HD600

Discussion in 'Headphones' started by SpaceLaser, Oct 8, 2015.

  1. Boops

    Boops Friend

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    Good thinking. This is probably it.
    Lol. I'd forgotten about those. Terrible.
     
  2. Boops

    Boops Friend

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    The HD800 was completely unappealing from an aesthetic point of view when I first saw it years ago. But it's grown on me over time to the point where I kind of like it now, and the 800S looks damn sexy! The 700 looks like a shitty attempt to echo the 800's design language in a too-cheap package. Not good.

    Sounds like I need to start a "Best/Worst industrial design" thread...
     
  3. techboy

    techboy New

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    Sadly HD 600 isn't available in India. Would have bought that instead of HD 650 if they were sold here.
     
  4. VooX

    VooX New

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    My favourite headphone of all time. Despite buying a pair in 1998 with a Musical Fidelity X-Can V2 tube amp, and hearing many other headphones since, I have never felt the need to upgrade my HD600 cans to anything else. They are my reference point for neutral sound.

    A wide soundstage make them an absolute delight to listen to music on. Their precision and accuracy make them an indispensable tool in the studio, particularly for editing where they tell no lies.

    Some criticize their bass response as being insufficient. I wholeheartedly disagree with them. They give you exactly as much bass as is on the source recording. Not more, not less. Some say they are too laid-back in the high frequencies. Once again, I respectfully disagree. They are completely matter-of-fact in their frequency response. Whether listening through my amp or a studio console, I do not hear any emphasis or exaggeration in their sound.

    There are other headphones which do some things better than the HD600, but nothing that I've heard does everything as well. And yet, for such a neutral sounding headphone, they never sound clinical. Pair them with a proper amp to drive them and they bring all genres of music to life on the soundstage between your ears.
     
  5. Rthomas

    Rthomas Friend

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    I'm from Chennai but based in the UK. Let me know of you want an HD600, I could bring when I visit.
     
  6. ohshitgorillas

    ohshitgorillas Friend

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    HD600 lover and former HD650 owner here. My ideal sound is natural and realistic, and these nail it. I'm wondering if y'all could give me a hand picking out pads. I want to put some HM5 pads on my HD600 since my ears sometimes touch the drivers, and they're just more comfortable.

    I understand that the pleather pads will help the cans emphasize the bass....which I think most of us will agree is the only major flaw with these cans, so it's an exciting prospect. Is this in a controlled and pleasing way, or in a bloated and muddy way?

    I understand that the velour pads can make the treble a little tizzy. At least that's what I've read. Can anyone confirm? Also, I'm curious if anyone has tried the angled HM5 pads with the HD600, and what those results were like?

    I *could* just order all four styles from amazon, pleather and velour, angled and flat, and send back the ones I don't like. But that seems like a lot of work.
     
  7. Zombie250

    Zombie250 New

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    Oh man, the X-CAN V2. Now that is nostalgic. I've never owned one, but have heard it next to my X-CAN V8p. The amp was brighter and more lively. Such a good match for the HD600.
     
  8. jafnvaegi

    jafnvaegi Friend

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    Another fan checking in. I've been through many full sized headphones over the past 10 years but always return to this gem, it just does so many things right...the tonality is spot on to my ears. After ruling out all those other FOTM and other popular cans, I started to build a well-paired system around them...specifically making my own single ended 2A3 amp. It's the perfect match to say the least, I'm totally satisfied with their performance next to other flagships. Having tinkered with various tweaks inspired by Bill-P & strat (and likely others) from back in the old thread from the old forum, I reached a combo which just adds another level of refinement overall...so for that, I am grateful guys!

    For mine, I've cut a hole in the foam in front of the driver, leaving enough foam to fit between the earppad and the cup around the edges, with some sheer nylon overtop so the front of the driver isn't fully exposed. Damping materials and foam were added in select locations around and behind the driver, with some felt along the grill in the interior. Lastly to maximize comfort, I removed the headband foam piece, fitted a thin piece of plastic in it's place to cover the adjusters and added a leather strap much like what you see on many cans these days...but softer like the Stax Lambda headbands. Since the headband piece is rather broken in, I can wear these for hours with perfect comfort. I also made my own OFC braided cable, pretty utilitarian and gets the job done, a welcome improvement from the stock cable....that only lasted a week haha.

    As for their build, I love that they are easy to disassemble and parts are easily swapped out if necessary. It's a modders dream to work with. The plastic is sturdy and feels nice in the hand for what it is...time has proven them to be quite durable. While some say they don't look 'premium' or look odd, I think their glossy faux granite plastic makes them look unique and distinguished in some respects. Despite all the simplicity in the layout, the color gives some visual of texture but doesn't overdo it...hey, it could be veneer! Nothing about their design is really out of place, they're not aesthetically offensive to me anyway. Comfy and lightweight out the box, which for someone who has alot of experience with older Audeze and Hifiman is absolutely great...a win for function and form.

    I plan on keeping these for a long time to come, they really come to life in my setup anyway :D It's the best alternative to my speaker rig I have.

    Some potato pics:

    [​IMG] [​IMG] [​IMG]
     
  9. jafnvaegi

    jafnvaegi Friend

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    I imagine the results would be similar as they are described on the HD650 and I recall seeing some impressions in their dedicated thread on various HM5 pads. The presentation will likely change altering the overall tonality a bit, but experimenting is fun so that's what I'd recommend. Trying out all four pads is most likely the best way to know for yourself if you'll like one of those options better than stock pads in your system.
     
  10. Zed Bopp

    Zed Bopp Friend

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    First poster, great to be here!

    HD600 is still my reference for headphone neutrality. (Are there any real contenders, what do you think?)

    My LCD-2 rev.1's have flatter bass and better resolution, but they are just an inch more in the "fun camp", as in everything sounds kind of good. And that's not good when mixing tunes... The 600's can sound just a bit boring, because they just do so much well. This flat curve (in headphone-terms at least) is not the one to wow your friends with.
     
    Last edited: Jan 15, 2016
  11. VooX

    VooX New

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    At the time, it may even have been 1997 not 1998, the X-Can V2 were the bee's knees. I would like to try the Little Pinkie mod as I need to replace the amp's tube anyways.

    I'm glad to hear all the love for the HD600. It is too old to ever have been trendy online and can sometimes be overlooked as newer and shinier cans get released.
     
  12. ohshitgorillas

    ohshitgorillas Friend

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    Okay, so I ended up with three extra pads: the Brainwavz angled velour and pleather, as well as their flat velour memory foam from a friend of mine. He's borrowing my regular pads, while I borrow his HM5 pads, since I wasn't willing to cannibalize my pads. I've spent the most time with the angled pleather. Fairly comfy, if a little sweaty at times. There's a little bass increase, but so far it doesn't sound like a smooth, even increase in bass across the spectrum...more like a few frequencies being emphasized? More listening to be done, probably with better produced music...nothing against At the Drive In, but probably not the best test tracks :)

    I can also say that the soundstage of the angled pads is nice. It certainly doesn't turn them into the HD800, but it's an improvement! Add in a little well-implemented crossfeed, and wow.
     
  13. songmic

    songmic Gear cycler East Asia edition

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    It's been a while since I've listened to HD600. I personally like HD600's looks a lot better than HD650. I chose the HD650 because it seemed to scale a bit higher, at the expense of slightly veiled sound. I think modding my HD650 brought it somewhat closer to HD600's more neutral sound sig while retaining that scalability and resolution.
     
  14. Merrick

    Merrick A lidless ear

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    Received the dynamat modded HD600 I bought from @thegunner100 today. It's been a while since I've listened to the HD600, but from my recollections, I do feel the dynamat is definitely adding some low end. I don't remember hearing any treble issues with the unmodded 600, and I still don't hear any now. Nice to have a pair of these back in the stable.
     
  15. fishski13

    fishski13 Friend

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    I owned a HD650 donkey years ago, but never a HD600 until this weekend. (Thanks JoelT!) It has judicious placement of Dynamat on the driver basket, and the rear driver foam intact. The pads are a bit compressed and will need to new ones soon.

    I've never been enamored with the HD600 in brief sessions. I think it's going to be a slow burn. I can appreciate it's even tonality and non-fatiguing sound sig. I would like a little more gravitas to DC, and maybe more air and note attack. We'll see what effect new pads have.
     
  16. Koth Ganesh

    Koth Ganesh Friend

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    I saw the HD 600 being available on Sennheiser's Indian website. Asd you can see, I'm from India as well. Shoot me a PM.
     
  17. fishski13

    fishski13 Friend

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    I have to take back my comment on wishing for more note attack. My ears/brain are burning in nicely. Like a Golden Retriever, these play well with everything and always happy to please.
     
  18. JoelT

    JoelT Friend

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    I think you'll find the difference with new pads to be pretty noticeable. Enjoy!
     
  19. zerodeefex

    zerodeefex SBAF's Imelda Marcos

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    Now you know why these are one of the few headphones I'll never part with :)
     
  20. PG5768

    PG5768 Friend

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    Is there any reason to buy an HD650 if I already own an HD600? BTW I've got the HeadRoom balanced and the HD650 cables for them already.
     

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