[CaptainFantastic]

Sometimes an unusual behaviour has just a simple explanation. Judging from myself I can say that the reason for our unusual, even annoying persistence with the NDH 30 is plainly their unexpected sonic quality, at least for their price. We all search for the best headphone our money can buy thus we constantly and happily share suggestions. Met with strong disbelief (understandable though) for what is very obvious through acctual listenings, our urge to share a rare finding was multiplied. Especially since some companies will have as believe that thousands of €/$ are required for their "expensive" technology. More so since too many years had passed without an offering that combined fine balance with top resolution and musicality. Now that such a headphone appeared almost silently, how can we remain silent and restrained? How can we not encourage other manufacturers to do their best for sensible money when a fine example has already been offered? Admittedly this is not the right thread and it is unfair for the fine HD-660S2, but this is where the disbelief was strongly expressed. Any detailed comparisons provoked will be good for all of us.

You put your finger on it. No one minds, we even appreciate, comparisons. Detailed comparisons even. Repeated comparisons too. But it's -- your word -- the persistence with which that headphone is mentioned that is starting to annoy people. I am not even active in this thread and still I've developed a low level distaste for those three letters and two numbers when merely catching up on the discussion.

 

[rafaelo]

I'm curious what the truth is there. Hrm, thinking of it, if the story related earlier about 700s being a non-originally-intended form factor is correct, even if he was not so involved in the final product, I'd think some notion of tuning was considered in developing the driver for its originally intended 600-style enclosure at that time, when he was still working for Senn. But how that would relate to the finished product, not sure, and admittedly I'm a little dubious about a claim sourced from Youtube comments, not to disparage your intentions in relating it in the least.

My interpretation of the statement that the 700 driver was intended for the 600 series is different maybe because of English being my second language.

I interpreted the 700 driver to be intended initially for the 700 headphone and since this was not a commercial success then it was used in 660s and since the result was so amazing it was somehow like decided by fate that this driver was destined for the 600 series instead.

Not that Sennheiser developed explicitly this driver for the 600 series but used initially in the HD 700 for some years and then they said let's put it back in the headphones for which it was designed.

 

[funkymartyn]

Delete if inappropriate,. Earlier I see the. meze 109 mentioned and not for the first time. Well I expect some of you may already have heard about the £130 headphone which is as good has the meze 109 ,. Called the Ghost. Worth a YouTube check.

 

[NotJeffBuckley]

Delete if inappropriate,. Earlier I see the. meze 109 mentioned and not for the first time. Well I expect some of you may already have heard about the £130 headphone which is as good has the meze 109 ,. Called the Ghost. Worth a YouTube check.

Talking about https://www.linsoul.com/products/thieaudio-ghost? Man does that profile and earcup dimension remind me of a 580/600/650. Never heard of 'em though.

 

[plyr]

Talking about https://www.linsoul.com/products/thieaudio-ghost? Man does that profile and earcup dimension remind me of a 580/600/650. Never heard of 'em though.

I fell for those chifi iems back in 2019.

 

[457139]

Well, I get that’s annoying, but let me give my 2 cents.

I’m a dyed-in-the-wool Sennheiser fanboy. HD420 was my first headphone in my teens. I still have them. Many years later I bought some 560 Ovation IIs, followed after some years by the then newly released HD580 Precisions. That was a revelation and the beginning if my love affair with what became the six series. The HD600 HD650 HD800 and HD660S followed in due course. Heck, I even have the HDVD800, so nobody could accuse me of not loving Sennheiser! The HD800 is not part of the six series, obviously and, while absolutely fantastic in many ways, I always felt more at home with the more natural presentation of the sixes.
I had been aware of Neumann!s entry into the headphone world with the introduction of the NDH 20, and as a professional musician that piqued my interest, but I resisted the temptation. Then, last year, Neumann/Sennheiser Pro released the open back NHD 30, developed by Axel Grell, the ears behind the development of the original HD580 Precision and all of the sixes up to and including the S1. Well, of course I had to buy it. I’m not going to say anything more about it because enough has been said already, but it’s the very fact that the S2 has come out barely 6 months after the NDH 30 at an almost identical price point by a company that has split from its original parent company etc that makes the comparison of the two so inevitable. I honestly can’t see what’s wrong with that.

I literally said comparison is fine. Not everyone is doing that. Enough of this. Let's all just try to stay on topic

 

[theexexpat]

Where exactly did you see this price in UK?

I would like to know this as well. @Harold999

 

[Harold999]

Where exactly did you see this price in UK?

https://www.audiosanctuary.co.uk/sennheiser-hd660s2-audiophile-open-back-headphones.html

 

[Harold999]

Delete if inappropriate,. Earlier I see the. meze 109 mentioned and not for the first time. Well I expect some of you may already have heard about the £130 headphone which is as good has the meze 109 ,. Called the Ghost. Worth a YouTube check.

After watching Zeos's "Oh my god" review i went watching all the other Ghost reviews and all say it's just an okay headphone for the money, nothing special.

By the way, Ghost driver: 40mm, Meze 109 driver: 50mm.
So the Ghost is defenitely not a knockoff Meze.

 

[chesebert]

Zeos peddling chi-fi

 

[Slackaveli]

Man, while I appreciate the need for cheap alternatives, calling the Ghost as even close to a Meze 109 Pro is silly AF. The 109 Pro sounds like it costs over a grand easily. No way that plastic 40mm chifi hp is going to touch the Meze. Sure it might be ok for $150 or whatever but at that price so is a HD 6xx, a fine hp; but it's not 109 Pro either. They are on a whole other level.

 

[tamleo]

660s2 vs elex? Anyone please?

 

[Mike F]

I read a comment in youtube from someone that met Alex at NY camjam and Alex said to him that 660s1 uses his 700 driver but he did NOT do the tuning himself. Anecdotal evidence of course but it made an impression on me nevertheless

That doesn’t surprise me actually! The 660S would be the odd one out, sound wise, of them all (580 600 650 NDH 30).

 

[rafaelo]

That doesn’t surprise me actually! The 660S would be the odd one out, sound wise, of them all (580 600 650 NDH 30. ).

(580, 600, 650, NDH 30, and 58x I would add as well)

 

[Mike F]

(580, 600, 650, NDH 30, and 58x I would add as well)

I haven’t heard the 58X.