It certainly is! I've not been as impressed with it on the 58X, 6XX, HD800, or Elear (for Elex) in terms of it totally transforming the sound.
Sennheiser HD 700 Impressions Thread
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coletrain104
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It is very strange to me to see the widespread acceptance of the harman target for measurements, whilst also accepting that a headphone measuring completely flat on the target will sound bright in the low and mid treble, with way too much treble energy overall. Seems like an inaccurate target that should be adjusted.
Have you seen the Dekoni measurements of the HD 700 pads? I got to hear them while doing photography for Dekoni (full disclosure, I am a consultant, and I take photos and record videos for Dekoni, and I was helping them with graphs at one point), and I felt like the impact on the HD 700 with Dekoni velour pads was a positive one. It evened out some of the dips in the upper midrange. Of course personal taste is often important in pad swaps, and not all pad swaps are clear winners (especially when changing materials), but I really feel like the HD 700 in particular is worth hearing with the velours. Have a look at the (raw) graphs, and see if it looks appealing (though let your ears be the final judge!):
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/dekoni-audio-and-better-measurements.887247/#post-15179923
Their compensation curve isn’t targeting perfectly flat, IIRC. I heard they were actually targeting something close to the HD 650, but I can’t verify that.
It looks like the elite velour pads decrease 3.5k but increase the 6k spike over stock. I'll have to give them a try someday.
Wait, I’m actually thinking of the fenestrated sheepskin
The treble spike and midrange are closer to eachother, and I feel it sounds more balanced. Not flat, not dull, but more balanced. Dekoni aligns (“volume matches”) each pad based on a 300 Hz tone, but if you think about them as volume matched at 2 kHz or 4 kHz, you can see the treble still has the expected spike but it’s not as much “louder” dB relative to the midrange. I don’t listen to frequency sweeps (at least, not usually, not for fun), but the smoother transition from the mids through the treble does seem to result in a more cohesive signature.
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Toddy
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Well, my impressions of the sound are great. But after a litte more than two years of not heavy usage (too many cans
) the headband started to dissolve:
I know I have oily skin, but it can't be that corrosive…
) the headband started to dissolve:
I know I have oily skin, but it can't be that corrosive…
Marlowe
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Sorry for the bad luck. After more than three years of careful but pretty heavy use (while I almost never use the HD700 for music any more, it remains my primary TV headphone and I'm retired and watch a lot of TV) my headband padding appears to still be perfect. I did recently find a small tear in the seam of one of my earcup pads. A little black tape seems to do the trick until I get around to replacing it, probably with Dekoni.Well, my impressions of the sound are great. But after a litte more than two years of not heavy usage (too many cans
I know I have oily skin, but it can't be that corrosive…
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Toddy
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Maybe it's because it was a ‚B-stock‘ from Sennheiser's own outlet. But I doubt that.
Nikori
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Gosh...the same thing is happening to mine, though to a lesser degree. Not sure if it's because i left it too long in the box. I've already replaced the earpads but can't find a replacement for the headband pad in stock anywhere... :/Well, my impressions of the sound are great. But after a litte more than two years of not heavy usage (too many cans
I know I have oily skin, but it can't be that corrosive…
Toddy
100+ Head-Fier
Same problem here, although one might think in Germany a replacement should be available. But no…
For the time being I scraped off all the excess material an now I think about what kind of cover I can pull over the headband. Some kind of sock maybe… Strangely my earpads show no kind of wear anywhere btw.
I Bought 2 yesterday, shipped to the US for $32. https://www.audiosanctuary.co.uk/sennheiser-foam-headband-pad-for-hd700.html
Nikori
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Excellent! Thanks so much for the link. Ordering one to be sent to Malaysia now. Soon i'll be able to enjoy the headphones without having black dust stuck in my hair
theaudiologist1
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I have an R70x. Is it worth upgrading to the HD700s or should I jump straight to the HD800's or HD660S? Also, why does everyone hate the HD700s (like Z Reviews)?
manueljenkin
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Hd700 is incredibly source sensitive and can sound very harsh on the wrong setup. If your setup pairs well you won't have any issues.
Comparing against r70x is hard for me since I haven't heard r70x yet, but hd700 would more or less of a less technical headphone than r70x, with impressions from my friends on r70x. But hd700 has a unique coloration that sounds very engaging with the right setup, hear one before you buy.
If you're trying to move up from r70x, hd800 may be a good choice but there is no guarantee you'll like it.
Before jumping up anywhere, I'd recommend to try a good amp on your r70x if you haven't yet. Something like the fiio k5 pro is like only 150$ and should give a big improvement over most cheap setups.
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