[LFF]

I guess it's also safe for me to write about my loaner pair.
 
A big thank you to Sennheiser for allowing me to borrow and listen to their new headphones. I will be sending them back soon and am indeed sorry to let them go.
 
I will be writing a more in-depth and lengthy review later on.
 
I spent quite a few hours listening to them. IMHO they are completely worthy of being called the baby brother to the HD800. They share a very similar sound signature while remaining very different. The HD800 sounds like it has more top end and a smoother top end at that. The HD700 has more of a peak around 6,000 - 7,000 cycles making them sound a bit harsh with certain types of music and is most prominent on cymbal hits and certain "shh" vocal sounds. They are an improvement over the HD6x0's in certain areas but make no argument about it....the HD800 remains the better headphone.
 
The weight of the headphones is remarkable. Very light and at times, it really does feel like you have nothing on. This is a big plus for those of you who have long listening sessions. Fit might be an issue for some as the headband doesn't adjust very well....at least the one on the loaner paid did not.
 
The inevitable questions, as can already be seen in this thread, is whether or not they are better than the LCD-3, LCD-2, HE500,  T1 and other headphones priced at or near the HD700. You can't really compare the HD700 to the orthodynamics as they are a very different technology. The HD700 will not match the slam and low end of any orthodynamic. The midrange is not as lush or as fast as the orthodynamics. In the end, it will come down to YOUR individual preferences and desires. Are the HD700's the next best thing? No. Are they bad? No. The HD700's are decent headphones with some futuristic styling that provides a sound signature very similar but not equal to the HD800. If you can't afford an HD800 but desire a very similar sound at a slightly more affordable price, then the HD700 should be it for you.
 
More to follow.....

 

[gelocks]

HD700 vs Shure 1840!!!
 
FIGHT!

 

[vvanrij]

Harsher than the HD800, than its officially not for me Gotta try a LCD-2 or HE-500, but for now it seems I will rather stick to my K1000's and sextet.

 

[Naim.F.C]

Harsher than the HD800's and possibly thinner bass? Talk about completely ignoring people's requests and creating something more polarising. The HD800 is plenty bright, perhaps just at the limit before going in to overly bright territory. What the HD700 needs to be is a smoother more laid back version of the HD800, ideally with a bit more low end, not the opposite. Thoroughly disappointed from what I've seen and read thus far, but naturally, will wait to hear more.

 

[M-13]

 I'm so excited, what a way to start 2012!

 

[Ra97oR]

I dread something even harsher than the HD800. T1 sounded great, but the lesser version of it, T70 didn't. T70p is the new king of bad sounding headphone for me, wonder if the HD700 will join it following the trend...

 

[Niyologist]

The HD 700 looks AWESOME!!!! I'm curious of how it sounds. I guess I can wait until B&H puts it on display.

 

[Laciel]

$1000, and i just a HD650 not long ago, i guess i should be happy for what i have now, at least for now...........

 

[gelocks]

Quote:

I guess it's also safe for me to write about my loaner pair.
 
A big thank you to Sennheiser for allowing me to borrow and listen to their new headphones. I will be sending them back soon and am indeed sorry to let them go.
 
I will be writing a more in-depth and lengthy review later on.
 
I spent quite a few hours listening to them. IMHO they are completely worthy of being called the baby brother to the HD800. They share a very similar sound signature while remaining very different. The HD800 sounds like it has more top end and a smoother top end at that. The HD700 has more of a peak around 6,000 - 7,000 cycles making them sound a bit harsh with certain types of music and is most prominent on cymbal hits and certain "shh" vocal sounds. They are an improvement over the HD6x0's in certain areas but make no argument about it....the HD800 remains the better headphone.
 
The weight of the headphones is remarkable. Very light and at times, it really does feel like you have nothing on. This is a big plus for those of you who have long listening sessions. Fit might be an issue for some as the headband doesn't adjust very well....at least the one on the loaner paid did not.
 
The inevitable questions, as can already be seen in this thread, is whether or not they are better than the LCD-3, LCD-2, HE500,  T1 and other headphones priced at or near the HD700. You can't really compare the HD700 to the orthodynamics as they are a very different technology. The HD700 will not match the slam and low end of any orthodynamic. The midrange is not as lush or as fast as the orthodynamics. In the end, it will come down to YOUR individual preferences and desires. Are the HD700's the next best thing? No. Are they bad? No. The HD700's are decent headphones with some futuristic styling that provides a sound signature very similar but not equal to the HD800. If you can't afford an HD800 but desire a very similar sound at a slightly more affordable price, then the HD700 should be it for you.
 
More to follow.....

Thanks for the comments on it!
See, this is a good overview!
What I really get from it is that these cans are not really show-stealing ones!
And at $1000 (let's say $800 just for kicks) I would definitely NOT get them...
 
LFF, hopefully you'll be comparing them with previous gens 650/600??
 
For now I'm happy with my D5000s, 940s and 600s... I believe I got everything covered (overall good sound, great details and laid
back warm sound respectively...) but I want to listen to the new 1840s by Shure... (Shure fan here!)
 
 

 

[IPodPJ]

Hopefully there will be a suitable 2.5mm TS plug for us vendors in the cable industry.  The HD800 plug surely takes time to work with to do it right, and is expensive.  I'd like to see Sennheiser move in that direction for all future phones.
 
Looking forward to hearing a pair of these, soon I hope, but really have no need to purchase one already owning the HD800.  They do look nice.  I assume they don't make use of any trickle-down technology from the ring radiator in the HD800 as there was no mention of that on their site.

 

[keanex]

Sennheiser needs to take some of the money they have and put it into a design team that isn't stuck in the 80s. HD800 were god awful childrens toy replicas, and these are even worse.

 

[LFF]

Quote:

LFF, hopefully you'll be comparing them with previous gens 650/600??

 

I will for sure, especially since the HD600 has always been my benchmark in terms of sound quality and performance.
 
 
 

 

[scootermafia]

Can Currawong or LFF put up a pic of the stock cable in detail?

 

[Misterrogers]

It'll be interesting to see where these fall in price/performance curve. I had a chance to listen to these for a few hours - LFF gave a good, brief summary of the sonic signature. Detail and sound stage (width more than depth) were very good, but I can't see setting aside my HE-500's for these - headphones I can buy for $300 less. Different users value different things, so it will be interesting. Have to say it though - can't help but feel that Sennheiser is a bit out of touch with the current market. In my view, the HD700's would do very well between $400 - $600.

 

[IPodPJ]

Quote:

Can Currawong or LFF put up a pic of the stock cable in detail?

And the headphone jack?  And let us know which is + and which is -?