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Sennheiser HD505

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Mr Swing King

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New Sennie being released. Already available at Amazon.
Looks like an HD560S with copper accents and no foam between drivers and ears….which could lead to a somewhat bright/overly detailed presentation.
newsroom.sennheiser.com

The gateway to audiophile excellence

The HD 505 is the perfect way to start your journey into the world of audiophile listening.
newsroom.sennheiser.com newsroom.sennheiser.com

Judging by this following chart, it looks like the new HD400 Pro or the original HD560S.
I’m equally interested as I am wary.
1739203784746.png

Edith: Here’s a link to the announcement over at headfi: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/announcing-the-sennheiser-hd-505.975829/
‘Those familiar with the HD 560S will find some tonal similarities here, but with a smoother top end that should appease longer listening with less fatigue.’
Now I’m confused…and a bit more interested at the same time.

Double Edith: I’ve ordered one. See what’s what. The Sennheiser reps over at headfi say that it’s a riff on the 560 with a slightly warmer treble…and that sounds really nice to me. I’m already a big fan of the second gen HD560S but I can see myself reaching for a warmer riff on it.
Anyoo…I’ll hopefully be a lot wiser in a little while.
 
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It would be great if they are a little warmer version of the HD560s, for more relaxing listening. Something like what the HD650 are compared to the HD600. I like my HD560S a lot for critical listening and mixing, but the treble emphasis can be fatiguing when you are just listening for fun during a long time.
 
^It’s not really the same though. Big difference in the bass and the area around 1.5 to 3k differs enough to make the two sound very different. That is the area where our hearing is at it’s most acute. Slight deviations there can make a huge difference.

I do wonder if I am going to keep my HD600 after getting this. The HD560S type of drivers are typically way better from a distortion point of view, and I also slightly prefer the angled driver design in terms of presentation.
Having said that, I’m not entirely sure I would have bought the HD505SE had I seen these frequency responses.
 
I got a hold of mine and am absolutely smitten. Sure this is coming from an old school HD600 fan who loves the stock presentation, so basically receiving the very same thing with newer more capable angled drivers in a lighter design with a way less clampy headband…well I am in heaven!
This sounds like an HD600 with better bass and spatial qualities. The fact that it is one of the most comfortable headphones I’ve ever put on my head also adds to it’s overall charm.
But yeah..in short; if you love the old HD600 you’ll want to get your hands on this thing asap. Wonderful headphone.
 
Seems to be worth trying. I'll wait a bit until the price comes down or the 505 appears in Sennheiser's "Corporate Benefits" program.
 
I call it
hd660s version of hd560s lol
 
Hmm...
Listening to the pink noise tests, the HD505 sounds smoother than the HD560s.

I don't want to steer discussion into the HD560s, but I recently picked up this headphone and compared the the Superlux HD681 (with Kleenex tissue paper and EQ tweak ~4-5k). I prefer the overall sound of the HD681, fatter bottom end, fuller sound overall. However, the texture of the HD560s and fine detail is more natural and realistic.

Some frequency plots suggest HD505 is just the same as the HD560s, others suggest its more of a modified variant. Time will tell, I guess.
 
I guess the HD505 is just the "Amazon version" of the HD550. Just like the HD6XX is the Drop version of the HD650.
 
solderdude said:
The differences between these models fall well within production and placement on fixture tolerances.
Click to expand...
No, they have acoustic differences which show in the measurements (more than one of each was measured) and are even easy to see:

1742632239405.png


"One more detail for those who are curious: the two *are* acoustically different, as is eminently visible in the differences of the front volume—specifically the differences between the baffles of each headphone.

The HD 550’s baffle seems purely based on visual inspection like it may be a more restrictive / higher acoustic impedance material overall, but it also leaves more of the driver area exposed, whereas the HD 505’s baffle seems more permeable / lower acoustic impedance, while covering up a bit more of the outer circumference of the driver front.

You can’t really go too wrong with either, but I do think the HD 550 is my preference between the two since it represents a particularly well-rounded offering that is pretty hard to beat. Speaking of which…"

Source: https://headphones.com/blogs/reviews/sennheiser-hd-550-review-a-legitimate-gamechanger#section-4-4

According to those measurements and comments I personally would also probably go for the 550, when its price drops one day to around 200€, it might be even a replacement for my good old HD600, which I would keep though as a piece of historic reference:

1742632541670.png


"Firstly, the HD 550 has more bass extension than HD 600 and 650, which I think is a rather unambiguous benefit. Thankfully it isn’t a trade-off like with the HD 560S where it technically had more bass extension, but was so much thinner in the upper-bass and lower-midrange that the bass quality and texture suffered dramatically. HD 550 has essentially the same tuning as HD 600 under 500 Hz, but with more bass extension under 100 Hz. Easy win.

The second benefit of HD 550 is that the midrange structure is actually a bit closer to what a typical person may find “correct”, specifically when it comes to the 2-4 kHz region. The HD 600 and 650 have a bit of what Resolve has previously called a “shifted” ear gain, where the primary resonance of the headphone actually rises a bit later than the ear naturally expects.

To me, this lateness of rise is actually heard as a more significant coloration than it may appear. I hear HD 600 and 650 as having a slight grain-exemplifying peak at 3.5 kHz, and a mild under-representation of 2 kHz bite.

The HD 550 addresses both of these things. It has more (but not too much) energy in the 2 kHz band, which helps it sound more focused and precise on plucked strings, piano, and snare drums. But it also has less intensity at 3.5 kHz, which is a region I think may be responsible for some hearing the HD 600 in particular as “shouty”.

The third benefit I want to touch on is more personal, but I find the upper treble of HD 550 considerably less fatiguing and sharp to my ear. This area is my main complaint when it comes to the HD 6x0 series headphones, but especially HD 600. Because the HD 550 has similar midrange tuning but the upper treble works better for me, I can confidently say I prefer it to HD 600.

But because we’re talking about treble, judgments of this region will be highly individual. It’s not only possible, but likely that people will find the HD 6x0 series to have a smoother treble presentation. The HD 550’s treble response above 6 kHz is darker overall—for me, at least—but this also means its lower-treble rise and dryness of timbre is more apparent.

The HD 600 and 650 have a similar (though not exactly the same) 5-6 kHz rise as HD 550, but also have an upper-treble rise around 10 kHz that actually ends up balancing it out somewhat. Because of this balance, the treble of the HD 600 and 650 sound moderately silken and “sweetened” in a way that HD 550 doesn’t.

Additionally, I think HD 600 and HD 650 are a bit more detailed due to the more forward upper treble, with HD 600 being a clear leader in this respect. That said, the HD 550’s imaging is bereft of the oft maligned “3 blob” effect the HD 6x0 series has. Now, HD 550 is not an incredibly spacious headphone or anything, it’s just a bit less helmet-like and eerily separated than HD 600 and 650.

While HD 550’s improved bass, midrange, and upper treble is enough for me to easily prefer it to the HD 600, HD 650 still has the smoothest overall presentation and is clearly the most forgiving of the bunch. So HD 650 is probably still the safest recommendation, but I prefer the HD 550’s bass and midrange presentation to either of them. For the treble I favor HD 650 slightly above HD 550 though, as the HD 650’s treble silkiness is pretty addictive when it works."
 
L5730 said:
Hmm...
Listening to the pink noise tests, the HD505 sounds smoother than the HD560s.

I don't want to steer discussion into the HD560s, but I recently picked up this headphone and compared the the Superlux HD681 (with Kleenex tissue paper and EQ tweak ~4-5k). I prefer the overall sound of the HD681, fatter bottom end, fuller sound overall. However, the texture of the HD560s and fine detail is more natural and realistic.

Some frequency plots suggest HD505 is just the same as the HD560s, others suggest its more of a modified variant. Time will tell, I guess.
Click to expand...
i justed tested these two!!!

1. 681 is real good for the price. fantastic even. tunage is really great from bass (has a lot of weight to the bass notes, but probably that is because 560s is open back, and these are semi open?)
all to the mids and then.. The treble.. let me paraphrase the biggest musician on the planet rn
**it's a horror story, baby just say NO!"

i equed the treble yet the details went missing. it is hard to wrestle with those frequencies. good phones, a classic indeed!!

i even wrote a poem about my beloved ole 681s. it is cslled "Still There". good times, good memories.





2. 560s is better in details, resolution. yes very natural. .
ps i just saw the review from those headphone show youtubers talking about 550, youtuber called "listener"said 560s was
too cold for him (mids are 1.5 db lower than 550 it seems) . and 505 is a bit warmer, and 550 is the warmest. the others agreed that 550 is the best. hm

but i remember one of those guys from the show in individual review said 560s was a shock for him in how perfectly it sounded

i don't know. i like 560's, but then again i bought it for music production, i guess i am fine with "clinical" sound.

maybe i should just lift those mids +1db or so and make them warmer to see if i would like them more.

cheers cheers!!
 
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