[Whazzzup]

Listening to some Yoga downtempo grooves on the S, I hear some decent bass, I even hear some sub bass down there. It doesn't scare the bejeez out of me like my th900 but then again the clarity and correctness of the notes beyond the bass is quite distinct. I don't hear congestion or any distortion, just warmish balanced sound. Nice fit and finish, th900 is a lighter more comfortable wear but the 800S hugs you like your favorite earmuffs. No real fatigue one way or another after long listens.
My only side comment on open back versus closed like th900 is that I tend to play the 800S louder, to really feel the bass and those mid detail and 3D effects. Th900 being closed and a bit more personal and efficient I can listen a bit better at lower volumes. Maybe over time this will change, so back to S head time. Someone asked about electronic music on them, it's good on all genres this hp. The bass is tight and Mids kick that great detail that is essential in that genre.

 

[dharma]

Maybe testing with pure sine-waves (sweep and separate frequencies 50, 45, 40, 35, 30, 25, 20, 15 Hz) helps to identify differences between original and S vers... maybe then it is possible to hear specific 'effect' of added 2-nd order harmonics

 

[Sorrodje]

I own both the HD800 and HD800S and Tyll's review sums up the difference pretty much as I hear it. The only difference being , I cannot detect obvious weaknesses in the bass due to the higher distortions either when I Listen to a variety of music or test tones . I just hear a slightly elevated bass which I originaly put down to more perceived bass due to the treble reduction, now thanks to Tyll it makes sense why I hear this slight difference.
I want to point out that the 'quality' of the bass has stayed the same to my ears, but I appreciate I'm not trained or experienced in picking up on the nuances.
If anyone knows particular record that would highlight the bass distortion I will have a listen, I'm interested to see if I can hear it in isolation on certain records.
Thanks, James.

 
I owned the HD800S, i measured the HD800S including the distorsion , I reviewed the HD800S.  I did the same for the HD800 I own since 2013 and now I use the HD800 with my SuperDupont resonator i measured as well and I hear things exactly like you.  I definitely hear HD800S bass as somewhat different , slightly different but for sure not worse than HD800's one. 
 
Seems we're deaf my friend. 

 

 

[dharma]

Me too, cause don't feel any piercing with un-modded HD800

 

[Dadracer]

 

I own both the HD800 and HD800S and Tyll's review sums up the difference pretty much as I hear it. The only difference being , I cannot detect obvious weaknesses in the bass due to the higher distortions either when I Listen to a variety of music or test tones . I just hear a slightly elevated bass which I originaly put down to more perceived bass due to the treble reduction, now thanks to Tyll it makes sense why I hear this slight difference.
I want to point out that the 'quality' of the bass has stayed the same to my ears, but I appreciate I'm not trained or experienced in picking up on the nuances.
If anyone knows particular record that would highlight the bass distortion I will have a listen, I'm interested to see if I can hear it in isolation on certain records.
Thanks, James.

 
I owned the HD800S, i measured the HD800S including the distorsion , I reviewed the HD800S.  I did the same for the HD800 I own since 2013 and now I use the HD800 with my SuperDupont resonator i measured as well and I hear things exactly like you.  I definitely hear HD800S bass as somewhat different , slightly different but for sure not worse than HD800's one. 
 
Seems we're deaf my friend. 

 

I've been going through my vinyl and CDs collection trying to find some music where I can hear a distortion in the low bass. I cannot hear anything in either my HD800 or 800S. Maybe we are just listening at high enough volumes????

 

[Sorrodje]

Yup. Indeed that's a good comment.  I listen at 70/75db most of my time and that can probably explain why I don't hear differences.  I should have measured at 70db in a very quiet environnement to see if distorsion is still there. 

 

[dharma]

  Yup. Indeed that's a good comment.  I listen at 70/75db most of my time and that can probably explain why I don't hear differences.  I should have measured at 70db in a very quiet environnement to see if distorsion is still there. 

Actually same here, always quite low volume... and it could be the reason, why I don't feel '6Khz peak', what is definitely there, as 'piercing' and disturbing... .

 

[JaZZ]

2nd-order harmonic distortion can barely be perceived as distortion. You also won't hear distortion with tube amps as such. It's just a warming and coloring effect – but definitely will degrade transparency to some degree. Most noticeable (if at all) with orchestral tutti.

 

[James-uk]

Don't have S of HD800 version, but maybe this earlier post is related? If possible, please owners of both Sennheiser hp versions give Your impressions about this recording... if needed we can find the way, how those who are interested can audit only 'cannon related' part of this recording...

Subject of perceived/not-perceived bass distortion is not very simple, some explanations here and here and here
etc

Just had a listen to it and swapped several times to double check and they sound the same on Both headphones , The cannons that is. I actually prefer the rest of the bit I've just listened to (4 minutes from the end ) on the original HD800, it gives it a bit more sparkle which gives it a little more of a dynamic sound.
The cannons scared the **** out if me on both headphones , very loud and punchy with a little rumble after.
The bass parts sounded as detailed on both ,slight more presence on the 800S but not much, the bells and cymbals are clearer on HD800 and this gives a more dynamic sparkle which helps create a better perceived soundstage and depth. Basically it's just a bit more polite on the HD800S and maybe a bit more 'natural ' . Nothing sounds wrong on the S but the extra sparkle and detail on the original makes it stand out more .
One other thing while I'm rambling, I suppose I could describe the bass on the original as being very separate within the mix , where as with the S it is more encompassing and fills the soundstage more. This is very slight but it does seem more natural to my ears because I always find bass live to be more dominant and tends to fill the room rather than have its own space. I find higher frequencies more directional in real life and bass more mono. With original HD800 the bass is very directional and precise which is cool but feels a bit clinical at times .

 

[monkuboy]

 

[dharma]

Just had a listen to it and swapped several times to double check and they sound the same on Both headphones , The cannons that is. I actually prefer the rest of the bit I've just listened to (4 minutes from the end ) on the original HD800, it gives it a bit more sparkle which gives it a little more of a dynamic sound.
The cannons scared the **** out if me on both headphones , very loud and punchy with a little rumble after.
The bass parts sounded as detailed on both ,slight more presence on the 800S but not much, the bells and cymbals are clearer on HD800 and this gives a more dynamic sparkle which helps create a better perceived soundstage and depth. Basically it's just a bit more polite on the HD800S and maybe a bit more 'natural ' . Nothing sounds wrong on the S but the extra sparkle and detail on the original makes it stand out more .
One other thing while I'm rambling, I suppose I could describe the bass on the original as being very separate within the mix , where as with the S it is more encompassing and fills the soundstage more. This is very slight but it does seem more natural to my ears because I always find bass live to be more dominant and tends to fill the room rather than have its own space. I find higher frequencies more directional in real life and bass more mono. With original HD800 the bass is very directional and precise which is cool but feels a bit clinical at times .

Thank You, nicely explained... Did You used CD (older) or SACD (newer, DSD) recording?
PS! Few months ago I tried once 'bass plugin' to EQ HD800 low-bass little 'up'... it resulted to similar result as You described about HD800S: 'bass more mono' i.e. centered.
My EQ-ing finished there... because upper transparency wasn't very good anymore (when using 'bass plugin'), maybe this plugin wasn't 'high quality'

 

[Sorrodje]

  2nd-order harmonic distortion can barely be perceived as distortion. You also won't hear distortion with tube amps as such. It's just a warming and coloring effect – but definitely will degrade transparency to some degree. Most noticeable (if at all) with orchestral tutti.

 
Makes Sense. I definitely heard the HD800S as more "messy" for larger mass orchestral stuff indeed; I thought it was due to the tamed 6khz but it can be due to the distorsion.  I definitely think the Classical lovers shoud stay with a HD800. the HD800S lost the very specific magic touch for classical.  TImbres are better with HD800S though. so Mod and/or EQ makes sense as Tyll told us. 

 

[James-uk]

Thank You, nicely explained... Did You used CD (older) or SACD (newer, DSD) recording?
PS! Few months ago I tried once 'bass plugin' to EQ HD800 low-bass little 'up'... it resulted to similar result as You described about HD800S: 'bass more mono' i.e. centered.
My EQ-ing finished there... because upper transparency wasn't very good anymore (when using 'bass plugin'), maybe this plugin wasn't 'high quality'

I'm not sure which one specifically as it is the Apple Music version. According to the artwork it says 'the super telarc sound , ultra HD 32 bit mastering. ' across the top. That's the biggest problem with streaming music for me , not knowing Which master was used! I assume based on that it will be the Same master that the SACD was ripped from.

 

[dharma]

I'm not sure which one specifically as it is the Apple Music version. According to the artwork it says 'the super telarc sound , ultra HD 32 bit mastering. ' across the top. That's the biggest problem with streaming music for me , not knowing Which master was used! I assume based on that it will be the Same master that the SACD was ripped from.

If SACD, then it's not directly comparable to CD version what I have and Kyle 491 used

 

[Mike F]

  2nd-order harmonic distortion can barely be perceived as distortion. You also won't hear distortion with tube amps as such. It's just a warming and coloring effect – but definitely will degrade transparency to some degree. Most noticeable (if at all) with orchestral tutti.

Exactly. When most people hear/read the word distortion they think of very audible effects like driver breakup. Second harmonic distortion simply isn't that sort of 'audible' distortion. However, it is still technically speaking a distortion, and as Tyll says, if you know what you're listening for it can be heard.