[Christer]

 
Precisely because it IS an HD800. Modded.

Agreed,I found Inner Fidelity's review very interesting indeed. Although HD800S  sounded better than my non -modded stock HD800  in the treble,not so in the bass which I found a bit bloated and exaggerated compared both to my HD800 and how  some  my  reference tracks sounded live in the hall.
Tyll's measurements showed increased harmonic  distortion in the bass compared   to the stock HD800. And  if basically the same improvements in the treble can be achieved by the mods he suggests I see little reason for me who already own a HD800 to buy the HD800S.
When I return  home from my travels I will order the "mod plug"  install  it and listen instead of spending a lot of money for an improvement in the treble and to my ears  in the bass something sounding  more like  "audiophiles  can't handle the truth".
I am only loooking for increased transparency and accuracy not more " bang for the buck".
For people who don't already own a HD800 it is of course  different. And if you don't have a reference to live it would be more difficult to spot the beefed up bass I think.

 

[xp9433]

Tyll preferred the HD800S to the modified HD800. It was with EQ applied he preferred the modified HD800 to the EQ'd HD 800S and to either headphone without EQ.

 

[zolkis]

 
Agreed,I found Inner Fidelity's review very interesting indeed. Although HD800S  sounded better than my non -modded stock HD800  in the treble,not so in the bass which I found a bit bloated and exaggerated compared both to my HD800 and how  some  my  reference tracks sounded live in the hall.
Tyll's measurements showed increased harmonic  distortion in the bass compared   to the stock HD800. And  if basically the same improvements in the treble can be achieved by the mods he suggests I see little reason for me who already own a HD800 to buy the HD800S.
When I return  home from my travels I will order the "mod plug"  install  it and listen instead of spending a lot of money for an improvement in the treble and to my ears  in the bass something sounding  more like  "audiophiles  can't handle the truth".
I am only loooking for increased transparency and accuracy not more " bang for the buck".
For people who don't already own a HD800 it is of course  different. And if you don't have a reference to live it would be more difficult to spot the beefed up bass I think.

 
If I read those distortion measurements correctly (and actually the text does explicitly say it) the HD800S differs from the HD800 in having more 2nd harmonic of a 40 Hz sinusoid signal, but about the same amplitude for 3rd harmonic. Also, the HD800S harmonics get less and less amplitude, while the HD800 has about the same (low) 2nd and 3rd harmonic. In my experience 2nd harmonic is quite harmless and just makes the bass warmer or fuller or less dry. The odd harmonics have more nasty effects.  Now it depends on what music do you listen to whether this is tolerable or not.
 
If I'd have to choose between the two headphones, this alone would not be a deciding factor. Due to personal preference, I'd probably prefer the likely fuller sounding HD800S, but everyone needs to make the choice. Also, it would be nice to check the CSD/waterfall measurements. It's good that we have measurements, so that we could correlate that with what we hear. 
 
I also really appreciate the article goes through various mods and measures them in comparison. It's worth more than 100 pages of forum discussion .

 

[Jodet]

Two questions. 
 
What are used HD800 selling for these days? 
 
What is the HD800s balanced cable by itself selling for these days?   $200? 

 

[Sonic Guild]

  Two questions. 
 
What are used HD800 selling for these days? 
 
What is the HD800s balanced cable by itself selling for these days?   $200? 

Balanced $300 - $380 USD

 

[Mike F]

The difference in price between the 800 and the 800S is basically the cost of the cable.

 

[jlbrach]

cables are probably the biggest mark up of all audio products...the cables cost very little to make.....

 

[Magick Man]

Yep, mine is like that too. Totally normal.

Precisely because it IS an HD800. Modded.

Enhanced. The driver itself is of a slightly different design.

Tyll preferred the HD800S to the modified HD800. It was with EQ applied he preferred the modified HD800 to the EQ'd HD 800S and to either headphone without EQ.

Correct. People have seriously been misreading his review.

 

[E976]

Long time lurker but recent post.

Just got the 800S after having the 800 for a number of years. I am still trying to get a feel for the new cans but so far, so good. I am still trying to get a feel for a new combination -- 800S>Moon Black Dragon balanced>Cavalli Gold via AK380>cradle>Audioquest Wind balanced cables -- but the dsd sources (classic rock, jazz & classical) sound full, clear, and weighty, but without any major treble spikes.

Once things break in I will check in again, but happy so far.

 

[Mike F]

Enhanced. The driver itself is of a slightly different design.

 
Is the actual driver itself slightly different? I don't recall reading that anywhere. Could you let me know where anyone has written that?
 
 
Quote:

Tyll preferred the HD800S to the modified HD800. It was with EQ applied he preferred the modified HD800 to the EQ'd HD 800S and to either headphone without EQ.

 
 

  Correct. People have seriously been misreading his review.

 
 
Yes, you're right, many people have been misreading his review! 

 
This is what he actually said:- 
 
Speaking of EQ, when I listen to the two headphones EQed, I think I tend to prefer the old HD 800, but it's close. With the HD 800 S I find myself being somewhat cautious about my bass level setting—bringing it up to where I like it does make the distortion a bit more obvious. On the other hand, I can tweak out a notch at 6kHz to try to tame the spike in the old HD 800, but the resonance is still there in the headphones, and if a signal gets hot around 6kHz then you can hear it zinging. Niether are perfect, but I think I prefer having to fiddle with the 6kHz notch a bit based on the music playing rather than not being able to dial the bass up to where I want it without lows becoming a bit too congested. However, if I wasn't using EQ, I'd easily prefer the HD 800 S.
 

Read more at http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/sennheiser-hd-800-s-tweaked-and-delightfuland-french-diy-response#ZcJ1DjfWcVExH1J5.99
 
 
That's seems entirely unequivocal to me. He prefers the old un-modded HD800 to the HD800S when using EQ. 

 

[AnakChan]

Hard to do a proper listen at a shop but the HD800S seems to have a impact then the HE1K. I find the HD800S to be more "gripping".

 

[Youth]

Hard to do a proper listen at a shop but the HD800S seems to have a impact then the HE1K. I find the HD800S to be more "gripping".

Gripping?

 

[obsidyen]

Gripping?

Means exciting...

 

[Fegefeuer]

less soft

 

[Sorrodje]

This ^