[up late]

i liked the hd820 and can't help feeling that it's been unfairly maligned. that said, when i compared it to the stellia and the z1r, the stellia was my "goldilocks" closed-back headphone out of the three. the materials used in the stellia's construction are deluxe, and it made the hd820 feel like a toy tbh.

 

[329161]

i liked the hd820 and can't help feeling that it's been unfairly maligned. that said, when i compared it to the stellia and the z1r, the stellia was my "goldilocks" closed-back headphone out of the three. the materials used in the stellia's construction are deluxe, and it made the hd820 feel like a toy tbh.

True about the materials, but i look at it from the pov that the materials on the Stellia add unnecessary cost and weight to the end product. I also actually think the 820 build is very classy and the weight is very comfortable. I don't necessarily think the Stellia sounds "objectively" better either. Just different. Imo the Stellia is probably more "musical" but as i said, i was looking for something to pick apart the individual elements in a mix. It will do nicely in my capacity as a producer as well. Leather and a cognac colour scheme is nice, and it would look nice placed next to a Bugatti, but that's not for me. But I'm not going to deny anyone else's reality. Just explaining my own.

The 820 paired with my sp1000 = endgame 4 me until one or both die. Hallelujah!

 

[up late]

it should go without saying that we are sharing our subjective impressions and personal preferences here. you appear to have changed your opinion about the hd820's sound signature tho:

I directly compared the z1r with the Stellia out of the Z1 dap/DAC/amp and there was little separating them. High praise for the z1r considering it's almost a 1/4 of the cost. The 820 sounds downright boring to me. Honky mids unacceptable at the price.

 

[329161]

it should go without saying that we are sharing our subjective impressions and personal preferences here. you appear to have changed your opinion about the hd820's sound signature tho:

Absolutely right I changed my mind. Turns out the first time I listened to the 820 was on Sennheisers 800 amp, and the second time was on the 820 amp. Both times the hd820 hP exhibited this character in the mids. However, I didn't compare it with any other headphones on the same amp, until I listened to the 800S on the 820 amp. You guessed it, shouty mids. Since then I've used the 820 hp with other sources and the mids sound very natural. Less recessed than the Stellia to boot. The only explanation I can give is that Sennheisers own amps were imparting this undesirable character on the mids.

 

[up late]

Absolutely right I changed my mind. Turns out the first time I listened to the 820 was on Sennheisers 800 amp, and the second time was on the 820 amp. Both times the hd820 hP exhibited this character in the mids. However, I didn't compare it with any other headphones on the same amp, until I listened to the 800S on the 820 amp. You guessed it, shouty mids. Since then I've used the 820 hp with other sources and the mids sound very natural. Less recessed than the Stellia to boot. The only explanation I can give is that Sennheisers own amps were imparting this undesirable character on the mids.

the stellia's mids sound forward to my ears and more so than the hd820. glad the hd820 is working out for you anyhow.

 

[Sonic Defender]

Shame that I could never really give the 820 a proper listen as the fit was absolutely a deal breaker, a seal could not be made under any circumstances. I must admit that I was shocked by this design fit issue. I have never had a headphone that didn't fit and I have owned HD600/650/800S and recently had the HD800/HD700 here and all of these fit fine, it is only the HD820 where the fit issue existed for me.

 

[329161]

the stellia's mids sound forward to my ears and more so than the hd820. glad the hd820 is working out for you anyhow.

It didn't sound (or measure) that way to me. I do like the sound of the Stellia, but I have enough fun sounding v-shaped cans, something it does very very well. I got the 820 significantly less than original retail at release, and I actually prefer it to the Stellia in every way at this moment in time, so I saved myself 1 1/2 grand aud. But at the end of the day the more top tier quality cans there are, then many more people will be happy whatever their tastes happen to be.

 

[329161]

Shame that I could never really give the 820 a proper listen as the fit was absolutely a deal breaker, a seal could not be made under any circumstances. I must admit that I was shocked by this design fit issue. I have never had a headphone that didn't fit and I have owned HD600/650/800S and recently had the HD800/HD700 here and all of these fit fine, it is only the HD820 where the fit issue existed for me.

Was working in my hifi shop today and another customer had the same issue. Evident from this thread that many more here have it too. As I said earlier, I don't have that issue. The seal is great, and bass response is immaculate and just about perfect for me. The one time my smaller than average head is a blessing. The cups seem to envelope and cup my head and jawline very naturally.

 

[Sonic Defender]

Was working in my hifi shop today and another customer had the same issue. Evident from this thread that many more here have it too. As I said earlier, I don't have that issue. The seal is great, and bass response is immaculate and just about perfect for me. The one time my smaller than average head is a blessing. The cups seem to envelope and cup my head and jawline very naturally.

Very lucky. I would have loved to try the 820 properly as I simply loved my HD800S. Wearing and listening to the HD700 as I type with no fit issue. Oh well, it wasn't meant to be with the 820. Glad that some are able to enjoy them. By the way, the HD700 with some equalization are surprisingly enjoyable. Didn't expect that, I thought I would hate them truthfully.

 

[manueljenkin]

I recently went to a Sennheiser store event and tried a few headphones. Ie800s was stunning (I preferred it over the andromeda). I listened to some knock of ie800s before and they sounded like 10$ chifi but looked scarily like ie800!! Be careful.

What was very disappointing though was the noisy room to try out hd800, hd800S and hd820. Couldn't make out anything. The bigger bummer was the hd820 didn't isolate at all to my memory.

Also the only amp they had was the piece of junk called hdv800/820. You could remove a zero from the end of its pricing and it would still not be worth it. Wished someone else brought a good amp there. My original surface book had a noticeably better audio output.

I only got hints of how they sound. HD800S sounded very crisp and the bass was visible. But I was cranking them to overcome the loud room and it was like a puddle of treble - clean but constant treble.

HD820. Umm it feels complicated. Listening in that loud room, the isolation was pathetic and the mid tone had this telephonic character to them. Very clean sounding though and the treble tone is the best I've heard yet. Most pristine treble I've heard period and it didn't change with change in fit. Better than hd800/800s for sure regards treble and tonally better than sr009 with the technicality maybe only slightly behind (estats have this soft character to their treble which I love). Might have actually been even better if I hadn't been in such a noisy room I guess.

Plugged them out from the amp, plugged them to my surface book laptop and went out. Fumbled with the volumes a bit and the fit a little and at a certain fit (not too tight not too loose), they sounded alright. Idk what just happened. The telephonic sound reduced to a sound that is just right - not warm, just right. I wasn't listening to dynamics anyway (who can in such a noisy room).

Anyone else who owns hd820 and like them, please comment. I might go ahead and give them another listen with the topping nx4 dsd sometime soon. Please give me guidance on volume levels, fit and whether they actually isolate well at the condition where they sound good. Because hints of it made it worth a second try and worth parting my money with. Need guidance and advice before I do so. I have long hair and I can pull it down to create a marginally open seal. (Like Katie Melua here - )

For sure I know the surface book was underdriving them. Bcoz it was underdriving even my srh1540s which should be easier to drive headphones than hd820. My experience with amping below.

https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones...pect/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share

Thanks and Regards,
Manuel Jenkin (India).

 

[329161]

Very lucky. I would have loved to try the 820 properly as I simply loved my HD800S. Wearing and listening to the HD700 as I type with no fit issue. Oh well, it wasn't meant to be with the 820. Glad that some are able to enjoy them. By the way, the HD700 with some equalization are surprisingly enjoyable. Didn't expect that, I thought I would hate them truthfully.

I did the cut out felt mod with my hd700 as recommended for the 800 and this seemed to tame the treble peak and consequently boost the bass a touch. Underrated can.

 

[up late]

It didn't sound (or measure) that way to me. I do like the sound of the Stellia, but I have enough fun sounding v-shaped cans, something it does very very well. I got the 820 significantly less than original retail at release, and I actually prefer it to the Stellia in every way at this moment in time, so I saved myself 1 1/2 grand aud. But at the end of the day the more top tier quality cans there are, then many more people will be happy whatever their tastes happen to be.

we obviously hear these headphones differently, which is fine. i wouldn't describe the stellia as v-shaped either. i don't know which measurements you're referring to but @jude's indicate that the stellia has flatter mids than the hd820. the hd820 also has a significant dip at around 300hz.
his stellia fr measurements can be seen at the 18:31 minute mark in this video:

 

[Slim1970]

I'll soon have a set of HD820's headed my way to add to my collection. I enjoy the Sennheiser sound a lot having owned both 800 series of headphones. If the HD820 can sound anything like those two headphones but with a better low end and bit more body then it'll be a win for me.

I have the Z1R's already and I have yet to hear a closed back headphone that sounds like them. The Z1R's are simply a joy to listen too and the comfort level is spectacular. To be as big as they are they weigh next to nothing when they are on my head. The Sennheiser 800 series of headphones are light and comfy as well. From the looks of it the HD820 should be no different. I cannot wait to get a listen to them.

 

[Slim1970]

i liked the hd820 and can't help feeling that it's been unfairly maligned. that said, when i compared it to the stellia and the z1r, the stellia was my "goldilocks" closed-back headphone out of the three. the materials used in the stellia's construction are deluxe, and it made the hd820 feel like a toy tbh.

Was that from a sound standpoint or looks only? How would you compare the sound of the three? I'm familiar with the Z1R's sound and I'm curious about the other two in comparison, thanks.

 

[329161]

I thought I remembered seeing a flatter measurement for the 820, and it certainly sounds not exactly flat, but slightly Harmon like with a slightly elevated bass. Treble certainly sounds less peaky than the 800/s, to me at least. The one above of the 820 from ratings.com kinda looks like a W.

FYI....

Looks like there's a distinct valley in the midrange here too. However, given the reported sealing issues with both the 820 and Stellia, it's hard to gauge what's an accurate measurement for either of them.
One other reason for my choice of 820 over Stellia, is the bass isn't as humped. I don't usually mind a bumped bass around 100hz, but as I said earlier I have other cans that do that and I wanted something a bit more referenced, but not flat or anemic at the same time.