Congrats.I use a La Figaro 339 with mine.I prefer it to my Audio GD-R2R11 and vintage receivers for driving my HD250s.
Sennheiser HD250 Linear Impressions Micro-Thread
- Thread starter Malfunkt
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Fantastic, thanks! Considering how well-received these headphones were/are, it's surprising they haven't generated more discussion here on Head-Fi. I'll post some impressions here when they arrive.
@L0rdGwyn looking forward to your opinion on the HD250. I'm sure it would be awesome with an old amp or OTL. Myself, I'm enjoying it right out of my O2. 600ohm built isn't that hard to drive.
Looks like you got a fair price, especially if the condition is mint/excellent (pads aside).
Looks like you got a fair price, especially if the condition is mint/excellent (pads aside).
My HD 250s arrived yesterday! New in the box, completely sealed, how cool is that? Less cool is the fact that the pads were a plague of black dust a debris, took me almost two hours to clean it all away from the cups and drivers. Did a quick test to make sure they worked, my heart nearly stopped when no sound came out of the left channel, luckily the original cable was the problem. Waiting for some new after market pads to come in, will post pics and impressions when they do.
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My HD 250s arrived yesterday!
Congrats! Are they the 600ohm versions?
allhifi
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The Sennheiser HD250 Impression Thread
Sennheiser HD250 Linear 600ohm (background) with modern day HD700
Well, I’ve only had the Sennheiser HD250 for a short while, but long-enough to realize what an incredible classic I have come across. Even more surprising, there is little fanfare here at head-fi.org and no dedicated appreciation thread.
I'd like to first thank @MrTechAgent who has helped shine some light on these old classics, in particular the HD540. With his videos, I would never have sought this out. I highly recommend checking out his HD540 Reference (1985) video, but also the rest of his channel.
And when I say classic, I’m putting these up there alongside the LCD2 and HD650. I may go as far to say it surpasses them in the aspect of natural, linear tonality. These are smooth, warm, detailed headphones that sound very expansive despite being a closed-headphone. Contrasted against an LCD2 or HD650, they have very extended, clear and natural treble. It is so involving. Beyond this, the rest of the sound is also on point, and the bass is superb, with it almost bordering on too much (and for those that want less there is the open back HD540).
So rather than just a review, I feel these cans truly justify their own Appreciation Thread, as they are not only rare, but under-appreciated given their capabilities to this present day.
I’m going to keep my impressions short for now, as well as the background on these headphones, as I actually only have a limited time with them, and secondly, it is difficult finding information on these. I’m hoping others will contribute some of their own experiences and information.
Remembering a Sennheiser Classic
At some point, the HD250 vanished into history. What remains is rather scant online. Keep in mind, this wasn’t just an ‘80s headphone, it was being produced until the early 2000s. There are two versions, the HD250 Linear and the HD250 Linear II. From my understanding it was brought back in the nineties due to popular demand, and given a new coat of paint. From what I have read, they are pretty much identical, but a number of user will describe one as being bass light, or one better than the other, etc. Further confounding this is that there exists 300ohm and 600ohm versions! Some users have reported that depending on the quality of the pads it can (no surprise) alter the sound signature. One user pointed out that they got their HD250 to sound very close to their HD540 with partially vented pads. Above all, a number of users agree that the HD250 (and perhaps to a larger extent the HD540) are preferred over the HD580,600,650. Or at the very least putting them at or near the same level.
Mine were form Radio-Canada studio headphones. In great condition with new pads and cable.
Can this Really Be Compared to the HD650?
I know controversial right. I love the HD650, and I won’t get into to this too deeply at the moment. I feel that the HD650 is perhaps a bit too relaxed. For instance, on dynamic classical recordings, the high-end was a bit uninvolved. It is an incredible headphone in its own right, and if you are an enthusiast of the HD650/600/580 then you may be surprised that these classic Sennheisers really pull it off. But maybe you shouldn’t be. It’s not as if this company came out of nowhere and dropped the HD580 on us.
What I find is that brass, strings, bell tones, glissando, really anything that hits those top notes is clear as day. This is some of the most accurate and best treble I’ve heard in can, let alone a closed can. The rest of the spectrum is all very present. This isn’t the more mid-centric sound we’ve heard from many flagship cans. Some people may say the mid-range is recessed, but it sounds perfectly balanced with the high-end, and the low range of the HD250 is also very natural, with percussion sounding life-like.
Even soundstage, is quite open, and imaging on this can is superb. You can easily place the depth of the different performers.
Let’s just put it this way, if you could have an HD650 with more sub-bass extension/volume, and more lifted accurate highs, would that interest you? Many people have been pointing those traits as some of the HD650s minor weaknesses. But here we have a Sennheiser can that pretty much nails reference tonality, in a closed back!
True Genre Masters
Since I’ve been here on head-fi, a term that used to be spun around a bit more was the idea of a Genre Master. In this case, it means a headphone that can play all Genres. The HD250 just doesn’t sound just great or good with all genres, it sounds outstanding with any genre providing its production is high-quality and dynamic. They are equally at home play classical music, reggae/dub, detroit techno, classic rock, pop to black metal.
If It’s So Good, Why Haven’t I Heard These?
Sennheiser has kept some of its headphones alive for a long-time. The HD600 and HD650 for good reason. The HD25 (not to be confused with the HD250) would have been relegated to being a broadcaster and ENG headphone if it hadn’t become a mainstay in the underground electronic scene across Europe and then the US.
Not too long ago, there were huge threads on Graham Slee’s old forum on both this headphone and the HD540 - its open back variant. Those are gone, but have been partially cached by Google. Graham Slee had at one point (and it could still be the case to this day) claimed the HD250 as his favourite headphone. From my understanding it was one of the formative headphones used in developing his amps. Great, so it has some industry acknowledgement. But aside from some other audio forums this headphone and the 540 are largely forgotten. But its time that they were re-discovered.
I’ll be posting in the coming weeks more detailed impressions, and how they compare to some other headphones such as the Denon D2000, Sennheiser’s own HD700, Sony MDR-7520 and Audeze LCD2 (early revision). Not to spoil anything, but they just sound right.
Malfunct: Excellent write-up.
Your comparisons (and preferences) doesn't surprise me at all. Back then, Sennheiser manufactured some wonderful cans. sometime later (2000's?) it lost its way. Some way down the road aesthetics (Star War style) became the norm for some makers. Too bad.
If Senn (as Hifiman does) utilizes a proven (and excellent) headband design, it can dispense with the eye-ball satisfying styling of their present concoctions -complete with SQ impacting variables.
(I was most definetly a Senn advocate (1980's-1990's) and do recall owning, I think the HD-540 (565/580?).
In any case, I have no doubt your 250's (540-series) betters many of the current Senn models (particularly the HD-650), but that is not a good comparison. You must move to a more professional-sounding line-up in the Hifiman series -specifically the 400i for musical accuracy.
I'm confident the usual suspects Beyer, AKG, Audio Technica, (Sony) and of course Stax have its share of premium (accurate) offerings although I wonder if those models can compete in the HFM 400i's price range.
Moving on, perhaps the HD-600 Sennhesier is more open, nuanced and extended than the 650's, but even the HD-800's I feel were bettered by the HFM 400i's -and considerably lower cost.
Looking closer to headband design reveals part of the story -it's very important in defining SQ -and comfort. Sennheiser's all-over-the-map designs impress on-lookers more than listeners it seems to me. Rewinding back to the older 250/540's is an example of sensible build.
It's always a pleasure to discover those more passionate about authentic music reproduction than stylish (and expensive) and incessant model offerings that some company's feel is necessary.
I hope you enjoy that treasured find !
pj
Yes they are, 600 Ohm, high gain at 12 o clock on my Lyr 2 gets them to a moderate-high listening volume. Turns out my ear pads and official Sennheiser replacement dampening foam discs arrived today from the EU! Not going to write up impressions just yet since I've only had a quick listen, but wow, these really are great and extremely comfortable to wear.
@L0rdGwyn saw your post on reddit! nice pic. Also good to hear the ZMF pads are a great fit. Mine are pretty good, but that just looks luxurious, and probably improves the sound a bit.
Thanks for checking out my post! Sorry I never posted my impressions here, typically on Head-Fi I take the time to write in-depth impressions, but...well...I'm sort of burnt out on long headphone review posts lol
BUT here is something I've found helpful - the bass-response on the 250's is really sensitive to how well they seal around the ear, which can be a bit tricky given that they have a very low clamping force. I originally bought some pleather pads from a German seller on Ebay, which fit very well, but the ear seal was terrible and I decided I needed something thicker to fix the problem. The ZMF Universe pads are super comfortable, fit well, and definitely improve upon the seal, but it still isn't perfect (if I press the ear cups against my head to completely seal, there is still a definite uptick in the bass response). Perhaps using some of ZMF's even thicker pads would do the trick, but I'm happy with the Universe (no pun intended
).And @monsterzero thanks for commenting over on Reddit! Seems like there is little awareness of the 250's over there, thought I'd change it up a bit. I'm strongly considering picking up a pair of 540's out of curiosity, interesting to hear they sound so very different from the 250's given they have similar drivers.
Yeah,I dunno why theyre so different sounding,but theyre quite opposite really.The HD540 is quite neutral,dry-ish and transparent sounding.
I might be persuaded to sell my HD540s.PM me if youre interested.
Geezer Rock 001
500+ Head-Fier
Newbie here who stepped up to a set of the Ebay HD 250 Linear IIs . When they got here it was factory sealed and almost like opening a time capsule. The ear pads and foam that covered the drivers were toast but everything else was in order.
Took 2 weeks to get velour ear pads and foam driver covers from China and I used that time to clean them and got about 10 hours of play time in them laying on the desk. ( They are 600 ohms)
Installed the pads and they are amazing for 1990's technology! They are still a bit bright to my ears but I think with a little more time they will settle in.
Am by no means an expert, but the HD 250 Linear II s have to be a classic from Sennheiser!
Took 2 weeks to get velour ear pads and foam driver covers from China and I used that time to clean them and got about 10 hours of play time in them laying on the desk. ( They are 600 ohms)
Installed the pads and they are amazing for 1990's technology! They are still a bit bright to my ears but I think with a little more time they will settle in.
Am by no means an expert, but the HD 250 Linear II s have to be a classic from Sennheiser!
Glad to hear that youre liking them.
Regarding the brightness,what amp are you using to drive them? I use a neutral set of tubes on my La Figaro 339 and there is zero brightness.
Geezer Rock 001
500+ Head-Fier
Right now I am driving them with a Neve RNHP. I have a Little Dot Mk II inbound that I am looking forward to experimenting with.
They seemed much brighter compared to my HD 650s.
They seemed much brighter compared to my HD 650s.
They are definitely brighter than the HD650. To me they have the right treble balance where the HD650 was muted, same with the LCD2. At the same time, I don't find the HD250 harsh or overly analytical. Quite coherent treble that integrates with the rest of the range.
I have the HD6xx,which is essentially the HD650....
My 6xx hits harder than my HD250 and other than that I prefer my HD250 across the board...via my La Figaro 339 it imparts an almost "sweet" tonality to the 250s.
I dunno how well the Little Dot handles tube rolling but if you find that combo still too bright you can try a warmer set of tubes that might tame the treble a bit.
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