[Remusz911]

ADX5000's has the better bass response out the box. I boost on my set via my RME ADI-2 and Lokius to meet my preferences. I still like the HD800S's clarity. It's sharper and a bit more focused than on the ADX5000's. For everything else I prefer the ADX5000's.

The ADX5000 definitely wants to rival the HD800S for the best dynamic headphone out there. It definitely has better looks and build quality. It is also lighter.

The HD800S looks and feels a bit cheap, but I think it is also rugged, can withstand a few drops on the floor, because it's sturdy plastic. It might even survive if a child or a woman sits on it accidentally, or a dog takes it and chews it. Or your wife gets hysterical and throws it at you. If it breaks probably Sennheiser can send you spare parts. The ADX I think, if it gets some abuse will deform and bend and paint may chip off. So it's nicer, but you need to guard it more. Also the ADX is more of a magnet for thieves, the HD800S may be mistaken for a cheap headphone, not worth putting in the bag.

Japanese engineering may be able to beat the German engineering.

The sound tough can be a tossup, some may miss the soundstage of the HD800S if they switch to the Japanese one, even tough in some areas the ADX can beat the Sennheiser. Not everybody is so wealthy to own both.

 

[Slim1970]

The ADX5000 definitely wants to rival the HD800S for the best dynamic headphone out there. It definitely has better looks and build quality. It is also lighter.

The HD800S looks and feels a bit cheap, but I think it is also rugged, can withstand a few drops on the floor, because it's sturdy plastic.

Japanese engineering may be able to beat the German engineering.

The sound tough can be a tossup, some may miss the soundstage of the HD800S if they switch to the Japanese one, even tough in some areas the ADX can beat the Sennheiser. Not everybody is so wealthy to own both.

You bring up a point about the tuning between the HD800S and ADX5000. They are some definite differences between the two. The HD800S’s is a magician at rendering soundstage. They also have pinpoint imaging, excellent clarity, and a wide open sound in general. The ADX5000’s can match the HD800S’s imaging and clarity, but they don’t have their soundstage. Heck outside of the Abyss AB-1266’s I can’t think of a headphone that does. In addition to having good imaging and clarity, the ADX5000’s has some of the best midrange and treble I’ve heard on a headphone. Both are very detailed, nuanced, and the slightly forward tuning puts you right into the music.

Depending on how you look at it, the HD800S’s having such a wide soundstage takes away from this type of musical engagement on some songs. The ADX5000’s bass helps to balance out the sound of this headphone. The HD800S’s have bass, but depending on genre of music one might prefer more.

 

[Hydrate]

How's the comfort on the 800s for big heads and ears? I strongly want to get a pair of 800s but i'm slightly concerned about it fitting. For context my ears barely fit the LCD 2C.

 

[phthora]

How's the comfort on the 800s for big heads and ears? I strongly want to get a pair of 800s but i'm slightly concerned about it fitting. For context my ears barely fit the LCD 2C.

As you can see, the 800S has a wider opening, but it's more ear-shaped than the 2C opening. The 2C opening is deeper, but the pads compress much more when on the head. Lastly, what doesn't show up in the picture is that underneath the edges on the 800S pads is a space of about 1cm all around. In other words, the 800S pads overhang the actual opening making it look quite a bit smaller than it actually is. They should have much more clearance for your ears than the 2C.

 

[Hydrate]

As you can see, the 800S has a wider opening, but it's more ear-shaped than the 2C opening. The 2C opening is deeper, but the pads compress much more when on the head. Lastly, what doesn't show up in the picture is that underneath the edges on the 800S pads is a space of about 1cm all around. In other words, the 800S pads overhang the actual opening making it look quite a bit smaller than it actually is. They should have much more clearance for your ears than the 2C.

Thank you for taking the time to post this! I really appreciate it. How do you like the 800s relative to the 2C? I'm strongly considering picking one up as an endgame openback.

 

[phthora]

Thank you for taking the time to post this! I really appreciate it. How do you like the 800s relative to the 2C? I'm strongly considering picking one up as an endgame openback.

They are very different sound signatures, as you likely know already. The 2C is a very good iteration of a darkish, deep-reaching sound signature. It's a taste of the sound that makes the LCD-4 so amazing. On the other hand, I haven't heard anything that sounds quite like the 800S. It is superlative in soundstage width and in its general openness of sound. It's the only headphone that I've found that actually lives up to that cliche of sounding like speakers in a well-treated room instead of speakers strapped to your head. Completely unique in that regard. And the sound is unique because of its excellence and not because of its unusualness. I can't tell you that the 800S will give you everything that you want out of an openback, but I can say that no other headphone will give you what the 800S gives you.

 

[Hydrate]

They are very different sound signatures, as you likely know already. The 2C is a very good iteration of a darkish, deep-reaching sound signature. It's a taste of the sound that makes the LCD-4 so amazing. On the other hand, I haven't heard anything that sounds quite like the 800S. It is superlative in soundstage width and in its general openness of sound. It's the only headphone that I've found that actually lives up to that cliche of sounding like speakers in a well-treated room instead of speakers strapped to your head. Completely unique in that regard. And the sound is unique because of its excellence and not because of its unusualness. I can't tell you that the 800S will give you everything that you want out of an openback, but I can say that no other headphone will give you what the 800S gives you.

Do you use EQ with either? If so to what target if any?

 

[phthora]

Do you use EQ with either? If so to what target if any?

Usually when I EQ I am aiming for a coherent sound signature, instead of a neutral one. In other words, I don't try to change the overall flavor, I just aim to eliminate peaks, reduce resonance, or balance bass, mids, and treble with each other.

With the 800S, I don't EQ at all. Mostly, that's because the signature already sounds balanced to me and there aren't any peaks or resonances that bother me. Besides, the 800S FR is extremely close to what I would EQ other headphones to match anyway. However, I also find that the bass doesn't respond as cleanly to EQ as I would like. Given a significant bass boost, the low-end starts to blur. It's less of an issue cutting some treble out, but that tends to throw off the imaging and soundstage.

The 2C responds better with EQ. Sometimes I use a mids boost to soften that big dip there, but usually, I just up the bass. Not because it needs it, but because it can handle it. It makes the FR way less neutral, but it's still a fun change sometimes and the 2C doesn't audibly distort, even with an embarrassingly aggressive bass boost.

 

[FOUNDERZERO]

Been shopping around for an upper-tier dynamic set and finally settled on the HD800S. It arrived about an hour ago. Really liking it so far!

 

[adeadcrab]

Been shopping around for an upper-tier dynamic set and finally settled on the HD800S. It arrived about an hour ago. Really liking it so far!

This headphone, more than others I own, seems to disappear and you are left with just the music and the experience.

Focal Clear? Clamps a bit, earpads are annoying, wonky frequency, smallish soundstage
LCD-X? Sounds good but heavy, ears get hot etc
Grado GS1000i? It's Grado...
Koss 95X? Poor energiser, etc etc...

The HD800S sounds nice and clear, is versatile with many different sounding amps, and just 'gets out of the way'.
With other headphones I have to deliberate the pros and cons, if I'm just watching YouTube I find myself reaching for the HD800S over other headphones more often than not. And with a nice OTL amp it sounds massive

 

[Hydrate]

I'm hopefully picking up a pair come this Saturday and i'm excited for it my hart audio cable is almost here too (really love that interconnect system), anyone got any songs to recc when demoing a pair of 800s?

 

[Whazzzup]

I'm hopefully picking up a pair come this Saturday and i'm excited for it my hart audio cable is almost here too (really love that interconnect system), anyone got any songs to recc when demoing a pair of 800s?

Any Edm or r&b as another poster pointed out. But frankly classical, ambient, jazz sound good as well. Heck what doesn’t?

here’s one but whatever

 

[emdeevee]

I am so happy with my HD 800s that I literally do not want another pair of headphones. They do nothing wrong. I am happier with my Aliexpress cable than I was with the stock, but that's not a complaint.

 

[Eslaron]

Got myself a pair. Soundstage is impressive, separation also. They are bright. I'm thinking of getting a custom 7N copper cable for them as the stock cables are friggin' long.

A question to you guys. Do they gain from better cables? What amp would be recommended? Currently I'm running them on Fiio K9 Pro AKM.

 

[Whazzzup]

I don’t know fiio, but before you spend maybe twice the cost of your dac amp on better cables, i’d consider my prioritization so balanced timber and no eq might be necessary. 1) music server 2) dac3) amp 4) hp 5) cables and interconnects. Otherwise eq?