[Doctor Fuse]

The 12 year old in the house has decided to go to bed at 10pm, instead of after midnight, and so I've had to use headphones for my late-night listening now. Apparently 12-year-old hearing is supersonic bionic, as he can hear the sound bleeding from my beloved Grado SR-80is FROM UPSTAIRS! I begrudgingly looked in the local used classifieds, and found an interesting item - SoundMagic HD150 closed-back headphones. I checked them out, gave them a listen, and was immediately impressed by the wide open, airy but detailed sound, with excellent bass. And they do not bleed [much. They have a pin hole vent which lets a bit of sound out. The tween hasn't complained though]. I paid $90, which to me is an exorbitant sum usually preserved for purchasing British loudspeakers or 70s turntables with wow & flutter figures of <0.04%. After almost a week of listening, I am very satisfied with this purchase. The extended frequency range means there is more high hiss on vinyl than my Grados, but that is what tone controls are for, right? Bass is very good, visceral almost. So much better than the Grados, which tend to distort when the bass drum comes in on my favourite 24/96 FLAC of Stravinsky's Rite of Spring (Nezet-Seguin/Philadelphia, DG). The SoundMagics take it in stride. I was a bit concerned about a totally Chinese product (there are reviews online about the frame connectors breaking, which renders them useless and concerns me a bit), both for longevity and customer support, but perhaps I have my concerns misplaced: the same week I got the phones, my used, Made-In-The-USA PS Audio Digital Link III DAC arrived....and has an audible hiss in the right channel. Turns out there is a faulty op-amp at the unbalanced output, even though the unit is plugged as having "all discrete components". Argghh. Will someone PLEEEAASE make America make great products again? Jus' kiddin'...

 

[mgh24]

Glad to hear you are enjoying them.  I paid $200 for my first pair, and I consider them a bargain at that price.  I went through a lot of headphones, and though I do not consider myself to have an excellent ear, I always came back to the HP150.
 
I just picked up a bass-head set of cans to play with, and I think they will be a lot of fun, but no replacement for the 150s!

 

[The Third]

You guys NEED to try out this pairing: Galaxy Note 3 with the Soundmagic HP100/150. Holy dang do these two compliment each other. End game sound quality.

 

[mgh24]

The bass cannons I bought (JVC SZ2000) are fun, and with some EQing, you can get some incredible bass and sub-bass.
 
Funny thing though, they also have made me appreciate my go-to HP150 even more.  I use no EQ, using what I understand to be a neutral DAC/amp combo (Schitt Magni/Modi), and they sound wonderful.  I still think they emphasize the bass, but they suit me perfectly.
 
I could live without the JVC, but I don't ever want to be without my HP150.

 

[FireHotStickies]

Thinking about the Soundmagic HP 150 as an upgrade to my trusty pair of Sennheiser HD 215s, which are now more than 8 years old. Think in terms of sound, these would be what I'm looking for. I'm just worried about the comfort of them, as I seem to have quite a sensitive head and feel a burning painful sensation after just 30 minutes when I have tried some other headphones. Please see this thread for a detailed explanation of the cans I have tried: http://www.head-fi.org/t/834300/please-help-me-find-comfortable-closed-headphones.
 
So my question is, are the Soundmagic HP 150 headphones comfortable to wear for 2+ hours? Is the pressure from the headband noticeable and does it give you any pain after a few hours use?
 
I've also considered the Sennheiser HD 589 CS. I think these are probably more comfortable(?) but in terms of sound, I think the Soundmagic would be better suited to my preferences (balanced / neutral, wide soundstage). I've heard the Sennheisers are quite unforgiving of poor quality audio files and sources, which has put me off a bit. Do you think these would be better suited for me?
 
Thanks for the help guys. Hopefully I will come to the end of my search for an upgrade soon!

 

[DeeCee]

how are these for metal? i plan on buying them, but just saw this review that said that they might not be a good choice for metal - said lower mids are lacking, smth that might ruin listening to stuff Amon Amarth, i dont think i saw them mentioned in metal thread as well(maybe once or twice as a suggestion)
 
https://youtu.be/cQN9UVrt5pQ?t=8m30s
 
or its nothing to worry about ?

 

[joamlt22]

Hi guys,
Unfortunately i may have fried my drivers as now I get a crackling sound whenever bass is turned up.
I'm looking for a driver replacement since it only affects one side of the earphone.
Is there any one with a broken HP150 that are no more in use?
I honestly miss the sound of the HP150

 

[DecentLevi]

Hi guys,
Unfortunately i may have fried my drivers as now I get a crackling sound whenever bass is turned up.
I'm looking for a driver replacement since it only affects one side of the earphone.
Is there any one with a broken HP150 that are no more in use?
I honestly miss the sound of the HP150

From my extensive experience on this exact issue before, after thinking the same thing as you I eventually discovered the issue came down to HAIR TOUCHING THE DRIVER. Although this was with my HD-650, HD-600's and Beyer. DT-880, these are all dynamic driver headphones so the issue may be the same. On the HP-100 and 150 just pull off the earpads then there are screws you can remove to open the 'can. From there if you figure out how to remove the driver (carefully), you can examine to see if there's any hair touching the transducer and hopefully remove it, for a restored sound.

 

[GloriousLettuce]

These actually own metal. I can't imagine a better phone for metal besides Fidelio X2 (have it) and Final Audio Pandora Hope VI (a hunch)

Check my review on https://www.head-fi.org/f/threads/m...-fidelio-x2-hd598-hp150-any-many-more.853475/

 

[Gr33nL34f]

i want the new hp151's but the QC issues people seem to have with these scare me. i noticed the hanger that holds the cup to the headband can snap since its basically hollow on the backside (wondering if filling in the backside of the hanger with JB weld would beef it up in strength) just tried and returned the he400s, not my cup of tea.

 

[Slater]

i want the new hp151's but the QC issues people seem to have with these scare me. i noticed the hanger that holds the cup to the headband can snap since its basically hollow on the backside (wondering if filling in the backside of the hanger with JB weld would beef it up in strength) just tried and returned the he400s, not my cup of tea.

There is no way to reinforce the joint, and due to the odd design, no way to repair or replace it once it breaks.

I don't know why they continue to use this stupid design on multiple models, when it is the only weak link of their headphones.

The joint broke on my HP150, and after multiple failed attempts to repair/replace, I resorted into totally transplanting the cups onto a Superlux HD660 headband.

Luckily, my HP200 has not broken yet, but I baby them and hardly every use them for fear of breaking them.

 

[Gr33nL34f]

There is no way to reinforce the joint, and due to the odd design, no way to repair or replace it once it breaks.

I don't know why they continue to use this stupid design on multiple models, when it is the only weak link of their headphones.

The joint broke on my HP150, and after multiple failed attempts to repair/replace, I resorted into totally transplanting the cups onto a Superlux HD660 headband.

Luckily, my HP200 has not broken yet, but I baby them and hardly every use them for fear of breaking them.

wow just looked at that hd660, what a beyer clone that one is. how does the hp150 cups fit to or did you have to do anything special to get them to clamp on.

 

[Slater]

wow just looked at that hd660, what a beyer clone that one is. how does the hp150 cups fit to or did you have to do anything special to get them to clamp on.

haha, yeah it's a direct rip-off. Unfortunately the Superlux sounds terrible (and certainly nothing like it's Beredynamic twin. It's no biggie though, as I literally only bought them for the headband (to repair the soundMAGICs). You can also use the Superlux HD330, which is an open version of the 660. The Superlux HD330/660 can be had as cheap as $15-$20usd, so it's a no-brainer. It also comes with a hard carry/storage case, so that is like a free bonus.

As far as using them to repair the soundMAGICs, there are a few steps but nothing impossible if you know how to solder. I worked on this problem for close to a year (including trying to repair the broken joint, trying to make my joints to replace the broken soundMAGICs joints, and trying a number of other headphones before finding a compatible headband). The Superlux method is literally the only way I've found to repair the soundMAGICs and make them usable again.

I haven't done a detailed How2 yet, but it sounds like I probably should.

Basically, there's 3 main areas involved (2 of which are related to the wire):

1. Soldering a new wire between the cups
You can't reuse the stock wire from the soundMAGICs, because of the way it's routed through the headband and cups. So plan on soldering on a new wire between the cups once you mount them to the Superlux headband. You have 2 options - (desolder and) reuse the stock wire on the Superlux, or use a new wire. I used an AUX cord with nice OFC copper conductors that I just cut the ends off of, but you can use any small wire really (a good choice is also silver-plated wire from navships on ebay). Make sure you write down how the wiring goes on the soundMAGIC so you don't accidentally solder it incorrectly (swap channels, wire out of phase, etc). And like soldering on any headphone driver, you have to desolder and resolder very fast (<1 sec of soldering iron time) or you risk damaging the driver.

2. Routing the new wire
If you reuse the stock Superlux wire this step is done. If you want to use a new wire, routing a new wire through the Superlux headband is easy because the Superlux headband pad simply snaps on and off (just like a Beyerdynamic). You just have to make sure to leave a tiny bit of slack so the cups can tilt.

3. Mounting the cups
To get the soundMAGIC cups to fit onto the Superlux headband you have to reverse the little plastic ends - ie flip them around backwards. This is because there's a little protrusion on the plastic ends that acts as a 'cup stop', but this same protrusion interferes with the soundMAGIC cups. So flipping them around gets the protrusion out of the way. The plastic ends are held on by a tiny screw, and it only takes a few seconds to flip all 4 of them around.

Other than those things, it's a direct swap and perfect fit with the cups. And this is the best way to repair the soundMAGICs because you aren't just doing a driver swap - you are doing a cup swap. So the soundMAGICs will sound exactly the same. You can even swap the soundMAGIC ear pads with the Superlux pads, because they're the same diameter.

Be aware that you also lose all folding and rotation with the Superlux (just like with the Beredynamic) - the soundMAGIC becomes just a 'plain' headband, and has sliding adjustment only. But then again, the complicated and fragile DJ style folding/rotating system is what causes the soundMAGICs to fail in the 1st place.

I'll post a photo in a little bit showing how the plastic ends need to be swapped.

 

[Sound Quest]

Was considering the 150's, but decided to go with the 200's instead. Not disappointed. Surprising low end rumble for a open head can (although they're probably more semi-open than fully open, despite leaking out a great deal of sound). I would describe vocals as "relaxed". They have just enough presence in the music not to sound recessed. Highs are bright enough to be exciting and engaging, but not harsh or fatiguing thanks to a soft roll off. The soundstage isn't huge on these headphones, although I find soundstage can sound overly exaggerated on certain other open cans to my ears. It sounds just about right to my hearing on these headphones. Nice seperation between layers without sounding forced or manufactured.

Currently powering them with an oppo HA-2 Dac/Amp that I just recieved today. Really impressed by the neutrality of the DAC. It doesn't attempt to colour anything or make certain genres of music sound "better" than others. Everything just sounds the way it should. Only thing that surprised me was the amp. The SoundMagic 200's are only a 20ohm headphone, but I find myself using max volume on the high gain setting of the Oppo HA-2 for less compressed music. I'm not sure if this is normal for this type of amp, but the high gain setting is designed to power headphones in the 150 to 300ohm region, yet I find myself using it on these in some cases.

 

[Slater]

Was considering the 150's, but decided to go with the 200's instead. Not disappointed. Surprising low end rumble for a open head can (although they're probably more semi-open than fully open, despite leaking out a great deal of sound). I would describe vocals as "relaxed". They have just enough presence in the music not to sound recessed. Highs are bright enough to be exciting and engaging, but not harsh or fatiguing thanks to a soft roll off. The soundstage isn't huge on these headphones, although I find soundstage can sound overly exaggerated on certain other open cans to my ears. It sounds just about right to my hearing on these headphones. Nice seperation between layers without sounding forced or manufactured.

Currently powering them with an oppo HA-2 Dac/Amp that I just recieved today. Really impressed by the neutrality of the DAC. It doesn't attempt to colour anything or make certain genres of music sound "better" than others. Everything just sounds the way it should. Only thing that surprised me was the amp. The SoundMagic 200's are only a 20ohm headphone, but I find myself using max volume on the high gain setting of the Oppo HA-2 for less compressed music. I'm not sure if this is normal for this type of amp, but the high gain setting is designed to power headphones in the 150 to 300ohm region, yet I find myself using it on these in some cases.

Yeah, I have always been surprised by the amount of low end the HP200 has. A very fun headphone indeed!

I'm personally skeptical of the 20ohm figure myself. I have to use high gain on my FiiO E12A. I always assumed the 20ohm was a typo, and they left off a '0' (making it 200ohm instead of 20ohm, which is more believable as they behave more like a 200ohm can.