[Solrighal]

  I'm also using HD650 for gaming, nothing serious though. Just casual and works great For music they are exceptional, on a good system at least.

 
You have a PM.

 

[ButtUglyJeff]

  OK i'm trying to decide (like many before me) between the 600's and the 650's. I've had the Beyer DT 990pro's for a couple of years, and always felt the highs were too high, and fatiguing too listen too. I love the sound of my HD 25-I II's however.
 
For starters i'm going to be running them of my Essence XT soundcard, and maybe upgrade later. I am mostly gonna use them for gaming and music. Mostly electronic music, but I listen to a lot of different genres. 
 
The price difference between the two is almost negligible where I am from. The only difference being that I would have to wait a couple of days for the 650's to arrive.
 
Any suggestions for me? 

 
I tend to think the HD25ii sound shares more similarities to the HD650, though the HD650 is more accurate and laid back.  I have both, and glad I do...

 

[cddc]

Still doing research on the next upgrade... The DAC part of HDVD800 is not considered good by many people. 
 
But today's questions are mainly about shopping from retailers on Amazon, and whether they are trustworthy (you know, I don't trust lots of retailers/sellers on eBay). In the past I mainly purchased stuff either in store or online with big retailers such as WorstBuy, Staples, etc. Really not too much experience with retailers on Amazon. So your opinions will be really appreciated.
 
I was just surfing Amazon and came across the HDVD800 from an unknown retailer rc82. Their price is obviously better than the Sennheiser's official account on Amazon, which basically offers no discount at all on Cyber Monday. But the problem is that the small retailer rc82 seems to be a startup. Amazon lists it as "Just Launched". So not sure if the non-official retailer is trustworthy - you know, definitely don't want the "new" item to be a refurbished or open-box or problem of any type.
 
The second place that confuses me is that why the heck the title says "Sennheiser HDVD800....by Sennheiser" while the description below says "...Ships from and sold by rc82". The "by Sennheiser" link in the title which connects to the official Sennheiser account is really confusing. Reading the title alone I initially thought this item is from the Sennheiser official store on Amazon. But shortly I noticed the words "Ships from and sold by rc82" , and realized that it is not from the Senn official store. Please refer to the 2nd picture. 
 

 
 
 

 

[FredQc]

Hey, the HD-650 are $415.99 CND on Amazon.ca with free shipping now. That's a very good price for us Canadians!

http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00018MSNI?ref_=gbps_img_s-3_8882_04a2fead&smid=A3DWYIK6Y9EEQB
 
Yeah!!
 
Edit: They're now $519.99 ...

 

[nightdance]

Hey, the HD-650 are $415.99 CND on Amazon.ca with free shipping now. That's a very good price for us Canadians!

http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00018MSNI?ref_=gbps_img_s-3_8882_04a2fead&smid=A3DWYIK6Y9EEQB

Yeah!!

Thanks buddy! Guess someone's not getting the TH-X00s!

 

[tehsprayer]

I'm about to post my used pair on Amazon.ca just to mention that!

 

[painted klown]

  Sorry to hear you're ill but thanks goodness these type of cold aren't serious and don't last long.
Timing for your review sounds good giving yourself some time to absorb your thoughts.
Amateur reviews are the best kind, they come from the heart and you don't have any sponsorship/advertisement dollars to be concerned about.
Can't wait to read it!

Thanks, doing some listening as I type this.
 
Question in regards to burn in on the 650. Does it affect the bass much or at all?
 
Early impressions are VERY favorable, however, the bass is not as extended as I had expected. Hoping burn in will fill it out a bit...maybe wishful thinking?
 
Any/all opinions welcome.
 
Speaking of burn in, I don't think I will be able to get anywhere near 200 hrs on these things by Friday night. I could perhaps come close by playing pink noise through them while I sleep, but I always worry that doing so would kill the drivers.

 

[Luckbad]

Burn-in helps a bit, breaking in the pads helps a bit, the right amp helps a bit, some cheap mods help a bit.

I can't link the forum with mods but PM me if you want them.

I pulled the foam out from the back and added some dynamat but didn't do the coin mod.

 

[Luckbad]

cddc

I never buy from anywhere on Amazon unless they have an upper 90s rating after dozens or hundreds (depends on the item) of reviews and adhere to the Amazon return policy.

 

[RiddleyWalker]

 
Thanks, doing some listening as I type this.
 
Question in regards to burn in on the 650. Does it affect the bass much or at all?
 
Early impressions are VERY favorable, however, the bass is not as extended as I had expected. Hoping burn in will fill it out a bit...maybe wishful thinking?
 
Any/all opinions welcome.
 
Speaking of burn in, I don't think I will be able to get anywhere near 200 hrs on these things by Friday night. I could perhaps come close by playing pink noise through them while I sleep, but I always worry that doing so would kill the drivers.

I just got the HD650 and also have the HE-500 and ZMF Blackwood (both of which have amazing "planar bass" that extends down to 20Hz).  The sub-bass on the HD650 definitely isn't there in the same quantity, but I find the actual extension to still be really good.  I can still hear the same information, it just isn't as elevated.  I do sometimes crave more sub-bass rumble and heft (mainly for electronic genres), which is why I'm still holding on to and enjoying my planars.  For actual real life instruments, I find the bass quantity on HD650 to be satisfactory.
 
I subjectively found a modest increase in bass quantity after a few days burn-in, but it's probably just my mind playing tricks on me.
 
In some ways, the treble character is similar.  To say the HD650 is "rolled off" on both ends isn't entirely incorrect.  Less treble quantity than the brighter headphones out there, but (with some exceptions) I find the same information audible, just at a lower level.
 
Keep in mind that my chain is pretty modest (upgrades incoming) so impressions might change with better DAC / amp.

 

[Sal1950]

 
Thanks, doing some listening as I type this.
 
Question in regards to burn in on the 650. Does it affect the bass much or at all?
 
Early impressions are VERY favorable, however, the bass is not as extended as I had expected. Hoping burn in will fill it out a bit...maybe wishful thinking?
 
Any/all opinions welcome.
 
Speaking of burn in, I don't think I will be able to get anywhere near 200 hrs on these things by Friday night. I could perhaps come close by playing pink noise through them while I sleep, but I always worry that doing so would kill the drivers.

IMHO you're reading too many forum posts/opinions. Don't wring your hands over  breakin issues, they're all greatly exaggerated.

 

[cddc]

@cddc

I never buy from anywhere on Amazon unless they have an upper 90s rating after dozens or hundreds (depends on the item) of reviews and adhere to the Amazon return policy.

 
Good idea, thanks a lot!  BTW, how do you know the retailer sticks to Amazon return policy?
 
I remember now that i bought an EatSmart weight & fat scale from Amazon couple of years ago. That scale is amazingly accurate and I'm very satisfied thus far. But that scale was purchased directly from the maker, not a 3rd party retailer.
 
So buying from Amazon carries the same kind of risk as buying from eBay???  Why doesn't Amazon do something to hold the sellers liable so that we can buy with confidence?

 

[Sal1950]

   
Good idea, thanks a lot!  BTW, how do you know the retailer sticks to Amazon return policy?
 
I remember now that i bought an EatSmart weight & fat scale from Amazon couple of years ago. That scale is amazingly accurate and I'm very satisfied thus far. But that scale was purchased directly from the maker, not a 3rd party retailer.
 
So buying from Amazon carries the same kind of risk as buying from eBay???  Why doesn't Amazon do something to hold the sellers liable so that we can buy with confidence?

I believe it's a form of insurance and in any case it costs money.

 

[penmarker]

Thanks, doing some listening as I type this.
 
Question in regards to burn in on the 650. Does it affect the bass much or at all?
 
Early impressions are VERY favorable, however, the bass is not as extended as I had expected. Hoping burn in will fill it out a bit...maybe wishful thinking?
 
Any/all opinions welcome.
 
Speaking of burn in, I don't think I will be able to get anywhere near 200 hrs on these things by Friday night. I could perhaps come close by playing pink noise through them while I sleep, but I always worry that doing so would kill the drivers.

 


More power. You need a more powerful amp with a lot of voltage swing.

 

[iancraig10]

I find similar with power. For instance, the Ifi Micro idsd provides quite a bit more power than the hd650 needs really on high power, but it seems to really 'sing' on that high power setting although it's fiddly with the volume pot being a bit too sensitive.

Turning power down so the pot ends up at say, 12 o clock takes a little 'punch' away as a result imo.

The bass depth becomes more substantial although you still get sound and it works, direct from an IPod.