Sennheiser HD800S Review (Headphone)

[zonk]

I like the new eq of oratory that was posted by staticV3. It's from June 2024.

In EAPO it's easy to upload different eq files and to switch between them to see what fits to your preferences.

 

[Robbo99999]

@Chagall
Hey thanks for the compliments Chagall. To be honest I should not have gotten the IE600... sometimes it hurts my ear with it (in other words not comfortable) ,even tho it's regarded as a very comfy IEM by many (I remove and put it back quite often, as I often go AFK).... and I got ear infection before and maybe one of the reason is earbuds..but the one I was using before goes deeper into the ears (Klipsch). I used to use a cheaper gaming headphone from logitech before and it doesn't bother me one bit (idk the model but I doubt it is regarded as comfortable as the HD800S). So from that experience I know headphones generally will not cause me to feel uncomfortable. But I stopped using it as I believe it was the cause for my hairloss, and switched to back earbuds. Now after some time my hairloss on that part has not gotten better, and I suspect it is not because of the headsets after all, maybe some other factor.

So I wanna buy headphones again (instead of earbuds/iem). I don't wanna think too much about the hair issue anymore...maybe it's not even the headphones.. Too much of a sacrifice to not use headphones because of that.

@Robbo99999 and Chagall.

Thanks for the Older EQ...yeah -5.4 seems less intimitading for sure. I need to ask tho is the low shelf and high shelf without Q slope or with? I am guessing it's with slope since the one Static give is with Q slope.

On the bass subject.
Tbh I don't even know if I am a basshead or not (partly because I am new to these things?). Maybe I just like a little bass here and there? What I notice tho is with the bass, I can feel the "vibration", and I seem to like this feeling somehow (maybe placebo effect of being brainwash by videos of speakers vibrating a lot in night clubs/good speaker setup videos...idk). it seems I can hear the vibration even on IE600, which is much smaller than headphones.

But to be really honest...my main concern is comfort and breathability. Also I haven't experience a 'good' soundstage, maybe to add, a 3rd thing I want is good soundstage after all. The bass is just like a 'bonus', perhaps .

Maybe I like treble/mids more too, who knows?. I am not very familiar with these things anyway. I regard the "constant beat" in the song In da club by 50 cent as "bass", but most likely it is..since it's a hip hop song. Also, I will be mostly gaming with it, and I doubt the games I Play (just two games, a Diablo 1 mod, and Diablo 3) have a lot of bass in the music. Other times I just watch game tournaments (mostly warcraft 3) in youtube etc.

You guys are very helpful. I thank you so much.

I apologize for the wall of text.

Soundstage is how the headphone lays out the music in a physical spatial sense - does it feel slightly in front of your head or is it inside your head or to the back of your head, does it extend out beyond the left & right sides of your head or does it just stay within your head. Some of this is recording dependant, so will be heavily influenced by the music, but the headphone model in question also seems to shape how large the overall soundstage and perhaps where it sits in terms of front & back (is it in front of you, is it in your head, is it behind you) - truth is there likely will be effects in the music that will move around a bit front to back and of course left to right (go figure!). So the soundstage is the imaginary canvas on which the music unfolds in perceived space - you will get a sense of where it feels the music is coming from and how far it extends around you or is it all just located inside the physical confines of your head. Soundstage is an imagined spatial aspect of both the music and the headphone, different people experience it in different ways, so even though HD800s is supposed to be a good soundstage headphone, that doesn't mean that everyone will have the same experience and not everyone is gonna think it's the best soundstage headphone. I find my K702 to be a better soundstage headphone for example. So you'll just have to see what you think to the soundstage of the HD800s, see how the music unfolds spatially as you listen to your tracks with it, and compare it against your other headphones if you're curious. You'll have to decide for yourself which you find the best from this point of view. EQ will also affect the soundstage too. I find I need to listen to music with my eyes shut when listening on headphones and trying to picture where all the sounds are coming from & how they're laid out - if you have your eyes open it messes with the imagined landscape that the music creates. I mean I can listen to music with my eyes open, but it's a different experience.

 

[Razif]

Comfort and breathability is my main concern tbh...I heard some people says they don't feel like they are wearing a headphones when using HD800S. Well maybe that is a bit too extreme not feeling it at all hahaha, or maybe just metaphorically...but it does mean many find it comfortable. The breathability can somewhat be judged from pictures. Rtings rate it high for breathability too. I just really hope this feels comfortable for me. Even my old logitech (forget model) feels comfortable for me for long hours, so generally I find headphones comfortable but not IEM and earbuds..

Also, I am using Soundblaster AE-9 Soundcard... it has a ACM that is also a headphone AMP. Maybe it will be good enough. I do gaming as well.
Do you guys think the AMP from Soundblaster AE-9 will be good for this? it says it can drive up to 600ohm :shrug:.

I mean it can drive up to 600ohms...but I wonder if it's good enough/good pairing for this headphone? I wont get a new amp just for it tho, at least not for now, I am just wondering. Since you guys are knowledgeable in this area, some of you guys might know. Or maybe I should not overthink about the AMP.

 

[Chagall]

Confort and breathability is my main concern tbh...I heard some people says they don't feel like they are wearing a headphones when using HD800S. Well maybe that is a bit too extreme not feeling it at all hahaha, or maybe just metaphorically...but it does mean many find it comfortable. The breathability can somewhat be judged from pictures. Rtings rate it high for breathability too. I just really hope this feels comfortable for me.

Also, I am using Soundblaster AE-9 Soundcard... it has a ACM that is also a headphone AMP. Maybe it will be good enough. I do gaming as well.
Do you guys think the AMP from Soundblaster AE-9 will be good for this? it says it can drive up to 600ohm :shrug:.

You can't go wrong with HD800S in terms of comfort. You do know you're wearing them, but relative to others it's very comfortable. However, heads come in all shapes and sizes, so you will know for sure once you have them.

They also work great in terms of consistent frequency response and placement on the head, unlike some other headphones.

AE-9 should drive them fine, just disable all gimmicks the soundcard has for gaming (virtual surround, bass boost and EQ). When listening to music, gaming or watching movies, just use Peace and EQ there.

 

[Razif]

Hey thanks for the input!

Just googled what consistent frequency response and placement on the head means...I get the basic idea from Rtings website. Glad to hear it's good in that area too! I just realized this is also somewhat important for me as well, after knowing what it means (roughly).

wow, are you sure not to use SBX profiles? (things like virtual surround /bass boost etc). Some people praised creative's SBX profiles (gaming/movies/music). I was thinking at least virtual surround would make sense since the soundstage is rated good on these headsets? no? Now you made me think twice on whether to use the gimmicks or not (the gimmicks is called SBX profiles).

Yes I will use the EQ most likely on Peace, probably the -5.4 pre amp one, since it's not so excessive (just judging from the preamp).

Glad to hear AE-9 can drive them just fine!

Also, an off-topic...seeing your avatar..you smoke? I smoke (tobacco)..I really enjoy tobacco, It adds colour and flavor to my life! I smoke pipe tobaccos too (I am not that old tho...haha...) . I don't use a pipe, I roll them in normal cigarettes but use pipe tobacco and roll my own.

 

[Chagall]

Just googled what consistent frequency response and placement on the head means...I get the basic idea from Rtings website. Glad to hear it's good in that area too! I just realized this is also somewhat important for me as well, after knowing what it means (roughly).

This means that the frequency response isn't dependent on your ears being in the perfect center of the headphone's earcups. Also, the seal isn't broken easily - this means that the bass will be consistent if you, for example, wear glasses.

wow, are you sure not to use SBX profiles? (things like virtual surround /bass boost etc). Some people praised creative's SBX profiles (gaming/movies/music). I was thinking at least virtual surround would make sense since the soundstage is rated good on these headsets? no? Now you made me think twice on whether to use the gimmicks or not (the gimmicks is called SBX profiles).

EQ in Peace will correct the headphone's frequency response and we know it works great. But if you then have additional EQ from your soundcard's profile, for example, gaming or movies it might do an additional EQ that will then clip and you will get distortion. Virtual surround can be fun, but if you are not using something like Smyth Realiser, I wouldn't bother. That being said, if you still want to use SBX profiles, just make sure to disable Peace EQ (when gaming) and then do all EQing in Soundblaster's control panel.

Yes I will use the EQ most likely on Peace, probably the -5.4 pre amp one, since it's not so excessive (just judging from the preamp).

You can make as many EQ profiles in Peace as you want. This makes it easy to AB test.

Also, an off-topic...seeing your avatar..you smoke? I smoke (tobacco)..I really enjoy tobacco, It adds colour and flavor to my life! I smoke pipe tobaccos too (I am not that old tho...haha...) . I don't use a pipe, I roll them in normal cigarettes but use pipe tobacco and roll my own.

Yep, a nasty habit for sure, but a man should always have an occupation of some kind.

 

[Razif]

Yeah I do wear glasses.

Soundblaster command software have 2 things basically...one is equalizer...other is the gimmick stuff you mention, called SBX (bass boost...virtual surrond ,crystalizer etc). So even soundblaster allows you to EQ even when SBX on at the same time. Since sound blaster allow both EQ and SBX...I was thinking maybe it's not double processing.

So if I wanna do as you said (which makes sense, use only 1), then I have to use "direct sound", soundblaster with AE-9 have this thing called "direct sound", capable of 32bit 384 khz. Perhaps I will use that only, it's unprocessed sounds. Then I EQ with peace. But Soundblaster software disallow EQ when using direct mode tho (EQ from their software is greyed out when using direct sound)...so idk if I should use it and EQ.

Yeah ok peace can save many profiles. I will only use Peace for EQ since soundblaster command's one does not have things like high peak or shelf etc. And It does not allow you to choose every Hz too..you can't write numbers too...have to use slider only...not all hertz have slider as well. it's a bad software for EQ.

Oh don't bother with virtual surround unless you have some expensive gear huh...haha ok. Soundblaster did say this AE-9 can do virtual surround...and perhaps they are trying to say it's good. Never knew I should not bother with virtual surround unless I got something like the expensive stuff you said..haha.

Oh smoking is heaven! it's good for your emotional health! haha.

 

[Robbo99999]

Hey thanks for the input!

Just googled what consistent frequency response and placement on the head means...I get the basic idea from Rtings website. Glad to hear it's good in that area too! I just realized this is also somewhat important for me as well, after knowing what it means (roughly).

wow, are you sure not to use SBX profiles? (things like virtual surround /bass boost etc). Some people praised creative's SBX profiles (gaming/movies/music). I was thinking at least virtual surround would make sense since the soundstage is rated good on these headsets? no? Now you made me think twice on whether to use the gimmicks or not (the gimmicks is called SBX profiles).

Yes I will use the EQ most likely on Peace, probably the -5.4 pre amp one, since it's not so excessive (just judging from the preamp).

Glad to hear AE-9 can drive them just fine!

Also, an off-topic...seeing your avatar..you smoke? I smoke (tobacco)..I really enjoy tobacco, It adds colour and flavor to my life! I smoke pipe tobaccos too (I am not that old tho...haha...) . I don't use a pipe, I roll them in normal cigarettes but use pipe tobacco and roll my own.

Definitely use the Virtual Surround for gaming, and probably for movies too, but for sure disable all the sound processing of the Creative DAC when listening to music. I'm assuming your Creative DAC has something called "Direct Mode" - use that when listening to music as that removes all sound processing of the DAC with just a simple click of a button. Yes, and then you put your Peace EQ on top of the "Direct Mode".

Yeah I do wear glasses.

Soundblaster command software have 2 things basically...one is equalizer...other is the gimmick stuff you mention, called SBX (bass boost...virtual surrond ,crystalizer etc). So even soundblaster allows you to EQ even when SBX on at the same time. Since sound blaster allow both EQ and SBX...I was thinking maybe it's not double processing.

So if I wanna do as you said (which makes sense, use only 1), then I have to use "direct sound", soundblaster with AE-9 have this thing called "direct sound", capable of 32bit 384 khz. Perhaps I will use that only, it's unprocessed sounds. Then I EQ with peace. But Soundblaster software disallow EQ when using direct mode tho (EQ from their software is greyed out when using direct sound)...so idk if I should use it and EQ.

Yeah ok peace can save many profiles. I will only use Peace for EQ since soundblaster command's one does not have things like high peak or shelf etc. And It does not allow you to choose every Hz too..you can't write numbers too...have to use slider only...not all hertz have slider as well. it's a bad software for EQ.

Oh don't bother with virtual surround unless you have some expensive gear huh...haha ok. Soundblaster did say this AE-9 can do virtual surround...and perhaps they are trying to say it's good. Never knew I should not bother with virtual surround unless I got something like the expensive stuff you said..haha.

Oh smoking is heaven! it's good for your emotional health! haha.

Peace is EQ, it's parametric EQ and far better than the EQ that's enclosed within the Creative DAC, which is only Graphic EQ - instead the parametric EQ through Peace is able to do much more precise & flexible EQ, so when you're listening to music you'd use Direct Mode and Peace EQ.

 

[Chagall]

Definitely use the Virtual Surround for gaming, and probably for movies too, but for sure disable all the sound processing of the Creative DAC when listening to music. I'm assuming your Creative DAC has something called "Direct Mode" - use that when listening to music as that removes all sound processing of the DAC with just a simple click of a button. Yes, and then you put your Peace EQ on top of the "Direct Mode".

You think it's worth it? My thinking is that virtual surround will change the FR (along with whatever else processing it does) on top of APO, so who knows how it would sound.

Question is will the direct mode disable sound processing from APO. Sort of like exclusive mode disables audio enhancements?

 

[Razif]

A brief testing seems to be that APO does work with direct mode. At least the preamp works as I can hear a volume difference with it on and off on top of direct mode.

But creative software does not allow EQ with direct mode (on the creative software itself).

@Robbo99999
Ok when gaming (diablo 1 and diablo 3 is what I play, not fps) use virtual surround , and direct mode when listening to movies.
It gets complicated then, since when gaming, I do listen to music at the same time (mostly the game's music itself)...since games have their soundtrack.

 

[Robbo99999]

You think it's worth it? My thinking is that virtual surround will change the FR (along with whatever else processing it does) on top of APO, so who knows how it would sound.

Question is will the direct mode disable sound processing from APO. Sort of like exclusive mode disables audio enhancements?

Yeah, for me when it's setup right Virtual Surround 7.1 is very much worth it for gaming, see following thread:

Virtual 7.1 Surround Sound processing in Headphones

Hi, I thought I'd start this thread as a gaming virtual 7.1 surround sound enthusiast in headphones. We can let this thread develop into whatever we like on the topic of Virtual 7.1 Surround Sound processing in headphones, and perhaps I'll continue to edit this first post with links to useful...

www.audiosciencereview.com

Direct Mode just disables all audio processing in the Creative DAC, it doesn't change anything in the Windows audio stack, so it's fine to use APO/Peace with Direct Mode On.

A brief testing seems to be that APO does work with direct mode. At least the preamp works as I can hear a volume difference with it on and off on top of direct mode.

But creative software does not allow EQ with direct mode (on the creative software itself).

@Robbo99999
Ok when gaming (diablo 1 and diablo 3 is what I play, not fps) use virtual surround , and direct mode when listening to movies.
It gets complicated then, since when gaming, I do listen to music at the same time (mostly the game's music itself)...since games have their soundtrack.

When I'm gaming I'm less worried about accurate sound from a tonality point of view and instead I'm more interested in a fairly accurate 3D sound environment being created, and as long as you don't go too extreme with the various processing settings then it doesn't really change tonality so much that it makes music in games unenjoyable. See the above link in this thread for tips on how to properly setup Virtual Surround Sound.

 

[Razif]

Just got it today...testing it a lot so I did not write.

First of all, for the comfort part it is good. Audio idk I guess it is good but one problem...some sounds can be piercing for my ears ...damn I kinda hate that piercing stuff...and this is with using Oratory EQs.. I am testing 3 EQs from oratory...The default -6.2 preamp now on autoeq in peace...then the old -5.4 one that a forum member give and the new -7.5 one.... all still got the piercing on some sounds on the game I am playing (it's an old game , diablo 1...but I am playing a mod for that game, modded version)... Sigh..

I guess what I want is comfort and just average audio as long as it does not pierce my ears.

it's comfortable and goes well with my glasses.. so idk if I wanna return it...idk even if I can as I ripped small part of the box when removing a sticker that is near where it opens, and also a small rip on the side.

it sometimes rips my hair when I remove it tho...or maybe there is a certain way to remove it idk...perhaps I will learn as I use it more. But hate to have to "remember" how to remove it every time...and I go AFK often.

Any suggestion on EQ to reduce the piercing? idk which frequency is this tho but it's a voice acting sound (NPC called Pepin), hmm...

Gonna try the other auto EQ profiles in Peace...

Before this when I hear the term "percing" I don't really understand what it means...now I know it...it feels like your ears is being pierced by a sharp object...like someone put something sharp in your ears. Like jab your ears with something sharp...sigh. it also causes me to be "startled" a little bit .

Maybe not using "direct mode" reduces it but I am not sure, but that does not make much sense since, so maybe it's placebo (direct mode has more Khz like 192 and 384, doubt the game even support that high tho)

Edit: After playing some EQs...it seems only reducing the volume is the way to get rid of this piercing. 50% volume in system and it's piercing...max I can go is 40%...what a shame...sigh .

 

[Robbo99999]

@Razif , you did have a post that I was just about to respond to but it's just been removed (EDIT: & now your post is back again), it was with regard to you saying you found the sound piercing even with the various Oratory EQ's you tried. I've looked in some detail at the two Oratory EQ's - the latest one & the older one that I included in a previous post of mine - there's actually not that much difference between them once you take into account the different negative preamp values, so I would actually just go with using the latest Oratory EQ as that has better "user customisation filters". User Customisation Filters are the named filters that are at the bottom right of the PDA file, I've circled them in red in following pic:

So to reduce the piercing sound you're describing you would reduce band 9, so that's currently at +1dB, so you'd change that to perhaps -1dB and then listen to see if the piercing sound has gone, if not then try -2dB, etc, etc. Band 5 could be reduced too a bit, but that's not normally a frequency response area that is described as "piercing", but it does make me feel uncomfortable if there's too much energy at 2100Hz which is Band 5 there - so you could try reducing that too. Just make one change at a time to find out where the "piercing" sound is coming from. And yes, one last filter you can change is Band 8, that's not listed in his user customisation filters, but that is also a piercing frequency position & the EQ is designed to reduce a peak in that area, so you could try reducing Band 8 too. Remember, just change one area at a time to work out where this piercing sound is coming from because you don't want to be reducing areas that are not giving you trouble.

EDIT: one extra thought, I know it sounds stupid, but are you sure you're activating the EQ's in Peace? Maybe your EQ's aren't even being applied or are you absolutely sure that they are? (It should be fairly easy to tell that the EQ's are being applied because bass is increased by a lot and overall volume should be lower than stock for any given position you have your amp at.)

 

[Razif]

Yes I am sure I have the EQ on (there is green button too)...and yes the volume difference is obvious.

I will play with it, hopefully it can reduce the piercings. I don't wanna part with the headphone if possible. After more testings some of the sounds is good tbh. And I don't want to go thru the hassle of returning..

Will report back later. Maybe it will take some time. Btw can I post a reply if the last message is mine? if I can't then I just have to edit my post I guess.

Thank you sooo much Robbo99999, I really appreciate you trying to help a random stranger on the internet.

EDIT: it seems band 5 could be the culprit,...will test and see...I use -0.5 now from 3.8...quite a big jump.

EDIT2: Even tho it's not what usually people describe as "piercing" as you said (band 5). But yeah I will need more test . But things looks better now, it's comfortable so I hope I don't have to part with it. In other words it's comfortable to my ears but not my ear drums (hopefully can be fixed with EQ)

 

[Robbo99999]

Oh right, you've decreased Band 5 by 4.3dB from the original Oratory EQ. Well, that's interesting, in that case you're essentially just leaving from 400Hz-4000Hz pretty much just as stock HD800s. If that's reduced the piercing sound you were describing then you have indeed found the right frequency response area that's causing you the problem. Yep, we don't normally call 2000Hz piercing, but I know from my own experience that if you have too much energy there is can make some female voices quite painful to my ears (a bit screechy), often that area is called "shoutiness".

 

[Chagall]

I would still take a look if any Windows or soundcard settings are enabled. Crystalizer or similar. Reducing presence area of FR by that much will result in loss of clarity.

Also play some reference tracks you know by heart and see if the same thing happens as in the game.

 

[zonk]

I cannot see any sign of shoutiness with the settings from oratory, I am sorry.

 

[Razif]

Yeah I am not 100% sure too If I have really found it...but it seems like band 5..I will try with lower amount or other band like band 9.

The same voice is sometime piercing sometimes not...maybe because it's a 2 second voice (it's a male voice) and my ears get used to it after playing it many times again and again in a short time...but give it rest and play it again then usually the piercing will come?. Unfortunately this makes it harder to test...but I do think band 5 is the culprit. Well, reducing that much must have some side effects huh. I don't think so band 9 is the piercing tho, but need more test. I am also quite bad at detecting audio stuffs (maybe playing it a lot in a short time makes my ears "used" to it temporarily..

Oh there is no crystallizer and bass boost and all, no windows sonic etc too (that is for spatial/surround), I disabled it all. I even disable all the audio processing on pot player.

 

[Mr Swing King]

Just a friendly recommendation on my behalf: some times you need fo step back and take a break from things that don’t make sense.
I have been there myself and especially with something like audio, things can trip you up in all kinds of ways.
What I find a little weird is the fact that you dig the IE600 tuned to Harman yet continuously find the 800, tuned to the same target, piercing.

It may have something to do with you listening to music over the IE600 and then shifting to games with the 800. Maybe music is lovely over the 800 but games are sharp? Could just be that you prefer different sound signatures for music and games. I don’t know myself, but that would make sense to me reading through your posts.
It could also be a case of placebo. The 800 is after all infamous for being bright af, so maybe that’s lurking in the back of your mind?
Our expectations shape the way we use and experience things. It’s difiicult to bypass.

 

[Razif]

I think because of my honeymoon period with the headphone I am just listening to volume higher than my usual that is causing the piercing....the % amount of volume differs for this and the IE600..maybe due to the Ohms..and also since I am using EQ. This makes it a bit more complicated since idk the % number exactly to match the volume of the IE600 (just have to use gut feeling)...I am tring lower volumes now, perhaps it's what I like anyway since I usually don't listen loud. This seems to make the piercings less. Playing with EQ as well. Now I am putting 2-2.25 on band 5 and +1 on band 2 (bass), I don't wanna deviate too far from original EQ if possible..

@Mr Swing King I did not even know this headphone was bright...reviews just say it's slightly bright..so it was never on my mind, which is why I am so surprised...I was considering dt 1990..and yes for DT 1990 everybody says it is "bright af" as you described, but not this one (at least on the many reviews I read/watch)

Altho there is one new issue..Fatigue.. I never believed it when I read people say they get fatigue due to some headphones..unless the headphone is not comfortable. If it's comfortable and you get fatigue? seems like nonsense to me until I have this 800S.... How can it be comfortable and you get "tired/fatigue" listening to it? Again, feels like nonsense to me..

it seems the dreaded fatigue is there....I think this is the first time I experience it (which is why I never believe it actually exists maybe?). No noticeable fatigue on IE600, but IE600 is not comfortable for my ears sometimes (itchy ears or not comfortable etc), but I still wear them for long time when nothing else is available. These audiophile terms are new to me...but it seems it is there...Even DMS on youtube says he can never listen to 800S more than 2 hours...the fatigue kicks in...I hope it's placebo..

Or is the fatigue because on IE600 I use the creative software profile like boosted bass and crystalizer etc...and not here..here I am using peace EQ only..I am not sure...hmm.

Heard some people say highs is what causes fatigue in headphones..some say mids as well.

On the comfort part it's comfortable and good (which is a very important thing to me).....so yeah feel hesitant to return it (if I even can...tear a bit part of the box..). Comfortable but then this new factor "fatigue" comes in (hard to use it if it really causes me fatigue even if it's comfortable..if it's not placebo that is....Weird, never thought it can be "fatiguing" that so I never paid much attention to it when people say it (some headphones) can cause "fatigue".

Altho maybe lower volume can fix this, that's what some people say (at some point maybe even EQ can help reduce it). I'll see what I can do abt it..or maybe it's just this game I am playing causing audio fatigue...hesitant to return it due to the great comfort mainly (big earcups is good too!). Maybe a part of me still holding on to a headphone this expensive cannot have this flaw of fatigue, at least not too much?. Wish me luck guys!