good soundstage, great tonal balance, very musical

very very laid back, lacks detail of the Grados

started out comparing the SR225 and the Senn hd600. I owned the 225, my dealer let me borrow the 600. I thought the 600 had poetry but was laid back so much that I felt I was missing the detail that the 225 had. Enter RS 1 - I didn't even consider this because of the price jump, but as time went by I realised I'd have kicked myself if I didn't go for the best. It does everything the best systems do (except for the soundstage limitation with all headphones) and keeps the detail the 225s had but without the brightness. The specially treated Mahogany makes a difference. There is really no comparison between the hd600 and the rs 1 like there was between the 225 and 600. I will keep the RS 1 for a very long time for nighttime listening. I’m completely satisfied even though it's a bit pricier. I'm using an Antique Sound Lab tube headphone amp which improves the sound more.

Similar Products Used:

Grado SR225, RS 1

If you ever notice they (Sennheiser) take care of the blind by putting marking on the left side headphone?

As Confucius says:"Cheap no good, good no cheap", you get good things if you can pay the price. I can feel the gripping is a bit tight.

What more can I say, the difference is really there. Seinnheiser is the first company to come up with the concept of open air headphones. You have to try it on to feel it!!! FYI: use singdollar

Similar Products Used:

Panasonic crap Sony crap

All the good thing about this headphone has already mentioned, so I won't mention much here. I just wanna put another five here to pull up the average rating a bit, which I believe is fair to this excellent senn. My setup is simply a Yamaha pianocraft micro-system and I didn't change the cable. However, the sound from it is nothing I would expect from such a mini system. It reveals all the door opening, cough, whisper in a live performance CD. Judging from the ratio of quality to cost, it's perfect.

Similar Products Used:

Sony's, Senn 545.

sound, comfort, cost(please note that my value rating is based on my purchase price of 220$'s).

for me...none

OK...so much said about this product already I will keep it simple. Got these new havent fully burned em in yet but...incredible! real happy about this purchase. I have heard many senns and grados and so forth and truly believe that if you drive these with a good dedicated headphone amp, sound per dollar cannot be beat by reg. speaker setup of any kind. Completely flat frequency response u can actually hear (not just read about) and a very detailed yet still smooth sound that is blessing my ears as i write this. I bought an antique sound labs mg head otl tube headphone amp and after having auditioned creek, musical fidelity , and having listened to a headroom(ewww)I think that this amp is best for these. I certainly think that the only headphone that can beat it is MAYBE... akg's 1000 running off a dedicated amp but even they are a little ringier and dont sound as tonally detailed and still smooth in the bass...just one mans opinion. All told I paid 535 for the amp and the headphones (both off ebay) and couldnt be happier. will definitely be up grading the cable...cause I hear it makes these even better (and stock cable looks like lamp wire!).

Similar Products Used:

senns of all kinds, grados, akg's, sony etc.

Superb sound together with the X-CAN Amp and the Clou Cable Red Jaspis.

None

I have been using the HD-600's together with a Musical Fidelity X-CAN Headphone Amp and this constellation sounds just like heaven. I have upgraded the Headphone Cable to a Clou Cable Red Jaspis and the sound quality was improved by at least 100% (I'm not lying). Visit Clou Cable at this address: http://www.cloucable.se/212earphoneeng.htm Without the Jaspis Cable the 600's sound good, but using the 600's together with the Jaspis makes the sound quality sublime!!

Natural, very very very detailed presentation. Defined, tight, punchy, well-extended bass. Relaxed (could be a weakness if you're a hard rocker). Dead black in between notes; electrostatic-type decay. Highly comfortable in long listening sessions. Assuming the associated equipment is in the $2k range or higher, offers the best price-performance of any dyamic headphone.

Takes a long time to break-in. Very expensive, almost too relaxed / laid-back for some tastes, although the classical/jazz/light rock/ambient trance listener would prefer the HD600's sound IMHO.

First off, I would like to state that I am an avid fan of HeadRoom amplifiers and the HeadRoom sound, which favors dynamics, extension, blackness and decay, and detail. I received the HD600s from my father after he stopped by headroom. A very nice present before heading off on an orchestra trip; those long hours on the bus shall be highly entertaining thanks to the 600s. I burned them in for about an hour before my first listen, and they have opened up considerably since then (I've listened to them for about 20 hours now). Ok, the intro is over: Now for the good stuff. 1. EQIUPMENT: I am currently listening through the HeadRoom AirHead and a Sony PDCP with DEDICATED line-out (not a fake headphonejack/lineout job). Sounds grainy but for the price / utility you can't beat it. 2. SONIC SIGNATURE: The HD600 is the most natural-sounding, transparent, balanced headphone I've ever been exposed to, even after the short 20-hour period of listening so far. Frequency balance is absolutely flat from about 100 hz up to 3 khz or so. The low-end is very tight, solid, and punchy. It produces a sense of depth on classical recordings; Holst's "The Planets" was invigorating, for example. The HD600 has the most detailed midrange of any dynamic headphone I've listened to-it blows away any beyer, AKG, etc. at or even above its price range, save the K1000s. Treble is silky smooth and quite relaxed. I have recently had problems with tinnitus, i.e. sustained ringing in the ear after rehearsals or listening to audio. The HD 600 is so relaxed and natural that after a few hours at normal volume, my ears are refreshed with no sign of ringing! Amazingly natural. The upper midrange is to a degree recessed. This is what many people refer to as a "veil," which drives many fellow audiophiles nuts. Many people have gone off on huge spending sprees to eliminate this "veil" and open up the upper mids. Honestly, though, the HD600s were designed this way: After a few hours listening at low or medium volumes, the "veil" honestly disappears with good equipment and the ear relaxes. At high volumes, the "veil" is totally gone since natural distortion in the ear overwhelms whatever quality the 600s had to offer. :) This "relaxed" or "veiled" quality, from a classical musician's standpoint, is like sitting dead center in the audience with the musical presentation on a 120 degree soundstage in front of him. Being a ridiculously overpracticing violinist, I think this is really one of the coolest qualities of the HD600. 3. Comfort Very comfortable, more so after a few hours due to the fact that the headband relaxes a bit. The velour cups tend to soften a tad as time goes on. Ears never touch the hadphones. 4. Cost Too expensive for someone on a budget, but once you get cash to burn, these are the best value for your money the world has to offer.

Similar Products Used:

-AKG K-series -Beyer DT250-80, DT250-250, DT770-250 -Sennheiser HD580, HD497 -Multitudes of low-quality Sony Style phones and anything average high school students bring to study hall :)

Most comfortable Cans I've ever worn, and I've tried a whole lot Best Sounding Cans I've ever tried, can really hear background noises like pages being turned, key's being pressed on instruments in classical music that you can't pick out on lesser headphones. Overall definately my favorite headphone Good bass, EXCELLENT clarity on highs and mids.

Price non-replacable speakers if they are even different than the HD-580 speakers I would be surprised. I took apart my HD535's and my HD600's and the driver units look identical. And sound nearly so as prior stated...I imagine the HD580's and HD600's share driver units when you boil off all the fat.

Normally I agree you should wait a bit before you review a product...But I bought these headphones used, and They are already broken in and I have much headphone exp. so you'll just have to trust that I know what I'm writing. I have bought about 10 pairs of headphones in my recent quest to find the best...I then have turned around and sold them on ebay...I just wanted to make sure I had the best possible. The HD600 are the best I've heard...BUT I have a few reservations. I bought the HD570, they suck miserably compared to the HD600. I bought the HD535(an older Senn model) and they sound "nearly" identical to the HD600 and can be found for about 70 bucks shipped on ebay. The HD600 are in no way 3 times better to justify the 3 times more in price. I am listening to my headphones selection via my Sound Blaster Audigy Platinum Ex and via a Denon 3600 DTS reciever. The Senn HD-535 is an amazing headphone. We switched out the individual speakers on the headbands because the HD-600 and HD-535 are very similar shaped and so we had a drive unit of the 535 on one side and a drive unit of the 600 on the other side...SO WE COULD DO A DIRECT COMPARISON...MY ROOMATE HELPED ME. There was a very "SLIGHT" difference in sound. The HD-535's were a bit brighter, perhaps a bit raspier, and perhaps a bit less bass, definately a bit louder in respects to the HD-600, but you would be hard-pressed to say that the HD600 is worlds better, because IT IS NOT!!! I like the HD600's better, but they aren't in a standalone class. They are more comfortable, and sound a bit warmer or more rounded sound. They also have very nice bass, but still not as much bass as the Sony MDR-700's. ANOTHER THING I WANT TO COMMENT ON. The auction I won included the $190 dollar Stefan Art Studio cable, as well as my owning the original cable intended for the HD600 included by Sennheiser. THERE IS NO WAY you should pay for the stefan cable unless you are loaded with money, because I honestly can't tell much difference between the two cables. THERE is PERHAPS a bit more bass...PERHAPS, but even that might be just my knowing the other cable is plugged in and I have tested this with many different dvd audio, and DTS cd's, as well as DDD cd's and mp3s. The cable is every so sligtly detectable if at all. Definately not worth $190 bucks. Just as the HD-600's sound quality can be very closely approached by spending $70 dollars at ebay on the HD535's. I am not alone on my opionions with this...I'm a college student with 7 roomates and we all agree that the differences in quality as you step up are minimal, and not worth it to your average consumer. HOWEVER, stay away from the HD570, HD590's and the new "bionetic" Senn's. They suck. They produce incredibly distorted and muddled sounds in comparision to the HD535, HD580, and HD600.

Similar Products Used:

OWN TONS OF DIFFERENT MODELS Denon AHD-750 Sennheiser HD490, HD497, HD535, HD570, HD600 Sony MDR-700 KOSS Quadraphones Various Phillip, Sony, and Koss models.

Neutrality, detail, tonal balance, comfort, price

Cord is cheesy.

I'm a little stumped as well by a few things in robsker's review, particularly the need for an amp for the Grado RS-1's. The only problem I find in these Senns is that they prefer a little better amplification while the Grados sound good through a Walkman! At any rate, I sold my Grados and bought these. The Senns excel in every category and I find them more neutral, more detailed and less colored than the RS-1. The Grados tend to put a euphonious touch to the music that is most noticeable when you compare them to the Senns. And the price of the Senns is much more reasonable, although the overall build quality of the Grados is higher. To my ears, the Sennheiser HD-600's are the finest dynamic headphone in the world!

Similar Products Used:

Grado RS-1, various AKG's

Clarity, smoothness, excellent with jazz, comfortable, great bass extension, wonderful detail, very musical, exceedingly engaging. Works really well straight from a headphone jack off of a cheapo Pioneer $200 receiver. It sounds better with better amplification, but is still remarkable even without a dedicated amp. VALUE! VALUE! VALUE!

None whatsoever.

For first time headphone users --- PLEASE READ THIS! If you are accustomed to conventional stereo (2 channel) then it is imperitive that you recognize that headphone listening is an entirely different beast. In 2 channel conventional stereo listening, your perspective as a listener is as if you were in the audience facing the musicians. Hence imaging, localization cues and depth/width of the soundstage matter -- in a big way. However, with cans (headphones) if your brain is conditioned to think that you are to hear what is an analog of conventional 2 channel you will be wildly dissapointed. There is no imaging. Width and depth have no meaning. BUT... if you wipe out of your mind the conventional perspective of facing the muscians as an audience member and replace it with a new perspective, then things are great. With phones on you ARE the musician --- the perspective is from the stage looking out with the instrument you are focasing upon being the one you are playing and the other instruments are behind you and/or at your side. Once your brain wraps around this new perspective, headphone listening becomes a complete joy --- intimate, immediate, and much more engaging than conventional stereo (albeit with the scale of the performance reduced). Great phones provide much increased clarity, detail, immediacy and presence than even the best of conventional systems. The HD-600's sound great. With the standard wires and running straight from a cheap receivers headphone jack, the 600's are absolutely stunning. I am sure that a dedicated headphone amp and Cardas cabling would take you to the next step. For contrast, I have a $10,000 reference conventional (2 - channel --- Magnepan speakers) system in my home, and a second system featuring Vandersteens. Both have brought great joy. Both provide a different take on the music (as an audience member rather that, as through the 600's, a musician). Both are wildly more expensive than these $225 phones (after rebate) but neither is better. That is remarkable!

Similar Products Used:

Grado, Sony, AKG. None save the Grados (at twice the price, $695, and requiring a $300 amp --- so triple the price) come close. The Grado combo, RS-1 and the really cool looking amp, were different so

Sound Looks Comfort

Cable is thin (not that it affects the sound or anything, I would just like a thicker one)

I got these great cans as a birthday present from my parents. What can I say that hasnt already been said? They sound amazing, better than any other headphone I have heard.