[smodtactical]

Austrian Audio The Composer. It doesn't have as wide a soundstage. But it is sonically similar to the hd800s with a deep linear bass response.

I watched Andrews review. He mentioned the composer was a step down from 800S except in the bass. Hrm.

 

[steve468]

Thanks.. looks interesting.

What about HE1000 se ?

I currently have ‘em both. The HE1000se is pretty much spot on for what you’re asking. Even if I’m not actually sure they’re BETTER, but more of a side grade. The HE1000se is definitely more present in the sub bass, and is definitely at least as fast and detailed - but it misses a bit in the mid range.

 

[Skeith]

HE1000SE is even brighter than HD800S to give illusion of more detail. Not recommended.

 

[shabta]

I watched Andrews review. He mentioned the composer was a step down from 800S except in the bass. Hrm.

Well he's just a guy on the internet... The composer has a finely resolving treble, a liquid mid rangecand a fantastic bass response. I love the hd800 and the s, i have them both. The composer is simply a better headphone.

 

[shabta]

Well he's just a guy on the internet... The composer has a finely resolving treble, a liquid mid rangecand a fantastic bass response. I love the hd800 and the s, i have them both. The composer is simply a better headphone.

And it has low impedance, so you can easily power it off a dongle, but it's so resolving that it scales...

 

[steve468]

HE1000SE is even brighter than HD800S to give illusion of more detail. Not recommended.

Just listening to them both now. There does seem to be a bit more in the upper mids/lower treble on the Hifimans, giving voices a bit more "clarity," if not more detail. But it's not a huge difference on my system, maybe yours is different. So basically, I agree with you

But there's more sub-bass! Isn't that literally the only way to measure the quality of a headphone??

(Sarcasm)

 

[S Crowther]

I watched Andrews review. He mentioned the composer was a step down from 800S except in the bass. Hrm.

Depends on the setup. What dac, what amp was being used. You can't judge any piece of hifi equipment in isolation.

It also depends on you: everyone hears things sightly differently. After all sound doesn't exist: a pressure wave hits the eardrum and is turned into an electrical impulse that the brain uses to create what we experience as "sound". No two brains produce identical results. Even the same brain can produce different results at different times: we say it depends on our mood etc.

On my set up I prefer the Composer to the HD800S.

 

[piglet]

Here's a question for everyone: I've watched or read every HD800S review I could find -- and I've found a LOT. And generally, the reviews don't make any sense to me. People give favorable overall ratings while giving terrible overall reviews. What I mean is, many reviews seem to go like this:

"The HD800S is great. It's a legend. You should absolutely consider getting one. It's thin-sounding, harsh, has a spiky treble, sounds unnatural, lays out a large space in which things sound tiny, is old, is bested by newer headphones, and has no bass. Like I said, it's great. 5 Stars."

What in the world is going on here? It's the worst reviews and the highest scores. I'd appreciate any and all thoughts.

Wade

I think your summary of the reviews of the HD800S was fun and accurate. I've had my HD800S cans for almost exactly three years now, I bought them in March 2021. I think if possible you must try them for yourself. I absolutely love them and I will never part with them, however if you use them with poor amplification then they will sound absolutely crap. The DAC/amp I use cost about the same as the cans and I suggest using them with a really good DAC/amp, the better it is the better they will be. The DAC/amp I use isn't made anymore actually but you can get some ideas as to the best DAC/amp to use from these forums at Head-Fi.

 

[sygnus21]

...however if you use them with poor amplification then they will sound absolutely crap. The DAC/amp I use cost about the same as the cans and I suggest using them with a really good DAC/amp, the better it is the better they will be. The DAC/amp I use isn't made anymore actually but you can get some ideas as to the best DAC/amp to use from these forums at Head-Fi.

This...^^^^^

 

[smodtactical]

I'm gonna try 800S on a ha300 v2 soon. Maybe that will change things in a way I like.

 

[tom807]

I'm gonna try 800S on a ha300 v2 soon. Maybe that will change things in a way I like.

I’ve used a tube headphone amplifier with the HD-800S, the WA-2 by Woo Audio. Maybe that is a less expensive amp than the HA-300 v2, but still, tubes or solid- state, it didn’t change my opinion of these Sennheiser ‘phones.

 

[tom807]

I’ve used a tube headphone amplifier with the HD-800S, the WA-2 by Woo Audio. Maybe that is a less expensive amp than the HA-300 v2, but still, tubes or solid- state, it didn’t change my opinion of these Sennheiser ‘phones.

But - I found the closed back Sennheiser HD-820 delivered a slight but significant improvement in sound qualit over their HD-800S. Plus, i find the HD820 more comfortable. Solid-state vs. tubes affect on sound quality, HD800S vs. HD-820 comfort, your mileage may vary .

 

[Rob80b]

But - I found the closed back Sennheiser HD-820 delivered a slight but significant improvement in sound qualit over their HD-800S. .........

Having both on hand I find the sound quality on equal footing but different in "a slight but significant" way , the 800S for obvious reasons having better staging and more openness but the 820 is more forgiving and can build up significant bass pressure.

 

[sygnus21]

Argh i wish senn came out with a hd800S successor with powerful bass.

They did... the HD820. But I suppose the next complaint will be.... it's too expensive

Anyway, if you want bass, bass, and bass, there's always the Beats headphones

 

[SecretAgent]

If I have to guess I'd say the next hd800rs or hd900 will be competing with utopia at 5k