Review of the Senheiser HD800S

[Gregadd]

Having your EAR spec'd is great. Next time have the seller ship it direct
That will save time and money.

 

[LL21]

Having your EAR spec'd is great. Next time have the seller ship it direct
That will save time and money.

Thanks. On the shipping, fortunately they are only a few hours drive away from London...and for international shipments, I like being in control in case something gets stuck. If there is a problem getting to another destination...and I am not there to sort it out, then the risk is mine based on someone else's receiving.

Fedex have guaranteed delivery before 12pm, and the pick up is in the afternoon same day so EAR will have it on the bench by the next morning which is great. They hope to turn it within a week depending on whether it tests perfectly or needs work.

 

[Andrew S.]

I'll be interested to hear your thoughts on the HD650 vs 800s once you have had the latter a while. EAR make lovely kit. Hard to go wrong I would have thought. Did you buy it locally?

 

[LL21]

I will be sure to update when everything is in. Actually acquired from the other side of the world. Fortunately, buying it 2nd hand and having EAR look at it still should cost sufficiently less (relative to buying a new EAR), such that its like getting a new Sennheiser HD800S, new HD650, new Arcam rHead amp and new 25' custom length cable from Moon Audio all for free!

 

[LL21]

I'll be interested to hear your thoughts on the HD650 vs 800s once you have had the latter a while. EAR make lovely kit. Hard to go wrong I would have thought. Did you buy it locally?

First 5 minutes...using the Arcam rHead....(not the EAR Yoshino HP4 which arrives later this week and has long been reputed as one of the 800S ultimate partnering amps if not THE ultimate partnering amp). Very similar sense of relaxed ease for which Sennheiser is known...but with a LOT more clarity and detail. It's funny...you flip on the system and listen to the HD800S fresh out of the case and it's...wow, definitely a Sennheiser (good thing for me)...and then to compare you go BACK to the HD650 which you were listening to last night...and you really go WOW...where did all the congealed music come from? I did not realize it was there last night.

Of course, the HD650 is a GREAT headphone imho, both on an absolute basis and on a relative basis for its price.

But it does not compare to the 800S in the first 5 minutes of a shoot-out. Much less about soundstage/space for me...much less (despite all the reviews/comments which speak of that as a strength of the 800S)...the first impression was far more about its ability to deliver a 'family resemblance' in tonal qualities/effortless unforced music...but where all the details, decay, separation was akin to moving from a great pair of Boston Acoustics speakers...to a Quad 2805. It is THAT different. I have to say the HD650 delivers such a great complete picture, you dont 'miss it' when its not there...but you REALLY miss it when sitting side by side with its bigger sibling, the 800S.

 

[LL21]

Have left it running the last 5 hours...a long way to go from what I've read (50-75 hours) to burn in. But the bass has definitely had a major shift in the last 2.5 hours. Much, much bigger, tighter, bolder than the HD650...not that Sennheisers are regarded for big bass (the opposite actually from what I've read)...but as someone who has the big Wilsons, uses a Velodyne DD18+...and is thinking of going with dual Funk 18.2 (2 of their flagship dual 18" back to back subs)...I do like the early signs of the Sennheiser 800S bass so far...and the EAR by reputation is set to dramatically improve that...more to come.

Thanks to Gregadd for starting this thread and doing a great review. I am just sharing listening notes.

 

[Gregadd]

It is great to have someone basically confirm my experience. I hope your experience is enhanced by the EAR.

 

[LL21]

Thanks, Gregadd. So we left it playing softly in background since this morning...another 10 hours or so. Definitely more supple sound, the nuanced details are now equally but more gently played. Very impressive with perhaps 18 hours or so of playing so far.

 

[padam]

Apparently there are new Stax 007 hp available. Very enticing.
Is it NOS or are they still in production?

They were released way back in 2007, but they are very much still in production today.
Some silent updates have been carried out, and the current version that people refer to as MK2.9 is a good version.

 

[LL21]

They were released way back in 2007, but they are very much still in production today.
Some silent updates have been carried out, and the current version that people refer to as MK2.9 is a good version.

Wow...does that imply 9 updates since 07...one every 18 months? Interesting.

 

[padam]

Wow...does that imply 9 updates since 07...one every 18 months? Interesting.

Nope, there are (allegedly) three versions. They call them Mk2, Mk2.5, Mk2.9 (for whatever reason)

 

[LL21]

Nope, there are (allegedly) three versions. They call them Mk2, Mk2.5, Mk2.9 (for whatever reason)

OK! Thanks for clarifying.

 

[LL21]

Around 55 hours...just at the theoretical point of break-in. Certainly the last 5 hours have been quite informative. I would not say 'supple' in the way the HD650 is...the 800S is far too much of a studio monitor for that. But for the 800S in my very limited experience, it is starting to show some signs of suppleness (for a monitor).

Furthermore, having re-read the various comments, threads, reviews about this headphone...it seems clear to me that its partnering source, amplification and cable are hugely important. And NONE of that has been put in place yet. ...more to come.

Thanks again to those, particularly Gregadd, who provided me with guidance towards this headphone.

 

[Gregadd]

I am hesitant to use this word because it has been misused so much. When a device changes based on what comes before is not that the definition of *neutrality." Moreover a device should be able to handle complex passages.

 

[LL21]

I am hesitant to use this word because it has been misused so much. When a device changes based on what comes before is not that the definition of *neutrality." Moreover a device should be able to handle complex passages.

That certainly is the definition of transparent (ie, whatever you put thru it comes out the other side.) I think the Sennheisers do appear transparent...not perfect and they have their own issues in my opinion in that infamous 6khz, 10khz zone...but hey, for all the other attributes it has, as long as I can finetune/hone that with the EAR (and most likely the Transparent Ultra cable as per IanB's personal experience with that cable), that works plenty well for me.

 

[LL21]

Hey Gregadd and everyone else,

I continue to listen to the HD800S...the EAR HP4 amp is on the bench at EAR and should arrive next week...and I have ordered the TA Ultra headphone cable. That said, I have enjoyed the posts here about the HD800S tremendously and also started branching out to learn more. Some very interesting observations AND considerations for those of you interested in the 800S

1. Personally, I TOTALLY get why most everyone respects the 800S tremendously for its reference qualities. At the same time, I ALSO understand why people LOVE the HD650 for its 'tonal delivery'...not necessarily its detail, precision, bass or anything else in terms of TECHNICAL prowess...just its very natural easy presentation style.

2. So get this, I decide to look up the frequency response of the 800S, 650...AND the legendary Sennheiser HE1 $50,000 electrostatic headphone flagship frequency response. GET THIS:
- the HE1 is often referred to by reviewers as the HD650 voice but with all the technical prowess of the 800S

3. I post the 3 graphs below comparing 800S to HE1, 800S to 650 and 650 to HE1...and now you can start to see WHY:


800S vs HE1 below (note 2 major differences...the 6khz 'boost' of 4-5db of the 800S which is in keeping with observations about it still being a touch bright for some people

HD800S vs HE650 below...once again, the 800Streble performance shows 4-6db more in the treble region

HD650 vs HE1 below (note how the HD650 and the HE1 track each other much more closely in that range)...again consistent with people who observe the HE1 as the 650 but with mythical powers of transparency, bass, attack, detail. (If anything above 6khz the 650 seems even more muted than the HE1 whereas the 800S is actual a touch closer to the HE1.)



CONCLUSION/NEXT STEPS?

I found an individual whose moniker is Solderdude on the forums who Tyll Hertsens, former Editor/founder of InnerEar Fidelity (which focused on headphones only), spoke highly of (which gave me some comfort) who creates different passive filters for a few hundred different headphones specifically addressed to focus on certain areas depending on the headphone. See below:

HD800S

back to Sennheiser back to measurements home Published: Oct-25-2017, updated Dec-14-2020 NO SMOOTHING is applied to the shown plots. Most measurement sites have some smoothing applied which ‘irons …

diyaudioheaven.wordpress.com

For the 800S, his filters is designed to reduce the 6kz 'boost' by the 4.5db to put it in line with the HE1 and HD650...and in fact almost exactly n line with the HE1 treble performance. This filter 'should' make the 800S and HE1 perform extremely closely for everything above 125hz (where the 800S could use a 4-6db boost to match the exceptionally extended strong bass performance of the HE1).

Below you can see what this filter (green) is doing to the original response of the 800S (red)...specifically in that 7khz range while otherwise leaving the 800S exactly as is. Apparently, too much and you dull the headphone, and thus this is deemed removing that edge and otherwise leaving a reference headphone performance.


I have ordered his passive filter and hope to get it next week...it is simply a 12"/30cm cable with passive filter between the amp and the cable using standard 6.5mm connectors. Interesting...if it helps the 800S present more in keeping with the 'gestalt' of the 650 but retains all the technical performance of the 800S...then other than bass...then this is a true reference for me...which at a price I paid of not massively more than the retail of the HD650...I can happily live with without looking over my shoulder at anything else. More to come.

 

[LL21]

Update: 1 week later.

So something like 150 hours in...and the 800S treble thing has definitely softened quite a lot. Still looking forward to receiving this filter, particularly for classical recordings where massed violins gets a bit much for sensitive ears. But on deep house, the headphones are doing a great job...and that is without the [supposedly far superior] bass drive of the EAR amp which is due next week from EAR.

more to come...

 

[LL21]

UPDATE:
- New Passive filter from Solderdude -4.5db from 5khz to 9.5khz
- Added a few ply of tissue inside behind the main dust covering (so its invisible...which mainly dampens 10khz and up slightly)
- Much more 'behaved' treble response, more in keeping with how Sennheiser have delivered their £50,000 reference electrostats, the HE-1 based on the measurements
- Thank you to Solderdude who not only provided great advice, but made a very high quality looking passive filter which just connects like a cable using 6.3mm jacks between the amp and the headphone cable. I tried w/ and without and the difference is clear and beneficial with no loss of any detail or dimunition of any kind

PLUS: EAR Yoshino HP-4
- WOW. This is a special amp. Mellifluous, resolute and like the guys in Singapore said, "Makes ordinary headphones sound high-end. No joke."
- Getting to know it. Just acquired 2nd hand (13 years old), it was completely refreshed by EAR (back yesterday from the factory)...but cannot imagine burn-in is required other than new tubes (a maybe)
- Innumerable reviewers, commentators from forums have noted how well this headphone goes with this amp. With so little experience in this arena, I can only say that so far, it really is remarkable

...more to come!

 

[Gregadd]

TROUBLE IN PARADISE
My love affair with the affair with the 800s.
Right know Diana Krall is whispering 8n my ear how much she loves me. But the right earspeaker gets a little intermittent buzz/rattle when a double bass plays
It is present on the Diablo and the Xduoo.
I have launched the troubleshooting sequence.
In the next couple of days I should know something.

 

[Addicted to hifi]

TROUBLE IN PARADISE
My love affair with the affair with the 800s.
Right know Diana Krall is whispering 8n my ear how much she loves me. But the right earspeaker gets a little intermittent buzz/rattle when a double bass plays
It is present on the Diablo and the Xduoo.
I have launched the troubleshooting sequence.
In the next couple of days I should know something.

Could be a faulty driver.