blakey72 Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 Bottlehead crack plus speedball for sure. Awesome amp! 1
mloutfie Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 (edited) Crack + speedball with good tubes is really good combo with hd800 but there are better. Dynahi is the best match hd800 I've heard yet but its diy. Auralic Taurus is close second. I tried the first version and was quite impressed Edited January 16, 2016 by mloutfie 1
Andrew S. Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 (edited) On a seperate but related topic - what is the general consensus - does the HD 800 benefit from balanced connections, or is it amp dependant. Any balanced amps around $1000 worth mentioning? I once (2007 or 2008) ran HD 650's straight out of the balanced outputs from my then Lavry DA 10. Very impressive sound quality IRRC. BTW anyone heard the HD 800s or whatever it is called? Edited January 17, 2016 by Tom.Stopforth
Munce31 Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 Does anyone know if any shops here in Aus will be receiving these?
MusicOne Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 My Sennheiser HD600s have decided to call it quits after 16 years of fairly solid use. As I really like the sound of the HD600s, I thought that perhaps the HD650s would be in the same mold, only better. Reading around on the net, I've seen some quite glowing reviews of the HD700s Are there any members who are familiar with these three headphones and which one is preferable? I listen mostly to classical, jazz and vocal. My loudspeakers up until recently were Quad ESL 57s.
betty boop Posted January 17, 2016 Author Posted January 17, 2016 yes familiar with all three having owned all three and only owning one of now.... if a fan of the hd580/hd600s the hd650 will be quite a departure.... the hd650 is quite a relatively forward sounding headphone by comparison....with a punchy dynamic ...driving sound. the hd580/600s are more like the hd800 in sound overall. the hd700 seems to divide opinion...when they are some where in-between in the sound of the hd650s and the hd800. so depends kind of sound you are chasing.... if a long time fan of the hd580/600 then noting stopping you just picking up where left off...at an amazing low price http://www.addictedtoaudio.com.au/product/sennheiser-hd600-audiophile-reference-hifi-stereo-headphones otherwise for kind of music listen to the hd800 might be more your thing...though keep in mind they will cost a heck of a lot more ....need a mighty good amp and not for massive gains in my opinion 1
mloutfie Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 balanced does makesa difference to my ear. The Aussie dollar kinda kills the whole amp affordability. But for under $1000 audio gd nfb-6 would be my go to balanced amp. But its pretty much on the same level as crack+speedball 1
MusicOne Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 (edited) @@betty boop Unfortunately Al, the HD800s are out of my price range. My headphone amp is a Musical Fidelity X CAN V2 with the MF X 10v3 Tube Buffer and X PSU V3. That MF gear gives a great sound when paired with the HD600s. Edited January 17, 2016 by MusicOne
betty boop Posted January 17, 2016 Author Posted January 17, 2016 @@betty boop Unfortunately Al, the HD800s are out of my price range. My headphone amp is a Musical Fidelity X CAN V2 with the MF X 10v3 Tube Buffer and X PSU V3. That MF gear gives a great sound when paired with the HD600s. it sure does...I can unequivocally suggest in that case grab a HD600 and be happy for the next 16 years 1
N1TRO Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 If you like the HD600 I would stay with it unless you can listen to all 3 in person.
Guest RobbC Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 I would second BBs suggestion mate. I use my HD600s daily and love them. Sure there are plenty more expensive options but with that current price of just over $300 they are pretty hard to beat. Only problem I see for you with this solution is no real "upgrade" - but if you liked your old setup then why change !
N1TRO Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 I have the HD650's and love them, even though I don't have a proper amp for them yet.
mloutfie Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 (edited) Actually I forgot an amazing portable amp I used to have which is actually a balanced amp. Ray Samuel's rsa intruder. Amazing sound from such a small amp. It's dac actually pretty good also Edited January 17, 2016 by mloutfie 1
MusicOne Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 I've been watching video reviews of the HD600 v HD650s. The consensus seems to be that the 650s have a little more warmth in the mids and a slightly punchier bass. Being used to the Quad 57s which have that great midrange I'm tending to lean towards the HD650s at this stage.
MusicOne Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 (edited) This looks like a good buy: http://www.minidisc.com.au/headphones-earphones/open-headphones/sennheiser-hd650-wired-headphones-p-1100474.html Or the HD600s here: http://www.minidisc.com.au/headphones-earphones/open-headphones/sennheiser-hd600-open-ear-stereo-headphones-p-1100473.html Edited January 17, 2016 by MusicOne 1
Bung99 Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 You need a good headphone amp to get the best out of the 700 and they kill the 650. If not the 650 are great. 1
MusicOne Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 (edited) You need a good headphone amp to get the best out of the 700 and they kill the 650. If not the 650 are great. I have a good headphone amp....Musical Fidelity X CAN V2 (a valve unit). The HD700s here: http://www.minidisc.com.au/headphones-earphones/open-headphones/sennheiser-hd700-overtheear-headphones-p-1100475.html Edited January 17, 2016 by MusicOne
MusicOne Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 (edited) The HD 600/650/700s are all within my price range, so there is no problem there. It's just deciding which one to choose. Edited January 17, 2016 by MusicOne
N1TRO Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 I'd still stay with the HD600's at this stage but I haven't looked into the HD700's or HD800's. I'd strongly recommend that you take a visit to addicted to audio and have a listen to them all. They also have the best prices that I have seen for them. 2
MusicOne Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 I'd still stay with the HD600's at this stage but I haven't looked into the HD700's or HD800's. I'd strongly recommend that you take a visit to addicted to audio and have a listen to them all. They also have the best prices that I have seen for them. It's a long way to go for an audition, but I think it's probably worth it, as these new phones will constitute about 50% of my listening time. At present I live in a unit block and it's not really fair to disturb other residents with loud music, though some of them do it and it's always crappy pop or rock music, which I loathe. On occasions, when I've played some classical music at a (for me) reasonable volume, I've received compliments form some of the neighbours, who said they loved it and would I play music like that more often. I'd love to get a pair of Stax electrostatic phones, but at this point in time, I really can't afford them.
Telecine Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 You can probably just purchase spare parts to get your HD-600s going again. 1
MusicOne Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 You can probably just purchase spare parts to get your HD-600s going again. Yes I could do that Telecine, but I don't know what the problem is, so I'd have to take them to a tech for diagnosis. After 16 years, I guess I can lash out and buy a new pair.
heman_ Posted January 18, 2016 Posted January 18, 2016 It's a long way to go for an audition, but I think it's probably worth it, as these new phones will constitute about 50% of my listening time. At present I live in a unit block and it's not really fair to disturb other residents with loud music, though some of them do it and it's always crappy pop or rock music, which I loathe. On occasions, when I've played some classical music at a (for me) reasonable volume, I've received compliments form some of the neighbours, who said they loved it and would I play music like that more often. I'd love to get a pair of Stax electrostatic phones, but at this point in time, I really can't afford them. Yeh, I would get down to Addicted to Audio and see what's available for demo. The headphone market is about 10x the size of what it was when you bought your HD-600s so there are plenty more options worth exploring 1
MusicOne Posted January 18, 2016 Posted January 18, 2016 (edited) Yeh, I would get down to Addicted to Audio and see what's available for demo. The headphone market is about 10x the size of what it was when you bought your HD-600s so there are plenty more options worth exploring I've phoned Addicted to Audio (Sydney) and arranged a demo for tomorrow (Tuesday). Intend to listen to the HD 650s and the HD 700s and perhaps some others. The guy at Addicted to Audio is going to have a valve headphone amp warmed up for me to use with the audition. I was going to take my MF valve headphone amp along, but we decided that I would use one of theirs. I guess that I'll end up buying myself a new set of phones tomorrow. Edited January 20, 2016 by MusicOne 2
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