Sennheiser HD800S complement
Aug 11, 2020 at 7:50 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 17

headphonesQC

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Hi all! I recently acquired some Sennheiser HD800S and while they are nothing short of amazing to my ears on classical and jazz, they're not the most pleasing on bad recordings or metal/rock music... What would you consider as a nice alternative for when I want to listen to this type of music? If I want to have a similar level of sound quality, but in those genres (not expecting a headphone to make a bad recording sound good, but at least be at ease in these areas), what should I aim for? Empyrean, Vérité Closed? Something more along the lines of Fostex, Campfire Cascade, LCD-X or LCD-3? Or would I be better to just upgrade to something like Susvara or AB-1266 and sell the HD800S, to then get trapped in upstream gear upgrade mania and pretend I'm a victim 😅? It can be other suggestions as well, but those were the ones that came to my mind.
 
Aug 11, 2020 at 8:02 AM Post #2 of 17
Yes to all, what have you tried and enjoyed
 
Aug 11, 2020 at 8:07 AM Post #3 of 17
Hi all! I recently acquired some Sennheiser HD800S and while they are nothing short of amazing to my ears on classical and jazz, they're not the most pleasing on bad recordings or metal/rock music... What would you consider as a nice alternative for when I want to listen to this type of music? If I want to have a similar level of sound quality, but in those genres (not expecting a headphone to make a bad recording sound good, but at least be at ease in these areas), what should I aim for? Empyrean, Vérité Closed? Something more along the lines of Fostex, Campfire Cascade, LCD-X or LCD-3? Or would I be better to just upgrade to something like Susvara or AB-1266 and sell the HD800S, to then get trapped in upstream gear upgrade mania and pretend I'm a victim 😅? It can be other suggestions as well, but those were the ones that came to my mind.
I went from the 800 to S and now to all the totl cans in my sig. it's a rabbit hole alright.
 
Aug 11, 2020 at 8:11 AM Post #4 of 17
Yes to all, what have you tried and enjoyed
I had the Focal Elear, but detail was lacking too much for my taste, even if the sound signature was pleasing. Grados don't work particularly well neither with these genres IMO. Otherwise I don't have much experience with other headphones except at shows...
 
Aug 11, 2020 at 8:11 AM Post #5 of 17
Ultrasone Edition 11. Truly an amazing headphone. Usually I'd never go for Ultrasone but I can whole heartedly say it's the best tuned Ultrasone headphone yet or easily right next to the Edition 15. It compliments my Focal Clear & Elegia beautifully. Has a larger soundstage and much better musicality :) A few people have said it compliments the HD800s wonderfully as well. Check them out :) Oh and you won't lose out to much detail. For a headphone of this kind of tuning, U shaped to balanced. It's very musical but has great clarity and detail to my ear is on the same of the Elegia ir maybe a touch better to my ear.
 
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Aug 11, 2020 at 8:13 AM Post #6 of 17
I went from the 800 to S and now to all the totl cans in my sig. it's a rabbit hole alright.
Hahaha! It's a rabbit hole indeed! Every time I think I'm doing good by not upgrading for a couple of months, I get trapped by a good deal, hahaha!
 
Aug 11, 2020 at 8:19 AM Post #7 of 17
Ultrasone Edition 11. Truly an amazing headphone. Usually I'd never go for Ultrasone but I can whole heartedly say it's the best tuned Ultrasone headphone yet or easily right next to the Edition 15. It compliments my Focal Clear & Elegia beautifully. Has a larger soundstage and much better musicality :) A few people have said it compliments the HD800s wonderfully as well. Check them out :) Oh and you won't lose out to much detail. For a headphone of this kind of tuning, U shaped to balanced. It's very musical but has great clarity and detail to my ear is on the same of the Elegia ir maybe a touch better to my ear.
Good to know! They don't appear very often in Canada, but if they do, I'll take a look!
 
Aug 11, 2020 at 8:27 AM Post #8 of 17
I had the Focal Elear, but detail was lacking too much for my taste, even if the sound signature was pleasing. Grados don't work particularly well neither with these genres IMO. Otherwise I don't have much experience with other headphones except at shows...
sounds like you want recessed mids to wipe out that mid range slush around guitars, rock, etc. the other effect you get is bass extension so great for electronic, drums, jazz, and the compliment is a different profile than HD800S. I use th900 or a fully modded la900 but these compliment the sens. Im sure there are others. You are correct the grado, the focals, they are close to senns
 
Sep 11, 2020 at 4:47 PM Post #10 of 17
Tack on an HD660S - I'm starting to wonder whether it might in fact be a more enjoyable listen than my HD800S (the soundstage is a little smaller in what I consider to be an excellent way: it's a similar sound but a bit fuller. I second the LCD2C recommendation (actually I only have experience with LCD2 (non C)) - it's an amazing headphone - but the HD660S is cheaper and spectacular. I also own the LCD4 (which to my ears destroys the LCD-3 but isn't much more enjoyable to listen to than the LCD2 - go figure), and have owned the Susvara and Abyss TC. If I was offered a Susvara or a 660S, I'd take the 660S (by which I mean I’d take the Susvara, sell it, pocket the change and buy a 660S), I love it that much. All that said, the 430HA amp I use is a big part of that, no doubt.
 
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Oct 20, 2020 at 1:27 PM Post #12 of 17
LCD-3 is a nice complement.
 
Oct 21, 2020 at 7:53 AM Post #13 of 17
I would urge you towards a used LCD-4 or a T2 by Dan Clark - both have well better bass than the 800S, both have non nasty trebles, yet still convey detail and harmonics nicely.

Or for less money - get an OTL amp, and the 800S becomes a much different animal. Suave and liquid with very little if any sense of being annoyingly over defined.
 
Oct 22, 2020 at 7:26 PM Post #14 of 17
Thanks for your suggestions! I won't sell the HD800S before having tried/owned another pair that I'm sure I like much more than these.

LCD-4, Verite Closed, MDR-Z1R would be on my to-try list! The weight of the LCD-4 scares me a bit, but if I come across a good deal that would allow me to try them without losing too much money I'll definitely give them a try!

Or for less money - get an OTL amp, and the 800S becomes a much different animal. Suave and liquid with very little if any sense of being annoyingly over defined.
Taking good note of that, but I must say that I don't have any bright treble or sibilance with my SPL Phonitor 2! Still, I may eventually add a tube amp again in the setup...
 
Oct 23, 2020 at 2:48 AM Post #15 of 17
Thanks for your suggestions! I won't sell the HD800S before having tried/owned another pair that I'm sure I like much more than these.

LCD-4, Verite Closed, MDR-Z1R would be on my to-try list! The weight of the LCD-4 scares me a bit, but if I come across a good deal that would allow me to try them without losing too much money I'll definitely give them a try!


Taking good note of that, but I must say that I don't have any bright treble or sibilance with my SPL Phonitor 2! Still, I may eventually add a tube amp again in the setup...
LCD-4 is 2895 USD on sale at Audeze now. Good if you buy one, not good if you want to sell one.
https://www.audeze.com/products/audeze-oktoberfest-sale
 

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