Sennheiser HD595 = "boring" or "balanced"?

[deejayshakur]

well, looks like head-fi shat on itself so i've been painstakingly reading google cached pages. it's going slow...

anyway, i have read posts about the HD595 being too boring or polite. logically, this translates into a phone that i could listen to all day, which is something i'm looking for. conversely, an edgier or brighter phone would be fatiguing. yes?

have owners of the HD595 or similar found this to be true?

my main application is music (all sorts, from rock to rap to vocals), both amped and unamped. i also want something so comfortable that i could fall asleep in.

finally, is the HD595 worth it over the HD555, which can be had for half the price on amazon?

 

[Auric]

This sounds indubitably dubious and contrary to accurate reproduction:

The HD 555 features a special internal Surround Reflector, which generates an extended spatial sound field, making it the ideal headphone for home theater, as well as music.

I guess it's like having a software headphone filter permanently enabled... which would blow.

 

[Tiamat]

being boring or polite also has the connotation that it lacks the attack for cymbals, natural sibilance for vocals, "presence" ("airiness") etc. There are always compromises, you need to decide which ones you can live with!

 

[aphex]

I found the HD595's to be an EXCELLENT headphone, and by far, the most comfortable i've ever worn. I could easily go 7-8+ hours with them on. Also, I loved the sound, crisp highs, warm mids, and light but tight bass. They work well both unamped and amped, but sound velvety smooth paired with a nice amp (especially a tube amp).

Once the site comes back up, I would check out a gently used pair on http://www.head-fi.org I just saw a pair the other day sell for $100 + shipping. Used headphones can be great since most people (especially over at head-fi) take exceptional care of them, you save quite a bit, and you dont have to take the time to burn them in properly.

Overall - HD595's were a SUPERB headphone.

EDIT: After re-reading your post, you like everything, just like I do. I actually ended up with some Beyerdynamics DT770s (I paid $115 shipped for a used pair). Although the HD595's handled classical better, the closed design of the DT770's really brought out that deep deep bass for jazz, the kickdrum in rock, etc... Also, since they are closed my wife can't complain about how loud i listen HD595's are more comfortable for longer periods of time, but the DT770 is very comfortable as well.

 

[evident]

I've had the HD-595's for 3 years about, and they are awesome. Great comfort ( I wear them 12 + hours a day sometimes if i'm home ), and very balanced. some may say it's boring, the bass is fast, but much more understated or something like that, but i think they are perfect. It c an also be had at a great price too. The only pair of heapdhones i would prefer over them would be the HD-650's but they are much more expensive and require an amp to sound good. def worth trying!

 

[Ika]

The HD595 is one of the most exciting of Sennheiser's headphones, but without a relative point, it's hard to say whether or not it's exciting or not. Compared to Grados, the HD595 will still pale... but compared to something like HD650s, the 595s are Grado-like.

From your post, though, it sounds like the 595s will be right for you. They're one of the best all-purpose headphones you can get. I recommend them all the time and been tempted myself to get a pair... but alas, I'm too poor

 

[Tiamat]

Originally posted by: Aflac
The HD595 is one of the most exciting of Sennheiser's headphones, but without a relative point, it's hard to say whether or not it's exciting or not. Compared to Grados, the HD595 will still pale... but compared to something like HD650s, the 595s are Grado-like.

From your post, though, it sounds like the 595s will be right for you. They're one of the best all-purpose headphones you can get. I recommend them all the time and been tempted myself to get a pair... but alas, I'm too poor

The used market calls your name! Ive seen them go for 100$ or less used!

 

[potato28]

Originally posted by: Auric
This sounds indubitably dubious and contrary to accurate reproduction:

The HD 555 features a special internal Surround Reflector, which generates an extended spatial sound field, making it the ideal headphone for home theater, as well as music.

I guess it's like having a software headphone filter permanently enabled... which would blow.

Its not a filter, its a"reflector" that does nothing at all to the sound. I've heard the 595's and I own the 555's. The 595's aren't all that much different from the 555's, theres just more refinement in the sound, and a little more bass. But I found that the 555's are more comfortable, making it easy to wear all day and the sound isn't fatiguing at all.

If you want another series of headphones made by another company, look into Audio-Technia. Their A-xxx series are supposed to be the equal of the 555/595, but closed. And what happened to Head-Fi?

 

[deejayshakur]

Originally posted by: potato28

Originally posted by: Auric
This sounds indubitably dubious and contrary to accurate reproduction:

The HD 555 features a special internal Surround Reflector, which generates an extended spatial sound field, making it the ideal headphone for home theater, as well as music.

I guess it's like having a software headphone filter permanently enabled... which would blow.

Its not a filter, its a"reflector" that does nothing at all to the sound. I've heard the 595's and I own the 555's. The 595's aren't all that much different from the 555's, theres just more refinement in the sound, and a little more bass. But I found that the 555's are more comfortable, making it easy to wear all day and the sound isn't fatiguing at all.

If you want another series of headphones made by another company, look into Audio-Technia. Their A-xxx series are supposed to be the equal of the 555/595, but closed. And what happened to Head-Fi?

there we go, a direct comparision between 555 and 595. so your experience is that the 555 is more comfortable than the 595? is the refinement in sound worth the price premium?

i'm trying to find the 595 used for about the same price as the 555. then again, my floor standing athena's are still my main speakers. maybe some used 555s are the way to go if i don't expect to get too much use out of headphones.

i like AT's sound and i checked out the ATH-A900. seems like reviews say it's more suited towards gaming than music.

 

[darkswordsman17]

I had the 555s, the 595s, and the Audio-Technica ATH-A900s all at the same time.

The 595s were just a more refined 555 to my ears. I too felt the 555s were more comfortable, but I think part of that is that they are larger in size. I didn't take price into account when I was comparing them, but I didn't feel the 595s were a big enough increase over the 555s to keep them (I however felt that the 555s had more bass although it was lower quality). I think I would like the 595s a bit more today, but I wasn't too impressed with them back then. They had a really forward sound, kinda like you're sitting in the front row. I'm not a fan of their presentation.

Of course, I got rid of both of those as I much preferred the sound of the A900s. They were even more comfortable, than the Sennheisers (although none of them can be called uncomfortable), kinda just floating on your head where the other two have more of a grip. I also found the A900s to have a less fatiguing sound than the other two, although I would guess most people could listen to any of them for hours without it becoming an issue. I just preferred their presentation much more than the Sennheiser.

I've since moved on to the Beyer DT770s, which I did not like at first. The bass is completely overbearing and the overall sound seemed muffled and muddy. I've since heavily modified my pair and they sound a lot better. Both these and the A900s benefit from blu-tak modding them, which is cheap, easy, and allows you to tune the sound to suit your tastes (the bass in particular). I find these to be about the same as the Sennheisers on comfort. With blu-tak modding they sound about the same as the A900s do after modding, which I liked.

That's my personal experience. My use tends towards about 50/25/25 for music/movies/gaming. I think the DT770 and A900 get typecast as gaming headphones since they're closed. They both have good sound quality regardless of what you're using them for.

 

[Auric]

Originally posted by: potato28

Originally posted by: Auric
This sounds indubitably dubious and contrary to accurate reproduction:

The HD 555 features a special internal Surround Reflector, which generates an extended spatial sound field, making it the ideal headphone for home theater, as well as music.

I guess it's like having a software headphone filter permanently enabled... which would blow.

Its not a filter, its a"reflector" that does nothing at all to the sound. I've heard the 595's and I own the 555's. The 595's aren't all that much different from the 555's, theres just more refinement in the sound, and a little more bass. But I found that the 555's are more comfortable, making it easy to wear all day and the sound isn't fatiguing at all.

Apparently you overlooked the critical word: like. Also, it would be queer for the company to tout it as essentially the defining feature of that model if it did not in fact affect the sound.

I have been pleased with the AKG K-271 as isolation, accuracy, and comfort are my main requirements. I was weary of the automatic switch's robustness (or lack thereof) even though it seemed a great idea but so far so good after three years of very frequent use. Still, I'll be more impressed after ten.

 

[potato28]

Originally posted by: deejayshakur*Snip*

there we go, a direct comparision between 555 and 595. so your experience is that the 555 is more comfortable than the 595? is the refinement in sound worth the price premium?

i'm trying to find the 595 used for about the same price as the 555. then again, my floor standing athena's are still my main speakers. maybe some used 555s are the way to go if i don't expect to get too much use out of headphones.

i like AT's sound and i checked out the ATH-A900. seems like reviews say it's more suited towards gaming than music.

The 555's are better for the amount that you'll pay for them. The 555's are more comfortable, and it's noticeable. I can wear my 555's for the whole day without noticing their on my head, but the 595's are noticeable and are a little more fatiguing than the 555's all valour design.

The sound isn't much of a difference either, the bass will seem to be deeper on the 555's, but the 595's have deeper bass with an amp. If your only running them through your sound card, the 555's will actually sound a little better than the 595's. I didn't have time to compare them after burn-in, but they did have similar characteristics.

 

[SLCentral]

I spent a few weeks with a set of the HD595's and a Total Bithead amplifier from Headroom, and I was not even slightly pleased. First off, these are like speakers; anyone even semi-close to you will be able to clearly hear what you are listening to. Annoying at best. Second of all, even after plenty of burn-in, the sound had a feeling as if a veil was covering it; things were muddy, poorly detailed, and the overall dynamic range was poor at best. Perhaps I'm spoiled by my Ultimate Ears UE-5c IEM's, but the 595's went back. I haven't tried the HD650's, but the 595's left a poor taste on the tip of my tongue.

As for people saying they are comfortable, perhaps my head is different (it is pretty big ), but I found them to be fatiguing and overwhelming for my ears after just a few minutes of listening.

 

[darkswordsman17]

Originally posted by: SLCentral
I spent a few weeks with a set of the HD595's and a Total Bithead amplifier from Headroom, and I was not even slightly pleased. First off, these are like speakers; anyone even semi-close to you will be able to clearly hear what you are listening to. Annoying at best. Second of all, even after plenty of burn-in, the sound had a feeling as if a veil was covering it; things were muddy, poorly detailed, and the overall dynamic range was poor at best. Perhaps I'm spoiled by my Ultimate Ears UE-5c IEM's, but the 595's went back. I haven't tried the HD650's, but the 595's left a poor taste on the tip of my tongue.

As for people saying they are comfortable, perhaps my head is different (it is pretty big ), but I found them to be fatiguing and overwhelming for my ears after just a few minutes of listening.

I didn't want to bring the Sennheiser veil into it as there's a debate as to it actually existing or not. I heard it clearly on the 595s after trying out the A900s. Comfort wise, I think the 595s are too small and clamp a little too much but they're still pretty comfortable. I too have a large head, so the A900s were a much better fit.

As for fatiguing sound, its possible they had not been burned in enough, which is partly psychological in that your ears need to also adjust to the sound, especially if you're used to another pair of headphones. I don't think solid state amps (and even then the bithead is not considered to be very good of an amp, as a $50 CMoy can best it) aren't good matches for the 595s.

 

[Rubycon]

Never heard of a balanced headphone before.

 

[deejayshakur]

well i pulled the trigger on the 555. amazon delivered it in 2 days with free shipping, as always.

initial impressions from a noob to the audiophile arena: sounds much improved over my AT ES-5, definitely more comfortable than the ES-5, more bass than i expected. does sound similar to my acoustic research bookshelves. no real complaints yet.

 

[Ika]

Originally posted by: Tiamat

Originally posted by: Aflac
The HD595 is one of the most exciting of Sennheiser's headphones, but without a relative point, it's hard to say whether or not it's exciting or not. Compared to Grados, the HD595 will still pale... but compared to something like HD650s, the 595s are Grado-like.

From your post, though, it sounds like the 595s will be right for you. They're one of the best all-purpose headphones you can get. I recommend them all the time and been tempted myself to get a pair... but alas, I'm too poor

The used market calls your name! Ive seen them go for 100$ or less used!

1) I've never seen a pair of good-condition HD595s go for less than $120
2) I've already got Grado SR60s, so it's a problem of utility. I don't really need to spend $100 even on HD595s because I don't really need them. Besides, I love my Grados too much

 

[aphex]

Originally posted by: Aflac

Originally posted by: Tiamat

Originally posted by: Aflac
The HD595 is one of the most exciting of Sennheiser's headphones, but without a relative point, it's hard to say whether or not it's exciting or not. Compared to Grados, the HD595 will still pale... but compared to something like HD650s, the 595s are Grado-like.

From your post, though, it sounds like the 595s will be right for you. They're one of the best all-purpose headphones you can get. I recommend them all the time and been tempted myself to get a pair... but alas, I'm too poor

The used market calls your name! Ive seen them go for 100$ or less used!

1) I've never seen a pair of good-condition HD595s go for less than $120
2) I've already got Grado SR60s, so it's a problem of utility. I don't really need to spend $100 even on HD595s because I don't really need them. Besides, I love my Grados too much

I've seen two in the last month for around $100+ shipping on head-fi