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Sennheiser HD660S Review (Headphone)

Rate this headphone:

  • 1. Poor (headless panther)

    Votes: 18 7.0%
  • 2. Not terrible (postman panther)

    Votes: 73 28.5%
  • 3. Fine (happy panther)

    Votes: 126 49.2%
  • 4. Great (golfing panther)

    Votes: 39 15.2%

  • Total voters
    256

NDRQ

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Looking at the first graph, and seeing the lounging panther made my head explode. Being forced to use EQ to make a product work means the product is flawed. It's like having to use salt on a gourmet meal. No Bueno.
Basically every headphone need EQ, often many of them are terrible without that.
Meanwhile this headphone is pretty okay even without EQ.


Graphs dont tell us the whole story, maybe u forget about the starting thoughts: " Ultimately headphone measurements are less exact than speakers mostly in bass and above a few kilohertz so keep that in mind as you read these tests. If you think you have an exact idea of a headphone performance, you are likely wrong!"
 

Tks

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The problem is, it's sold as the HD58X for less than half the price.. Granted, the build quality is probably better on these.
 

t$$

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Why buy these (or even the HD58X) when the PC38X is available for $140 and frequently on sale for $120?

Aesthetics?
 

solderdude

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@amirm No more earpad physical dimension measurements?

They have HD600/HD650/HD6XX/HD580/HD58X pads.
Inner pad dimensions: depth = 20mm, Width = 40mm, height = 62mm, oval shaped.
For pad dimensions you can always visit my site b.t.w.

Has anyone ever sent in a pair of 599HD i would love to know where those stand especially compared to the 560s

hd560s-vs-hd599.png


HD599, HD560S

t's sold as the HD58X for less than half the price..

Not the same tonal balance though (at least not without modifications) HD58X, HD660S
Resonance frequency of HD660S driver is 100Hz, HD58X driver = 70Hz

hd660s-vs-prod-hd58x1.png


Below modified HD58X vs HD660S

hd660s-vs-hd58x-modified.png
 
Last edited:

Chyżwar

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The problem is, it's sold as the HD58X for less than half the price.. Granted, the build quality is probably better on these.

I had both and they are not the same headphones. The HD58X sound warmer, the HD660s sound "cleaner". Sure, you can change the sound using EQ, but out of the box the HD660s sound "better" more "audiophile" IMHO.

Besides, if you live in the EU the HD58X are rather expensive. Not the best deal.
 

DivineCurrent

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The 58X for me, has a clearly better and more extended bass response. I compared the two (660S and 58X) a while back, the 660S bass was too rolled off and honestly a bit slow sounding. Even the HD 600 and 650 have it beat in the bass. The 58X bass is much tighter and responds better to EQ. I understand people saying the 660S is clearer or whatever, but that clarity difference is so insignificant compared to the drastic difference in bass quality of the 58X.
 

Sal1950

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No. I stopped that. I can restart the weight if you want but dimensions of oddball cups doesn't make sense. And it is work measuring them.
But wait, what happens to the curve as the cup warms up from body temp?
Or gets damp from sweat?
Or ages from a few months/years use?
Or you put it on you head in a different position
Wait, is my head/ear the same size as yours ?????

I feel for ya doin these headcan measurements bud. ;)
 

makinao

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I compared the 650 and 660 at a store. I wanted one to check mixes. I didn't know exactly what it was at the time, but I did notice the 5k peak (and a 10k peak which sonarworks reported HD6XXvs.jpg), making it sound both brighter and more aggressive. I left the store with a 650 because I thought it would be less tiring from hours of work. I'm very pleased with my decision.
 
Last edited:

Blew

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Sounds like a bad cable. I got Hart Audio Cables for my 660s and Sundaras with balanced un unbalanced terminals. I love their cables and they are not that expensive.


Thanks. I didn't mention that it also happens with the unbalanced cable that came with the headphones, but appears to be worse/more frequent with that one. What does this cable do that the included cables don't?

I'm in Australia and the shipping for those cables is $40 USD!

How do these cables compare?
 

AlephAlpha001

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How do these cables compare?

Should be fine. I bought this one in 4.4mm balanced to use with HD650 and am happy with it.

 

Gundud

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I saw that @amirm is using 12db boost at 20hz. My question is how high you can boost to be considered safe for the driver (not breaking, blown, etc.). I guess for the distortion you can use ear as a guide, but how about the safety of the driver it self (pushing harder than what it was designed for).

Can the THD graph tell us at what level it is safe to boost? I have ER4S that I would love to boost in the bass region, but want to play it safe. Thanks!
 

solderdude

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how about the safety of the driver it self (pushing harder than what it was designed for).

500mW continuous so even 1W peaks in music should be fine acc. to the specs.

With 109dB/V and 170ohm this means it can handle 9V continuous (12V peaks in music) = 128dB continuous and 130dB with music.
I would worry about your ears before worrying about the drivers.

Thanks. I didn't mention that it also happens with the unbalanced cable that came with the headphones, but appears to be worse/more frequent with that one. What does this cable do that the included cables don't?

Then it is highly unlikely to be the cables. When you cannot get the sound to drop while wiggeling with the connectors the cables are not the issue.
 

Blew

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Then it is highly unlikely to be the cables. When you cannot get the sound to drop while wiggeling with the connectors the cables are not the issue.
Thanks. Any idea what it could be then?
 
OP
amirm

amirm

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I saw that @amirm is using 12db boost at 20hz. My question is how high you can boost to be considered safe for the driver (not breaking, blown, etc.).
I listen to driver limiting and if I hear it, I cut the boost down and report it in the review. This class of headphone handles bass boost quite well.
 

Robbo99999

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Ok, too bad. I personally don't care about weight as much as earcup size :)
Earcup size is definitely more important - you gotta fit your ears inside! I also think that if you choose an earcup that is big enough that your ears don't touch any part of the headphone then it improves soundstage, one of the elements that improves soundstage.
 

solderdude

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Thanks. Any idea what it could be then?

Try the headphone on another system directly from a phone, tablet, PC, laptop, integrated amp or other device first before trying anything else.
This way you can rule out the headphone/cable.
 
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nyxnyxnyx

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I think these are really overpriced. The HD 600 is probably my favorite headphone, yet even that is overpriced compared to technically similar models from other manufacturers. This thing is even more expensive, approaching prices of much superior headphones like the Edition XS.
Just doesn‘t make sense to buy unless it‘s significantly discounted.
Can you name some models that you really think they outperform HD600 in specific aspects? XS is great but if we are fair it is a new model and a revision of Edition X which you probably will never accept their original pricing. That's not to mention other factors like "le Hifiman QC" or durability issues.
 
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