[itsborken]

I have no complaints with the HD650s. They sound great with classical/jazz/electronic. Currently use proline 750s for rock as the 650s are just a little too laid back. The 650s match up well with the Meier Opera amp.

 

[4N6]

Absolutely love mine. They do almost everything well with no definitive weaknesses. Yeah, I am sure that one headphone or another will beat the HD650 in certain areas, but for overall musical RIGHTNESS, I find the HD650 to be outstanding!

 

[catscratch]

I have a confession to make.

Yes, I've been bashing the HD650 here, and for good reason. They are far more flawed as a whole than most make them out to be.

However...

Lately the HD650 has been growing on me like mold on a month-old bread. Not because it's some magical flawless headphone that makes everything sound good, but precisely because it is flawed, and because it adds character to music where on other systems it is sorely lacking. In effect, on many recordings, it undoes the mistakes made in the production and makes the recording sound more lifelike than it would on a more tonally neutral system.

Yes, it adds bass to every recording, even in places where there shouldn't be any. But, compared to so many other colorations that I've come across, this one is actually very pleasing. Material that is strident and metallic sounding on a neutral headphone still sounds strident and metallic on the HD650, but it now has a weight and richness that makes it much more listenable.

I'm also very impressed by the resolution. The HD650 is not the most detailed headphone I've ever heard, but it manages to be fairly detailed despite not having any sort of pronounced treble or upper midrange spikes. If you take a lot of dynamic headphones that you'd consider detailed and EQ down their treble and upper midrange until their FR matches the HD650, you'd be surprised how much more detailed the HD650 is.

My main issues are still the slowness and the overall lack of dynamic punch. It's not that the 650 lacks slam, or even raw dynamic range... it lacks punch, which is the subjective sum total of the dynamic aspects of its presentation. Whatever it is, it's not there.

I think the presentation is just too laid-back for me.

Still, having listened to it for a few days straight, I'm impressed. I'm glad I decided to hold onto my pair (well, it's no longer mine strictly speaking, but that was how I managed to hold onto it

).

 

[Stoney]

I'm new to this thread.

Removing the foam made a significant improvement, taking away that softness and distance (replaced with thin plastic window screen).

The recent Cardas cable is wonderful, adding clarity while remaining musical and able to reproduce body (some solid core or silver have struck me as bright and flat dimensionally, although detailed).

And, the Woo Audio WA6 makes them breathe 3D life into instruments and the stage as a whole. Midrange fills in and comes to life. A great match.

Mark Knopfler sounds like he has a round head and stands in front of me, not just a voice in a mic. There is no midrange suckout, no excessive distance, and a lot of detail, more detail and much lower distortion than my Grados. No bass bloat. The HD650 is worlds better than my E500s, and sounds closer to my Vandersteen 3A Signatures than any headphones (also with great tube amps).

I'm sure the audio-technica ATH-L3000 that I loved so well at the meet are still more detailed by far, but I don't find myself missing them much... not at over $2k!

 

[OvidiuDanut]

Man....the more i read the more confused i get. Here's the deal. My currently setup up consists from a DAC that is the equivalent of a ~1000$ CDP, as amp Creek OBH 21SE and i have a HD580 can. The problem is that i dont really like the HD580. They dont make me say "wow" at all. I think it will be the veils fault for that, a tad of grain in the midrange and perhaps a bit of a darkish sound.
Now i'm considering getting another can but i dont know where to go....
First i thought AKG701 but now after reading the topic I'm thinking what if th 650 is a different animal than the 580? Please help me decide, is 650 that different or is just a little upgraded 580? 10x...

 

[Clutz]

My headphone history goes Sennheiser HD590, Sennheiser HD580, and then the AKG K701, followed by the HD650. As much as I really like a lot of things about the K701 - in particular I feel they do tremendously well with Radiohead, if I was going to pick a single pair of headphones to live with out of my collection, I think I would have to go with the HD650s. They're not perfect, but for their price (particularly used), they're a fantastic value, imho.

 

[riceboy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by catscratch /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have a confession to make. Yes, I've been bashing the HD650 here, and for good reason. They are far more flawed as a whole than most make them out to be. However... Lately the HD650 has been growing on me like mold on a month-old bread. Not because it's some magical flawless headphone that makes everything sound good, but precisely because it is flawed, and because it adds character to music where on other systems it is sorely lacking. In effect, on many recordings, it undoes the mistakes made in the production and makes the recording sound more lifelike than it would on a more tonally neutral system. Yes, it adds bass to every recording, even in places where there shouldn't be any. But, compared to so many other colorations that I've come across, this one is actually very pleasing. Material that is strident and metallic sounding on a neutral headphone still sounds strident and metallic on the HD650, but it now has a weight and richness that makes it much more listenable. I'm also very impressed by the resolution. The HD650 is not the most detailed headphone I've ever heard, but it manages to be fairly detailed despite not having any sort of pronounced treble or upper midrange spikes. If you take a lot of dynamic headphones that you'd consider detailed and EQ down their treble and upper midrange until their FR matches the HD650, you'd be surprised how much more detailed the HD650 is. My main issues are still the slowness and the overall lack of dynamic punch. It's not that the 650 lacks slam, or even raw dynamic range... it lacks punch, which is the subjective sum total of the dynamic aspects of its presentation. Whatever it is, it's not there. I think the presentation is just too laid-back for me. Still, having listened to it for a few days straight, I'm impressed. I'm glad I decided to hold onto my pair (well, it's no longer mine strictly speaking, but that was how I managed to hold onto it ).

Real great post. That is how I feel about my HD-650s. I currently have the Silver Dragon V2 cables with em and I love them. I do agree about that dynamic punch, which I felt the Grado SR 225s provided that punch I was looking for. But, it does colorize the music to my liking. It's a very fun headphone and I'm just enjoying the ride with my HD650s. Have fun with yours as well.

 

[Dept_of_Alchemy]

My favorite, as well.

 

[riceboy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by OvidiuDanut /img/forum/go_quote.gif Man....the more i read the more confused i get.

Hehe. Welcome to the club. I know how you feel. I love all the information, then in the end, my brain gets confused trying to process everything to what I might want. Then I might get two of one brand and then the wallet takes the hit lol...

 

[greggf]

stoney,

I've had both Vandersteens and HD650s as well, and agree that they sound a lot alike.

Both cover a lot of bases, and do many, many kinds of music well. Versatile. Maybe not the best at anything, but good at everything.

 

[shellylh]

I have both the 580s and 650s. IMO the 650s have a much bigger sound and more bass than the 580s. Of course, I have also been using the 650s with a Cardas cable the whole time. I am not sure that you would say that the 650s and the 580s are a different species. If you don't like the sound at all from the 580s, you may not like the 650s(?). If you are looking for something with nice bass but brighter and more punchy, you should look at the Grado 225s (they are a completely different animal). The Grados are definitely not as comfortable as the Senns but have a very fun and punchy sound (they are not laid back like the Senns).

Quote:

Originally Posted by OvidiuDanut /img/forum/go_quote.gif Man....the more i read the more confused i get. Here's the deal. My currently setup up consists from a DAC that is the equivalent of a ~1000$ CDP, as amp Creek OBH 21SE and i have a HD580 can. The problem is that i dont really like the HD580. They dont make me say "wow" at all. I think it will be the veils fault for that, a tad of grain in the midrange and perhaps a bit of a darkish sound. Now i'm considering getting another can but i dont know where to go.... First i thought AKG701 but now after reading the topic I'm thinking what if th 650 is a different animal than the 580? Please help me decide, is 650 that different or is just a little upgraded 580? 10x...

 

[Bob Jones]

Had the 595's,loved them.Bought cardis 650's,what a leap.Added a Rane eq. to taylor music to my exact taste,wow.Then a wa6 with upgraded rectifier and cryoed 6de7's. Imagine

 

[Stram]

Just now I have finally heard the best sounds out of my HD650s since purchasing them. My GS-1 amp just turned up and now my HD650's are showing me what they are capable of and I am loving them more than ever. I am truely bitten by the Head-Fi bug forever now and my wallet isn't going to be happy. Now I want to replace the cable so need to find out which one would be the most suitable.

Empty wallet now. 30 mins after hearing my HD650s sing with my new amp my wallet lost another £200 on an ALO cable and headphone cable. I wasn't meant to spend anythng this month either. DAMN YOU HEADPHONES.

 

[wgr73]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob Jones /img/forum/go_quote.gif Had the 595's,loved them.Bought cardis 650's,what a leap. Imagine

So its that big of a difference? I have the 595's...

 

[Bob Jones]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wgr73 /img/forum/go_quote.gif So its that big of a difference? I have the 595's...

I would say a 30% improvement IMO.Same character with more of everything.