Is HD800S worth it over HD600 with 4.5x price difference?

[garbulky]

THE HD800/s have 300 Ohm impedance and hence both do not need a beefy amp at all (one which can deliver a lot of current to drive really difficult low impedance low sensitivity head phones). They just need more voltage than a simple amp with low supply voltage (e.g. USB powered audio interfaces without DC converters) can deliver. A simple NE5532 opamp with its two amp stages in parallel could drive one channel with ease.

If that’s your experience with it that’s good. After plenty of lackluster experiences with sennheiser line, I am glad I got a powerful amp. Mine has hiss compared to quieter amps but sounds great especially on movies or songs with large dynamics

 

[FrankF]

If that’s your experience with it that’s good. After plenty of lackluster experiences with sennheiser line, I am glad I got a powerful amp. Mine has hiss compared to quieter amps but sounds great especially on movies or songs with large dynamics

Name of amp please?

 

[garbulky]

Name of amp please?

I use the Emotiva Bas-X A-100 in direct drive mode. I use two eqs as I mentioned in a previous post.

 

[AnalogSteph]

If you have objectionable hiss with that, you may want to sort out the signal chain (gain staging) before the amp. Output noise from the amp itself with a HD6** should still be below 20 dB(A) SPL, even in direct drive mode. That's the equivalent of <2 µV(A) at the input though, which would require a top-flight DAC to not be compromised, so I'll suggest a volume setting not beyond 2 o'clock or so. (Looks like the knob may not have an indicator? It would be about a quarter turn from max.) If you can't get ample level like that, things are too quiet going in, which would require investigating. Two EQs? Got a link for said previous post by any chance?

 

[BARDUKE]

Hell yes.
The HD800S are from a different planet, they make the HD600 sound like garbage, you would need to spend a ton of money to reach that level of sound from speakers, they are a bargain in the hi end world.

I have the HD660s and yes the HD800s sounds so much clearer and open.

 

[SilentReaper]

I upgraded my headphones from the HD600 to HD800s
My current setup is Schitt Magnius/Modius and I'm using an XLR cable.

To be honest even after EQ, I don't feel that impressed. I'm not sure what it is, but the HD800s feels like a old house renovated, very pleasing on the outside, but something internally feels wrong. I'm still deciding if I want to return mine (I have 2 more weeks to decide).

 

[x3sphere]

I have both and listen to the HD600 more. Don't get me wrong, HD800S have better detail retrieval, but I actually find the larger soundstage of the 800 fatiguing when listening for long periods.

I do not think the HD800 renders the HD600 obsolete at all. The 600 still sounds incredible to me after using an 800S for months.

I suggest just getting HD600 first since it's so inexpensive compared to the 800, then go from there.

 

[Dipypang]

I upgraded my headphones from the HD600 to HD800s
My current setup is Schitt Magnius/Modius and I'm using an XLR cable.

To be honest even after EQ, I don't feel that impressed. I'm not sure what it is, but the HD800s feels like a old house renovated, very pleasing on the outside, but something internally feels wrong. I'm still deciding if I want to return mine (I have 2 more weeks to decide).

From your case I think you should just return the HD800s. Just follow your heart! Or ears to be exact.

 

[Divine_Madcat]

If that’s your experience with it that’s good. After plenty of lackluster experiences with sennheiser line, I am glad I got a powerful amp. Mine has hiss compared to quieter amps but sounds great especially on movies or songs with large dynamics

An interesting post - i too have an A100, and actually replaced it with a JDS Labs Atom. I my HD800s have hiss on the A100, and i always felt a little underwhelmed with the cans on that am. Picked up the Atom the other day for $50, and i love it in every way more than the A100. The signal is dead quiet, and i feel like the overall sound is just cleaner and more dynamic. Before getting the new amp, i was doubting my Hd800, but now...

As for the other question - I have three cans, HD650, LCD-2, and HD800 (my most recent grab from a pawn shop of all places). My 650's, which i have owned for years go with me to work, where i use them daily. And while i love them, at the end of the day, i still have the itch to fire up the HD800, because i feel they are that much better (more so with my new amp). I was never disappointed per se with my 650; i just couldn't say no to the 800 at the price offered.

 

[adman_girvan]

Will come down to a personal valuation assessment.

 

[garbulky]

If you have objectionable hiss with that, you may want to sort out the signal chain (gain staging) before the amp. Output noise from the amp itself with a HD6** should still be below 20 dB(A) SPL, even in direct drive mode. That's the equivalent of <2 µV(A) at the input though, which would require a top-flight DAC to not be compromised, so I'll suggest a volume setting not beyond 2 o'clock or so. (Looks like the knob may not have an indicator? It would be about a quarter turn from max.) If you can't get ample level like that, things are too quiet going in, which would require investigating. Two EQs? Got a link for said previous post by any chance?

In direct drive mode the hiss is minor but slightly audible. The settings are as you have mentioned. Schiit loki mini plus and Kameleon eq but they don't make a difference to the hiss.

 

[garbulky]

An interesting post - i too have an A100, and actually replaced it with a JDS Labs Atom. I my HD800s have hiss on the A100, and i always felt a little underwhelmed with the cans on that am. Picked up the Atom the other day for $50, and i love it in every way more than the A100. The signal is dead quiet, and i feel like the overall sound is just cleaner and more dynamic. Before getting the new amp, i was doubting my Hd800, but now...

As for the other question - I have three cans, HD650, LCD-2, and HD800 (my most recent grab from a pawn shop of all places). My 650's, which i have owned for years go with me to work, where i use them daily. And while i love them, at the end of the day, i still have the itch to fire up the HD800, because i feel they are that much better (more so with my new amp). I was never disappointed per se with my 650; i just couldn't say no to the 800 at the price offered.

Very interesting. Thanks for sharing. You have the hd800 or the 800S? Have you tried the 800 in direct drive mode?

 

[Dro]

I have both and listen to the HD600 more. Don't get me wrong, HD800S have better detail retrieval, but I actually find the larger soundstage of the 800 fatiguing when listening for long periods.

I do not think the HD800 renders the HD600 obsolete at all. The 600 still sounds incredible to me after using an 800S for months.

I suggest just getting HD600 first since it's so inexpensive compared to the 800, then go from there.

I would suggest trying both with EQ and see what you prefer. The HD600 primarily needs bass and should not change much besides that. An HD800/HD800S EQed flat sounds very different though. I just set my HD800 EQ up and the soundstage seems much smaller without all that excess treble.

 

[ziddy76]

Should I just get the HD600 or save for a few more months and get the HD800S?
Is the 4.5x price difference really worth the sound quality difference?

Only you can make that determination. Only you can be satisfied with your decision and purchase or become that Head-Fier who will always need the next big $$$ headphone that comes out every 3 months.

Fact Sennheiser now has what 4 iterations of the HD800 just shows how they see audiofools, chumps, cause you know they bought all 4.

 

[2M2B]

Never understood the hype the HD800 gets?. It has issues in the FR that would've gotten it laughed at If It was a £199 not £1600 which seems to be the case with 95% of TOTL headphones that get Head Fi hype. I've never bought the idea there objective gains from £80 ~ 350 headphones to ones at HD800 price more so when EQ is used.

 

[Jimbob54]

Never understood the hype the HD800 gets?. It has issues in the FR that would've gotten it laughed at If It was a £199 not £1600 which seems to be the case with 95% of TOTL headphones that get Head Fi hype. I've never bought the idea there objective gains from £80 ~ 350 headphones to ones at HD800 price more so when EQ is used.

That would be where you are wrong. Find someone that says they have got any headphones to sound like an HD800.

 

[Leiker535]

Never understood the hype the HD800 gets?. It has issues in the FR that would've gotten it laughed at If It was a £199 not £1600 which seems to be the case with 95% of TOTL headphones that get Head Fi hype. I've never bought the idea there objective gains from £80 ~ 350 headphones to ones at HD800 price more so when EQ is used.

Hype isn't necessarily with its odd FR, but with the technicalities it has, both sonical and engineering wise. You can't have the HRTF sounstage of the HD 800 without messing with angled drivers and extensive research of dynamic drivers and tuning. Sennheiser spent a lot of time building the headphone itself and the technologies employed on the final unit were all novelty at launch, from the special Driver to the specific alloys employed in construction, it isn't a "it just works" design like the HD 6X0 line.

If all that prowess translate well into music listening against mainstream and streamline solutions is another discussion.

 

[MRC01]

... Sennheiser spent a lot of time building the headphone itself and the technologies employed on the final unit were all novelty at launch, from the special Driver to the specific alloys employed in construction, it isn't a "it just works" design like the HD 6X0 line. ...

This is true. Too bad with all that research they didn't find a way to give it linear frequency response. Its 6 kHz peak is like a sonic drill on my skull. I wonder if that was intentional, to make it sound more "airy" and "detailed", the sonic equivalent of video monitors whose default settings crank up the saturation & contrast to make them grab people's attention when on display in the store. Of course, it's easy enough to fix with EQ. But the 6xx series sounds more linear through the mids & treble without EQ, but they do lack the HD800's soundstage and "air".

 

[Robbo99999]

Should I just get the HD600 or save for a few more months and get the HD800S?
Is the 4.5x price difference really worth the sound quality difference?

They're not even a similar type of headphone - HD800s is a soundstage headphone whereas HD600 has one of the poorest soundstage of any headphone. HD600 is very narrow soundstage, worst of all my headphones (which are in my sig). HD600 is a great headphone for everything else pretty much, just poor soundstage. Your choice would depend on how much you value the soundstage factor, which you can only determine yourself by trying a variety of headphones that have different levels of soundstage for you. I'd say if soundstage is not much of a factor then get the HD600 as it's great in everything else apart from not particularly great in bass clarity when boosted, although it looks like the HD800s isn't much better in the bass when boosted based on the distortion measurements I've seen.

I'd choose the HD800s for the soundstage, but that would be because I value soundstage highly. And my choice is influenced by knowing that I'd apply EQ to both headphones......if I couldn't apply EQ then I'd choose the HD600.

 

[Robbo99999]

I personally want to buy the 800S in the future, so I skipped 600 series of bd bought the 560S which is close to heaven with tube amp so it made me save money (for now ^^).

Gave you a like for your choice of HD560s, it's my joint favourite headphone with my K702, once both are EQ'd. HD560s is a more sensible buy of the two though, and is more solid & reliable in more ways than one!