[wink]

Aaaaaaaauuuuuuuuugh.....!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I've been shpongled.
But they will never replace Bach, Bruch, Mendelsohn. Mahler or Beethoven.
Or even Alan Jackson, Dwight Yoakam, Dion Di Mucci, Frankie Valli or Rudy Valleee.
OK,ok Rudy Vallee is a ring-in.

Nat King Cole and Harry Belafonte sound good on any headphones..........
Rebecca Pidgeon is sublime... The better the gear, the sublimer she gets.

Grado headphones are secret WWII SS and Gestapo torture implements that have been foisted upon us as consumer hifi gear. If the sound doesn't torture you the earpads and the price will.

 

[DarKu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wink /img/forum/go_quote.gif Grado headphones are secret WWII SS and Gestapo torture implements that have been foisted upon us as consumer hifi gear. If the sound doesn't torture you the earpads and the price will.

1001 % Agree

 

[St3ve]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wink /img/forum/go_quote.gif torture implements that have been foisted upon us as consumer hifi gear. If the sound doesn't torture you the earpads and the price will.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarKu /img/forum/go_quote.gif 1001 % Agree

Blasphemy.....

 

[Nachkebia]

Great review! much appreciated. shpongle was a nice touch

 

[wink]

St3Ve posted
Blasphemy......

I'm glad tou said that with a smile.

Oh.... Great write-up, Covenant.

 

[dannie01]

Thanks for the review, Covenant. I'm happy to own these can before your review and am agree with your impressions.

 

[Shahrose]

Great review Covenant. Enjoyable read.
May I ask what equipment was driving the HD800?

 

[Covenant]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shahrose /img/forum/go_quote.gif Great review Covenant. Enjoyable read. May I ask what equipment was driving the HD800?

Hi Shahrose. That's posted in the review:

Foobar with WASAPI playing FLAC > HeadAmp Pico DAC > 80W Jaycar class A discrete amp > HD800's with stock cable.

If you want to know more about the amp ask Wink here, it's his build. All I can say is that it's a monster that's able to drive two K1000's simultaneously without breaking a sweat, so the HD800's present very few problems to it

It has 4x 4-pin XLR headphone outputs, 3x dual 3-pin XLR outputs, and 2x unbalanced 1/4" jacks, for 9 headphone outputs total

 

[Drumonron]

Great Review, Covenant. You covered all the bases very well and seem to have hit the nail on the head. I wholeheartedly agree with your emphasis on how important the comfort of the headphone really is. All points are represented nicely. I agree with another poster, this review deserved it's own thread and it would be quite silly to place it in another thread.

I thank you for your time in writing such a subjective, thoughtful and helpful Headphone review for the HD800. To people trying to make up their minds in evaluation and comparison of potential purchases, I'm sure this will assist them greatly.

I would echo all of the opinions in your review and say that the HD800 is a great all rounder. It stands alone and will stand the test of time and critiques. My HD800 gets sweeter with every listen and the dividends are incalculable.

Thanks Covenant.

 

[kool bubba ice]

I'm getting this headphone no matter.. Hopefully before the yrs out.. Maybe I'll sell everything minus my bed..

 

[orkney]

Thanks for the thorough review -- I'm seriously thinking of making this phone my last stop on the roundabout, but somewhat put off by its already legendary pickiness with respect to amp, source, music, weather.

How would you describe the 800's tradeoff between a demanding nature and musicality?

best,

o

 

[Covenant]

Quote:

Originally Posted by orkney /img/forum/go_quote.gif How would you describe the 800's tradeoff between a demanding nature and musicality?

The HD800 is not musical unless the rest of your system is. Musicality in a headphone implies that there is inherent colouring going on, that you're looking through a tinted lens, so to speak. None of that happening here. The HD800 is a clear window to your amp, and through it to your source and recordings. If they are musical, it will be too.

In that sense, it's not really 'demanding'. To me, a demanding headphone is one whose shortcomings need to be compensated for by its connected equipment. "EQ'ed" by the amp, as it were.

 

[Shahrose]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Covenant /img/forum/go_quote.gif The HD800 is not musical unless the rest of your system is. Musicality in a headphone implies that there is inherent colouring going on, that you're looking through a tinted lens, so to speak. None of that happening here. The HD800 is a clear window to your amp, and through it to your source and recordings. If they are musical, it will be too. In that sense, it's not really 'demanding'. To me, a demanding headphone is one whose shortcomings need to be compensated for by its connected equipment. "EQ'ed" by the amp, as it were.

Well put. I've heard the HD800 sound lifeless and uninviting to highly engaging and enjoyable depending on the gear I've used them with (also depending on the recording played).

 

[sampson_smith]

Thanks for the insightful review, Covenant! It is appreciated.

 

[wharfrat1]

Great review. I have found many of the same things listening to the 800, albeit with some different music.

I know the whole system is important, but I've never found the 800 to be boring or sterile. They are so lifelike and consuming, as the OP said, you can't help but get sucked into and around the music. They have sounded fantastic with every genre of music I listen to (including mostly rock).

What I love about them is if you really want to be analytical with a piece, you can choose to focus on each instrument and hear exactly what is being performed by that player. On the other hand, you can just lay back, listen to the entire group, but yet still hear how each seperate performer/instrument plays off/with each other. It's really an amazing listening experience. Again, great review, it's good to see some positive pub for these really great cans!