New Sennheiser HD490 Pro

[CedarX]

It depends on whether or not comfort is important to you.
It also depends on whether or not you plan to EQ or you want to use as is.

The HD490 isn't a great binaural tool. The binaural tool is the software you can download for it. The headphone itself does not bring anything extra in this.

The pads emphasize different parts of the frequency range and is what sets it apart from the HD560S which only comes in one flavor.
That is unless you have an older and newer version then you have 2 slightly different flavors.

The HD560S is a headphone designed for music enjoyment. The HD490PRO is a tool for producers/mixers.
The 'producers' pads is a bit baffling to me though.

I'll try to explain... when you mix with a headphone that is a bit shy on the bass and is a little too forward and bright and the mixing engineer has a good ear he will 'turn the knobs' so that in order for the music to sound good to him he will dial in some lower bass, reduce the forwardness a little and ease up on the treble.
A bright, lean headphone thus results in fuller, bassier and 'relaxed' recording with gentle highs. Right what the doctor ordered.

When you listen to that with a 'neutral' headphone like the HD560S then you will hear the full sound with good bass and gentle treble.

When you listen to the mix (done with mixer pads) on the HD490PRO with producer pads the producer will hear an overly warm and somewhat woolly lows and a bit reduced clarity. No idea what that is good for but most young folks prefer more warmth and recordings that are a bit bright do not sound that way.
The producer must either listen at lower levels than the mixer or just prefers a warmer sound.

In any case... the producer pads sound a bit too warm/mushy to me. I like the mixer pads the most (probably because I listen to headphones and nearfields mostly) but they are a bit 'unnatural' for music enjoyment. These are tools for the producing side for which they work well.
People expect that because pros use them they must be good for music enjoyment as well. Not necessarily so alas.

Comfort there is no contest. HD490PRO >> HD650 (with lowered clamping force) > HD560S which is lightweight but 'feels' a bit cheap in comparison.

For music enjoyment, in the Sennheiser stable, the HD560S is a cheap option, the HD660S2 is a more luxurious option. The HD600/650 are classics, different bass and treble 'texture'.

Thanks for the great explanation!

 

[RoA]

Don't forget the 58X Jubilee if you're on a budget.

 

[CedarX]

Don't forget the 58X Jubilee if you're on a budget.

Yes, I don’t have that one… But the 58X appears to be very much “somewhere” between the HD560S, HD600/650, which I own already.
The HD490 Pro caught my attention as something *potentially* different, a true new pair of headphones according to Sennheiser marketing stuff—they seem to be quite proud of it!

 

[spankjam]

We'll probably have to wait for a new HD600 / 650 revision.

To me, from an audio engineer perspective, coming from mixing on Quested Mains, ProAc Studio and Amphion One 18s, the 490s are not making much sense acoustically. My HD650s are easier to transition to when it comes to knowing where the mid range sits.

 

[Noodles]

So, i had these for a bit ~ about 2 weeks and i can say they are pretty good for most things that are not too complicated. For most music and movies... they work quite nicely since the sound in those is not too complicated for the driver to handle.
However you throw some underlying constant bass track and more complicated overarching melody and sounds and they fall apart quite quickly.
For instance i tried gaming on it and in Doom Eternal: when there is the underlying metal track playing on relatively higher volume and there is lots going on around you ... the positional accuracy becomes really vague. It's like a blob of sound hitting your eardums from somewhere inbetween your ears instead of telling you that X is coming from left, right, center.
They are fine if not a lot of things are playing at the same time and when mixing they are also going to be good enough, but so are a lot of other things ... and cheaper than the 490's too.

To be fair, this is a problem with most dynamic drivers. For me - that bit made me return them. On the plus side - they are very comfortable and if you want an HD660S2 ~ HD650-ish sound with more comfort and you really want it to be Sennheiser, then look no further.
Guess i will be sticking with planar drivers for the time being, which for the most part don't really have this issue (most likely the size of the planar driver is at play here). My Moondrop Para, which i got for about 230 on sale, is far more appealing,

 

[Noise Buffet]

I went from the HD6xx to the HD560S due to the flatter bass response (and weight). This was after mixing on closed backs for decades (Sony MDR7506). Going from closed to open was a big change for the better - far less fatiguing and more accurate. They really need to change their naming convention though. The number 490 is SMALLER than 650 so the price should reflect this.

 

[solderdude]

The Pro range is 2**, 3** and 4** series
The consumer range is 5**, 6** and 8** series (only one in the 7** series) for the more serious models.

The HD560S = HD400PRO in the pro line and below the HD490.

 

[pchmykh]

The DT900 ProX is 'sharper' sounding in the treble and has more clarity.
HD490Pro is 'nicer/politer' sounding with the producer pads.

Can you please describe your thoughts about comparison between dt 900 pro x and 490 pro with mixing (fabric) pads please? If you can share frequency response comparison with both pads it would be great :3
I am currently looking for my first headphones, and would like to have 'neutral' headphones with archetype visuals (without RGB and etc elements), which Beyerdynamic and Sennheiser fits. Do you think 490 is comparable with 660s2 also? Thank you!
P.S. I am looking headphones just for music listening and general pc use.

 

[Alchemist_]

After I returned the 560S. Which squeezed my head like a giant vice ((((
(Hello manufacturer, put them on... yourself for an hour..)

I’m thinking of trying 490, but that’s why they turned the cups horizontally, what the hell came up with that, I don’t hate it... before putting them on you need to straighten them, after taking them off they get tangled again(.
The manufacturer himself does not use them at home, so he repeats after his competitors ((

 

[Alchemist_]

On head-fi there is an opinion that the 490 speakers are poorly selected (In tests there is a discrepancy in the upper range (This is alarming, 400 is a bit too much for the risk of the speakers not matching.

 

[pchmykh]

Also the same driver equal as hd560s has. Looks like a bit too overpriced, bad reviews about extremely cheap plastic and plastics paintings, but still interesting headphones. Somehow I am still considering them.

 

[solderdude]

Maybe only Neumann gets selected drivers after all and my intel was wrong ?

That would not be strange as the rear damping of the Neumann driver is quite different and requires a separate driver production (different paper damping and porting).

The HD490 Pro driver does not have the magnet-hole flared port glued into the hole but uses a slightly different flared port.

 

[Alchemist_]

Maybe only Neumann gets selected drivers after all and my intel was wrong ?

That would not be strange as the rear damping of the Neumann driver is quite different and requires a separate driver production (different paper damping and porting).

The HD490 Pro driver does not have the magnet-hole flared port glued into the hole but uses a slightly different flared port.

Perhaps even Neumann doesn't have an advantage in this. They made the speaker, checked its resistance and if it was normal, they left it. That's not why the price is high...

If they somehow selected the speakers, it would be announced “for all to hear.”

Sennheiser is very overpriced; even their twisted cable costs 47 euros). I think other materials are also sold at astronomical prices.

This means more damping materials and different plastics, better iron will greatly increase the price, which is what we see in the 490 and 30 models.

In my opinion, the prices should be like this, I probably underestimated them a little) But then there would be more sales.
560 = 130
400 = 149
490 = 260
490+ = 320
660s2 = 260

ps So far I know only two companies that match speakers left to right: Rode, Shure.

Comfort was achieved simply, the manufacturer needed to loosen the clamp 560, and that’s all, but you can’t charge 500 euros for the same))

And it would be better if they put the program only in the PLUS version, then the PRO version would be cheaper. If anyone wants to buy it separately.

 

[solderdude]

HD650 always has had matched drivers (HD600 did not) and the HD800 also has matched drivers (they even marked them in 5 grades on the driver itself).

 

[Joe Smith]

I still like my Senn 518s, just put new velour earpads on them and they sound quite good. They are my secondary pair, I still like my AKG K361s the best in the sub-$100 class.

 

[Count Arthur]

I've had several of the Sennheiser 5 series: HD555, HD595 and HD560s.

The only one I didn't like was the 595s; I found it way too bright. However, looking at Solderdude's measurements, I'm not sure why, they don't seem significantly different in the treble region to the HD650s, that I've also had, and liked; perhaps the reduced bass made me perceive them that way:

I currently have both the HD560s and the HD 490 Pro and sonically, I like them both, but I will say that the 490 Pro, with the velour pads, is the most comfortable over-ear headphone I've ever tried.

 

[solderdude]

There is a whopping 6dB difference in 'warmth' between HD595 and HD650 making the HD595 a lot less warm so brighter.

 

[Alchemist_]

I read that some users have letters touching their ears. Or maybe you can reduce the clamping force? Then, probably, the letters would not touch the ears. Or is it also not possible to do this here, as in the 560S?

 

[solderdude]

The clamping force of the HD490 Pro is pleasantly low (2-2.5N measured) and distributed over a larger surface area than HD560S pads so hardly compresses.

People complaining about ears touching the dust screen should look into HD800S (in Sennheiser stable). The HD560S has firmer foam but more clamping force but is 2mm 'deeper' on the rear side but has this weird triangle (for the yoke) some complain about. Of course that 2mm can make the difference.
Clamping force is lower and comfort of the HD490 Pro is much higher than HD560S (at least to me).

 

[staticV3]

Clamping force and comfort of the HD490 Pro is much higher than HD560S (at least to me).

Clamping force lower, comfort higher, right?