[pkshan]

The old Sennheiser developers are the best headphone developers on the planet,( Old Senn>Old Stax>>Old AKG)
 
That's why the 540's/560's/Germany made 580's are so good.
they've the best timbre you can find in the headphones:sweet beautiful,delicate,transparent & neutral ,realistic timbre.
(someone described the HD540 Ref Gold has a"Royal-like" sound)
 
They just put the new Senn cans in to shame,when you comparing them(fatty,harsh,ugly sound)
 
My favorite dynamic headphones:
560 Ovation
580(Germany made)
560 Ovation II
540 ReferenceGold

 

[pkshan]

1986-1993 is the golden age of Sennheiser. (540/560/Germany580/HE90/HE60)
(the HD250's/HD480's etc are the best at their price range too)
 
Earlier models (hd430/hd424 etc) aren't very good, they sound a bit grainy

 

[pkshan]

Remember, use the original cable,
do not use HD6xx or 3rd party cable.
do not use hd6xx grill on the hd580s.
otherwise they will sound incorrect.
 
The new Senn developers don't know what they are doing,
new hd580s/hd6xxs/hd700s,all sound like crap,
hd800's are okay,but way way overpriced

 

[o0CosmoMemory0o]

Well said pkshan. Both my HD540II and HD560II headphones would wipe the floor with (or at least keep up with) almost every other headphone model out there. These are the highest fidelity transducers that I have used so far. Their presentations are just tremendous. Last year, I had been looking for a headphone to better the HD250 that I'd been using since late 2012. My logic deemed that I needed to search for an open-back version of the HD250 (hoping that it existed) in order to obtain the final improvement in performance. I soon found the improvement in the HD540II; very analogue and natural, no feeling of an artificial or forced presentation and an extreme honesty in what it reveals. HD560II shares the same sound signature but due to its earpads, the spatial image that it projects is not quite as good as the HD540II. Both put modern Sennheiser engineering to absolute shame... Although from what I've read and seen, the HD800 is probably the best imaging headphone in the world (just not the most musical).

 

[Matrixnobu]

I've also had a hard time finding a better headphone than my HD 545 which I bought in 1993 I think. I've tried HD 600's and HD 650's. But I do find some Beyerdynamics to come close. And modded can even surpass my Sennheisers.

 

[elmoe]

Nice, a vintage Sennies thread.
 
This might interest a few of you, too expensive for me:
 
http://www.ebay.fr/itm/SENNHEISER-HD540-Casque-de-collection-coffret-bois-/171242230650?pt=FR_Image_son_Ecouteurs&hash=item27ded5137a

 

[Matrixnobu]

Nice!

 

[elmoe]

This thread really got me worked up, I think I'm gonna pull the plug on a pair of HD 560 Ovation I found for 50 euros.

 

[Hairspray]

  The old Sennheiser developers are the best headphone developers on the planet,( Old Senn>Old Stax>>Old AKG)
[...]
they've the best timbre you can find in the headphones:sweet beautiful,delicate,transparent & neutral ,realistic timbre.
(someone described the HD540 Ref Gold has a"Royal-like" sound)
[...]
They just put the new Senn cans in to shame,when you comparing them(fatty,harsh,ugly sound)

 
wow... those are some radical statements...
in fact, are you saying that the same Sennheiser engineers designed both the 540/60 series and the Orpheus?
where are those guys now? did they retire or something? fired? or did the NASA hire them?

 
anyway, imo, Ovation I resolves way better (although it is too bright for me) and Ovation II's FR transition and soundstage are amazing but I 100% agree that 540 Reference I has the BEST TIMBRE (560 cannot compete here imo) and imaging i've heard to date (and this by a huge margin).

 

[Hairspray]

  This thread really got me worked up, I think I'm gonna pull the plug on a pair of HD 560 Ovation I found for 50 euros.

 
imo, Ovation I are easily the most detailed and resolving (way more than 560 II) but a tad too bright for my taste (they respond very well to EQ though) and their timbre and imaging can't compete with 540 Ref I.
BUT: earpads rolling (velour/pleather - shallow/deep) will result in drastic differences though.
 
anyhow, neither of these four headphones will "wow" you at first listen.
but give them 15 minutes and... you will rediscover strings, vocals, acoustic instruments, jazz, live recordings, etc.
(don't test them with japanese speed metal or crap-fi underground garage rock...

)

 

[elmoe]

As you can guess from the headphones I currently own, bright is a key quality I look for so that I'm sure I'll enjoy them

 

[Matrixnobu]

I think the sennheiser engineers moved to Beyerdynamic but have lost their high frequency hearing. Because most Beyers are a little too bright imo.

 

[Hairspray]

hahaha, français..? grenoble? on n'est pas loin, suis à Genève.
pour 50 euros tu risques pas grand chose de toutes façons...
mais l'Ovation II a selon moi une signature plus équilibrée, une spatialisation très largement supérieure (mais je crois que tout dépend surtout de l'état de fraîcheur du casque, si son ex-propriétaire était soigneux, etc.), c'est comme avec les voitures d'occasion, etc.

 

[Matrixnobu]

Oui

 

[Hairspray]

  I think the sennheiser engineers moved to Beyerdynamic but have lost their high frequency hearing. Because most Beyers are a little too bright imo.

 
oh, i got it
they got too old, lost their high frequencies hearing, and Sennheiser sold them to Beyer...