The Sennheiser Orpheus 2? A First Look At The Sennheiser HE-1 (The New Orpheus)

[tonykaz]

Mr.saidentary the "unwashed",
 
The promotion of this product is way over the top.
 
Jude reviewing with the HUGO is telling.
 
The System itself is Art and probably superb quality.
 
I'd like to see Ludwig, Katz, Atomic Bob and that class of Audio Creators who own known "Standards" to be the ones describing the performance of these things. Of course that would be the system's musical abilities.
 
The ergonometrics are something anyone can evaluate, Lady GaGa would be good at it, probably.
 
This System is something for the Front Cover of Glossy Mags, it's not for us the Unwashed Masses.  
 
I'm disappointed to see our ( Trusted? ) reviewers falling all over themselves to get "invited" for a listen. 
 
At the Big Auto Shows you'll see the super expensive Cars velvet-roped off with only a select few able to get escorted up close.  These Sennheisers are that sort of thing.
 
A tiny few will be "Privileged" enough.
 
Well, now it's happening in headphones, I hope Sennheiser is the only one to pull it off or know how to pull it off, any outfit could and would try if they knew how. 
 
It's the top 1% buying control of our little world.
 
Goldmound have been selling a modified Hifiman headphone for $10,000.  We haven't seen our reviewers falling over that one. ( a good sign, I thought ) 
 
Ok, let Sennheiser have their fun. Let the reviewers make a buck from it.
 
Tony in Michigan

 

[superlowfi]

I think that's kind of what is a bit disappointing, if not surprising, about the Orpheus successor here. It's about the media, the press, the "event", the pomp, the circumstance. The price is as much a feature to make headlines as anything else. It's a lifestyle product for people who care about things like marble construction, and having tubes slowly rise out of an enclosure, and a presentation box integrated into the headphone itself so every time you use it you can feel a bit special.
 
The actual sound seems to take a back burner to all the pomp and circumstance. And it's a bit disappointing, not to mention a rather stark contrast to the original Orpheus.
 
If there is anything to take away from the fact that this is the best Sennheiser can do with limitless budgets, no concept of consumer products, and a pie in the sky approach to headphone development - we have likely already peaked in terms of performance of headphones, perhaps even decades ago. All that's left is lifestyle products. And that is a bit sad to consider.

 

[saidentary]

 
Mr.saidentary the "unwashed",
 
The promotion of this product is way over the top.
 
..............................................  
It's the top 1% buying control of our little world.
 
..............................................
 
Ok, let Sennheiser have their fun. Let the reviewers make a buck from it.
 
Tony in Michigan

Well, it is a bit irksome, but for me the main issue is the assertions of being the "best" with almost no supportive evidence.  It's one thing if the sonic performance is truly at such a transcendent level.  It's quite another if it's just fluff and bling.  As for the top 1% buying control of our little world, my view is more that they're being duped if the sonic performance doesn't match the aesthetics and ergonomics.  But at the end of the day I agree with "let Sennheiser have their fun."  I don't begrudge someone who can afford it buying something they perceive as valuable and worthwhile.  But I won't personally plunk down money without first listening and deciding for myself whether this (or any other) product is worth its price.

 

[saidentary]

  I think that's kind of what is a bit disappointing, if not surprising, about the Orpheus successor here. It's about the media, the press, the "event", the pomp, the circumstance. The price is as much a feature to make headlines as anything else. It's a lifestyle product for people who care about things like marble construction, and having tubes slowly rise out of an enclosure, and a presentation box integrated into the headphone itself so every time you use it you can feel a bit special.
 
The actual sound seems to take a back burner to all the pomp and circumstance. And it's a bit disappointing, not to mention a rather stark contrast to the original Orpheus.
 
If there is anything to take away from the fact that this is the best Sennheiser can do with limitless budgets, no concept of consumer products, and a pie in the sky approach to headphone development - we have likely already peaked in terms of performance of headphones, perhaps even decades ago. All that's left is lifestyle products. And that is a bit sad to consider.

Total agreement up until the last paragraph.  For the last paragraph it's substantial, but not necessarily total, agreement.  I don't think we can say one way or the other whether the claims about the superlative sound are really true.  I certainly agree that the emphasis on externals raises one's eyebrows from an audiophile standpoint.  However, there seems to be some indication that a great deal of thought went into the engineering of this product.  For example, their contention that a 2.4 micron diaphragm is the optimal thickness for sonic resolution + resonance control.  I have no idea whether they're right about that.  But at least they seem to have researched it (although again no supportive evidence was offered in the short video snippet I saw).  On the other hand, their implied contention that frequency extension "well beyond the range of human hearing" is somehow beneficial to the product's sound is really an insult to our intelligence.  To make a crude and obvious analogy: I don't need a fancy light bulb to emit rays with frequencies above or below the visible spectrum, either.  And I wouldn't pay more money to acquire such a light bulb with the extra light spectrum that I can't see anyway.  Gimme a break!

 

[Nicst3n]

My life has meaning again

 

[Sennheiser]

  Have they said anything about how many will be made? Because unless it's a limited run it's unlikely to increase in value over time. They only made 300 of the first orpheus, not sure if all of them are still around.

 
The new Orpheus is not a limited edition. Yet it is also not a mass-market product. A product of this caliber is naturally limited. Because it is made by hand, it is impossible to make more than 250 of them a year.

 

[applebook]

 
Mr.saidentary the "unwashed",
 
The promotion of this product is way over the top.

 
Well, in the world of ridiculous audio marketing, this trumps them all.
 
The SR-009 seems like a bargain can now, doesn't it?

 

[tonykaz]

Mr.saidentary,
 
I certainly can't speak for best of anything, especially headphones.  I've listened to various 'meet' headphones, bought same only to discover the product bought performed differently.  
 
I own a few Sennheiser RS120 wireless, one in particular has sound approaching my HD580s which consistently outperform the headphones I hear at meets.  
 
I'm say'n Sennhieser's performance is more consistent than the others but 'not-so-good' ones are still out there.  
 
Every single HD800 I've heard is superb, it's the only headphone I can say that about. 
 
I gave up on the Electrostatics long ago, way too tricky to get em working properly.  
 
Mr. Jude's superlatives are a scripted TV Show, he's a professional "plugger" for Manufacturer's Sales Staff.  His business is supporting sales not being a Analyst.  
 
We still have to love him for this format where we can compare notes and share ideas.
 
I can't see these things being worth the price but for some folks the price won't matter much compared to the exclusive nature of the ownership experience. 
 
It does portend a future Bastille Day for us, which is my greater concern.
 
Tony in Michigan

 

[Sal1950]

I'll take 2. 
I can run one off a converter in my pickup.

 

[tonykaz]

Mr.Applebook,
 
Yes!, Stax is good value but a person need prepare himself for the tricky parts of ownership.  
 
I've owned the Stax, I've owned the planers, I've owned the Dynamics .    
 
The Dynamics are the easiest to get good results from, the easiest to purchase, hold the highest resale value, etc….
 
I'll own another STAX system when I'm confined to the Lazyboy for the rest of my days.
 
Except the HD800s are so dam good, phew!
 
Tony in Michigan

 

[tonykaz]

Isn't the HD800 made by hand? 
 
I thought I saw a Video with a skilled German Lady making em.
 
Tony in Michigan

 

[Sennheiser]

Here's a couple of articles from our BlueStage magazine on the the new Orpheus. 
 
The future of audio: Orpheus
The next milestone

 
The future if audio: Steve Levine
Work of Art Design: "These Headphones Are a Work of Art"
 

 

[deafanddumb]

I am a sennheiser fanboy but 50.000Euro? This is getting ridiculous.

Behold the Bugatti Veyron of headphones...VW actually made a loss on each car even though the cost over a million dollars each....I think the same will be true here....it's a demonstration of brand might....a reputation sealer....well done to the Orpheus team for creating dreams....even if it's as grotesque as it is amazing...

 

[Music Alchemist]

  Here's a couple of articles from our BlueStage magazine on the the new Orpheus. 

 
So is the full official name of the headphone Sennheiser Orpheus HE 1060?

 

[kerrys30]

can go on bucket list to hopefully get a listen too, one day.