[jay2406]

Hi,

My beloved Grado 80 headphones packed in last year and I have been moving from headphone to headphone to try and find the right pair for me that delivers better sound using my iPhone X. I listen to mostly metal and rock.

I first tried the Sennheiser Momentum 2.0 wireless at £189. The build quality and materials used were excellent but I found my ears would become sore and heated after only an hour of use. The sound was detailed but not very exciting.

I then tried the Grado GW100 at £179. The build quality and materials were definitely cheaper than the Momentums but I was sure all the money would have went into the sound and they felt lighter and more comfortable which was nice. Disappointingly the sound did not match my expectations. There was less detail and the separation wasn’t good. I found they were more aggressive in the mids which at first I thought was more fun but during longer listening sessions just became tiring. I did prefer the wider soundstage however. They are very forward using BT but a little smoother when using cable.

Next I tried the Philips Fidelio X2 for £140. I find them uncomfortable at first when I use them but after messing around with them I can get a comfortable fit. Materials and build are very good. Sound wise I like the soundstage, very solid and smooth base and decent detail. Maybe I need a headphone amp as I feel while they are good they are not excellent maybe they are being held back but they have been the best so far.

Next I went for Sennheiser 6XX (still waiting delivery) at £180 which I fear my iPhone X will struggle to run. I am waiting for my Cyrus 6VS to return from repair. Will that be good enough to run them? I was looking into a Cyrus Sound Key or should I go with a magni 3 or objective 2 amp?

Any recommendations regarding a headphone amp would be great. Do I definitely need one? Have I been unfair to any of the previous headphones?

If I get an amp I will re-test all the headphones before I start selling them off and keeping my favourite.

Thanks for any help.

 

[Monsterzero]

My beloved Grado 80 headphones packed in last year and I have been moving from headphone to headphone to try and find the right pair for me that delivers better sound using my iPhone X. I listen to mostly metal and rock.

There is a ton of info in this thread. Start at the most recent posts,and work backwards.

Next I tried the Philips Fidelio X2 for £140. I find them uncomfortable at first when I use them but after messing around with them I can get a comfortable fit. Materials and build are very good. Sound wise I like the soundstage, very solid and smooth base and decent detail. Maybe I need a headphone amp as I feel while they are good they are not excellent maybe they are being held back but they have been the best so far.

The X2 are easy to drive,and while an amp can help pretty much any headphone,it wont transform the X2 into a rock/metal master. The bass is fun,as is the wide staging,but the mids arent what one would want for great metal reproduction.

Next I went for Sennheiser 6XX (still waiting delivery) at £180 which I fear my iPhone X will struggle to run.

Thats correct. Much more difficult to drive that the Grado or X2.
Theyre very good for rock,with excellent mids and a nice midbass slam,but I found them too slow for metal.

Any recommendations regarding a headphone amp would be great.

Whats your budget for headphones? Same question for amp.
Looking for mobile or at home use?

 

[ProtegeManiac]

Next I went for Sennheiser 6XX (still waiting delivery) at £180 which I fear my iPhone X will struggle to run. I am waiting for my Cyrus 6VS to return from repair. Will that be good enough to run them?

Most likely. It has the headphone amp at the rear - that reduces the likelihood that it uses some cheap circuit that takes the preamp signal and barely really amps them but instead just has a circuit to take the amp output stage signal and renders it more usable for a high impedance load that might need much lower gain than what you'd get out of a speaker amp.

I was looking into a Cyrus Sound Key or should I go with a magni 3 or objective 2 amp?

Any recommendations regarding a headphone amp would be great. Do I definitely need one?

On a low impedance the headphone the Cyrus might be better; on low impedance, low sensitivity headphone, the O2 and Magni3 will likely be better.

Neither are concerns for the HD6XX. Some dedicated headphone amps will likely still be better, but if you have that amp I see no reason to blow money on something else, unless you can easily blow money and/or need to have the headphone and speaker systems in different locations.

Have I been unfair to any of the previous headphones?

Not really, they were all fairly easy to drive. The impedance doesn't seem to have been affected the amp's or the phone's driving capability either.

At worst a little bit more power than the iPhone's might have gotten the X2 a little louder and cleaner but the overall response won't change; your perception of the response though might vary if it got that much louder and cleaner though, but even then I wouldn't really worry too much about it in regards to whether you'll like it.

If anything what I would worry about is that the HD6XX is tonally similar to the X2, and technically is even harder to drive but the problem is the soundstage is a little bit smaller than the X2, so it might not be that big of an improvement other than a cleaner low end especially if its low impedance would be a problem for the 6VS. If not, you might be getting a little bit less sound-wise; longer term ownership though the Sennheiser is a safer bet since it's easier to replace the earpads. Philips doesn't sell spare parts, including the earpads, and aftermarket pads aren't a direct replacement, so some DIY-ing is needed.

 

[jay2406]

There is a ton of info in this thread. Start at the most recent posts,and work backwards.

The X2 are easy to drive,and while an amp can help pretty much any headphone,it wont transform the X2 into a rock/metal master. The bass is fun,as is the wide staging,but the mids arent what one would want for great metal reproduction.

Thats correct. Much more difficult to drive that the Grado or X2.
Theyre very good for rock,with excellent mids and a nice midbass slam,but I found them too slow for metal.



Whats your budget for headphones? Same question for amp.
Looking for mobile or at home use?

Thanks for the reply Monsterzero. Yeah the mids are not great on the X2, I am hoping to find a headphone that has lots of detail that allow me to hear things I haven't before in a recording. That sound open and full like my old Grados and have excellent separation so I can follow any instrument I want with ease. My budget would be max £1,000 all in and they are for home use only. I don't know if I should just stop messing about and jump straight to a reconditioned pair Sennheiser HD800S and hope my Cyrus amp can properly run it.

 

[jay2406]

If anything what I would worry about is that the HD6XX is tonally similar to the X2, and technically is even harder to drive but the problem is the soundstage is a little bit smaller than the X2, so it might not be that big of an improvement other than a cleaner low end especially if its low impedance would be a problem for the 6VS. If not, you might be getting a little bit less sound-wise; longer term ownership though the Sennheiser is a safer bet since it's easier to replace the earpads. Philips doesn't sell spare parts, including the earpads, and aftermarket pads aren't a direct replacement, so some DIY-ing is needed.[/QUOTE]

Thanks for the reply. I will post a quick update once the HD6XX arrives and I have had a few days to listen to them. I had read the 6xx had a smaller soundstage but I was hoping the detail and the mids along with the comfort fit would win me over the other ones but I will have to wait and see.

 

[Mhog55]

Sennheiser HD 25. On ear, but an extremely healthy sound for rock and metal. Definitely a top pick among butt rockers such as myself. Not sure if your IPhone X will drive them to their full potential though.
58X is a better choice for aggressive music than the 650 imo. Still not sure about the IPhone again. I also use the Meze 99 Classics with the original pads, but sourcing a pair with the old pads can be challenging.