Upgrades from Sennheiser HD6XX without EQ?

[Tecno_Monki]

These are my first musical headphones and I'm looking for an upgrade. I want more punch and with more soundstage and just generally superiour audio. Physical media won't allow me to EQ properly so something like Beyerdynamic is out of the question (and apparently most headphones reviewed here). My headphone amp (an old Musical Fidelity X-CANS with an upgrade) could be considered a hybrid tube amp so it should be able to drive even planar headphones properly I think. I have heard that many Sennheiser headphones ''scale'' very well and I'm worried that a pair of low impedance headphones won't sound as good with my gear. My budget is around 600$ but I can stretch it further. I don't have any stores here so I can't try any out in real life.

 

[IAtaman]

Hello! I see this is your first message so welcome!

Someone here did actually measure your amp so lucky you!

Musical Fidelity XCans Review

This is a review and measurement of the venerable Musical Fidelity XCans (V1) headphone amplifier. This was first released in 1998 for the surprisingly-affordable price of £129 (I've attached a flyer and pricelist from 1998 below). The '90s were marked by the renaissance of pricey valve...

www.audiosciencereview.com

For headphones, I understand you are looking for something a bit different to HD6XX that you can use without EQ for less than $600. I would recommend Hifiman Sundara as it has good tuning out of the box, fits a lot of heads comfortably, nicely built and has "wider" feeling to it than 6xx for a few hundred bucks to spare.

Good luck!

 

[Tecno_Monki]

Hello! I see this is your first message so welcome!

Someone here did actually measure your amp so lucky you!

Musical Fidelity XCans Review

This is a review and measurement of the venerable Musical Fidelity XCans (V1) headphone amplifier. This was first released in 1998 for the surprisingly-affordable price of £129 (I've attached a flyer and pricelist from 1998 below). The '90s were marked by the renaissance of pricey valve...

www.audiosciencereview.com

For headphones, I understand you are looking for something a bit different to HD6XX that you can use without EQ for less than $600. I would recommend Hifiman Sundara as it has good tuning out of the box, fits a lot of heads comfortably, nicely built and has "wider" feeling to it than 6xx for a few hundred bucks to spare.

Good luck!

I've looked at some planar headphones but I've also read complaints about some Hifiman products being brittle or unreliable. Is the Sundara among the more robust headphones?

 

[IAtaman]

Edition XS is plastic and is a bit brittle. Sundara is all metal and looks solid to me. Got it for a few years now and no issues.

 

[Soria Moria]

Sundara pads might break very easily. A friend of mine owned the Sundara and both of his pads tore up after 2 months of use.

 

[Dazerdoreal]

The first thing the OP requested is more "punch". I dont own a Sundara but I dont expect them to be "punchier" without EQ. With EQ it would be a different story, of course.

I would check out the Fiio FT3 (heard them neither, they are very new on the market). They seem to be quite punchy for an open headphone, and the frequency response looks balanced overall.

 

[Moravid]

DCA ÆON 2 Noire

 

[Tecno_Monki]

The first thing the OP requested is more "punch". I dont own a Sundara but I dont expect them to be "punchier" without EQ. With EQ it would be a different story, of course.

I would check out the Fiio FT3 (heard them neither, they are very new on the market). They seem to be quite punchy for an open headphone, and the frequency response looks balanced overall.

Now these look very promising as perhaps more of a sidegrade.

DCA ÆON 2 Noire

These look like a good upgrade and the price isn't too bad as B-stock.

 

[Tecno_Monki]

I can pick up a pair of Hifiman Edition X V2 for 650$. Is this a good choice for my amplifier or can they distort because of the impedance?

 

[staticV3]

@Tecno_Monki the Edition X V2 has some major issues in the midrange, as well as really poor overall tuning: https://www.dropbox.com/s/cd8qcldrdx0ajhd/Hifiman Edition X V2.pdf?dl=0

Paying $650 for that seems pretty ill-advised imo. Especially if you can't EQ.

Are you looking for an open- or closed-back headphone?
If closed-back is ok, take a look at the Austrian Hi-X60: https://www.dropbox.com/s/4kk2i0e06u27myf/Austrian Audio Hi-X60.pdf?dl=0

 

[Tecno_Monki]

@Tecno_Monki the Edition X V2 has some major issues in the midrange, as well as really poor overall tuning: https://www.dropbox.com/s/cd8qcldrdx0ajhd/Hifiman Edition X V2.pdf?dl=0

Paying $650 for that seems pretty ill-advised imo. Especially if you can't EQ.

Are you looking for an open- or closed-back headphone?
If closed-back is ok, take a look at the Austrian Hi-X60: https://www.dropbox.com/s/4kk2i0e06u27myf/Austrian Audio Hi-X60.pdf?dl=0

Open headphones tend to have a better soundstage and have more reviews and such written about them, so I'm mostly looking for those. I will only be using these headphones in a quiet environment anyway.

 

[Tecno_Monki]

There are a bunch of affordable open-box models on the Hifiman website. My choice now then is down to the HE6se (V1 or V2), Edition XS, Ananda, and the cheaper Sundara.

 

[Moonhead]

Arya and Edition XS has the higest score for an open back, FWIW.

Frequency Response Consistency

Frequency Response Consistency describes the variations in a headphones' frequency response due to their fit on your head.

www.rtings.com

 

[Tecno_Monki]

Arya and Edition XS has the higest score for an open back, FWIW.

Frequency Response Consistency

Frequency Response Consistency describes the variations in a headphones' frequency response due to their fit on your head.

www.rtings.com

The Arya Stealth is a little bit too expensive compared to the others (999$ against 400$ and 600$). The Edition XS or HE6se seem to be my final choices unless the Arya is that much better.

 

[NiagaraPete]

These are my first musical headphones and I'm looking for an upgrade. I want more punch and with more soundstage and just generally superiour audio. Physical media won't allow me to EQ properly so something like Beyerdynamic is out of the question (and apparently most headphones reviewed here). My headphone amp (an old Musical Fidelity X-CANS with an upgrade) could be considered a hybrid tube amp so it should be able to drive even planar headphones properly I think. I have heard that many Sennheiser headphones ''scale'' very well and I'm worried that a pair of low impedance headphones won't sound as good with my gear. My budget is around 600$ but I can stretch it further. I don't have any stores here so I can't try any out in real life.

Hi, and welcome to ASR. I own the HD6xxx and personally in my opinion what you need is a heftier amp as they are a challenge to drive. I’ve paired mine with a Topping A30 pro. I’ve also just bought a RME DAC and doesn’t drive them nearly as well.

 

[unpluggged]

they are a challenge to drive

Not at all.

I’ve paired mine with a Topping A30 pro. I’ve also just bought a RME DAC and doesn’t drive them nearly as well.

 

[NiagaraPete]

Not at all.

Do you own any of the items discussed?

 

[NiagaraPete]

RME ADI-2 DAC

This I just bought. I have not tried hi power mode yet but my A30 pro pushes those cans to an extreme.

 

[MrEWhite]

Do you own any of the items discussed?

I ran a pair of HD 6XX single-ended on a RME ADI-2 DAC and a Topping A90, and they drove them extremely well, with the A90 having some more headroom obviously.
Currently I just use a RME ADI-2/4 Pro, and they also drive the HD 6XX single-ended no problem.
Deleted because I wanted to say I was running it single-ended in both cases. Post originally was #18

 

[staticV3]

I have the HD600 and HD650 and both get more than loud enough with a 0.5V EU Apple dongle.
I compared that directly to a 3.5V DAC+Amp with the volume matched with a multimeter and A/Bed using an MC103 (<0.1s dead time) and the sound was identical.

I have not tried an even more overpowered Amp, but since 0.5V -> 3.5V didn't result in any difference, I see no reason why 3.5V -> 10V would.