Sennheiser HD660S Review (Headphone)

[Robbo99999]

The 660s very likely isn't the right headphone for you. It's darker than the 560s due to the missing treble spike @7k. Bass quantity is quite similar, bass extension is a little less deep. If you want to add more treble to the already v-shaped frequency response of the DT 990 you won't be satisfied with any of the HD 600/650/660 series. A full-bodied sounding headphone for low volume listening and good comfort is not that easy to find - maybe Philips Fidelio X2 is worth trying.

(Just a small point, if you look at my following post and at the Oratory links I provide you'll see the HD560s has loads more bass than the HD660s, loads more below 100Hz:
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...er-hd660s-review-headphone.34755/post-1611615 )

I'm talking about D 900 pro x, not about DT 990 pro. A typo in my message.
I've tested DT-990-250 previously and couldn't take it's treble. Was hurting my ears ))

HD560s:

Sennheiser HD560S.pdf

Shared with Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

DT900 Pro X:

Beyerdynamic DT900 Pro X.pdf

Shared with Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

Hard to say which would be the most neutral sounding between those two. But HD560s is probably gonna be better than the Beyer after both have been EQ'd - for instance the Beyer has an interference dip at 4kHz which cannot be EQ'd. Do what you want, but you probably can't get that much better than an EQ'd HD560s, which is a headphone you already own. Try to learn about EQ and see if you can find a way to EQ that HD560s - I mentioned Quidelix 5K to you in that other thread because you said you wouldn't be using it with a PC all the time. Anyway, good luck, this thread is not the right thread to have a deep discussion on EQ tips or other headphones that aren't the HD660s that is reviewed in this thread (albeit I responded because you did initially mention the HD660s).

 

[Limopard]

(Just a small point, if you look at my following post and at the Oratory links I provide you'll see the HD560s has loads more bass than the HD660s, loads more below 100Hz:
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...er-hd660s-review-headphone.34755/post-1611615 )

I used @solderdude 's chart in his 560s review and my (inevitably flawed) memory. The difference is about 4dB, but I remember it being not as obvious. It will surely depend on the music, if one listens to hip-hop or electronica the difference will be easier to notice. Nevertheless I kept the 560s until today and returned the 660s two years ago. It was too dark for me.

 

[aliaksej]

I used @solderdude 's chart in his 560s review and my (inevitably flawed) memory. The difference is about 4dB, but I remember it being not as obvious. It will surely depend on the music, if one listens to hip-hop or electronica the difference will be easier to notice. Nevertheless I kept the 560s until today and returned the 660s two years ago. It was too dark for me.

On the other side, 560s are too light. I don't feed a volume in voices. People say about a sounв from 3 tiny speakers and I can agree on that in some songs. People describe 660s as more seamless, with better separation, not so focused voices/instruments.

 

[Blew]

Ordered Sennh S560s which seems making sound thinner then it is. At least tenor voices, piano. While overall very pleasant and conmfortable headphones. Enjoyed a lot listening to power/sympho metal on low volume.
Also testing DT 900 pro x which have more linear FQ but are heavy, hotter for ears and much more solid mids. Also feels more closed then 560s. I'd add some more treble.

Will s660s have more body in mids so sound will be comparable to monitors and beyers 900?

Currently 660s are on sale for 320 usd which is the same as for s650/600.

I really love the HD660S, but found they need decent amplification power for them to shine. They don't sound great when they are underpowered. Despite the lower impedance, I think they really should be considered in the same category as the HD650 in amplification power requirements. I much prefer the 660S to the HD650 and HD600 because they're more detailed and revealing. Some complain about the treble of the HD660S being harsh, but I think they're just more accurate. The HD650 and HD600 sound veiled by comparison. Bass isn't the best but that's typical and expected of this series.

I've listened to the DT990 Pro (albeit on a different system) and there's no question which is the better headphone. The HD660S is far better in terms of detail and linearity. The DT990 Pro sounds blurry and muffled by comparison, but does have a lot more bass. If you enjoy listening to anything with acoustic instruments, or well mastered recordings with decent dynamic range, then the HD660S is a much better choice.

However, I wouldn't recommend the HD660S for listening to metal. Albums in the genre are often not mastered well and have a lot of compression and recording artifacts. The HD660S are very revealing, so they expose all the flaws in the recordings which I find annoying to hear and detracts from the music itself. I would probably recommend the DT990 over the HD660S for most metal. The HD660S is great for vocals, so might fare a bit better for power metal, but it highly depends on the quality of the recording itself. I listen to a lot of thrash, black, death, and industrial metal, but not much power metal. I was considering buying the DT990 Pro for listening to metal but opted to upgrade my studio monitors instead. Not heard the DT900 Pro though.

If you have a particular album in mind I am happy to give it a listen on the HD660S via Qobuz and let you know my thoughts.

 

[Berwhale]

HD 660S down to £259 in the UK direct from Sennheiser (or Thomann)... https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...udio-product-sales.23706/page-54#post-1613015

 

[Blew]

Desk: PC > Topping EX5 > Sennheiser HD 660S / AKG K371 / PreSonus Eris Sub8 > iLoud MTM monitors

I notice you're using the EX5 with HD660S. Interested to know your thoughts on that combination, because my experience wasn't good at all. How does it compare to listening on the D50s/A50s combination?

 

[Berwhale]

I notice you're using the EX5 with HD660S. Interested to know your thoughts on that combination, because my experience wasn't good at all. How does it compare to listening on the D50s/A50s combination?

Being human, I have occasionally wondered if the EX5 was an audible 'downgrade' from the slightly better measuring D50s/A50s combo with the balanced headphone output. I have tested this several times and have never come to any conclusion other than 'the one that sounds louder, sounds better'. The same applies when I drive my HD 660S from my Qudelix 5K (streaming FLACs over LDAC/Bluetooth from my phone and using a nice 2.5mm balanced headphone cable to connect the HD 660S to the Q5K).

From a useability perspective, the EX5 is streets ahead of the D50s/A50s stack (single unit with large volume control and display, independent volume levels for HP and Pre-amp outputs, single power cord with internal PSU, etc.).

Also, the D50s/A50s stack, being single ended, facilitated a ground loop between my PC and iLoud MTMs - I could (and did) resolve this with both USB and optical isolation, but this issue is what ultimately led me down the balanced path to the EX5.

 

[aliaksej]

I have 560s for gaming and 660s for music. 560s is a bit bright, which can be fixed by EQ. EQ cannot fix or change other factors.

560s has larger soundstage. No EQ can change 660s to match the soundstage.

On other hand, 660s has more instrument separation; there are many layers to the imaging; sound 3d (though smaller in size). Cannot match that on 560s.

Except for sound stage, i prefer 660s over 560s.

For me vocals are sounding thin/light on 560s. How's it with vocals on 660s? Are they sounding rounded and solid? What about violas, organs? Are they sounding full?

 

[solderdude]

HD560S vs HD660S

HD660S is a bit warmer sounding with not elevated treble.
HD560S is slightly colder but deeper bass and more clarity/brightness

 

[aliaksej]

Bought HD 660s. Wonderful headphones. Vocals sound soo smooth and realistic. Linkin park also sounds good (similar to 560s). But in general metal sounds a bit lifeless, not enough punch and treble.

Sadly on my Yamaha synth piano sounds very neutral, hammond organ sounds dull (sounded good with both DT 900 pro x and 560s), synth leads have no warmth/enough treble.

Orchestral music sounds very good, but also more neutral/less warm then in DT 900 pro x. Violins are sounding as they should sound. Brass is also great.

EMD sounds good but on neutral side. Treble is not enough.

After listening for 2 hours I got tired from treble freqs and was thinking that HD660s are too trebly. Bot when I returned back to headphones in some hours, I realized that headphones are veiled ))) Very fun effect. Not I think they should be more trebly for me.

Are there any other headphones with good mids and open/airy treble which is not excessive? I'd also test smth more universal with good bass and with worse clarity/imaging.

 

[Tallulah]

Bought HD 660s. Wonderful headphones. Vocals sound soo smooth and realistic. Linkin park also sounds good (similar to 560s). But in general metal sounds a bit lifeless, not enough punch and treble.

Sadly on my Yamaha synth piano sounds very neutral, hammond organ sounds dull (sounded good with both DT 900 pro x and 560s), synth leads have no warmth/enough treble.

Orchestral music sounds very good, but also more neutral/less warm then in DT 900 pro x. Violins are sounding as they should sound. Brass is also great.

EMD sounds good but on neutral side. Treble is not enough.

After listening for 2 hours I got tired from treble freqs and was thinking that HD660s are too trebly. Bot when I returned back to headphones in some hours, I realized that headphones are veiled ))) Very fun effect. Not I think they should be more trebly for me.

Are there any other headphones with good mids and open/airy treble which is not excessive? I'd also test smth more universal with good bass and with worse clarity/imaging.

If you liked the HD 660S sound and only want a bit more of definition and treble you can try the HD 600. It's very similar but has more clarity. If you like the treble of the DT 990 (which is boosted), then you may enjoy other headphones like the HIFIMAN Edition XS or HIFIMAN Sundara.

 

[aliaksej]

Is it normal for 660s to distort on youtube videos like Josh Groban - You raise me up. Distorts even on low volumes.

Also after equalisation and face distortion more ofter then w/o equalisation.

 

[delta76]

Impatiently waiting my HD660S to arrive. Can't never trust UPS to not mess up my shipment.
Then I need to explain to my wife why I need another headphone ...

I blame you ASR

 

[Tallulah]

Is it normal for 660s to distort on youtube videos like Josh Groban - You raise me up. Distorts even on low volumes.

Also after equalisation and face distortion more ofter then w/o equalisation.

No, it's not normal.

· First, you have to check that the source has not that distortion. It's usually better to listen to music in platforms like Spotify to ensure higher quality. Some old YouTube videos can have very bad audio quality.

· It could be digital signal clipping. If you are using an equalizer to boost some frequencies, keep in mind you need to use a preamp first! If you give +5 dB to any frequency then you need to use a -5 dB preamp to avoid clipping, so the signal never exceeds the ceiling of 0 dB.

· If you hear that distortion mainly with low frequencies, it could be a hair... It's easy for hairs to get trapped against the driver. To check this, you need to remove the pad and the foam and check for any hairs touching the driver.

 

[Robbo99999]

Impatiently waiting my HD660S to arrive. Can't never trust UPS to not mess up my shipment.
Then I need to explain to my wife why I need another headphone ...

I blame you ASR

If she follows ASR then she can also berate you for your specific choice of headphone too!

 

[Blew]

If you liked the HD 660S sound and only want a bit more of definition and treble you can try the HD 600. It's very similar but has more clarity.

When I auditioned them both I found the 660S had far more clarity than the 600. The 600 sounded more muffled by comparison.

 

[Tallulah]

When I auditioned them both I found the 660S had far more clarity than the 600. The 600 sounded more muffled by comparison.

That's very strange. Solderdude, RTINGS, Crinacle, Oratory and Amir... these five reviewers consistently show that the 660S has a warmer signature compared to their own measurements of the 600. If both headphones had new pads I really doubt the 660S had "far more clarity" unless one of the pairs had a frequency response that was very different from what's "normal" (aka it was faulty).

I didn't have the chance to hear the 660S, but I did try the 660S2, which consistently (Solderude, RTINGS...) show a less warm signature compared to the 660S, and in fact had much less clarity (upper-mids and lower-treble) to my ears than my 600.

 

[aliaksej]

Are there any affordable hardware things which can raise hight on 660s? So there will be no need to equalize when using with different devices?

 

[aliaksej]

Demo from my synth which sound veiled on 660s and misses pleasure from open treble.
How're your impressions especially from electronic stuff?

https://soundcloud.com/9zgghhlj2q89%2Fyamaha-moxf-playing-for-sennheiser-hd-660s-treble-test

 

[Tallulah]

Are there any affordable hardware things which can raise hight on 660s? So there will be no need to equalize when using with different devices?

I'm thinking about passive filters, which is "just a cable" that lowers the volume of certain frequency ranges. If you want more treble I guess you could use a passive filter that lowers bass and mids... but I'm not sure if this is possible or if you will like the results! The user @solderdude builds and sell passive filters, maybe you can contact him.