Sennheiser HD560S Review (Headphone)

[3alfa3]

Not sure why it happens, probably for the same reason speakers sound different at angles and in different parts of the room (the airspace between the ear and driver being the room here).

Every headshape is unique I guess, I have a narrow jaw so when I pull the phones down, the bottom side of the cups move closer to each other and the angle changes.

Just tried a big movement up/down, yes, there is a difference, but, highs are lower both when i move headphone way high or down, seem like they work the same (verticaly) in most scenarios i use them on my head, but not horizontaly - i do need to place them in "sweetspot". Must be the Ears (and Head?), not Headphone.

 

[Robbo99999]

Just tried a big movement up/down, yes, there is a difference, but, highs are lower both when i move headphone way high or down, seem like they work the same (verticaly) in most scenarios i use them on my head, but not horizontaly - i do need to place them in "sweetspot". Must be the Ears (and Head?), not Headphone.

Do you have much scope for moving the headphone around on your head for different positions whilst still your ears not touching the earcups? For myself I kind of have to wear the headphone in one position to not have my ears touching the earcups, so that's how I wear it - I suppose it's just a central position of the cups on my ears.

 

[3alfa3]

Do you have much scope for moving the headphone around on your head for different positions whilst still your ears not touching the earcups? For myself I kind of have to wear the headphone in one position to not have my ears touching the earcups, so that's how I wear it - I suppose it's just a central position of the cups on my ears.

Not really, my ears are big and are touching earcups slightly (drivers also, but just barely). I'm used to that, it's the same on DT 770 Pro.

 

[Robbo99999]

Not really, my ears are big and are touching earcups slightly (drivers also, but just barely). I'm used to that, it's the same on DT 770 Pro.

Right, I always just position a headphone so that it's not touching my ears or the position that produces the least touching, so by definition is probably the most central positioning possible. For larger earcup headphones like HD800 I can wear that in different ways in which case I choose to make sure that headphone is not overlapping the rear lower jaw line below my ear (to get best seal), but generally I wear headphones centrally, I find not many headphones have scope for much movement.

 

[l3xtown]

Hello, which of the two HD560s versions (the old 3m version or the new 1.8m version) should I choose for writing arrangements and beats? Which headphones are better balanced and sound better? I need to figure out which one is better at high! And another question is, where are the high frequencies better in HD600 or HD560 (and in which version), where are they brighter?

 

[Robbo99999]

Hello, which of the two HD560s versions (the old 3m version or the new 1.8m version) should I choose for writing arrangements and beats? Which headphones are better balanced and sound better? I need to figure out which one is better at high! And another question is, where are the high frequencies better in HD600 or HD560 (and in which version), where are they brighter?

HD560s New Version (one with 1.8m cable) is a better balanced headphone overall than both the Old Version HD560s and the HD600. In terms of which one just does better treble I'm sort of tempted to say HD600 but it's a long time since I listened with them, and measurements suggest treble may be smoother with the HD600, but overall the New Version HD560s is better balanced. (The HD600 is a brighter headphone than the New Version HD560s)

 

[l3xtown]

Новая версия HD560s (с кабелем 1,8 м) — в целом более сбалансированные наушники, чем старая версия HD560s и HD600. Если говорить о том, какие из них просто лучше воспроизводят высокие частоты, то мне хочется сказать, что это HD600, но я давно их не слушал, и измерения показывают, что высокие частоты у HD600 могут быть более гладкими, но в целом новая версия HD560s лучше сбалансирована. (HD600 — более яркие наушники, чем новая версия HD560s)

Which headphones are better suited for writing arrangements and beats?Seenhaiser HD 560s or Beyerdinamic DT 880 Edition 250 ohm? Which of these pairs will be versatile and enjoyable to work with?

 

[Robbo99999]

Which headphones are better suited for writing arrangements and beats?Seenhaiser HD 560s or Beyerdinamic DT 880 Edition 250 ohm? Which of these pairs will be versatile and enjoyable to work with?

The New Version HD560s would be a more neutral headphone judging from the measurements, and it also doesn't have the really high treble peaks of the DT880, so if you want a more enjoyable sound and indeed a neutral sound I'd go for the New Version HD560s.

 

[3alfa3]

After a few more days.... Dont know where to put this observations/comparisson, but i decided to put it here.

Coming from DT770PRO 80 Ohm (10 Years old with fresh earpads) as my only Headphone before HD560S, i do enjoy music listening more (much more) with HD560S. I use (very slightly modified, not worth mentioning) Oratory1990 EQ, both for DT770 (more modified) and HD560S (less modified).

DT770PRO is no longer my Headphone for music listening, HD560S replaced them totally.

But.... I play bass guitar (Warwick Corvette Bubinga body 5 strings, German model from Year 2016 - which has its tonal signature) and i much prefer DT770PRO for that.
Here is what i mean.... Im not active bass player for years, but do enjoy playing bass with background music. I do EQ background music (lowering bass and mids, up to 300-400Hz or so) and i do use relatively transparent bass preamp/EQ with semiparametric mids to compensate for DT770PRO (shelving 40Hz lowered by 4-5db and i bring up 400-450Hz by 3-4db) and that makes my bass guitar very present when playing - not so much with HD560 with "almost reversed" EQ to compensate, i just cant find H560S nowhere near good as DT770PRO for that purpose.
Funny (but almost expected) thing - with worn pads on DT770PRO, i dont need to EQ bass guitar, but with fresh pads i do.

Back to topic.... HD560S with EqualizerAPO/Peace and Harman settings just for Music listening is MUCH better option for me compared to DT770PRO - it just sounds better for me. Except maybe for EDM, but , i dont listen much EDM and EQued HD560S are good enough even for that genre so i use them exclusively for music listening. Bonus is more space for my big ears which also makes them more comfortable.

Sorry for bad English.

 

[obsessive9119]

Just picked up mine from Amazon for AU$220 which seems like a steal. They sound fantastic with no EQ. I usually listen to (autoeq’d) Beyer DT880s a DT250s.

I couldn’t work out why Amie’s eq setting weren’t doing much, the trawled though the thread and found out about the new version (which is what I have). Crazy good value, even at full retail.

 

[markanini]

But.... I play bass guitar (Warwick Corvette Bubinga body 5 strings, German model from Year 2016 - which has its tonal signature) and i much prefer DT770PRO for that.
Here is what i mean.... Im not active bass player for years, but do enjoy playing bass with background music. I do EQ background music (lowering bass and mids, up to 300-400Hz or so) and i do use relatively transparent bass preamp/EQ with semiparametric mids to compensate for DT770PRO (shelving 40Hz lowered by 4-5db and i bring up 400-450Hz by 3-4db) and that makes my bass guitar very present when playing - not so much with HD560 with "almost reversed" EQ to compensate, i just cant find H560S nowhere near good as DT770PRO for that purpose.
Funny (but almost expected) thing - with worn pads on DT770PRO, i dont need to EQ bass guitar, but with fresh pads i do.

I have a background as a bass player(4-string, 5-string). I prefer DT770 to all open backs, even these days when better closed back headphones exist like AKG K371. DT770 kind of represents an acceptable performance for closed back, where appreciating the strengths of closed back starts to happen, and in the past it was quite competitive for many years.

Unfortunately, this is an area where I believe that HD560s is over-recommended, because for some people and applications the bass reproduction just won't cut it.

 

[Merey]

Would buying these headphones for $180 be a good deal? Actually, I really wanted to buy the 660S2, but the price difference turns out to be 3 times. ((( And I don't think the difference in sound quality will be commensurate.
P.S. One more question: which headphones are more comfortable for a small head - 560S or 6-series? Used on PC, music (lossles) and games

 

[Robbo99999]

Would buying these headphones for $180 be a good deal? Actually, I really wanted to buy the 660S2, but the price difference turns out to be 3 times. ((( And I don't think the difference in sound quality will be commensurate.
P.S. One more question: which headphones are more comfortable for a small head - 560S or 6-series? Used on PC, music (lossles) and games

I reckon the New Version HD560s (which are the ones you can buy now) would sound better than the 660S2 judging by the frequency response measurements, and the HD560s seems to require less EQ if you EQ to Harman. Re $180 for the HD560s you'd have to check what the going rates are for you over there as I don't know that - and maybe they go on sale once in a while, so check that too.

 

[atothek]

Could someone please recommend an extension cable with 4-5m, available in Europe?
Thanks

 

[isostasy]

Would buying these headphones for $180 be a good deal? Actually, I really wanted to buy the 660S2, but the price difference turns out to be 3 times. ((( And I don't think the difference in sound quality will be commensurate.
P.S. One more question: which headphones are more comfortable for a small head - 560S or 6-series? Used on PC, music (lossles) and games

THe HD550 looks like a definite upgrade to me, but they might be about twice as much (though less than the 660S2 still).

I have a small head and find my HD6XX more comfortable than the HD560S I tried

 

[Robbo99999]

THe HD550 looks like a definite upgrade to me, but they might be about twice as much (though less than the 660S2 still).

I have a small head and find my HD6XX more comfortable than the HD560S I tried

I'd definitely like to see the HD550 measured by Amir. Does look like it measures pretty good. Sennheiser are so reliable with their good balanced sound for the headphones they aim to have such a property - New Version HD560s, HD600, HD650. I particularly like the way they come at with the 500 series when they try to make balanced sounding headphones, they are quite some gems and for the money. To me the HD550 measured by Oratory seems to be pretty close to the New Version HD560s measured by me, and note I did a bit of trickery to convert my miniDSP EARS measurement of New Version HD560s to a GRAS Style measurement & it rests on the assumption that my 3 units of Old Version HD560s measure somewhat closely to Oratory's HD560s measurement that existed before New Version came about. Eyeballing it the HD550 looks very close to my New Version HD560s, but Oratory did align the HD550 below the target so you visually have to shift the HD550 up until 1kHz is about on target.
HD550 by Oratory:

HD560s New Version ("GRAS Style" measurement):

Looks like HD560s New Version has better bass extension though.

 

[audioismylife]

Hello everyone, I've had the 560s for over a year now. Also, I have a studio and have JBL 6328 and APS klasik 2020. The 560s are a fantastic option for music production and mix checking. I actually do a lot of arrangement and composing on the 560s, then I mix on the studio monitors, then I do final checks for pops and clicks and plosives back on the 560s. I actually went to a local hi-fi store, and these one against more expensive Sennheisers and Audeze (I forget which models). They are clear and balanced, and fairly neutral, and just quickly disappear. I can't recommend them highly enough, especially for their price.

 

[SMJH]

Guys, HD560S/HD400 Pro, HD490 Pro, or something else?
I heard that the 560S and 400 Pro are essentially the same. Price delta is not an issue, nor is EQ. They will be run with EQ APO on Windows pretty much exclusively, aiming for perfect target match. By the way, I tend to listen at high volume levels, and love me a good droning bass reproduction, so distortion must be at a minimum as well.
Oh and HD 6-- is not available in my country, with the only other brand offering competing products under USD 500 being Beyerdynamic.

 

[staticV3]

I heard that the 560S and 400 Pro are essentially the same.

Same sound, different cable and color.

By the way, I tend to listen at high volume levels, and love me a good droning bass reproduction, so distortion must be at a minimum as well.

The 490 does slightly better there:

 

[SMJH]

Same sound, different cable and color.


The 490 does slightly better there:
View attachment 463369 View attachment 463370

Sweet, skimming the headphone reviews here, I don't see anything noteworthy from Beyer at this price point, but am oblivious to other competing brands. Is there anything much better than a 490 Pro, that could be well worth the import fees in your opinion?

Any "meta" under $400 for lack of a better word?