ciphercomplete
1000+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Feb 21, 2008
- Posts
- 1,194
- Likes
- 99
I loaned my third pair (yes third pair, I sold the first two) of Goldring DR-150s to a friend of mine sometime in October 08’. In the interim I bought the Sennheiser HD650 and sold the HD580 and purchased a new dac and amp.
Long story short, I got the cans back this past weekend. I plugged them into my M^3 and was taken aback. I immediately thought "Wow! these things sound just like the HD650s". Then I thought "this can't be right". And so began this little headphone duel.
Brothers from another mother? We shall see…
The set up
Lossless FLAC -->Winamp --> Monarchy NM24 --> Rockhopper M^3
Monarchy NM24 has JJ Tesla 6DJ8 tubes. The M^3 has Burr Brown OPA627/637 opamps.
The Goldring DR-150
If you don’t know much about the DR-150 it’s not your fault. They don’t get much pub with the exception of the time that they were the flavor of the month on Headfi. Stereomojo did a review a while back: Goldring Dr 150 headphones review Goldring really doesn’t do much to market them either.
The DR-150 is Goldring’s top of the line pair of cans. They retail for about $150. I have purchased them slightly used for $90.
Well lets start off with what I heard when I put them on my head for the first time in 4 months.
I queued up various files R&B, Classical, Country, Rap, Soul, Jazz you name it. I plopped down for a couple of hours. They scale incredibly well for $150 cans. I remember listening to the very same music files with them plugged into my Little Dot MKII and then the MKIII. I thought they sounded great then but they sound much better now.
These things add loads of energy to any music. So obviously they fare best with rock, pop, r&b, rap, metal. They are nice jazz cans. They fare worst with classical as they turn any classical recording into a rock concert of sorts. The DR-150s get drums and guitars right, at least as far as I am concerned. The only thing they are missing is the visceral edge that more detailed cans like the K501 can put on a guitar lick. But make no mistake they bring the heat and grunt that the K501 or K701 can't. Grado fans should beware though, the guitars are not as in your face with the DR-150 as they are with Grados.
If you like alot of emotion (aka midrange) in your music, the DR-150 might disappoint slightly but thats only compared to cans significantly out of their price range. The midrange reminds me of the DT880 a little but its more forward and flat.
Then I put the HD650 on my ears…
Well, after listening to the DR-150 for close to 3 hours and then donning the HD650, you immediately understand why the HD650 are considered to be world class headphones. The Senn had loads more detail, air, instrument separation, soundstage.
But the overall sound signature wasn’t different IMO. Its like there was a dial for soundstage, detail etc and I merely turned them up when I put the HD650 on. The DR-150 is a bright pair of cans. The HD650 can get bright with my set-up and again when I put the HD650 on it seemed as if I had just dialed down the brightness. Really weird. I started to go back and forth between the two.
Now the real differences begin to show up.
The DR-150 definitely has a flatter soundstage and it doesn't seem to affect instrument separation too terribly but there is noticeably much less "air". Where the HD650 is adept at keeping the bass from impacting the rest of the spectrum, the DR-150 hasn't learned that trick yet. Bass on the DR-150 colors the lower midrange a bit. You get this weird combo of a tight low end but a slightly overpowered, foggy lower midrange.
The slightly foggy midrange turns out to be the DR-150s biggest problem. The upper end is nice and clear with a bit of sparkle. The low end extend very deep for this price range and is tight. The HD650 fixes all the issue with the DR-150 by increasing the size of the midrange and spacing things out a little. The HD650s midrange is recessed a bit, the DR-150 is more forward but less detailed. The net result is almost the same if it wasn't for the HD650's added space and soundstage.
And thats the main thing I miss when going from the HD650 to the DR-150 is the soundstage and sense of space. The loss of detail isn't too bad although it is immediately noticeable. The HD650 kicks the DR-150s butt when it comes to decay. Slight edge to the DR150 for attack though. In its defense though, if the DR-150 had a longer note decay the already smaller soundstage would sound very congested.
On the flipside, the DR-150 rocks. I imagine that AKG sextett fans go through the same thing when comparing them to upper range AKGs. Its difficult not to enjoy the DR-150.
Conclusion
Well the winner is the HD650 of course. The DR-150 does not sound just like the HD650
But….
If the HD650 could have a little brother it would definitely be the DR-150. The DR-150 is more into hard rock /metal where the HD650 is more at home with classic rock and classical. The DR-150 likes Pop, Rap and R&B whereas the 650 is at home with Soul, Blues, Jazz.
I thought the similarities between these two headphones would be very easy to describe but they really have to be heard. The DR-150 has seemingly captured the essence of the HD650 and injected it with a fun youthful energy.
The DR-150s are a steal at $100~150 range and they are better than any other headphone I have heard in that price range (SR80, SR125, HD555, AD700). They are IMO the closest thing you will get to a Grado’ed pair of Sennheisers (mind you I have not heard the ATH-AD2000 yet). Plus if you ask around you will probably get a pair of these for real cheap ~$80 or so.
I think they are nice buy for folks who are satisfied with the HD650 but every now and then want a little more energy in their music presentation and don’t mind trading a bit of SQ for more fun. They are also an excellent starter headphone especially for folks who are already set on eventually upgrading to upper range Senns. Oh and do yourself a favor and pair them with a warm, powerful solid state instead of tubes.
Long story short, I got the cans back this past weekend. I plugged them into my M^3 and was taken aback. I immediately thought "Wow! these things sound just like the HD650s". Then I thought "this can't be right". And so began this little headphone duel.
Brothers from another mother? We shall see…
The set up
Lossless FLAC -->Winamp --> Monarchy NM24 --> Rockhopper M^3
Monarchy NM24 has JJ Tesla 6DJ8 tubes. The M^3 has Burr Brown OPA627/637 opamps.
The Goldring DR-150
If you don’t know much about the DR-150 it’s not your fault. They don’t get much pub with the exception of the time that they were the flavor of the month on Headfi. Stereomojo did a review a while back: Goldring Dr 150 headphones review Goldring really doesn’t do much to market them either.
The DR-150 is Goldring’s top of the line pair of cans. They retail for about $150. I have purchased them slightly used for $90.
Well lets start off with what I heard when I put them on my head for the first time in 4 months.
I queued up various files R&B, Classical, Country, Rap, Soul, Jazz you name it. I plopped down for a couple of hours. They scale incredibly well for $150 cans. I remember listening to the very same music files with them plugged into my Little Dot MKII and then the MKIII. I thought they sounded great then but they sound much better now.
These things add loads of energy to any music. So obviously they fare best with rock, pop, r&b, rap, metal. They are nice jazz cans. They fare worst with classical as they turn any classical recording into a rock concert of sorts. The DR-150s get drums and guitars right, at least as far as I am concerned. The only thing they are missing is the visceral edge that more detailed cans like the K501 can put on a guitar lick. But make no mistake they bring the heat and grunt that the K501 or K701 can't. Grado fans should beware though, the guitars are not as in your face with the DR-150 as they are with Grados.
If you like alot of emotion (aka midrange) in your music, the DR-150 might disappoint slightly but thats only compared to cans significantly out of their price range. The midrange reminds me of the DT880 a little but its more forward and flat.
Then I put the HD650 on my ears…
Well, after listening to the DR-150 for close to 3 hours and then donning the HD650, you immediately understand why the HD650 are considered to be world class headphones. The Senn had loads more detail, air, instrument separation, soundstage.
But the overall sound signature wasn’t different IMO. Its like there was a dial for soundstage, detail etc and I merely turned them up when I put the HD650 on. The DR-150 is a bright pair of cans. The HD650 can get bright with my set-up and again when I put the HD650 on it seemed as if I had just dialed down the brightness. Really weird. I started to go back and forth between the two.
Now the real differences begin to show up.
The DR-150 definitely has a flatter soundstage and it doesn't seem to affect instrument separation too terribly but there is noticeably much less "air". Where the HD650 is adept at keeping the bass from impacting the rest of the spectrum, the DR-150 hasn't learned that trick yet. Bass on the DR-150 colors the lower midrange a bit. You get this weird combo of a tight low end but a slightly overpowered, foggy lower midrange.
The slightly foggy midrange turns out to be the DR-150s biggest problem. The upper end is nice and clear with a bit of sparkle. The low end extend very deep for this price range and is tight. The HD650 fixes all the issue with the DR-150 by increasing the size of the midrange and spacing things out a little. The HD650s midrange is recessed a bit, the DR-150 is more forward but less detailed. The net result is almost the same if it wasn't for the HD650's added space and soundstage.
And thats the main thing I miss when going from the HD650 to the DR-150 is the soundstage and sense of space. The loss of detail isn't too bad although it is immediately noticeable. The HD650 kicks the DR-150s butt when it comes to decay. Slight edge to the DR150 for attack though. In its defense though, if the DR-150 had a longer note decay the already smaller soundstage would sound very congested.
On the flipside, the DR-150 rocks. I imagine that AKG sextett fans go through the same thing when comparing them to upper range AKGs. Its difficult not to enjoy the DR-150.
Conclusion
Well the winner is the HD650 of course. The DR-150 does not sound just like the HD650
If the HD650 could have a little brother it would definitely be the DR-150. The DR-150 is more into hard rock /metal where the HD650 is more at home with classic rock and classical. The DR-150 likes Pop, Rap and R&B whereas the 650 is at home with Soul, Blues, Jazz.
I thought the similarities between these two headphones would be very easy to describe but they really have to be heard. The DR-150 has seemingly captured the essence of the HD650 and injected it with a fun youthful energy.
The DR-150s are a steal at $100~150 range and they are better than any other headphone I have heard in that price range (SR80, SR125, HD555, AD700). They are IMO the closest thing you will get to a Grado’ed pair of Sennheisers (mind you I have not heard the ATH-AD2000 yet). Plus if you ask around you will probably get a pair of these for real cheap ~$80 or so.
I think they are nice buy for folks who are satisfied with the HD650 but every now and then want a little more energy in their music presentation and don’t mind trading a bit of SQ for more fun. They are also an excellent starter headphone especially for folks who are already set on eventually upgrading to upper range Senns. Oh and do yourself a favor and pair them with a warm, powerful solid state instead of tubes.
