[Sparky14]

Now that I am a "contributing" head-fi'er as of today

, permit me to seek the opinions of some of you experts. I am wondering if I should upgrade my Senn HD580s to the HD650s.

Current setup: HD580 (Oelbach cable), Rega Ear amp, Toshiba SD-K750 or 4G iPod.

I know my source is the weak link here, but this is my "at work" setup, so the source stays in the open while I can lock away the Rega and headphones.

I've done some searching here, and I know that many love the 650s, but I have also seen that the benefits may not be great from such a low-fi source.

So, do you think the 580/650 upgrade would be worth it for my low/mid-fi system? Thanks for the input!

 

[OceanEnthusiast]

that is the question

 

[Tyll Hertsens]

With the coming of the AKG K701 and new Beyer DT880, and the facxt that the 650 bears such a strong resemblance to the 580, I'm tempted to suggest that you look into a headphone purchase that would give you a different but also good sound so that you can switch back and forth to suite your mood, music, source, ect. The 880 is more different from the 580 than the K701 is, so might be worth jumping to that if you want something light and airy compared to the warm laid-back sound of the 580. I tend to think that because you have a decent headphone in the 580 that it's probably worth waiting till you can get to a meet and have a listen to these other cans before making too serious a descision.

 

[milkpowder]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tyll Hertsens With the coming of the AKG K701 and new Beyer DT880, and the facxt that the 650 bears such a strong resemblance to the 580, I'm tempted to suggest that you look into a headphone purchase that would give you a different but also good sound so that you can switch back and forth to suite your mood, music, source, ect. The 880 is more different from the 580 than the K701 is, so might be worth jumping to that if you want something light and airy compared to the warm laid-back sound of the 580. I tend to think that because you have a decent headphone in the 580 that it's probably worth waiting till you can get to a meet and have a listen to these other cans before making too serious a descision.

I completely agree. The HD580 is IMO too similar to the HD650. If you desire to have the best Sennheiser, then get the HD650 (debatable, I know). Otherwise, I would search for a different sound signature. Like Tyll said, the K701 or new DT880 are both competitive alternatives.

 

[stewtheking]

What about a Grado? I find that my HD580 and RS-1 is a nice combination, and they each do different great things for my music. Maybe try an sr-60 to see if you like the sound signature?

 

[Sparky14]

Thanks everybody, I'll hold onto the HD580s for now and try to get to one of these meets and check out the others.

Sadly, I missed a SoCal meet a month or so ago, didn't even see the announcements. Just getting back into the audiophile mode after dumping the Martin-Logan speakers some 6-8 years ago (marriage, moving, kids, you know the story).

Stew, I do have the SR-60s. I do prefer the upper midrange sound of the SR-60s to the HD580, but everything else I prefer the HD-580. I'll have to take a listen to some SR225s or SR325s somewhere and see how those sound.