[I3eyond]

Thread title says it all!
 
Opinions?
 
Are the 'new' HD650s considered accurate or more colored in one direction or another? 

 

[BotByte]

T50RP amped well
 
What? Really, I've tested my modded T50RP against the HD650 and found them to beat them in all aspects. Results vary with modding so it's up to you.
 
Stock review here:
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/559233/review-fostex-t50rp-it-s-been-needing-a-review
 
Higher end Grado with the RA-1 are also fun but might be a little "crowded" with the forward sound.

 

[I3eyond]

Are HD650s considered natural/neutral?

 

[BotByte]

Quote:

Are HD650s considered natural/neutral?

Last time I heard them I though they were pretty colored. But I don't own them because of certain reasons and can't voice on that exact idea because I would need more time to tell. 

 

[tdockweiler]

I would definitely say they're slightly colored. IMO the HD-600 and more accurate to the recording and a lot more neutral. Not neutral, but closer to it.
Especially when it comes to the bass. The HD-650 has slightly boosted bass and often bleeds into the mids and kills some detail, but not too badly.
It varies between amps of course.
Then there are people that say the HD-600 has a peak in the upper mids, so that makes it less neutral than the HD-650

 
As much as I do like the HD-650, I kind of cringe when people suggest these as a Studio Monitor.
 
The HD-600 is worth a try..even the HD-598. Heck, for me the HD-598 is a lot more fun that either of these and it's much cheaper.
It doesn't have the extra bass of the HD-650, but has more forward sounding mids. Feels as if there's more treble too.
 
 

 

[Head Injury]

Quote:

Are HD650s considered natural/neutral?

They're considered to be on the darker side. More mid-bass and lower mid-range than neutral, less treble.
 
I can't confirm because I haven't heard the HD650, but some compare the LCD-2 to them as far as sound signature goes. If that's true, I'd say the HD650 would be pretty neutral with a flat solid state amp. Yours seems to apply.

 

[RexAeterna]

usually accurate headphones are not considered ''fun'' unless for monitoring use. depends on what you consider ''fun'' tho since everyones different.

 

[KB24]

They are absolutely not neutral. Many Head-fiers refer to its lack of highs as a veil. I think that's an euphemism. If you compare the HD650 with the DT880 600 ohms or the K702, you will realize what you are missing. HD650 are very specialized cans. The mids are the only thing accurate. The bass is too much and the treble is nowhere to be found.  This is good for certain genres such as House, Dubstep, and Hip-hop/Rap. I much prefer the DT880 600 ohms as an allround can. There is nothing missing from the 880s. Even Hip-hop/Rap has highs that would be missed with the 650s. I have only listened to the old drivers of the HD650. People say the new drivers magically fixed the problem, but Sennheiser has yet to release any literature that says that the new drivers are any different from the old ones. However, the only way you will know the difference is by listening to different cans for at least a week long. Going to guitar center and listening to new headphones for a few minutes, especially when you don't know the source, can be very deceiving. I say go with the DT880 600 ohms if you have a good amp.
 
 
Ram (Rom)

 

[I3eyond]

Interesting post with a lot of good insight.  Thank you sir.   While we are on topic, can you comment on the bass on the DT880 Pro 600ohm vs. the DT770 Pro 80ohm cans?  I absolutely hated the DT770s due to their bloated bass and overall veil [sig in rig].
Quote:

They are absolutely not neutral. Many Head-fiers refer to its lack of highs as a veil. I think that's a euphemism. If you compare the HD650 with the DT880 600 ohms or the K702, you will realize what you are missing. HD650 are very specialized cans. The mids are the only thing accurate. The bass is too much and the treble is nowhere to be found.  This is good for certain genres such as House, Dubstep, and Hip-hop/Rap. I much prefer the DT880 600 ohms as an allround can. There is nothing missing from the 880s. Even Hip-hop/Rap has highs that would be missed with the 650s. I have only listened to the old drivers of the HD650. People say the new drivers magically fixed the problem, but Sennheiser has yet to release any literature that says that the new drivers are any different from the old ones. However, the only way you will know the difference is by listening to different cans for at least a week long. Going to guitar center and listening to new headphones for a few minutes, especially when you don't know the source, can be very deceiving. I say go with the DT880 600 ohms if you have a good amp.
 
 
Ram (Rom)

 

 

[Remonster]

The HD650 (and any other Sennheisers I've ever heard) seem to be designed with long term listening comfort in mind. They value this over absolute sound quality and it's something I value as well which is why I've owned several and enjoyed them all. The highs are definitely rolled off to the point of making it a darker sounding headphone, but for me (I'm easily annoyed by harsh or sibilant highs) this is a good thing. 
 
I just got my HD650s today so I won't comment on them too much yet other than to say I like them a lot, if you want accuracy above all else you can definitely do better. Headphone.com has frequency response graphs for pretty much every headphone they sell, that was really useful to me when I was trying to figure out which headphones I should try so I would go look there (you can clearly see the HD650's rolled off highs and impressive bass response for an open can).
 
Rambusanna, since I just got my HD650s today I can tell you that in the manual they come with, there is a paragraph explicitly stating that the HD650 has been redesigned. They're pretty vague on just what was changed, but people seem to think they're a bit less dark and slightly more detailed than before. I have never heard the old HD650, so I couldn't tell you how much they have changed.

 

[I3eyond]

What's your source and amp like?  From my ears at least, with the rig in my sig, I wouldn't consider the highs on the 650s rolled off, especially not to the point of making it a darker sounding headphone.  But, that's just my ears of course, and our source/amp combo may be different...
Quote:

The HD650 (and any other Sennheisers I've ever heard) seem to be designed with long term listening comfort in mind. They value this over absolute sound quality and it's something I value as well which is why I've owned several and enjoyed them all. The highs are definitely rolled off to the point of making it a darker sounding headphone, but for me (I'm easily annoyed by harsh or sibilant highs) this is a good thing. 
 
I just got my HD650s today so I won't comment on them too much yet other than to say I like them a lot, if you want accuracy above all else you can definitely do better. Headphone.com has frequency response graphs for pretty much every headphone they sell, that was really useful to me when I was trying to figure out which headphones I should try so I would go look there (you can clearly see the HD650's rolled off highs and impressive bass response for an open can).
 
Rambusanna, since I just got my HD650s today I can tell you that in the manual they come with, there is a paragraph explicitly stating that the HD650 has been redesigned. They're pretty vague on just what was changed, but people seem to think they're a bit less dark and slightly more detailed than before. I have never heard the old HD650, so I couldn't tell you how much they have changed.

 

 

[idletime1213]

The HD650 is not colored, but it isn't neutral either. Does that make sense? Think of sunglasses, they present the world accurately, just tinted darker. Something colored would be like prescription glasses or glasses with distorting effects. They might be more fun, but they aren't what you really see.

 

[khaos974]

since I just got my HD650s today I can tell you that in the manual they come with, there is a paragraph explicitly stating that the HD650 has been redesigned. They're pretty vague on just what was changed, but people seem to think they're a bit less dark and slightly more detailed than before. I have never heard the old HD650, so I couldn't tell you how much they have changed.

Quote, I'd like to read the exact wording.

 

[Uncle Erik]

I don't have a lot of experience with them, but maybe electrostats would interest you.

*summons Stax Mafia*

 

[Chris_Himself]

Quote:

Are HD650s considered natural/neutral?

 
Natural, yes. The sound comes of as absolutely organic and natural to me. Nothing sounds tinny, cold, and analytical like it's K701 friend. Both have their purposes.
 
Neutral, SORT of. The bass and midrange are warmer than what a true neutral headphone is, but the HD650 was designed to be the smoothest listening experience possible at the time
 
They don't have a neutral treble presentation either, it's more laid back to spare you from any harshness. Depends on what amp too, it'll start clearing up later.
 
The HD650 is good though, regardless of what might have better this-or-that.
 
In terms of accuracy, I find the SR-225 will be more detailed, and it'll be a nice companion headphone, you could go SR-325, but I usually recommend people to give the SR-225 a try first just because they're friendlier on the wallet whilst still being able to compete with some higher priced headphones.