Burn_in Time

[Deleted member 60987]

My Samson 850 stop working in the left channel

They are a little flat in the highs anyway. You know what's a total steal - these things sound better than the Samsons: https://reverb.com/item/39894766-ro...3LFfwRZ1qOKg-3kHJd3BRQliWkFvv_oJabF8HGNXLzozo

 

[GXAlan]

Headphones - Sennheiser

en-us.sennheiser.com

Yes, but in the context of fit and seal, not the drivers.

 

[Deleted member 60987]

I've never used RTING stuff. I might have been to the webpage some time ago. I'm not sure. PEQ config.>>>
View attachment 281086

RTINGS is good. You can look up hundreds of headphones and see the neutrality, build quality, many charts: https://www.rtings.com/headphones

 

[GaryH]

For perceived neutrality, and backed by actual acoustic science, this is a better list:

AutoEq/results/RANKING.md at master · jaakkopasanen/AutoEq

Automatic headphone equalization from frequency responses - jaakkopasanen/AutoEq

github.com

 

[Deleted member 60987]

For perceived neutrality, and backed by actual acoustic science, this is a better list:

AutoEq/results/RANKING.md at master · jaakkopasanen/AutoEq

Automatic headphone equalization from frequency responses - jaakkopasanen/AutoEq

github.com

Interesting but I have trouble believing my SRH 440s are the MOST neutral. And I have the original, not 440a.

 

[Doodski]

RTINGS is good. You can look up hundreds of headphones and see the neutrality, build quality, many charts: https://www.rtings.com/headphones

Thanks for the recommendation and link. I've been tweaking EQ/PEQ for more than a half century and I have a pretty good idea of what my ears work well with. My hearing will be down at my age and with my history of being around heavy machinery and outdoor equipment they don't work as well as a young person. So I just compensate with the PEQ and it gets the job done. So RTINGS is interesting although I don't think it is the solution to my needs. The PEQ settings that I use are to compensate for high frequency hearing loss and the cutting out of the lows and highs is because they cannot be heard or felt and so why waste resources on wasted power.

 

[GaryH]

Interesting but I have trouble believing my SRH 440s are the MOST neutral. And I have the original, not 440a.

Take a look at the slope value. The closer to 0 the more neutral the overall perceived spectral balance.

 

[Deleted member 60987]

Believe me, I judge headphones more by sounds than charts. But they are a good starting point for me. I want flattened sound for reference and charts point me in the direction and let me look at recommendations vs what the specs imply. As for age, yes, I am down to 14khz. Kids around 20K. Normal degradation over time. Might even explain my preference for bright headphones like the Superlux 681. Hearing loss. But I do find headphones boring if there is not some power on the other end, pumping out the bass.

 

[Dazerdoreal]

Interesting but I have trouble believing my SRH 440s are the MOST neutral. And I have the original, not 440a.

Oratory1990s measurements are the only ones where the SRH 440 look that good.
His measurements are said to be technically the best, and I dont doubt that, but..

According to diyaudioheaven & rtings, the 440 are very seal-dependent & have a particularly bad frequency response consistency.
My guess is that most people will not be able to enjoy this theoretically "perfect" sound in practice. There also might be an above-average unit variation among the 440s.

 

[Deleted member 60987]

Oratory1990s measurements are the only ones where the SRH 440 look that good.
His measurements are said to be technically the best, and I dont doubt that, but..

According to diyaudioheaven & rtings, the 440 are very seal-dependent & have a particularly bad frequency response consistency.
My guess is that most people will not be able to enjoy this theoretically "perfect" sound in practice. There also might be an above-average unit variation among the 440s.

Hey, I was happy with the 440s sound when they came. But they never replaced other phones I was using. Funny thing. When they come in the mail and I find out, are they A flat and usable for reference? B do I like them? C Are they immersive? D Does the bass have some power without being muddy crap like the Sennheiser 280 Pro? Sennheiser in general is a total crap shoot. Screw their reputation. Other companies are pretty consistent and reliable. I simply won't buy them without first hearing them. AKGs I have more trust in. I assume 701 and 702 are decent reference. Not to mention 361 or 371. I guess it's price point. Over $200 I am not buying them without hearing them. And don't know where I can go to hear a lot of these. Not Guitar Center or Best Buy. Maybe Sam Ash in NYC. I will have to take a trek to music row and see who has the high end stuff.

 

[Doodski]

But I do find headphones boring if there is not some power on the other end, pumping out the bass.

I find source material is critical for bass stuff. Some recordings on the 598s sound fantastic and even feel as if the headphone cups are vibrating on my head. Most recordings could use a bit more bass although the 598s are simply not reproducing those frequencies.

 

[MrNice13]

They are a little flat in the highs anyway. You know what's a total steal - these things sound better than the Samsons: https://reverb.com/item/39894766-ro...3LFfwRZ1qOKg-3kHJd3BRQliWkFvv_oJabF8HGNXLzozo

Going to get these for sure

 

[GaryH]

Believe me, I judge headphones more by sounds than charts. But they are a good starting point for me. I want flattened sound for reference and charts point me in the direction and let me look at recommendations vs what the specs imply. As for age, yes, I am down to 14khz. Kids around 20K. Normal degradation over time. Might even explain my preference for bright headphones like the Superlux 681. Hearing loss. But I do find headphones boring if there is not some power on the other end, pumping out the bass.

The point is the SRH440's slope is a positive 0.11, indicating a bit of a thin or bright overall spectral balance, and there are other headphones on that list with a slope closer to zero (neutrality) while still being high up in the ranking.

Oratory1990s measurements are the only ones where the SRH 440 look that good.
His measurements are said to be technically the best, and I dont doubt that, but..

According to diyaudioheaven & rtings, the 440 are very seal-dependent & have a particularly bad frequency response consistency.
My guess is that most people will not be able to enjoy this theoretically "perfect" sound in practice. There also might be an above-average unit variation among the 440s.

Yeah best to look at AutoEQ's ranking first, then check a headphones's frequency response consistency measurements on Rtings.

 

[MrNice13]

That's what I feel with my superlux 668B modded hehe cup shakinnn

I find source material is critical for bass stuff. Some recordings on the 598s sound fantastic and even feel as if the headphone cups are vibrating on my head. Most recordings could use a bit more bass although the 598s are simply not reproducing those frequencies.

 

[MrNice13]

Hey, I was happy with the 440s sound when they came. But they never replaced other phones I was using. Funny thing. When they come in the mail and I find out, are they A flat and usable for reference? B do I like them? C Are they immersive? D Does the bass have some power without being muddy crap like the Sennheiser 280 Pro? Sennheiser in general is a total crap shoot. Screw their reputation. Other companies are pretty consistent and reliable. I simply won't buy them without first hearing them. AKGs I have more trust in. I assume 701 and 702 are decent reference. Not to mention 361 or 371. I guess it's price point. Over $200 I am not buying them without hearing them. And don't know where I can go to hear a lot of these. Not Guitar Center or Best Buy. Maybe Sam Ash in NYC. I will have to take a trek to music row and see who has the high end stuff.

+1
Total marketing scams... There's so better Headphones for the price comon. Look at the Superlux that's rival against 5xx's. Akg's 701 are top for critical listning.

 

[Deleted member 60987]

I find source material is critical for bass stuff. Some recordings on the 598s sound fantastic and even feel as if the headphone cups are vibrating on my head. Most recordings could use a bit more bass although the 598s are simply not reproducing those frequencies.

Not surprising. More Sennheiser inconsistency. Hey I used a Sennheiser 421 mike for vocals for years and practically cried when it stopped working. But their "headphone reputation" or that "Sennheiser sound" reminds me of that "great Starbucks taste." Yes, some Sennheiser stuff is very good. Some isn't. They are not a brand you can trust blindly.

 

[GaryH]

They are not a brand you can trust blindly.

No brand is really.

 

[Deleted member 60987]

No brand is really.

AKG didnt make crappy stuff until Harmon Kardon started having them made in China.

 

[Deleted member 60987]

My Samson 850 stop working in the left channel

The fact that you can buy 850s for $35 on Amazon is pretty crazy. They're really not bad at all. Especially at that price point.

 

[Grumpish]

With the sound of headphones being very dependent on the fit - yes, some "burn-in" while the pads mold to your head shape, but anything else is totally irrelevant.