[kman1211]

  will definitely look into these for my future upgrade. thank you.

The Project Amps are quite nice. I have a Sunrise III and have been happy with it. Haven't had the chance to hear the Polaris but what I hear from the Sunrise III makes it promising. I have been eyeing the Polaris myself as a powerful and versatile solid-state amp. 

 

[Music freak]

  That's a rather easy comparison. The DT 1990 is similar to the DT 1770 but better in pretty much all ways. The DT 1990 is more even in it's FR response, smidgen brighter, and the entire sound has more depth and body than the DT 1770, so the DT 1990 sounds fuller and richer than the DT 1770 overall to my ears. I see no need for the DT 1770 over the DT 1990 unless you need isolation imho. Plus the DT 1990 has deeper more comfortable pads than the DT 1770 making it notably more comfortable to my ears. The euphony on the DT 1770/1990 doesn't necessarily come from lushness, rather they have a sweet sounding midrange with a nice dynamic attack which makes them quite an addicting and engaging listen. The HD 650 is more lush and laid-back in it's sound but still has some of that sweetness to it's mids, just not as much as the DT 1770/1990 does. The Beyers are more aggressive and brighter than the HD 650, but I find the DT 1990 more dark and smooth with a lot more body than the K712. Listening to the DT 1770 will give you a glimpse into the DT 1990, if you really like the DT 1770 but want more or had a minor niggle about the sound, go for the DT 1990. 
 
I have only owned a few headphones I felt no desire to EQ, use very select system matching, or modding as they are great as is. They are the HD 650, the HD 600, the DT 150, and the DT 1990. I feel these four nail the all-rounder aspect with essentially no fatigue. I don't find any to have any serious sonic faults that can hurt the listening experience. Also while the DT 1990 may be a bit brighter than the HD 650 I also find it least fatiguing headphone I've owned or auditioned at length, including the Focal Elear.

Thanks for the comparison. Do the DT 1990s have the biggest soundstage among the cans you mentioned above?

 

[DavidA]

  Thanks for the comparison. Do the DT 1990s have the biggest soundstage among the cans you mentioned above?

sound stage is only really need for genres of music that require the biggest widest sound stage, like well recorded/mastered large orchestra classical or some blues or acoustic jazz, with most other genres its not that much of an issue IMO

 

[kman1211]

  Thanks for the comparison. Do the DT 1990s have the biggest soundstage among the cans you mentioned above?

It's about the same honestly but it does have the best imaging of the bunch. Only becomes the largest with analytical pads.

 

[coolcrew23]

Hello all. Was hoping to ask what's the best place to order the hd 650 with a good price. Hopefully in the US as an added shipping to the Philippines. Hoping to upgrade to these sooon.

 

[starfirepro]

I think loving certain headphones is heavily based on what your life has been when you've been really into them. Pretty much the best years of my life so far have walked around hand in hand with the HD650, so I will never really forget 'em, even though I got HD800 now.
 
The emotional imprint is really a lasting one, no doubt. Even though I've spent my fair share carrying the HD650 around as a portable solution, I totally loved them. Being accompanied by your favorite music at this rate of fidelity all around, changing scenery, experiencing new events, meeting new and fascinating people, that's what life is all about, isn't it?
 
Amazing memories, and the sum of it all really made me appreciate music so much more in general.

 

[Solrighal]

Hello all. Was hoping to ask what's the best place to order the hd 650 with a good price. Hopefully in the US as an added shipping to the Philippines. Hoping to upgrade to these sooon.

 
Doesn't Egghead in Manila sell the HD 650? I know they used to.
 
https://www.facebook.com/eggheadph/

 

[coolcrew23]

Doesn't Egghead in Manila sell the HD 650? I know they used to.

https://www.facebook.com/eggheadph/

They do but kinda off my budget at around 500usd if cash it's around 400++

 

[Oceanic 815]

I just upgraded to the Mimby. Crack + 650 staying the same. I'm only a few hours in so far. Wonderful little device. I have not touched my setup in a few years and this definitely feels like the end of the line for me. 

One of my favorite features of the 650 is how good female vocals sound on it (the Crack certainly helps). The Mimby only helps those vocals sound more lifelike. I'm a musician and specifically drums sound more realistic to me with the Mimby. Depending on the recording, not necessarily more like an acoustic set, but more like recorded drums should sound, or what it sounds like playing live drums when using in ears. 

In addition I hear a little bit more sound stage, better separation, and I believe more accuracy. Complicated guitar riffs and piano runs sound more precise, with each note more distinct. 

Honestly my old setup still sounds good. I'm trying to compare and the differences are subtle but noticeable. 

As a side note, the Mimby + Magni 2 sounds quite good. Brighter than the Crack, and without the tube smoothness, but I quite like it. The Magni will get used as my gaming + movies amp, as I don't like running tube hours on that sort of stuff. I dare say the Schiit stack + the Massdrop HD6XX would make for an incredible "low end" system.

...I love these headphones. Happy listening!

 

[SP Wild]

Multibit dacs do sound more lifelike to my ears. Eventually I will purchase a Bifrost multibit to pair with my Valhalla 2....should be perfect synergy there, but its not a high priority as its a 1k dac in Australian dollars, and I still have AudioGDs previous flagship.

Many years ago I ordered a Denon D7K... 2.3K Australian dollars. While waiting for them, I must have been quite excited, I dreamt I received them. I was so happy with how they sounded in my dreams... They sounded amazing and so worth it. In that dream... The sound I was hearing was taken from my consciousness was the sound of my HD650s paired with tubes.

For 2.3k dollars... The D7k did not live up to my dreams. Hahahaha.

The HD650 with speedball crack. That will do. I could sell everything else and not miss a thing.

 

[Oceanic 815]

The HD650 with speedball crack. That will do. I could sell everything else and not miss a thing.

 
Simply amazing. My experience has the DAC as the least amount of impact on the sound signal chain. The Crack/650 combo is a match made in heaven. It might not be the most technically capable or data sheet impressive, but boy does it sound good, 

 

[lewy313]

Today I purchased hd650 in local sennheiser store and right now I'm trying to figure out if I need amp for my pc. I'm using http://www.asus.com/de/Motherboards/ROG-STRIX-X99-GAMING/ it's bundled with Texas Instruments R4580 amplifier http://www.ti.com/lit/ds/symlink/rc4580.pdf Asus says it should support headphone in range 32-300Ω so it's fine use it with hd650 but maybe adding amp like shiit magni 2 still would improve sound.
 
I have following questions
 
- should I invest in dedicated amp ?
- should I invest in dedicated dac ?
- should I skip dac and just buy more expensive amp ?
 
ps: I have hd650, hd598cs, X2

 

[Oceanic 815]

  Today I purchased hd650 in local sennheiser store and right now I'm trying to figure out if I need amp for my pc. I'm using http://www.asus.com/de/Motherboards/ROG-STRIX-X99-GAMING/ it's bundled with Texas Instruments R4580 amplifier http://www.ti.com/lit/ds/symlink/rc4580.pdf Asus says it should support headphone in range 32-300Ω so it's fine use it with hd650 but maybe adding amp like shiit magni 2 still would improve sound.
 
I have following questions
 
- should I invest in dedicated amp ?
- should I invest in dedicated dac ?
- should I skip dac and just buy more expensive amp ?
 
ps: I have hd650, hd598cs, X2

 
See if your computer can get you adequate volume level on the 650. It might not sound bad, but the 650 scales well with better gear. A dedicated amp like the Magni 2 will bring a big difference in the sound. A dedicated DAC is also a good idea, but not as 'necessary' as an amp, especially if your motherboard cannot bring the 650 to a good volume level. Depending on your budget, I would get an amp first, then a DAC. It all depends how far you want to go. The Magni/Modi stack might be all you ever need or want.

 

[DavidA]

  Today I purchased hd650 in local sennheiser store and right now I'm trying to figure out if I need amp for my pc. I'm using http://www.asus.com/de/Motherboards/ROG-STRIX-X99-GAMING/ it's bundled with Texas Instruments R4580 amplifier http://www.ti.com/lit/ds/symlink/rc4580.pdf Asus says it should support headphone in range 32-300Ω so it's fine use it with hd650 but maybe adding amp like shiit magni 2 still would improve sound.
 
I have following questions
 
- should I invest in dedicated amp ?
- should I invest in dedicated dac ?
- should I skip dac and just buy more expensive amp ?
 
ps: I have hd650, hd598cs, X2

How does the HD-650 sound compared to your HD-598 and X2?  Depending on how you answer this question it will give you an idea on how to move forward.  If the HD-650 only sounds a bit better than the HD-598 and X2 then its probably not being driven well with your sound card.  While I haven't used your model ROG board I've used 2 others in the pass and the audio section while consisting of high quality parts have usually been compromised by all the EMI within the computer from the processor to high end video cards and the high density of components on the motherboard.

 

[lewy313]

   
See if your computer can get you adequate volume level on the 650. It might not sound bad, but the 650 scales well with better gear. A dedicated amp like the Magni 2 will bring a big difference in the sound. A dedicated DAC is also a good idea, but not as 'necessary' as an amp, especially if your motherboard cannot bring the 650 to a good volume level. Depending on your budget, I would get an amp first, then a DAC. It all depends how far you want to go. The Magni/Modi stack might be all you ever need or want.

 
On my pc I listen between 35-45 volume anything higher than that is too loud. 
 

  How does the HD-650 sound compared to your HD-598 and X2?  Depending on how you answer this question it will give you an idea on how to move forward.  If the HD-650 only sounds a bit better than the HD-598 and X2 then its probably not being driven well with your sound card.  While I haven't used your model ROG board I've used 2 others in the pass and the audio section while consisting of high quality parts have usually been compromised by all the EMI within the computer from the processor to high end video cards and the high density of components on the motherboard.

 
hd650 is much more clear than X2 but also less bassy and with less sound stage, obviously I expected that. I also have yamaha rv481 and after comparing sound against my pc they sound a bit better on receiver. Also I dont hear any artefacts on my pc so I guess I should buy better amp than amp + dac