Sennheiser RS220 Availability?

[ztsen]

Hi, I need a wireless for movie only. Is the RS220 a lot better than RS180 in watching movie? Would like to know if this is worth it.

 

[kstuart]

  Hi, I need a wireless for movie only. Is the RS220 a lot better than RS180 in watching movie? Would like to know if this is worth it.

I use the RS180 most days, I have not used the RS220, but I've read the whole thread.
 
The RS220 has roughly the same improvement in sound quality over the RS180, that the HD600 has over the HD558.
 
When using the RS180, at no point do I find myself wishing for better sound quality, although if I compared the two models, I'm sure I would hear a difference.
 
The RS180 is known to be one of the best headphones in terms of even balance across the spectrum, i.e. bass-midrange-treble.  I'm sure it would be just fine for movies, and the RS220 would sound a little better yet.
 
The thread describes some issues with "dropouts" with the RS220, those issues are not present in the RS180.
 
Note that BOTH are "open back", i.e. other people in the room can clearly hear your music/movie, and you can hear other sounds in the room.

 

[ztsen]

Thanks, I just tried the RS180. Not really like it.

 

[Ultrainferno]

the difference between both is pretty large. I could live with the 180 for just movies, but the 220 does it all better imo (except the 180 had less signal loss)

 

[CDWMcInSpots]

I have physically tried the Sennheiser RS 170 (closed) and RS 220 for fit. The ear depth in the RS 170 is a bit shallow. My ear(s) touched the driver plate. The RS 220 was fine in this respect. I don't know how physically similar the RS 170 and RS 180 are. It would be nice if someone can comment on this.
 
I have close fitting, not protruding ears. Hence my (right) antihelix is the first (body) part that touches a headphone's driver plate if this problem occurs with a given headphone.

 

[ztsen]

I tried again RS180, RS220 and HD800 for movie. RS180 for movie is ok but music..less interesting unless you are not demanding.
RS220 overall is very good at both movie and music, presentation quite similar to HD800. HD800 really need better equipment to let it shine.
 
I have no chance to try Sony wireless DS7500 nor upcoming HW750. Not sure if Sony surround effect or 7.1/9/1 effect really worth the try or just RS220 2 channel will do a better job in movie.
 
Dont see much hype or love for RS220 here also ...  

 

[CDWMcInSpots]

[...] Dont see much hype or love for RS220 here also ...  

 
A couple of us have written about Sennheiser RS 220 in the thread "Sennheiser trådløse hodetelefoner" (Google Translate: "Sennheiser wireless headphones") in the headphone section of the Norwegian forum Hifisentralen. The RS 220 starts at post #3. There's some references to this thread in addition to our own work.

 

[kstuart]

The RS180 is somewhat sensitive to setup.  For example, I think it sounds better with the Attenuator switch down (i.e. -6db), and in fact, some reviewers and I have both noticed that most amps sound better on lower gain.
 
Then you have to have the right level of output from your source equipment.  And you have to have a good quality of cable, and a good quality DAC.
 
The RS180 will work fine with any setup, but it will only have an audiophile level of sound quality with the right setup.
 
And, of course, the system is a compromise that will never rise to the level of a fine wired system.

 

[mannn]

Owner of RRS220 here, I had the interference / micro drop out issue as well... and like most people i have went through this entire thread...  i have had the transmitter unit right next to me and it does nothing to help with the drop out...
 
after going through this thread... i changed my router to CH11 for 2.4GHz... that did not help
next i put my transmitter on the other side of the room... not sure what makes it, but it's literally 4 feet further (and further away from router) now i have zero drops... and it's working perfectly now... i still have the CH11 going..  
 
Just to say those with drop outs, don't give up... keep trying!!  it is a good pair of cans, it is just that when they use uncompressed signal it does mean a lot other stuff can interfere with it.  i am now a happy camper!!!

 

[Musiclubber]

I wonder if there is another area for this ... I am on my
second set of Sennheiser RS 220s with the same
unfortunate problem:  in the first, one of the battery compartments
broke.  The tiny, little tab holding the compartment closed came
apart, so I returned them for a new set. The SAME THING
just happened with the second set.  I would gladly exchange
these things perhaps for a digital pair of Sennheisers of
a lower order and price that
didn't have this issue.   This looks like a design fault.  The
battery was inserted properly.  I just wish Sennheiser had
designed these phones without that tiny tab holding
the compartment closed...I LOVE these phones except
for this bugaboo.  And I can't use them very well without
batteries!  Is there any way of holding the batteries in
the compartment without getting a new set??!!
I assume a piece of duct tape won't work...

 

[Ricanbandit]

So it has been quite a bit and my RS220's are still amazing! Yes they take too long to charge, so I bought an external charger and a few sets of Eneloop  AAA. My wife and I love these things. Mainly listen to music and the occasional movie. Whatever demons were plaguing mine before no longer exist. Could be I moved to a new condo with only 9 foot ceilings (my previous ceilings were 15+)
 
I liked them so much we both have a pair.
 
I hope everyone is having as good an experience we are. I agree that these things are too pricey for anything but, although price has gone down significantly since I got them. I would do it all over again. the sound stage is amazing on these cans.
 
Happy Holidays to all

 

[Stanfoo]

So if your own home has no wifi network or any devices that can interfere, but you have neighbors that has wifi, will they interfere with the headphone? Or are you safe from them?

 

[CDWMcInSpots]

  So if your own home has no wifi network or any devices that can interfere, but you have neighbors that has wifi, will they interfere with the headphone? Or are you safe from them?

 
It depends. 

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wi-Fi#Interference
2. The distance between you and your neighbour (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wi-Fi#Range)
3. Possible obstructions between you and your neighbour. For example reinforced concrete walls dampens wireless/radio signals more than wooden walls.
4. I believe Sennheiser RS 220 and a lot of other wireless devices use 2.4 GHz. Hence 5 GHz Wi-Fi shouldn't interfere
5. Within 2.4 GHz, channel choice will affect interference. If you (ie. RS 220) and your neighbour (ie. Wi-Fi) use the same or partly overlapping channels, there's a risk of interference (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_WLAN_channels and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wi-Fi#Interference)

 
The people living on Elliðaey near Vestmannaeyjar off the south coast of Iceland won't have these problems.
 

 

 

[Stanfoo]

On the previous page someone said the headphones worked better with Eneloop batteries.
 
Can the docks recharging station work with other batteries (i.e. Eneloop) or does it only recharge the stock batteries?

 

[wjh7]

I've had the RS 220 for roundabout 6 months now; yes, the dock works with other rechargeable batteries fine.
couldnt really comment whether Eneloops provide better performance as theres no way to test it reliably.