Ultrasone PRO 650 First Impressions/Mini Review...And a question about PRO 900

[benzoylmethyl]

So these things are about what I expected, honestly.  I think if they were my first set of headfi cans, I wouldn't buy another set, ever.  However, they aren't, and because of that...I'm just not that happy with them. They are very good all-'rounders for a basshead on the go, I would think, but they're certainly no XB700s. 
 
They're more difficult to drive, as is evidenced by the fact that I had to crank foobar up from about 30% to about 80%, going straight from the 700s to the PROs.  The bass doesn't get as low, nor is it as thick, full, textured, or--though it may catch me some flak around here--as impactful as the bass on the 700s.  :-/  That's not to say it's not there.  It is, and it's very good, clean, high quality bass.  But it's just not what it's hyped to be.
 
There are a few things that have surprised me...The sound stage is pretty amazing.  I have to admit, I'm one of the ones who is now an S-Logic fan.  I have a couple of go-to songs for bass testing, most of which I am ridiculously familiar with.  One of them is Far East Movement's "Like a G6"--it got so much airtime that it's ingrained into my brain.  I never once realized that at about the 3 minute mark, there is a part where the track mixing roams from waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay out in left field to waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay out in right field.  In my wife's BMW, in my JL-based Rav4 system, on any of my other cans...I've never noticed it until these.  It was trippy as hell.
 
The highs are not piercing, and though they can sound a little "metallic" (I don't really like using words like that to describe sound, but whatever), they never sound bad.  Very detailed and precise, is what I would say, rather than metallic.  I found the Grado SR60i's to be too harsh for me, and these are not that harsh. I've been listening to them for about an hour or so, and I don't have any signs of fatigue yet.  Some songs are little hot, but it's more exciting and less stab-in-the-ears.
 
They are pretty friggin comfortable, though much bigger than they look in pics.  Kinda heavy, too.  My ears aren't as hot and sweaty in these as they get in my 700s.
 
I like them enough to consider upgrading, so please don't take this review as negative despite the overall tone of it.  I don't dislike anything about them, which is a very good thing; but if these are exemplary of the bass in the US lineup, I think it's overhyped.  I just didn't get that ****-eating grin I got when I first tugged the big ol' XB700s on my head.
 
Which brings me to my question(s)...how do these compare to the PRO900s?  How is the bass on these vs the 900s, and is the treble on the 900s spikier? 

 

[Acix]

Good but short review... the treble on the Pro-900 is a little more smooth compare to the 650's, but the bass is much more boosted on the 900's. For me the Pro-900 had to much bass, but if you want to check your bass addiction go ahead and check them out. Here is my Ultrasone comparison : http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/401879/an-ultrasone-comparison

 

[benzoylmethyl]

My completely non-head-fi coworker just auditioned the XB700 and the PRO650 side by side (first time he has ever listened to either one).  I think his take on the comparison was very near perfect.  He said "The boxing gloves are like sitting in a car with a real good system, maybe a couple of 12s in it [...] The blue ones are like being in a nice movie theater that has THX and $h9t."

 

[benzoylmethyl]

Quote:

Good but short review... the treble on the Pro-900 is a little more smooth compare to the 650's, but the bass is much more boosted on the 900's. For me the Pro-900 had to much bass, but if you want to check your bass addiction go ahead and check them out. Here is my Ultrasone comparison : http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/401879/an-ultrasone-comparison

Thanks for that.  If the 900's treble is smoother and the bass is fatter, it sounds almost perfect.  ****.  Now I'm gonna have to ask for the PRO900 and the XB1000 for my anniversary!  LOL

 

[benzoylmethyl]

Anyone who has any Ultrasone...put this song on 720p, close your eyes, and watch the S-Logic magic.  It's subtle if I'm doing anything else but listening, but I was just laying in bed and that came up on random play...I think I'm an Ultrasone fan. It's one of my wife's favorite songs, so I've heard it about a hundred times.  There is so much spatial subtlety to it that I never knew was there. 
 

  

 

[benzoylmethyl]

Anyone want a gently used set of PRO650s cheap?

 

[BattleBrat]

I just plugged in my PRO650's (they were my first Head-fi purchase too)  and watched that video, cant believe you got me to watch that hipster emo garbage, any way listen to some Amish Rake Fight that'll show off the SLogic, no hipster emo garbage needed. The PRO650's aren't bad, but you need to listen to them for a good 15 min before they settle in, once you're in the zone they're good!
I do plan on buying the Pro900's (They are my next full sized can purchase) but I'm in IEM land right now, and plan on staying for a while

 

[benzoylmethyl]

BUAHAHAHAHA! 
 
Like I said, it was one of my wife's favorite songs of all time.  It's actually on my system test list, along with Outkast - ATLiens, Flux Pavilion - Cracks, Incubus - Drive, Rise Against - Endgame, NOFX - Scavenger Type, Killswitch Engage - My Curse, Nina Simone - O-O-H Child, and Miles Davis - Freddie Freeloader.  They're all songs I've listened to about 10,000 times on a really wide variety of car, home, and headphone systems.  I have no idea how they're "supposed" to sound, but it's a really solid base for comparison across a wide range of genres, and it tests almost aspect imaginable of a sound system.
 
I agree about having to let your ears adjust.  Even after the adjustment period, I'm really not a fan of how they sound with acoustic and rock.  Soundgarden in particular sounds like crap.  I'm still trying to decide if i want to upgrade or just sell these bitches.  I think I'm gonna wait until I can hear them from a decent source before I make up my mind.
 
That said...I was expecting Amish Rake Fight to be rockabilly or folk punk...instead, they're like a more aggressive Telepopmusik.  It's pretty interesting, really.

 

[benzoylmethyl]

Hmm...So Young Jeezy - Put On has some of the deepest bass of any hiphop song I've ever heard.  The ~sub-20hz notes are imperceptible with the 650s--there's just a blank spot where those notes are supposed to be. I can feel those notes tickling my ear drums with the 700s. Overall, though, the sound is preferable to the 700s. 
 
I found out that part of my problem with the cans in general was that i had a crappy seal.  My head's a little small, and I think these cans are a bit older because I don't have anything even remotely close to the kind of clamping force people usually complain about.  If i just barely press my fingers to the bottom of the cans, the seal tightens up and the bass is much closer to what I was hoping for. I felt around for the spot where the seal is imperfect (just behind the earlobe on my neck), and i just wiggled them around until I managed a good seal.