[Audioholic123]

My dedicated headphone amp which has a high quality Burr Brown 384/32 bit DAC and output level of 80mW into 600 Ohm couldn't even make the HD700 I had, any fun to listen to.

 

[DavidA]

My dedicated headphone amp which has a high quality Burr Brown 384/32 bit DAC and output level of 80mW into 600 Ohm couldn't even make the HD700 I had, any fun to listen to.

Its not the mW that an amp puts out or the quality of a DAC that I'm talking about, its how an amp and headphone interact with each other when connected. As I noted before the HD700 while easier to drive is still some what picky with which amps pair well with it. Many with the HD800 spend a lot of time finding an amp that pairs well with it so it gives them the sound that they like but it seems that many who get the HD700 just don't spend the time to find an amp that pairs well with it but it could also be that some like your self are sensitive to some frequencies and no matter what amp/DAC used the HD700 will never sound good to you. For me the M1060 has never sounded good the few times I've heard them and the HD600 has a small peak in the upper mids lower treble that bothered me at times.

 

[Roll]

Try out Sonarworks/True-Fi. There is a free trial.

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/sonarworks-headphone-calibration-software.762969/

Was how I started to enjoy the HD700 last summer. I had to redo my laptop late Fall, and it seem that I can just use the headphone without running the software. Must be age.

 

[dobigstuff]

DavidA is correct. You have to find your Dac and then your Headphone Amp. (Try to go to a Can Jam or local Audio Shop so you can sample different combos together) Once you find your combo (and you will know it when you do) stick with it and enjoy.

I have Sonarworks and I use the Average for the HD700's and (for me) the Sonarworks takes that edge off and gives an even better soundstage.

Also as DavidA stated those HD 700's love to be driven by a Tube Headphone Amp (or hybrid) I agree as many others who post here. I also have the Asgard 2 and it just doesn't get those HD700's where they need to be.

I changed my cable to a Moon Audio Black dragon v2 and for me that worked wonders (I know many out there don't hear a difference with an upgraded cable or believe in upgraded cables and that's fine)

See below for my best combo for my HD700's (I do have upgraded Tubes as well)

 

[DavidA]

@dobigstuff, those are some really nice tubes in your 336SE

 

[vaibhavp]

I do have a very high quality Cyrus CD player and powerful class-A amplifier that I use when I really want to test my headphones/speakers. It works every time no matter what headphones/speakers I use..it totally transforms them..except the only thing that seemed to improve significantly with the HD700 when I tested them with that system was the soundstage and imaging - the odd/flawed sound signature still remained just that.

No idea what might ve caused that. But its obvious you might ve required to change the system. Or get a hp thats less picky.

It does require less extreme measures than either hd800 / 650 (non s models) to sound great. Both of those ultimately would require tubes, while 700 can make do with good solid state as i am using them. In my experience tube amps are expensive if you want to get a good one that does not sound obviously coloured/warm.

 

[Audioholic123]

No idea what might ve caused that. But its obvious you might ve required to change the system. Or get a hp thats less picky.

It does require less extreme measures than either hd800 / 650 (non s models) to sound great. Both of those ultimately would require tubes, while 700 can make do with good solid state as i am using them. In my experience tube amps are expensive if you want to get a good one that does not sound obviously coloured/warm.

I did have a tube amp (albeit an inexpensive one) years ago that I used with my first K702 but the amp exploded after only a few months. After that happened I decided not to buy another tube amp.
Fortunately there is nothing wrong with all my other audio equipment..the Cyrus CD player and amp I own is the best system I have and likely will ever hear and it sounds amazing with every headphone I've owned except for the HD700. The headphone amp I mentioned also synergizes well with even the hardest to drive headphones (such as 600 ohm DT880's) i've owned so HD700 should've been a joy to listen to, yet it wasn't.

 

[GearMe]

The HD700 was one of the oddest most flawed headphones I've ever owned/heard..I know it's just my opinion but I honestly think the tuning was all over the place, akin to an out of tune musical instrument. At times I'd describe the HD700 as sounding dark, yet also times I thought it was too bright. It is also the only headphone I've ever owned that had what I can only describe as an annoying lisp..totally unnatural. The HD700 is the headphone that put me off Sennheiser. It's shocking to think that a company that makes a headphone with such a flawed (imo) sound can get away with charging so much money for it.

Tube amp definitely helps. How did it compare to the T70? Doesn't the T70 have a 'flawed' signature as well? If I recall, it has a lot of folks saying similar types of things.

TBH, I've come to believe that, overall, some headphones work better for an individual's ears/hearing than others...and that certain combinations of genres/headphones/recording quality work well for one person and not so well for another

 

[vaibhavp]

I did have a tube amp (albeit an inexpensive one) years ago that I used with my first K702 but the amp exploded after only a few months. After that happened I decided not to buy another tube amp.
Fortunately there is nothing wrong with all my other audio equipment..the Cyrus CD player and amp I own is the best system I have and likely will ever hear and it sounds amazing with every headphone I've owned except for the HD700. The headphone amp I mentioned also synergizes well with even the hardest to drive headphones (such as 600 ohm DT880's) i've owned so HD700 should've been a joy to listen to, yet it wasn't.

Dt880 dont have the peaks like 700. They have uniformly higher energy in treble region. In fact treble is smooth considering how much quantity is present. Its problematic only if you are averse to higher treble quantity.

Its very much possible 700 wouldn't be great in a system where dt880 shines.

 

[GearMe]

Could be because the mids are more 'scooped' on the HD700s. In measurements, the peak on HD700 is 4dB less and located at 6500 Hz instead of 8500 Hz...that said, everybody hears differently.

 

[Audioholic123]

Tube amp definitely helps. How did it compare to the T70? Doesn't the T70 have a 'flawed' signature as well? If I recall, it has a lot of folks saying similar types of things.

TBH, I've come to believe that, overall, some headphones work better for an individual's ears/hearing than others...and that certain combinations of genres/headphones/recording quality work well for one person and not so well for another

One thing I will say is that the drivers of the HD700 sounded good in a closed-back design..this is something I discovered when I took them out of their housing and put them in a closed-back Beyerdynamic T5P (the T5P developed a fault, so I thought i'd replace the Tesla drivers with HD700 one's).
I did compare to the T70 once I put the HD700 drivers in the T5P. I thought both headphones where very similar sounding..but the sound of the HD700 in stock form is in my opinion a mess compared to not just the T70 but every other headphone i've heard.

 

[vaibhavp]

Could be because the mids are more 'scooped' on the HD700s. In measurements, the peak on HD700 is 4dB less and located at 6500 Hz instead of 8500 Hz...that said, everybody hears differently.

No idea whats going on here. Hd700 peaks were a bit problematic when i bought them. On beyers i did short term listening but was never bothered by them.

One thing I will say is that the drivers of the HD700 sounded good in a closed-back design..this is something I discovered when I took them out of their housing and put them in a closed-back Beyerdynamic T5P (the T5P developed a fault, so I thought i'd replace the Tesla drivers with HD700 one's).
I did compare to the T70 once I put the HD700 drivers in the T5P. I thought both headphones where very similar sounding..but the sound of the HD700 in stock form is in my opinion a mess compared to not just the T70 but every other headphone i've heard.

You swapped hd700 drivers? Wow. Both hps are quiet an investment for doing such experiments.

Without knowing what you felt was off about hd700, its hard to say how to make them better. I never had any problem with them once treble peak was sorted by my fiio x5 classic back then, and chord mojo for now.

 

[Audioholic123]

To be clear, what i'm basically saying is that in my opinion..the HD700 sound signature/tuning is seriously flawed. Like a broken/faulty speaker or an out of tune musical instrument, it seems to me that there are octaves/tones and audible information missing from recordings..no matter what amp I used to drive them, they always sounded this way to me. I don't think it's acceptable that a company can produce such a headphone for such a high price and expect to get away with it.
BTW i'm a self taught musician who can identify chords by ear..so there's nothing wrong with my hearing.

 

[trellus]

To be clear, what i'm basically saying is that in my opinion..the HD700 sound signature/tuning is seriously flawed. Like a broken/faulty speaker or an out of tune musical instrument, it seems to me that there are octaves/tones and audible information missing from recordings..no matter what amp I used to drive them, they always sounded this way to me. I don't think it's acceptable that a company can produce such a headphone for such a high price and expect to get away with it.
BTW i'm a self taught musician who can identify chords by ear..so there's nothing wrong with my hearing.

Judging by the way the very polarized reception the HD 700 have endured, I don't think you're alone in your low opinion of them... but the few times I've snuck them away from my co-worker's desk (and, actually they're mine, to be clear, lol), I've been pleased by the sound coming out of them with very budget amps (Magni 3, Bravo Audio Ocean hybrid tube), and I've shared a lot of my headphones (all mid-fi) with him before and these are the ones he's kept the longest so I know he likes them quite a bit, too.

 

[vaibhavp]

To be clear, what i'm basically saying is that in my opinion..the HD700 sound signature/tuning is seriously flawed. Like a broken/faulty speaker or an out of tune musical instrument, it seems to me that there are octaves/tones and audible information missing from recordings..no matter what amp I used to drive them, they always sounded this way to me. I don't think it's acceptable that a company can produce such a headphone for such a high price and expect to get away with it.
BTW i'm a self taught musician who can identify chords by ear..so there's nothing wrong with my hearing.

I didn't said anything about your hearing.

I know hd700 quiet well. Especially its flaws. Your comment does not clarify what was wrong with them.

On my system there is nothing missing. As i already said its a matter of system matching.

If you still have them and want to improve their sound or 'tuning', that might be possible. Otherwise we are wasting time.