Sennheiser HD650

Discussion in 'Headphones' started by Jeangenie, Sep 27, 2015.

  1. k4rstar

    k4rstar Britney fan club president

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    Out of those options? Easily the Vali 2 w/ a replacement tube. The Mjo2 is a little U-shaped and not particularly "relaxing". Saga may be worth it if you also plan on using it as a pre for more than just the Jotunheim, but I'm not sure if it'll smooth/relax the sound enough.

    Have you tried it and found this to be the case? Not knocking you, just curious.
     
  2. TRex

    TRex Almost "Made"

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    Yes, I owned Val 2 prior to Jot. Stage, plankton, microdynamic are superb but the treble isn't. With Amperex Orange Globe, the treble is smooth but too muted (rolled off).
     
  3. k4rstar

    k4rstar Britney fan club president

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    Fair enough, I found it to have a bit of papery quality to the upper registers with the stock Russian tubes but treble timbre and decay improved with the 6CG7's I use now. Either way, I didn't find it to be any drier than the average SS amp, Jotunheim included. Vali 2 is still my recommendation as an alternate amp in that case.
     
  4. zonto

    zonto Friend

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    With the Valhalla 2, I always felt a little on edge, no matter what tubes or headphones I used (source). That listener fatigue never really went away. My comments on delicate treble in my T3 write-up are probably the most apt (see Distortion/Treble heading therein).

    Looking back on it now, I thought maybe equipment placement had something to do with it. (Before my T3 write-up, in my old apartment, the Valhalla 2 was on top of the left side of my Yggdrasil where the transformers are. After moving, however, the Valhalla 2 was between, not stacked on, equipment. At the time of the T3 write-up, the Valhalla 2 was on top of a powered-off integrated speaker amp and the T3 was between, not stacked on, equipment.) Others, however, including @Hands (who I bought my Valhalla 2 from originally), have also commented on a harshness or fatigue with the amp that was never fully alleviated, regardless of tube or cable swaps.

    That said, if you find it physically relaxing then that's what matters.
     
  5. Psalmanazar

    Psalmanazar Most improved member; A+

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    Valhalla 2 was soft and grainy but had decent staging. Far from the worst OTL but it's still a soft and grainy OTL tube amp.
     
  6. Ray

    Ray Friend

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    The graininess was the deal breaker for me
     
  7. DivineCurrent

    DivineCurrent New

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    I am looking to upgrade to either a JDS Labs Element, or a Jotenheim, mostly for the HD 650. Is there an obvious benefit to get the Jotenheim over the Element, besides balanced output and more power?
     
  8. Psalmanazar

    Psalmanazar Most improved member; A+

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    Do you like licking used needles off the ground? Get the Element. Do you like movies about gladiators? Get the Jot.
     
  9. HitmanFluffy

    HitmanFluffy Hoping to see real genitals someday!

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    Element is total trash, I wouldn't use one if I got it for free (which I did). The Jotunheim is better, but there are so many less objectionable options at that price point like Garage1217 stuff or a Crack.
     
  10. DivineCurrent

    DivineCurrent New

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    I gotta add that to my bucket list now.
    What's trashy about the Element for you? I know build quality may be crap; I signed up for that JDS Labs beta testing group on Head-Fi, they sent me their Element Line DAC, and it was actually a hollow piece of cheap plastic. I assume they are made of the same material.
     
  11. Zed Bopp

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    HD650 vs LCD-2.1
    (No one asked for this, here goes anyway)

    Quick impressions, long time listening to the two. With Lyr 2 (with Lisst) and some lesser amps. This is my old pair of 650's I now get to use with different gear. (I own a pair of 600's.) I'm listening to rock and metal while doing this.

    The Audeze is way better in the extremes: tight punchy bass from subs up (without extra warmth in mid-bass), lively highs and a way wider soundstage - both 600-series Senns are kind of mid-bass / mids centric. I like that Senn-signature, but damn - I like me some sub-bass. Actually I love it. Energetic highs, without going overboard AKG-style, nice.

    650 has that extra mid-bass warmth I kind of dislike. Many reviews of LCD-2 describe these as gooey, smooth, bassy, warm etc. - these aren't that in comparison to HD650 at all. These have a sub-bass boost, mid bass flattening and a general highs hike when played side-by-side.

    As a side-note, I sold this very pair of HD650's after getting the LCD. It just could not compete in rock, metal, hip-hop etc.. It still doesn't get there. Not enough subs (but actually pretty good). They are just too mid-bassy and soft for me.

    HD600 & LCD-2 is the duo for me, for now.
     
    Last edited: Feb 10, 2017
  12. lm4der

    lm4der A very good sport - Friend

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    Wait, now I'm questioning my ears. I do have hearing loss. Or this could be my lack of broader amp experience. But I don't hear the Valhalla 2 as grainy at all. To me it is just very dry in the treble. But to my innocent ears it seems very microdetailed up there. Maybe gray or veiled background though. But I'm not arguing, I'm wondering if you guys can expand on this, or point me towards what to listen for (you know, eg "listen for when the cymbal goes crash. Hear that demonic voice in the background? What is it telling you to do"? That sort of thing).
     
  13. Hands

    Hands Overzealous Auto Flusher - Measurbator

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    Dry and grainy can often mean the same thing for some folks.
     
  14. 8man

    8man Acquaintance

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    I'm planning on a new modest setup after having sold some of the older gear, now I'm wondering how to go about a balanced cable for the 650s. There are 2 XLR connection types I've seen, one with a common 1x 4 pin XLR and the other with 2 of these output ports (I hope this is correct), or 1 per side. Does this actually depend on the amp? How does one figure out which one they need? I don't want to f**k up the equipment or end up with grounding issues; if someone could point me towards the right direction, I'd be grateful.
     
  15. JayC

    JayC Resident Crash Test Dummy

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    I'm not answering for HitmanFluffy, but I had an element and it was pretty much just taking up space on my desk. I held onto it because I had it custom engraved and I didnt want to lose money selling it but as soon as I got a GOV2A, I packed it up and finally sold it.

    The knob was nice, it was more powerful than my Macbook's headphone out, but that's it. I wouldnt say it sounded worse than the Macbook, but compared to the GOV where I could immediately hear a difference in detail, soundstage and tightness, the Element just felt like an expensive paperweight that took up too much space.

    The only good part was that when I had issues, JDS Labs' customer service was outstanding.

    Edit: Oh also, that finish looked nice initially but it was a total bitch to keep clean - there were always streaks left behind and I'd spend an extra 20 minutes trying to get rid of them before giving up.
     
    Last edited: Feb 13, 2017
  16. Kattefjaes

    Kattefjaes Mostly Harmless

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    What about if you want to lick gladiators?
     
  17. deafdoorknob

    deafdoorknob Almost "Made"

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  18. Johan

    Johan New

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    Gumbreya-heim with a modded hd650 is absolutely stunning
     
  19. winders

    winders boomer

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    So I get this private message from a guy over on heAd-Fi asking me why, with the equipment I have, do I use such inexpensive headphones. At first, I was taken aback by the question. I really like the sound I get from my HD 650 headphones on my system. Then I realized that the HD 650 headphones are quite a bargain and people that have not heard them might not realize how good they can be. Of course, some people don't like them. But this guy had never listened to them.

    Having said that, that PM got me thinking about my headphones and whether or not I may have let my equipment get ahead of my headphones. When you HD 650 guys upgrade headphones, what do you gravitate to? Or do you stick with the HD 650 headphones because you like them so much?

    I admit to be a speaker guy and I only use headphones when I need to be quiet for the wife. But I still wonder what headphones I should be looking at as a next step up.
     
  20. cskippy

    cskippy Creamy warmpoo

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    I feel like the answers will be Utopia and HE-6, maybe HD800, as they are all technically better headphones. Although each of those headphones has its own quirks and they are all brightr than HD650, which is why you see people with Yggdrasil/Holo and Studio/Stellaris still using HD650.
     

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