[shannonberry]

I've had a pair of HD599's for awhile and love them! I wanted to hear what comes next so I bought a pair of used HD650's expecting to be seriously impressed. Not at all. 599's are waaaay better sounding for less money. How can this be? 650's are supposed be "professional" versus prosumer. Anyone else experience similar?

Update: I listened to the 650 for a week or two exclusively. I now understand why I had the impression I initially did. I feel I've grown in the hobby with this experience. I really appreciate ALL of the input ya'll have given me! For anyone interested in hearing the difference between 500 and 600 series headphones the following link was eye opening for me:

 

[PurpleAngel]

The 300-Ohm Sennheiser HD600/HD650/HD6XX seem to best with a lot of voltage.
What headphone amplifiers are you using?

 

[shannonberry]

The 300-Ohm Sennheiser HD600/HD650/HD6XX seem to best with a lot of voltage.
What headphone amplifiers are you using?

I have a Schiit Magni/Modi 3 stack. I don't think power is the issue; although, I do have to raise volume with the 650's.

 

[ctjacks336]

I have had both and enjoyed the 650 more

 

[shannonberry]

I have had both and enjoyed the 650 more

Can you describe the difference in sound to you?

 

[ctjacks336]

Can you describe the difference in sound to you?

The 650 were just more relaxing to me. I loved them both,but 650 were little warmer

 

[shannonberry]

The 650 were just more relaxing to me. I loved them both,but 650 were little warmer

I think I understand your impression. What I hear is a more flat sound from the 650’s. I was shocked that the 599’s were so much brighter/warmer. I was expecting the difference to be opposite. I’m going to give the 650’s another try without bouncing back and forth.

 

[PurpleAngel]

I think I understand your impression. What I hear is a more flat sound from the 650’s. I was shocked that the 599’s were so much brighter/warmer. I was expecting the difference to be opposite. I’m going to give the 650’s another try without bouncing back and forth.

Might try investing into a tube headphone amplifier.

 

[ctjacks336]

I think I understand your impression. What I hear is a more flat sound from the 650’s. I was shocked that the 599’s were so much brighter/warmer. I was expecting the difference to be opposite. I’m going to give the 650’s another try without bouncing back and forth.

Just give each one a week or two listening to straight. Choose which ever one sounds the best to you! Like I said I enjoyed both of them very much

 

[Angel III]

I haven't tried the magni, but I had the magni 3+ and never liked it with the HD650. This amplifier was mediocre in the separation of musical instruments. What I heard was too much confusion at medium volumes. In my opinion it is an amplifier that has good volume and will only make the HD650 scream, with almost no stage and little musicality. Hope it sounds better with your amp.

 

[shannonberry]

I haven't tried the magni, but I had the magni 3+ and never liked it with the HD650. This amplifier was mediocre in the separation of musical instruments. What I heard was too much confusion at medium volumes. In my opinion it is an amplifier that has good volume and will only make the HD650 scream, with almost no stage and little musicality. Hope it sounds better with your amp.

I didn't realize an amp could have that much impact...I thought I had something more than good enough. Hmm.

 

[carbonF1]

If you haven't done so already, try running Magni on high gain. That may make a noticeable difference with the HD650.

My first memory of switching to HD650 from 598 (very similar to 599) was that the HD650 was very pleasant for music listening, more detail albeit a bit more intimate sounding and a little warm. The 599 has a different signature and does a bit better than the 650 on imaging (i.e. hearing footsteps and where they are coming from accurately), can feel slightly wider sounding and maybe out of the box is a little more comfortable because of the clamp force on the 600 style headphones (this goes away though). I kept them both for a while but decided the 650 was more to my taste. All of this was on the Magni 2/Modi 2 stack.

Probably my favorite thing about the HD650 is that it has scaled so well with all of the amp and dac combos I've paired with it. Can't say the same for the HD599, if anything, going beyond a Magni on the 599 is a waste IMO. If you want to keep the 650, you can get some of that "energetic" sound signature with the Valhalla 2 and some aftermarket input tubes. But maybe you are after a different headphone. Were you after the 650 as an upgrade to the 599? I bought mine thinking that too, but I don't think any 6 series headphone is a true upgrade from 599. Some other qualities or characteristics improved, sure. I'd say the true all around upgrade from the 599 is HD800S (or maybe the HD700, don't know, haven't heard it).

 

[wantan]

I didn't realize an amp could have that much impact...I thought I had something more than good enough. Hmm.

Your Amp is perfectly fine. If you want a different sound using EQ or a different headphone is the better way to go. If you find the HD650 boring or veiled get a Schiit Loki for your setup and raise the treble a bit. Personally I like the HD650 best with +3db bass and +3bd treble.

The HD599 is more exciting sounding than the HD650. If you're used to the HD599 the HD650 sounds a bit flat and boring. I'm using a HD579 for movies and prefer it over the HD650 for this use case. It has more sparkle, a nicely done soundstage and is "easier" to listen to.
The HD650 has the more even midrange and treble. If you listen do music (classic orchestra or hard metal) with the HD650 you'll find that you can follow each instrument more easily and that everything has a "natural" and "realistic" sound. Especially violins playing high or electric guitars with lots of distortion. Changing back to the HD599 you'll eventually notice a slightly plasticy timbre and a slightly nervousness where some sounds a more vague, harder to pinpoint.
Try to follow the whole instrument and the musician playing it. Don't concentrate on detail or specific sounds, listen for the instruments in context of the music.
That's the reason why the HD650 is the better (and more expensive) headphone.

If you're used to the HD599 it will take a while to adapt to a new headphone. That said if you like the sound of the HD599 it's fair to stick to it. It's a good headphone and makes for a good listening experience and there is little to be gained by spending more money on a new pair.

It's eventually worth to add some EQ to the HD650.

 

[Angel III]

Keep in mind that even good amps have different tones. I have tried very neutral amps like topping, sabaj, smsl etc. I like neutral amps like L.P. G111 or neutral-warm like my V200. I like the tones that return a sound experience similar to reality so to speak. In my opinion the overly neutral amps I've tried have nice numbers in distortion (on paper), but too tonally unbalanced, similar to a sterile sound.

 

[Sefelt103]

Just give each one a week or two listening to straight.

Sounds like the OP is not attuned to the HD650 as much as the HD599.