I just bought a Sennheiser HD650

[laser_freak]

I just received my Sennheiser HD650 headphones. They sound amazing! Now I just need a better headphone amp.

Is anyone else here an audiophile?

 

[cmak]

Bought a used HD595 a while ago. Been treatin me well but I would really enjoy a closed can set... not much of an audiophile though

-Chris

 

[jedirock]

I have a pair of Sennheiser HD280 Pros. Closed type circumaural headphones meant for DJs. Absolutely love them.

 

[Digger]

I have a pair of Sennheiser HD 202. They were like $20 and they are the best sounding headphones I've ever owned.

 

[palmertech]

I am a huge audiophile! I should post pictures of my newest headphones, they are custom.

The Senn 650s are nice! A set of cheaper 555s or 595s can be modded to within a few percentage points of the 650s, but if the cost seems worth it, more power to ya! Planning on messing around with them at all?

What kind of pricing are you looking for in an amp? What are you using as a source for music?

 

[laser_freak]

I am a huge audiophile! I should post pictures of my newest headphones, they are custom.

The Senn 650s are nice! A set of cheaper 555s or 595s can be modded to within a few percentage points of the 650s, but if the cost seems worth it, more power to ya! Planning on messing around with them at all?

What kind of pricing are you looking for in an amp? What are you using as a source for music?

I heard that you could easily modify the 555 and 595, but I listened to both side by side and heard a big difference so I figured that the difference from the 595 to the 650 would also be great. I'm a DIY guy when it comes to everything other than audio stuff. I'll leave that to the professionals.

I'm actually looking for a USB and/or optical DAC + amp (not necessarily in the same product). My price range is <$200. Any suggestions?

 

[palmertech]

The big difference is really a joke, sadly, between the 555 and 595 anyways. They use the same drivers and enclosure, the only difference between the two is the sound dampening foam! You can modify a 555 into the 595 with literally less than a half hour of time, even on the first try. It seems Senn crippled the 555 just so they could sell the 595 for more. The 650 uses better drivers, though! Definitely not a waste, the 595 is definitely a step below the 650, mods or not.

And yes, I do have a suggestion! I was in the same boat as you since last October, I wanted a good digital DAC, too. Ever heard of FiiO? They are a Chinese audio equipment company that makes some actual quality stuff. I know, it sounds sketchy, but really, they do an amazing job! They have a small battery powered amp called the FiiO E5 that has a full metal case, very lightweight, and the sound quality off it is stellar. I was skeptical, but I read a lot of user impressions on Head-Fi, and decided to get one (Under $30, why not)... And it was great! Quality was on par with my homebuilt Cmoy Amp, if not better.

With that in mind, I decided I wanted a dedicated USB DAC last fall, and learned that FiiO had one in prototype form, the FiiO E7. I wanted one!... But it was not due until December. It actually got delayed a lot further.

It finally came out relatively recently, and I got one! I absolutely love it! It is a fantastic standalone amp, and the Wolfson DAC chip in it is great, and it just barely skews towards the warm side (Unlike the Cirrus DACs in a lot of new devices, like all the modern iPods, those sound cold and harsh). It destroys everything else in the remote price range (My Go-Vibe pales in comparison), and beats the HeadRoom DAC, which is a popular choice. It shows up as a standard USB device, so it should even work with an iPad or iPhone 4 (Or the iPod 4, probably announced in a few weeks) via the Camera Connector Kit USB adapter. Not sure if you want to do that, but it is an option to have!

I would definitely get one! I would buy it here: Fiio E7 USB Dac and AMP with Free Fiio L2 3.5mm Audio Cable [Fiio_E7_L2] - $84.58 : MP4 Nation!, :: Low Priced MP4, MP3 Players and the latest scoop on the newest MP4 Player

That is a great site, and the owner, Raz, is a fantastic guy. It will cost about $10 more to buy there as opposed to the cheapest places (eBay has some), but you get great customer support, great return policy, etc. Disclosure: Raz sent me some free gear a while back, but that is not why I say to buy there. I got the free gear specifically because I was already posting a lot on their forums about a web tablet, the SmartQ 5 MID, and I provided a lot of technical insight on it. When they decided to carry it, he was nice enough to send me one.

That is my advice! What were you using before the 650? I assume you are pretty happy with them?

 

[laser_freak]

The big difference is really a joke, sadly, between the 555 and 595 anyways. They use the same drivers and enclosure, the only difference between the two is the sound dampening foam! You can modify a 555 into the 595 with literally less than a half hour of time, even on the first try. It seems Senn crippled the 555 just so they could sell the 595 for more. The 650 uses better drivers, though! Definitely not a waste, the 595 is definitely a step below the 650, mods or not.

And yes, I do have a suggestion! I was in the same boat as you since last October, I wanted a good digital DAC, too. Ever heard of FiiO? They are a Chinese audio equipment company that makes some actual quality stuff. I know, it sounds sketchy, but really, they do an amazing job! They have a small battery powered amp called the FiiO E5 that has a full metal case, very lightweight, and the sound quality off it is stellar. I was skeptical, but I read a lot of user impressions on Head-Fi, and decided to get one (Under $30, why not)... And it was great! Quality was on par with my homebuilt Cmoy Amp, if not better.

With that in mind, I decided I wanted a dedicated USB DAC last fall, and learned that FiiO had one in prototype form, the FiiO E7. I wanted one!... But it was not due until December. It actually got delayed a lot further.

It finally came out relatively recently, and I got one! I absolutely love it! It is a fantastic standalone amp, and the Wolfson DAC chip in it is great, and it just barely skews towards the warm side (Unlike the Cirrus DACs in a lot of new devices, like all the modern iPods, those sound cold and harsh). It destroys everything else in the remote price range (My Go-Vibe pales in comparison), and beats the HeadRoom DAC, which is a popular choice. It shows up as a standard USB device, so it should even work with an iPad or iPhone 4 (Or the iPod 4, probably announced in a few weeks) via the Camera Connector Kit USB adapter. Not sure if you want to do that, but it is an option to have!

I would definitely get one! I would buy it here: Fiio E7 USB Dac and AMP with Free Fiio L2 3.5mm Audio Cable [Fiio_E7_L2] - $84.58 : MP4 Nation!, :: Low Priced MP4, MP3 Players and the latest scoop on the newest MP4 Player

That is a great site, and the owner, Raz, is a fantastic guy. It will cost about $10 more to buy there as opposed to the cheapest places (eBay has some), but you get great customer support, great return policy, etc. Disclosure: Raz sent me some free gear a while back, but that is not why I say to buy there. I got the free gear specifically because I was already posting a lot on their forums about a web tablet, the SmartQ 5 MID, and I provided a lot of technical insight on it. When they decided to carry it, he was nice enough to send me one.

That is my advice! What were you using before the 650? I assume you are pretty happy with them?

Thanks for the DAC suggestions! I'll definitely check them out.

I know that the HD555 and HD595 use the same drivers, but I still heard a difference. Also when I say "big difference" I mean big difference to audiophiles, so it's really a very minute difference. :yh: Maybe it was just the placebo effect.

I've never owned a high quality pair of headphones before, this is my first time. In the past I've borrowed my friend's Sennheiser HD380 Pro (closed can). I've delayed getting quality headphones because I only recently upgraded my music collection to V0 MP3 and FLAC. The same friend who had the HD380 just bought a Grado SR325is, so I'm interested in comparing all 3 headphones.

Now I just need to find some AKG headphones to listen to. :evil:

 

[palmertech]

Oh, I don't doubt you heard a difference. What I was saying, is that the insides of those headphones have a sheet of foam behind the drivers. There is a lot less foam on the 595 than the 555... And that is pretty much the only difference between the two. :cryyy:

I have an HD280, and HD 555, Grado SR60s, AudioTechnica AD700s, Koss PortaPros, and a custom set I built off an old set of broken AD700s, I will post some pics of it tomorrow, it looks pretty sweet. And then for on the go use, I use some Hifiman RE0s, they are great earbuds! On par with all of the $300 or so sets I have used, and only around $100. I would love some LiveWires, but those are absurdly expensive.

I used to have a pair of AKG K701s. I liked them a lot, but had to sell them when I needed the money. Might get another set at some point, they are great if you can find an occasional deal on them for $200 or so.

I would love an up-rep if possible, trying to get my foot in the door on this forum.

 

[Traveller]

Now I just need a better headphone amp.

Congratulations

A better headphone amp? What are you currently using (dedicated or something attached to, dare I say it ...a receiver?)

In any case, I prefer my loudspeakers when @home and only use dedicated headphone amps on the go... . Should you be interested in taking your 650s for a walk (hey, in EU, large Headphones are now the "in" thing; only lamers are running around with white iPhone buds, lol), might I recommend Headroom's fab Total Airhead (or better still, the Total Bithead, which you can use at the office instead of your Thinkpad's crappy OP amp)!

No matter what your use, Headroom's the place for headphone amps, not to mention headphones :wave:

Check out the Head-Fi forum sometime; they rock, much like the crew here at LPF Here's a thread where we were talking about the Airhead.

Traveller's Gear
McIntosh MC275/ Aragon 18K/ Sumiko Phono Amp/
VPI HW19 Jr+MKIII/ Syrinx PU2/ Sumiko BPS+Grado Ref Plat./
Meridian 506-20/ PSB Mini-Stratus/ KK & VDH ICs
Headroom TAH (2003-4AAA ver.) / TBH (2008) Portable Amps
GRADO SR60/ GRADO SR225 / Ety ER-4S headphones
Rio 500/ iHP-120/ Zen Nano/ SanDisk Sansa Clip Plus media players

 

[jedirock]

See, I just prefer to get a halfway decent set of headphones and speakers (have Logitech Z-5500 5.1 set), and spend the rest on lasers.

 

[brtaman]

Nice purchase OP. I've heard the HD650s and they are very nice indeed.

Nice so see so many SQ conscious members on the forum.

Running a pair of AKG K240 phones ATM. Use them mainly for guitar late at night though.

(Nice equipment Traveller, been eyeing the Grado SR225 for a while now, too bad there is a massive price difference which depends solely on continent -.-, wanna trade for laser equipment?, hehe)

 

[Traveller]

...been eyeing the Grado SR225 for a while now, too bad there is a massive price difference which depends solely on continent -.-, wanna trade for laser equipment?, hehe)

Yeah, not only is there a ridiculous price difference between continents, but USA-based [online] stores are not allowed to sell Grado products internationally. This requirement comes directly from Grado as they want you to buy from their International distributors... argh. :yabbmad:

Having said that, you can figure out what my answer is regarding your trade suggestion... AKG makes great cans though so keep on enjoying yours :beer:

p.s. check out this list...

 

[ped]

I have the HD435's for DJ'ing , thier ok but nothing special...going to get a higher spec pair (closed can) soon!