this is only based on my memory. The Dekoni pads are a bit difficult to take off, so I haven't dared switching back to stock pads yet.

Edit: I just managed to switch back to stock pads and then back again to the Dekonis. I wouldn't say the timbre is necessarily worse with the Dekonis but it does feel slightly less transparent. On the other hand you gain a smoother frequency response and a very cozy soundstage that makes everything sound so relaxed. This kind of sound is more appealing to me but you look for sheer transparency then I think velour works better. The Dekoni elite hybrid might be a good compromise also.