[SNSDluv]

Whatever they replace it with will most likely not be 650, probly more like 1k. But this is just speculation. I'm hoping mine will sound good paired with a Burson Soloist with a V-DACII....any thoughts on this possible pairing?

 

  A forum member named "Nomax" correctly scooped the forum on the release of the AKG 812 and the new SPL Phonitor 2. He also has asserted that Sennheiser will be releasing a new flagship sometime in early 2014. He says the price will be more than $2K. Sennheiser also has allowed the HD800 to go on sale for $1,350. Earlier in this thread, someone stated that they heard Sennheiser was dropping the HD700. All this could mean that Sennheiser will be slotting the HD800 into the spot now occupied by the HD700 as the penultimate Sennheiser offering.

Thanks for the responses. So I can safely make my purchase without worrying about Sennheiser coming up with something new that directly replaces HD700 or put out something with better value? As I am a university student, playing with expensive headphones cost me so much T_T

 

[revolutionz]

Now the owner of a Ray Samuels Hornet amp for listening on my HD700's around the house, as my Shadow just wasn't powerful enough for these.  This little amp pairs great with these cans.  Soundstage, detail, and impact is much better than the Fiio E11 that I was using.  Currently running out of my Sony F series w/ LOD to the input.  Now when my DHC molecule cable shows up I will be complete (and hopefully it tames the treble down a bit so I don't have to fiddle with my EQ as much),  Unless I get a chance to listen to HD800's at the next meet, then I will probably want those, and my wallet will probably want to kill me....

 

[wink]

Whatever Sennheiser releases next will not change the HD700 from the bargain it is now.
Sennheiser most probably release something which will relegate the HD800 to second place on their ladder.

 

[SNSDluv]

Question for those who have heard both HD598 and HD700, is HD700 a straight upgrade? Are there major sound signature differences? I absolutely love the HD598 and am selling my HD598 to go for a good upgrade. Right now my best option seems to be HD700 :O

 

[pdrm360]

  Question for those who have heard both HD598 and HD700, is HD700 a straight upgrade? Are there major sound signature differences? I absolutely love the HD598 and am selling my HD598 to go for a good upgrade. Right now my best option seems to be HD700 :O

 
For me the HD700 was an upgrade from HD598. And yes, there are major sound signature differences. 

 

[SNSDluv]

   
For me the HD700 was an upgrade from HD598. And yes, there are major sound signature differences. 

Could you explain briefly how are they different in terms of sound? :O Thanks

 

[Sonido]

  Question for those who have heard both HD598 and HD700, is HD700 a straight upgrade? Are there major sound signature differences? I absolutely love the HD598 and am selling my HD598 to go for a good upgrade. Right now my best option seems to be HD700 :O

I did the direct upgrade from HD598 to HD700. A major part that played into this decision was because the HD598 didn't require an amp, and the HD700 has a lower impedance compared to HD6xx or HD800, and is supposedly more forgiving on the power needed from amps because of this. This was a horrible reason. Trust me you're gonna need to work towards a quality amp with the HD700, at which point you're gonna wish you spent your money on a headphone that benefited more from a quality amp like the HD800. Mind you I bought the HD700 when it was $1000. The HD700 improves the HD598 most noticeably in bass. Also more refinement throughout the spectrum. However, this level of refinement is still not the greatest, and there are options in the same price range that give significantly more transparency and refinement over the HD700. After listening to the Beyerdynamic T90 and Hifiman HE-500 for some time, going back to the HD700 was when I started hearing the so-called "Sennheiser veil."

 

[SNSDluv]

  I did the direct upgrade from HD598 to HD700. A major part that played into this decision was because the HD598 didn't require an amp, and the HD700 has a lower impedance compared to HD6xx or HD800, and is supposedly more forgiving on the power needed from amps because of this. This was a horrible reason. Trust me you're gonna need to work towards a quality amp with the HD700, at which point you're gonna wish you spent your money on a headphone that benefited more from a quality amp like the HD800. Mind you I bought the HD700 when it was $1000. The HD700 improves the HD598 most noticeably in bass. Also more refinement throughout the spectrum. However, this level of refinement is still not the greatest, and there are options in the same price range that give significantly more transparency and refinement over the HD700. After listening to the Beyerdynamic T90 and Hifiman HE-500 for some time, going back to the HD700 was when I started hearing the so-called "Sennheiser veil."

Thanks for the response! Would you consider a HD700 used for 550 still a pretty good proposition though? HE-500 is quite a bit expensive and from what I have seen, HE-500 needs a really go amp to with it too.

 

[Sonido]

 
Thanks for the response! Would you consider a HD700 used for 550 still a pretty good proposition though? HE-500 is quite a bit expensive and from what I have seen, HE-500 needs a really go amp to with it too.

Where I'm at currently, not really. I actually sold my HD700 recently for $500. I would rather look for a used HE-500 at $500-600. I've seen dealers like TTVJ have deal of the day with a 10% discount off the new price. You could also try contacting Razordog Audio for a possible special offer. As for amping, yes it requires more power than most headphone amps. However, there is an economical way around this: the Emotiva MiniX a-100 speaker amp. It's been a tried and proven way to give enough power to the HE-500. It's only $169 right now. You will need to spend another $20 on connector cables or make your own banana plug to TRS cable.
 
After going through various headphones like HD700, T90, Koss ESP950 electrostatic, and various amps like Objective2, Woo Audio WA7, and Bottlehead Crack, the HE-500 + Emotiva pairing is still the best I've heard, and a great value. I've since added the Bottlehead Quickie preamp to my chain (because you can use preamps with speaker amps

), and it adds tube warmth to the SS Emotiva, if you prefer a tube sound. This $99 addition really takes it to a further level increasing soundstage depth, tactility, and realism. I was able to compare extensively my current setup to the HD800 + Crack, and to me the Quickie + Emotiva + HE-500 wins.

 

[Flisker]

Just saying ... it's matter of perspective .. imo HD700 sounds better than T1's.

 

[Ambien]

I just recently got my HD 700 for a few days and I've never heard the HE-500, but if I had a chance to listen to the HE-500 just to try it out, I might do a trade.

 

[pdrm360]

  Where I'm at currently, not really. I actually sold my HD700 recently for $500. I would rather look for a used HE-500 at $500-600. I've seen dealers like TTVJ have deal of the day with a 10% discount off the new price. You could also try contacting Razordog Audio for a possible special offer. As for amping, yes it requires more power than most headphone amps. However, there is an economical way around this: the Emotiva MiniX a-100 speaker amp. It's been a tried and proven way to give enough power to the HE-500. It's only $169 right now. You will need to spend another $20 on connector cables or make your own banana plug to TRS cable.
 
After going through various headphones like HD700, T90, Koss ESP950 electrostatic, and various amps like Objective2, Woo Audio WA7, and Bottlehead Crack, the HE-500 + Emotiva pairing is still the best I've heard, and a great value. I've since added the Bottlehead Quickie preamp to my chain (because you can use preamps with speaker amps

), and it adds tube warmth to the SS Emotiva, if you prefer a tube sound. This $99 addition really takes it to a further level increasing soundstage depth, tactility, and realism. I was able to compare extensively my current setup to the HD800 + Crack, and to me the Quickie + Emotiva + HE-500 wins.

 
I'm quite surprised the HE-500 won you over from the HD800, but again it's a preference thing.  Honestly I sold my HE-500 recently for $500, it was so uncomfortable, but I've kept my HD700 so far.

 

[pdrm360]

  Just saying ... it's matter of perspective .. imo HD700 sounds better than T1's.

 
IMO,  HD800 > T1 > HD700 > HD650 > HD598

 

[Sonido]

   
I'm quite surprised the HE-500 won you over from the HD800, but gain it's a preference thing.  Honestly I sold my HE-500 recently for $500, it was so uncomfortable, but I've kept my HD700 so far.

 
Well remember it's not HE-500 vs. HD800, but the whole package, and I only had Crack to drive HD800. I have no doubt with a better amp the HD800 has far more scalability and would win. But right now the Quickie + Emotiva really brings out the HE-500. The Emotiva gives the power to the HE-500, while the Quickie adds body and realism the music. This setup is the most realistic sound I've heard. I've done extensive A/B test with and without the Quickie in the chain, and ultimately concluded that it increased soundstage depth, and added body to vocals and tactility to instruments. Really sounds like going from 2D to 3D. When comparing HD800 + Crack vs. just Emotiva + HE-500, the HE-500 would win in some genres like rock/pop and electronica, where the HD800 would win in others like classical/orchestral and acoustic. After adding the Quickie to the chain, the HE-500 wins in every genre I've tried. Even in classical/orchestral, while the HD800 still has a grander soundstage, it can't come close in the tactility and dimensionality of the instruments the HE-500 setup gives. It's really like listening to real instruments at a live concert hall. Of course, with headphones the one thing preventing me from closing my eyes and truly believing I'm at a live event is the sounds coming from predominantly the left and right sides. Only a speaker setup could give a realistic frontal soundstage presentation. But alas, to get the level of detail and tactility I'm getting with my HE-500 setup from speakers would cost well over $10K. I guess I can't expect to have everything at a reasonable price.

 

[pdrm360]

   
Well remember it's not HE-500 vs. HD800, but the whole package, and I only had Crack to drive HD800. I have no doubt with a better amp the HD800 has far more scalability and would win. But right now the Quickie + Emotiva really brings out the HE-500. The Emotiva gives the power to the HE-500, while the Quickie adds body and realism the music. This setup is the most realistic sound I've heard. I've done extensive A/B test with and without the Quickie in the chain, and ultimately concluded that it increased soundstage depth, and added body to vocals and tactility to instruments. Really sounds like going from 2D to 3D. When comparing HD800 + Crack vs. just Emotiva + HE-500, the HE-500 would win in some genres like rock/pop and electronica, where the HD800 would win in others like classical/orchestral and acoustic. After adding the Quickie to the chain, the HE-500 wins in every genre I've tried. Even in classical/orchestral, while the HD800 still has a grander soundstage, it can't come close in the tactility and dimensionality of the instruments the HE-500 setup gives. It's really like listening to real instruments at a live concert hall. Of course, with headphones the one thing preventing me from closing my eyes and truly believing I'm at a live event is the sounds coming from predominantly the left and right sides. Only a speaker setup could give a realistic frontal soundstage presentation. But alas, to get the level of detail and tactility I'm getting with my HE-500 setup from speakers would cost well over $10K. I guess I can't expect to have everything at a reasonable price.

 
This may be true in some ways, but I personally would probably rather listen to a poorly powered the HD800 over a well-powered HE-500.
I tried to like the HE-500 but unfortunately they were not quite my cup of tea.  Glad you like them.