[DavidA]

how many hours do i need to break in the HD6xx ?

any where from 0 to 150 is what's been mentioned, for me I didn't notice any change with my HD650 or HD6XX but like anything else audio YMMV with this.

 

[LazyListener]

but the biggest change for me was the (lack off) sibilant treble which the X2 had.

Spot on! I found the X2 treble quite harsh on some songs. Can't believe more people don't notice that. The HD 650 are leaps and bounds smoother in the treble than the X2, and bass is more accurate. Not to mention more comfortable, lighter with less clamp pressure. IMO, the X2 have been and continue to be way overrated, especially at their price.

 

[Emulle]

Spot on! I found the X2 treble quite harsh on some songs. Can't believe more people don't notice that. The HD 650 are leaps and bounds smoother in the treble than the X2, and bass is more accurate. Not to mention more comfortable, lighter with less clamp pressure. IMO, the X2 have been and continue to be way overrated, especially at their price.

Well it's good for the people not noticing the sibilance, but it hurts our credibility!
In regards to the price I cannot wholeheartly agree, for two reasons:
They are quite fun in regards to the V-shaped sound(always had a soft spot for that), and also I had the luck to pick them up new-in-box for around $90 and actually sold them for close to $150.
For that price, and to de-sibilant them with equallizer apo, they were quite the pair to start out the 'audiophile' path with!

 

[chimney189]

This comparison has probably been beaten to death, but I'll go ahead anyway...

I just received the 660S and had a chance to do a brief A/B session with the 6XX. So far it seems to me that the 660S is WAY more energetic (I actually find myself having to keep an eye on the volume knob on almost every song that I listen to), the treble is WAY more forward, the bass has more punch and is quicker, there is a smidge more width in the soundstage and there is better placement of instruments.

So there are quite a few differences, but the energy of the treble is almost always overwhelming if I even think about turning the volume up.
I believe the 660S can be enjoyed at lower volume levels, but that takes away from the punchiness of the bass. In the end this is an unfortunate compromise. If only the 6XX could have the 660S' bass....
Everything is so IN YOUR FACE with the 660S from what I heard last night.

I'd also like to mention that the pads were pretty worn down, nearly flat. I also hooked them up to a Bottlehead Crack w/SB upgrade, TungSol 5998 and Mullard CV4003 tubes, and a Burson DA160 DAC.

In the end I found myself feeling that the 650 was a more enjoyable listen, but I still kept wanting to put the 660S back on my noggin.

 

[joaogma]

Guys, need serious advice regarding HD650 amping.

I'm trying to decide between an OTL Tube (SB'd Crack) or some SS. I mainly listen to hiphop and head that tube rolls off in the deep bass area, which is very important for my genre preference.

Does anyone know if these statements are true (or... i can go tubes!) or it is better to go for a solid state amp?

PS: looking for options <$500

 

[alchemist23]

I’ve got a 6xx. Listened to the advice given about them loving tubes so I bought a Massdrop cth although I really wanted to try them with a neutral powerful ss amp.
Big mistake.
The cth is up for sale and I’m royally turned off of headphone listening as a result.
Now to get my Ae1’s rebuilt!

 

[katulu]

I tried my HD6XX with my Apex Teton and didnt think they pair at all. Too much bass, this is partly why the Teton goes so well with HD800. I would go for a slightly bright SS for the HD650 or 6XX. And then PEQ to suit...

 

[joaogma]

I tried my HD6XX with my Apex Teton and didnt think they pair at all. Too much bass, this is partly why the Teton goes so well with HD800. I would go for a slightly bright SS for the HD650 or 6XX. And then PEQ to suit...

yeah, im actually pretty satisfied with my HD650 bass QUANTITY, what i'm most concern, though, is the extension. Your Apex is well known for hitting hard in the bass area thus being a perfect pair for the 800's, I don't think it would pair well with my 650's.
Now, I don't think the 650's are veiled or dark, I find them very relaxed, so, maybe I'm not looking for a bright pair for them.

Katulu, thanks for your advice, i found it very valuable

 

[DavidA]

Guys, need serious advice regarding HD650 amping.

I'm trying to decide between an OTL Tube (SB'd Crack) or some SS. I mainly listen to hiphop and head that tube rolls off in the deep bass area, which is very important for my genre preference.

Does anyone know if these statements are true (or... i can go tubes!) or it is better to go for a solid state amp?

PS: looking for options <$500

While I have a BH Crack and it does pair well with my HD650 it does come at a cost of finding tubes that suit you preferences so keep that in mind. I'd suggest you consider a Jot since it was one of the few SS amps under your budget that sounded pretty good paired with the HD650 but it was with the balanced output which seems to be a touch better than the SE output with the Jot.

 

[dakanao]

HD 58X has nice bass with rather impressive extension. Also it does have noticeable speed advantage. HD 6XX has kinda like hugging warmth, smoothness and it brings the vocals a notch forward. Personally I think because the HD 58X voices sound at times rougher/harsher (at times it feels like it adds some grain and roughness to certain parts of words that shouldn't be there) it can appear "shoutier" than HD 6XX even when the vocals are not quite as forward. (All this is relative to each others). That being said, HD 6XX is not perfect grain wise but it's smooth across the board without annoying peaks or dips. HD 58X has some treble peaks relative to mids which makes, especially the female vocals not as smooth.

If the vocals would sound smoother and a touch more forward, it would be a better headphone overall for me. Smoother more forward vocals make HD 6XX nicer when listening to dialogue heavy stuff (TV series, certain games...).

Do you perhaps know a headphone that has even less grain than the HD 650?

 

[Pharmaboy]

Guys, need serious advice regarding HD650 amping.

I'm trying to decide between an OTL Tube (SB'd Crack) or some SS. I mainly listen to hiphop and head that tube rolls off in the deep bass area, which is very important for my genre preference.

Does anyone know if these statements are true (or... i can go tubes!) or it is better to go for a solid state amp?

PS: looking for options <$500

1-2 months ago I reviewed an extensive mod of the HD650 (comparing the mod to a stock HD650). That meant listening to both the mod & stock for dozens of hours. It proved to be kind of a revelation, since I'd never heard a stock HD650 before (and just love it); and the mod was so successful and made striking sonic improvements in the already very fine stock HD650.

All this listening was done on 4 diffferent solid state amps of differing power & circuit design topologies:

• Matrix M Stage HPA-1 with dual OPA827AID opamps on a Browndog adapter (my favorite of 3 opamps tried): this single-ended amp is my lowest power SS amp, but it got the HD650s plenty loud and sounding very very good
• Lake People G109-A: a far more powerful SE design. Absolutely every headphone sounds great on this amp, and so did the HD650s
• Liquid Carbon v2: another relatively powerful amp that outputs both balanced & SE signal. This somewhat warm amp shouldn't have sounded good w/the slightly warm HD650s--but it did sound great. They like balanced...
• Violectric V281: uber-powerful balanced & SE amp sounded terrific w/these headphones

Interestingly, when I tried the HD650s on my OTL tube amp (Woo WA2), it didn't quite equal any of the SS amps in control of these headphones. Didn't sound deficient--just not as flat & tight.

Based on the variety of SS amps, all w/differing power outputs & output topologies, I conclude that the HD650 is relatively amp-neutral and will sound nearly as good on a low power SS amp as on an OTL tube.

These headphones have become a legend in headphone audio for good reasons....including their great sound and relative ease of amping.

 

[riffrafff]

While I have a BH Crack and it does pair well with my HD650 it does come at a cost of finding tubes that suit you preferences so keep that in mind. I'd suggest you consider a Jot since it was one of the few SS amps under your budget that sounded pretty good paired with the HD650 but it was with the balanced output which seems to be a touch better than the SE output with the Jot.

This. Your choice of tubes can make a world of difference. My 6XX on a Vali 2/Mimby with a Reflektor 6N3P-E (and adaptor) sounds amazing.

 

[lugnut]

Guys, need serious advice regarding HD650 amping.

I'm trying to decide between an OTL Tube (SB'd Crack) or some SS. I mainly listen to hiphop and head that tube rolls off in the deep bass area, which is very important for my genre preference.

Does anyone know if these statements are true (or... i can go tubes!) or it is better to go for a solid state amp?

PS: looking for options <$500

I have the hd 6xxx and hd 650, and they are great phones. However, if hip hop was the main genre of music that I listened to, they would not be my first or second pick of headphones to listen to hip hop with. The $500 you are thinking about spending for a amp might be better used toward a pair of headphones that are better suited for deep bass such as hip hop.
With all that said, this is just my humble personal opinion.

 

[riffrafff]

I have the hd 6xxx and hd 650, and they are great phones. However, if hip hop was the main genre of music that I listened to, they would not be my first or second pick of headphones to listen to hip hop with. The $500 you are thinking about spending for a amp might be better used toward a pair of headphones that are better suited for deep bass such as hip hop.
With all that said, this is just my humble personal opinion.

I don't do hip-hop, but I'd think that open-back 'phones would not be my choice if I did.

 

[DavidA]

Do you perhaps know a headphone that has even less grain than the HD 650?

If only talking grain then there are a few that I've heard that have less grain than the HD650 to me: SR009, HD800, HD800S, T1gen1, HD700, L500, SRD-34, HE1K, LCD-3f, and Ether Flow. But these are not as good in the mids as HD650 with the exception of the LCD-3f.