Sennheiser HD 700 Impressions Thread
Dec 29, 2016 at 11:22 AM Post #7,246 of 9,359
quick ask guys. Chord Mojo (can plug in computer all the time?) or Apogee Groove or even blaster x7 is better for hd700 ( simple desktop laptop plug and play ) other advise can work out too. but just there are way too many dac and amp unter 500 euro..i guess i go with ez setup 
triportsad.gif

 
Dec 29, 2016 at 12:54 PM Post #7,247 of 9,359
  A lot of people criticize the akg 700 series for plasticy mids and bad imaging but I think both of these issues are heavily exaggerated. For the plasticy mids, I always tried to hear it but couldn't and actually became biased against my q701, but later on found out that it was exaggerated by people who don't like forward mids and that's when I began to appreciate my q701 even more. And the imaging of the q701 is actually pretty good, it's great for directional audio and it doesn't sound unnatural for classical music, and the instrument separation is truly one of a kind. It only starts to fall obviously short against imaging kings like the hd800, but anything within that under $500 price point, the q701 is hard to beat. That's also one of the reasons my q701 was replaced with the hd800; the imaging is obviously better rather than just a hint, the soundstage and instrument separation is better by a good margin, transparency in the mids is quite a bit better even though it has less mids, and the bass has much more quality and a better "3 dimensional" feel to it rather than quantity. That's what made the hd800 a "successor" to my q701.
 
The hd700 is a very rare headphone, with most v shaped headphones subduing the 2khz area while the hd700 does it in the upper mids, so male vocals were not affected as much as female vocals which was quite different for me. I immediately loved the soundstage and imaging of the hd700, it did it better than the T1 without sounding as bright to my ears. The extra bass prowess is just right and it never sounds dark and muddy like I have come to expect from bass heavy headphones. Me being a mids-head, unlike most people being bass head or treble head, from that reason alone I never thought of the hd700 as better than my q701, but believe me when I say I hate v shaped headphones, I absolutely abhor them. The hd700 is a very rare headphone that falls within that category that actually gets pretty high praises from me, and really shows its capability with a bit of EQ, and which in that case is better than the q701 in just enough categories to surpass it

Yes, I've been a fan of the AKG's for many years - owned three K701 two K702 and more recently the K712. I always liked the original K701 and I owned a very early model. When all I owned were AKG's the sound was always enough for me. Neutral, huge soundstage and when you gave them enough power (especially with vintage amps) the sound can also be fun! I love classical music predominately and the AKG's can work really well; as long as the recording is good... But this is where their shortcomings are for me. I would purposely select recordings for the headphones rather than just playing what I wanted. But to be fair I think a lot of us do this in audiophile-land. "This should sound good on these" you say to yourself. There aren't many headphones that play well with every music type or type of recorded sound. The HD650 is probably the only hp to come close.
 
The HD700 are not far off as well. I happily stick any recording on. Some old recordings can sound harsh in the brass section for instance.. but hey, not much you can do about that. For my musical preference the HD700 play very nicely indeed. Small acoustic ensembles/Jazz sound quite spectacular! They handle complex orchestral music very well also. Not as well as the HD800 ofcourse but not that far off either. Plus you have the added rumble for timpani etc with the extra bass presence on the 700's.
 
I'm aiming to buy some HD800 (original) again in the coming year. But I will not be parting with the HD700. They are my friend. We hit it off big style! I'm still astonished at all the hate they got early on by some very respected reviewers on here. I can hear the treble problems. I know they are not perfect. But in all seriousness; the treble is still better than both the HD600/650 (where the top is rolled off and the lower treble is etched, creating an aggressive lift that affects vocals, violins etc.). Grado's also have far bigger treble problems and so does Audio Technica. AKG's are flat - sound engineering flat. And this is not very pleasant for some of us - all of the time. Both the HD700 and HD800 have similar treble. Some instantly hate it. Some give it time.. I would recommend all to give it time. Sennheiser know what they are doing. Listen to the HD700 for a week and then listen to the treble of the HD600/650. The HD700 are a vast improvement believe me!!  
 
:) :) :)      
 
Dec 29, 2016 at 2:37 PM Post #7,248 of 9,359
The HD 700 are still on my to-buy list, hopefully in the first quarter of 2017.

I really love my HD 600, and I've flirted with buying a 650 many times but it's the 700 I really want from what I've read of them. I'm okay with, even excited about, the sharp divisions over the sound signature of the 700 when compared to other cans including the 6xx series.

I think for me, I don't expect the 700 to replace my 600, but rather to complement them nicely.
 
Dec 29, 2016 at 3:15 PM Post #7,249 of 9,359
  Yes, I've been a fan of the AKG's for many years - owned three K701 two K702 and more recently the K712. I always liked the original K701 and I owned a very early model. When all I owned were AKG's the sound was always enough for me. Neutral, huge soundstage and when you gave them enough power (especially with vintage amps) the sound can also be fun! I love classical music predominately and the AKG's can work really well; as long as the recording is good... But this is where their shortcomings are for me. I would purposely select recordings for the headphones rather than just playing what I wanted. But to be fair I think a lot of us do this in audiophile-land. "This should sound good on these" you say to yourself. There aren't many headphones that play well with every music type or type of recorded sound. The HD650 is probably the only hp to come close.
 
The HD700 are not far off as well. I happily stick any recording on. Some old recordings can sound harsh in the brass section for instance.. but hey, not much you can do about that. For my musical preference the HD700 play very nicely indeed. Small acoustic ensembles/Jazz sound quite spectacular! They handle complex orchestral music very well also. Not as well as the HD800 ofcourse but not that far off either. Plus you have the added rumble for timpani etc with the extra bass presence on the 700's.
 
I'm aiming to buy some HD800 (original) again in the coming year. But I will not be parting with the HD700. They are my friend. We hit it off big style! I'm still astonished at all the hate they got early on by some very respected reviewers on here. I can hear the treble problems. I know they are not perfect. But in all seriousness; the treble is still better than both the HD600/650 (where the top is rolled off and the lower treble is etched, creating an aggressive lift that affects vocals, violins etc.). Grado's also have far bigger treble problems and so does Audio Technica. AKG's are flat - sound engineering flat. And this is not very pleasant for some of us - all of the time. Both the HD700 and HD800 have similar treble. Some instantly hate it. Some give it time.. I would recommend all to give it time. Sennheiser know what they are doing. Listen to the HD700 for a week and then listen to the treble of the HD600/650. The HD700 are a vast improvement believe me!!  
 
:) :) :)      

I think the b&o h6 and hifiman he560 sound good with almost any genre, but I still don't use them nearly as much as my HD800, everything really seems like a downgrade in comparison when coming directly from listening to the hd800. I think the hd700 is different enough from the hd800 to own both pairs, but the hd800 wins hands down in comfort for me due to the lower clamping force. I may look like a treble head from all the headphones I enjoy but it just happens to be that those are the headphones with the most transparent mids and large soundstages lol, it would be interesting to see a headphone that does this without big treble, the only things that come to mind are the mdr f1 or the esp950. The hd800 was actually brighter than the hd700 when I first listened to it and I got fatigued much quicker than I normally do, but now I got used to it I guess. I agree that grado and audio technica treble is pretty much as worse as it gets 
 
Dec 31, 2016 at 5:45 PM Post #7,253 of 9,359
Just bought a set of hd-800's. That will make 3 Senns (650, 700 and 800)
a pair of LCD-2's and a pair of Nighthawks.
Regards,
Hibuck....
 
Dec 31, 2016 at 5:48 PM Post #7,254 of 9,359
I'm still in the honeymoon period with the HD700 but can't rule out buying their older brother again. Wish I could hear the new 's' model though.. hmmm.. In no hurry though :)  
 
Has anyone here heard the 's' model and care to share their thoughts on it?  
 
Dec 31, 2016 at 6:09 PM Post #7,255 of 9,359
Too Hd700 owners, what is the next headphone you plan to buy?
Are many of you saving up for the hd800(s) or going different directions?

Bought ZMF Vibro MK2 Purpleheart after HD700. Maybe Eikon next with wonderful blackwood grain.
 
Jan 1, 2017 at 3:22 AM Post #7,258 of 9,359
  I'm still in the honeymoon period with the HD700 but can't rule out buying their older brother again. Wish I could hear the new 's' model though.. hmmm.. In no hurry though :)  
 
Has anyone here heard the 's' model and care to share their thoughts on it?  


I heard both HD700 and HD800 S... HD800 S is much better. HD700 is darker with a sharp treble peak. HD800 S is transparent, neutral with slight warmth in bass, smooth and linear. It is technically superb and a joy to listen to.
 
Jan 1, 2017 at 5:31 AM Post #7,259 of 9,359
 
I heard both HD700 and HD800 S... HD800 S is much better. HD700 is darker with a sharp treble peak. HD800 S is transparent, neutral with slight warmth in bass, smooth and linear. It is technically superb and a joy to listen to.

Thank you for that. 
 
Jan 1, 2017 at 5:36 AM Post #7,260 of 9,359
  I'm still in the honeymoon period with the HD700 but can't rule out buying their older brother again. Wish I could hear the new 's' model though.. hmmm.. In no hurry though :)  
 
Has anyone here heard the 's' model and care to share their thoughts on it?  

I actually had the HD700 for a week, didn't really liked the treble spike. Had to use EqualizerAPO to soothen it but its still there. I came from the ATH-R70x which is really neutral and full of bright details. Changing over to the HD800 S is like the R70x but a little warmer but much much more sound stage and details. Overall its a very enjoying headphones to listen to for long hours, however its pretty heavy at 330g and the headband padding is pretty bad compared to the R70x and HD700(best comfort imho).
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top