[BobMajor]

Just for the record, the Hyperion and Oracle cables are still available from Locus Design on a bespoke basis. See Lee's site:
http://locus-design.com/headphone_cable.html

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

My Hyperion cable is a perfect match for the HD800, and improves their sonic balance quite well.

 

[Stoney]

It occurs to me there is perhaps no such thing as "too revealing" of amplifier quality.  "Revealing" could be used synonymously with "transparent," in which case all music and sound quality would be heard for what it is.  "Too revealing" should instead be reworded as "too magnifying" of certain flaws in amplifiers, or sources or recordings.  In particular, given the slight midrange recess and the bright peak immediately above it in the HD800s (at least in the HeadRoom measurement and in my listening to 3 units on 5 amps), any amp or source that tends to have a thin, bright midrange would sound uncomfortable.  The converse will sound better, perhaps better than a neutral amp and source.  
 
I do hope that the several HD800s I heard were not representative of all production units, but there have been enough comments and reviews about brightness to indicate that at least many of them are. 
 
<a href="http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/197776/sennheiser-hd650-appreciation-thread/1364">Sennheiser HD650 Appreciation Thread!! - compared to HD800's brightness</a>
 
<a href="http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/197776/sennheiser-hd650-appreciation-thread/1387">Sennheiser HD650 Appreciation Thread!! - Stoney's posts regarding HD800</a>
 
(OK, it seems HTML links aren't accepted by this bulletin board?)
 
 
<a href="http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/197776/sennheiser-hd650-appreciation-thread/1364">Sennheiser HD650 Appreciation Thread!! - compared to HD800's brightness</a>
<a href="http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/197776/sennheiser-hd650-appreciation-thread/1387">Sennheiser HD650 Appreciation Thread!! - Page 93 - Stoney's posts regarding HD800</a>
 
<a href="http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/197776/sennheiser-hd650-appreciation-thread/1364">Sennheiser HD650 Appreciation Thread!! - compared to HD800's brightness</a>
<a href="http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/197776/sennheiser-hd650-appreciation-thread/1387">Sennheiser HD650 Appreciation Thread!! - Page 93 - Stoney's posts regarding HD800</a>
 
<a href="http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/197776/sennheiser-hd650-appreciation-thread/1364">Sennheiser HD650 Appreciation Thread!! - compared to HD800's brightness</a>
<a href="http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/197776/sennheiser-hd650-appreciation-thread/1387">Sennheiser HD650 Appreciation Thread!! - Page 93 - Stoney's posts regarding HD800</a>
 
<a href="http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/197776/sennheiser-hd650-appreciation-thread/1364">Sennheiser HD650 Appreciation Thread!! - compared to HD800's brightness</a>
<a href="http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/197776/sennheiser-hd650-appreciation-thread/1387">Sennheiser HD650 Appreciation Thread!! - Page 93 - Stoney's posts regarding HD800</a>

 

[Dibster]

I'm considering selling everything I have and getting the HD 800. Currently I have the HD650's and K701's. I'm curious to hear some opinions on the following things:
 
Do the HD 800 really project the soundstage before the user, like speakers, instead of "in-head" like other headphones? Some claim so, while others rebuke the claim.
 
I read a lot about the HD800's exaggerated treble. I prefer my HD650's over the K701's, but the HD650's seem to have much more high treble ( 10k+ range ) than the K701's, and I have to resort to equalizing it down to make the HD650's tonality more to my tastes. Un-equalized, it's like sticking needles into my ears on some records. Has anyone tried equalizing the HD800's to bring down the excess brightness? How did it work for you?
 
As I mentioned, I prefer the HD650 to the K701's. I feel the K701's color the upper midrange and lower treble to the point where everything sounds unnatural and plastic. It doesn't help that they have zero bass impact. You can't even EQ it out since you just get more of a wall of bass instead of impact. The only fault I find in the HD650 is the treble, which is kind of splashy and incoherent, as well as exaggerated in amount in the top end ( subjectively, I put little faith in headphone frequency measurements as they rarely match what I'm hearing ). The midrange on the 650's is tonally just wonderful, best I've head from speakers or headphones, and it's the main reason they're my favorite phones. The question is; does the HD800 retain the 650's lush midrange tonality, or does it behave more nasally?

 

[vrln]

My experiences with the HD 800 vs 650...
 
1.) Soundstage. In my experience the HD 800 is indeed more speakerlike than any other headphone I´ve heard. I wouldn´t say it´s directly comparable to listening to speakers, but it is closer to that ideal than any other headphone I´ve had the opportunity to try. It depends on the amplifier though, if paired with an amp that also sounds a bit distant it can create a pretty awesome effect considering it is in the end, just a headphone.
 
2.) The HD 650 is probably one of the tamest headphones out there when it comes to treble (in a good way). The HD 800 is significantly more aggressive and energetic, and yes, clearly more sibilant than the HD 650. Unfortunately I don´t have any experience on trying EQ to fix it though.
 
3.) Midrange on the HD 800... Depends on the album, if the album is treble heavy then the lushness can be broken, but in general the HD 800 has far superior resolution, comfort and especially imaging.

 

[InnerSpace]

Quote:

 
Do the HD 800 really project the soundstage before the user, like speakers, instead of "in-head" like other headphones? Some claim so, while others rebuke the claim.
 

The way I would describe it is like this: suppose you're sitting on a sofa listening to a pair of really great minimonitors - small, narrow, throwing a small but terrific 3D image front to back and side to side into the space between the speakers.  You shuffle off the sofa to the floor.  Now you shuffle closer to the speakers.  You move, but the image doesn't.  It just keeps on hanging there in space.  You keep on moving forward until your head is right in the image.  That's the HD800 effect.  Not exactly like speakers.  The image is not arrayed left-to-right ten feet in front of you, with some depth component.  It ends up surrounding you, much smaller than life, like your head is in a two-foot bubble of sound.

 

[jamato8]

Quote:

Quote:

 
Do the HD 800 really project the soundstage before the user, like speakers, instead of "in-head" like other headphones? Some claim so, while others rebuke the claim.
 

The way I would describe it is like this: suppose you're sitting on a sofa listening to a pair of really great minimonitors - small, narrow, throwing a small but terrific 3D image front to back and side to side into the space between the speakers.  You shuffle off the sofa to the floor.  Now you shuffle closer to the speakers.  You move, but the image doesn't.  It just keeps on hanging there in space.  You keep on moving forward until your head is right in the image.  That's the HD800 effect.  Not exactly like speakers.  The image is not arrayed left-to-right ten feet in front of you, with some depth component.  It ends up surrounding you, much smaller than life, like your head is in a two-foot bubble of sound.

Cool, bubbles are cool. :^)
 
How are the 800's holding up? Any wear on the plastic housing showing through the paint?
 

 

[InnerSpace]

Quote:

How are the 800's holding up? Any wear on the plastic housing showing through the paint?
 

I just checked for you.  Yeah, a little.  The left frame has a nick and the right frame has two.  But they've been well used.  I took out the black foam dust covers from the inside ... I had a gut feeling they weren't specified by the engineers, and they look much better without.  No change in the sound.

 

[MacedonianHero]

Quote:

I'm considering selling everything I have and getting the HD 800. Currently I have the HD650's and K701's. I'm curious to hear some opinions on the following things:
 
Do the HD 800 really project the soundstage before the user, like speakers, instead of "in-head" like other headphones? Some claim so, while others rebuke the claim.
 
I read a lot about the HD800's exaggerated treble. I prefer my HD650's over the K701's, but the HD650's seem to have much more high treble ( 10k+ range ) than the K701's, and I have to resort to equalizing it down to make the HD650's tonality more to my tastes. Un-equalized, it's like sticking needles into my ears on some records. Has anyone tried equalizing the HD800's to bring down the excess brightness? How did it work for you?
 
As I mentioned, I prefer the HD650 to the K701's. I feel the K701's color the upper midrange and lower treble to the point where everything sounds unnatural and plastic. It doesn't help that they have zero bass impact. You can't even EQ it out since you just get more of a wall of bass instead of impact. The only fault I find in the HD650 is the treble, which is kind of splashy and incoherent, as well as exaggerated in amount in the top end ( subjectively, I put little faith in headphone frequency measurements as they rarely match what I'm hearing ). The midrange on the 650's is tonally just wonderful, best I've head from speakers or headphones, and it's the main reason they're my favorite phones. The question is; does the HD800 retain the 650's lush midrange tonality, or does it behave more nasally?

I have owned both the HD650s and K701s and I would sell them both in a HEARTBEAT for the HD800s....oh wait...I did! No headphone I've heard/owned images sound stage L to R and front to back as well. Their bass is deep, taught, defined and sublime. Their mids are nice and forward, clear with no issues to my ears. Their treble is nicely extended and if a bit too much, then a good aftermarket pure copper cable should tame that. My DHC OCC Molecule cable does the job quite well in that regard.
 
I found the K701s quite nasal like; especially compared to the HD650s, but not the HD800s. I would also suggest maybe you look (or better yet listen to

) the LCD-2s and beyer T1s as well before dropping $1400 down on a single pair of headphones.

 

[upstateguy]

Quote:

......   but the HD650's seem to have much more high treble ( 10k+ range ) than the K701's, and I have to resort to equalizing it down to make the HD650's tonality more to my tastes. Un-equalized, it's like sticking needles into my ears on some records.

That's the strangest thing I've ever heard. 

 
Are you saying that you have a bright pair of 650s that need to be toned down?
 
USG

 

[Dibster]

Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying. I find it quite strange since all I hear about is how "dark" the 650's are supposed to be, but the K701's are clearly more muted in the high treble range ( above sibilance range ) than my 650's. The 650's are more toned down in the sibilance range IE low treble, though. I have a simple 10-band software EQ and I find that with the K701's the first thing that starts to bother me at high listening levels is the 4-8khz range, which I EQ down a bit. On the 650's, it's the 16khz tab that I have to pull down a few DB. I looked for specific treble spikes in that range with a parametric EQ but I didn't find any, the whole high range is too much for me. Maybe this is the supposed "new" revision of the 650's. I keep hearing reports of Sennheiser changing the 650's around 2008 or so, but nothing conclusive.
 
Thanks for the replies folks.

 

[DjAmTraX]

Two days into my HD800, I'm not that impressed.  I played it on my Sony CDP-XA7es headphone out, Denon DCD-1650AR headphone out (best so far), & Bellari HA540 OTL tube amp.  The sound is just okay, highs are sharp (a bit much), bass is lacking, mids are smooth, but lacks energy.  I have a PS Audio GCHA headphone amp coming in a few days.  I really hope it pairs well with it otherwise  I feel that  there too picky with the power source.  

 

[Dibster]

Which of your phones do you prefer?

 

[DjAmTraX]

Quote:

Which of your phones do you prefer?

I haven't opened the AKG 702 yet.  So far, I like the D7000.  It plays nice with almost everything I throw at it.  It sounds BEST with the Bellari HA540 OTL tube amp (Mullerd tube).  
 
I wish there was a Lehmann dealer in San Francisco so I can try the HD800 with it.  Don't really want to spend $1499 to buy it blindly.

 

[upstateguy]

Quote:

Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying. I find it quite strange since all I hear about is how "dark" the 650's are supposed to be, but the K701's are clearly more muted in the high treble range ( above sibilance range ) than my 650's. The 650's are more toned down in the sibilance range IE low treble, though. I have a simple 10-band software EQ and I find that with the K701's the first thing that starts to bother me at high listening levels is the 4-8khz range, which I EQ down a bit. On the 650's, it's the 16khz tab that I have to pull down a few DB. I looked for specific treble spikes in that range with a parametric EQ but I didn't find any, the whole high range is too much for me. Maybe this is the supposed "new" revision of the 650's. I keep hearing reports of Sennheiser changing the 650's around 2008 or so, but nothing conclusive.
 
Thanks for the replies folks.

May I ask if you bought those headphones new, or were they used?