CES 2012 Headphones

[dsavitsk]

... and that's why it works best with tube amplification to smooth the quirks out.

[philodox]

Sennheiser sucks.

QFT, I don't understand why anyone would buy their headphones period, unless it is for a comfy pair to watch movies with or perhaps one of their noise cancelling pairs if you need that. Also, when did the headphone design guy from Sony start working at Sennheiser?

[Leonardo Drummond]

Am I the only one in here that likes the looks of the HD700? I think it's fantastic, kinda like a tauter version of the 800.

Agreed. We all require good sound, but it sure doesn't hurt to look bad ass, too!

I believe that the President of Pass Labs, Desmond Herrington, has a background in Industrial Design. He designs the case work for them and I want to say he did some work for Krell before that (could be wrong on that point). Now for sure, Nelson's great circuit design comes first, but having someone in a leadership position who understands having bad ass looks acknowledges its importance.

I always thought that those Pass Labs amps are some of the best looking audio gear available. The blue VU meters in the dark are the very definition of bad-ass. The Halcros and Nagras are pretty good looking as well. Not sure about Krell though...

I'm studying to be an industrial designer myself, and designing audio equipment is sort of a dream to me.

Edited January 11, 2012 by Leonardo Drummond

[cobra_kai]

I think they look good too. Very modern and sleek looking imo.

I also like the hd600 quite a bit. I've only heard the hd800 at meets but wasn't overly impressed with it at the time, especially for the price.

[bhjazz]

Yup. They say so right here: Superior sound quality. Yurbuds.

[catscratch]

Don't know much about price discrimination, but I did have a feeling that Senn are charging as much as they are just because they can.

I'm not a fan of the looks but I'm hardly a qualified judge in that area. I don't know jack about trends or urbal lifestyle products or any of that nonsense. I like vintage steam cars, vacuum tubes, and monocles, what the hell do I know.

I like the HD600/HD650, at their price they're solid buys and I think they sound like they measure: good. At HD700/HD800 levels I don't see any reason to not get something planar. But again, once a Stax fanboy... and so on.

I would like to hear these, but I won't get a pair just because. Eagerly looking forward to the measurements though.

[ironbut]

i really liked the HD800 running out of good amps. tube or SS.

I'm with you Reks.

I've had a love affair with my HD800's that's still going strong after a year. That's out of either my Zana, Crack, or the headphone out's of my ULN-2.

[blessingx]

x2 (w/Peak+Volc). I've gone back to them after the usual alternatives bothered me more.

[philodox]

I haven't heard the HD800's, so I can't weigh in there. I suppose it's possible they got their act together, they did produce the HE90's after all.

As for not liking the new aesthetic, that is obviously a personal opinion. I wasn't in love with their old look, but it was at least more palatable to me that this weird cyborg alien design they seem to be married to currently.

[Currawong]

I have the proto HD-700s. With a bit of a change in the FR they could have been great all-rounders, though that might have sacrificed a bit of their soundstage image. They have great imaging for acoustic music but just don't have the kick for modern stuff and they have the evil treble peak that made the HD-800s unpleasant with some music. If you didn't like the HD-800s, it's unlikely you'd like the HD-700s either. I liked them best when tubes were involved in the amplification as well.

The interesting thing is, they did seem to lose harshness with use -- interesting because of Tyll's latest write-up about headphone burn-in.

Edited January 12, 2012 by Currawong

[jantze]

I'm with you Reks.

I've had a love affair with my HD800's that's still going strong after a year. That's out of either my Zana, Crack, or the headphone out's of my ULN-2.

I still think that modified HD800's (wire) are the most comfy headphones ever. Tubes or beta 22 like HD800's.

[Eric5676]

i really liked the HD800 running out of good amps. tube or SS.

Me, too. Very happy with my pair coming off a GS-X. Sound great and feel great to me.

For the "Sennheiser sucks" folks, I'm wondering which cans of theirs they tried? And in what kind of listening environment and equipment?

Edited January 12, 2012 by Eric5676

[skullguise]

I've tried the 580 (twice), 650 (twice), 600, and 800. Over time, I got rid of each. I think the 600 was my favorite of the cheaper series, and the 800 was very nice driven by a DNA Sonett balanced out, but the Stax Lambda Pro/SRM-T1W combo still was better to me; so that went too. Now with the 007's and Spritzer-modded 727A, there's no comparison....

Oddly enough, perhaps my favorite synergy for just pure fun was the 580 with the Eddie Current Lunchbox amp. I listened to that combo a LOT, for decent stretches at a time.

[Tyll Hertsens]

Tyll, can you nicely ask Senn WTF they are thinking with the 700? Interesting, too, that they took a price increase on the 800, I hadn't noticed that, and then slid these in. I get that they're in it to make money, but raising price on the flagship so they can also introduce flagship light is REALLY cheesy.

Ha. I'll try to get around to it ... after I get samples in my hot little hands.

About half the Marley cans sounded pretty good. The designers are two guys from Klipsch. Speaks well of them that they bailed Klipsch. They knew who I was instantly and thanks me for the Exodus review and said it was spot on. they've completely redesigned the headband. They new it was a problem, but they've been pushed to get new skus out the door. As I criticized other cans, they mostly nodded their heads and would tell me they were aware, and what was going on with that can. Product development at that level is a pretty hardball game. I like them.

The Soul booth had the hottest chicks, pix on IF soon.

The guy doing the Sony BA demo saw my card and went, "Dude! I love your site!" That was nice. The cans were okay. Got better for the price as you went up the ladder. Samples soon.

Got to talk to the Chief Design Officer and CEO of Fanny Wang, and the California Headphone company. They run both brands. The TOTL California Headphone Company can has TUBES in it!!! It was a prototype and out of juice, but their mid price headphone sounded pretty good.

The guys at Comply are a bunch of geek chemists who get their rocks off developing foam. They were fun.

I don't think the Polk guys get it.

I'm out.

[Grahame]

Thanks Tyll, for doing the leg work at CES, so we don't have to.

[The Monkey]

Me, too. Very happy with my pair coming off a GS-X. Sound great and feel great to me.

For the "Sennheiser sucks" folks, I'm wondering which cans of theirs they tried? And in what kind of listening environment and equipment?

I think Senn sucks not because of the way its headphones sound, generally speaking, but because of the strategic decisions it has made recently. It's odd to me that Senn seeded some forums with proto 700s, but apparently didn't listen to the requests from same about what would be a nice complement to the 800.

As for what I've heard extensively:

HD 25-1

HD 25-1 II

HD 215

HD 280 Pro

HD 580

HD 595

HD 600

HD 650

HD 800

Environments: all kinds, including but not limited to my own home.

Equipment: all kinds of amps, all kinds of DACs, and my johnson.

[skullguise]

Equipment: all kinds of amps, all kinds of DACs, and my johnson.

Was that a meet with Ari?

[xand1x]

I haven't heard the HD800's, so I can't weigh in there. I suppose it's possible they got their act together, they did produce the HE90's after all.

As for not liking the new aesthetic, that is obviously a personal opinion. I wasn't in love with their old look, but it was at least more palatable to me that this weird cyborg alien design they seem to be married to currently.

Hey buddy where have you been?? Still using the k340?

[blessingx]

I think Senn sucks not because of the way its headphones sound, generally speaking, but because of the strategic decisions it has made recently. It's odd to me that Senn seeded some forums with proto 700s, but apparently didn't listen to the requests from same about what would be a nice complement to the 800.

Maybe I'm confused, but why would they have $1K and $1.5K complimentary phones? Who does this?

[atothex]

If some random fuck on Head-Fi said he had $1k and $1.5k complementary phones, I would totally believe it. There's some ridiculousness over there.

[Grahame]

Maybe I'm confused, but why would they have $1K and $1.5K complimentary phones? Who does this?

"When you offer an extreme alternative, it makes the less egregious — but still halfway extreme alternative — seem reasonable," he explained. "When Burger King came out with its [Triple Whopper], people freaked out about it. I don't know if they ever intended to sell any of those, but it certainly made the [Double Whopper] seem reasonable by comparison."

http://articles.lati...food-20100527/2

(I seem to recall reading that sales of Double Whoppers went down when they pulled the Triple from the menu, and went back up when they added it)

To make $1K for a headphone seem like a relative bargain? , to hit all the price points on the demand curve? because they employ MBA's

Edited January 12, 2012 by Grahame

[blessingx]

Maybe we're using 'complementary' differently. I wouldn't order a double and a triple for a midnight snack. Of at least I can't remember. Been a few drunken excursions.

Edited January 12, 2012 by blessingx

[The Monkey]

I guess I'm using "complementary" as a shorthand, if clumsy, way of saying, perhaps equally clumsily, "one dark, one bright."

[blessingx]

With the expectations consumers would buy both or that everyone would be satisfied with one?

I may be naive, but I think Senn may be trying to make the best can they can (at a few price points and maybe more importantly, usage scenarios). Not the best, then one opposing. Using the HD650 as the pivot, going back in the HD580/600 direction (w/ K701, T1, etc. and general progress in mind).

That said I'm not expecting to like the HD700 direction from the HD800 perspective. I've mentioned my GS1000-like worries on the other site.

Edited January 12, 2012 by blessingx

[The Monkey]

Yeah, either with the thought that those with cash to burn would buy both, or that the more price-sensitive masses are more likely to want a high-end phone with less audiophile resolution and more bass. I think they'd sell a lot of "Super 650s" at $1000 without cannibalizing 800 sales. All conjecture, of course.