Review of the Senheiser HD800S
- Thread starter Gregadd
- Start date
I spoke with one of the big website operators for headphones who provides remarkable measurements of everything under the sun. He was very good and sent a passive filter just around 4.5khz - 9khz that drops this range around 4.5db...bringing the 800S measurements more in line with their HE-1 reference. Works extremely well. We could theoretically do one to drop the WHOLE range by 5db above 200hz...which then result in the sub-200hz frequencies being 'boosted 5db' relative to the rest of the frequency range. This would nearly exactly mimic the HE-1 measurements. But I am not sure that we are going to go there. The bass with the EAR Yoshino is quite good.
I will look into the Schiit. Thanks.
I haven't been very active in a while now - lost interest in hi fi discussion in favour of listening - but am curious after reading your experiences - do you feel it might just be time for a different headphone - like the D8000 or Meze or something?
Sounds like alot of work to cure alot of compromise.
Audaze have released the lcd5 new planer reference headphone.I think im gonna buy a pair of these.
A good point worthy of its own thread.
It would be arrogant of me to think Senheiser would design a product suited uniquely to my taste. Nor is this review an endorsement of the product.
My research revealed there were many who were enamored of the hd800s right out of the box. Indeed there were those who were not only not offended by the texture of the earpads but preferred them.
Essentially the hd 800s is a speaker. Finding the correct amplification is par for the course. Tweaking for my preference is not required of others.
Last edited:
I hear you, and frankly, i got a superb price on a new set of Senn 800S, and it is literally the first audio acquisition in 30 years where I found something that does not work. After all the reading, speaking with owners and owning 4 pairs of Sennheisers (incl the 650 which is awesome) or bought them for family, I did not think the risk would be high of a mistake.
I dont mind finetuning stuff, but this is not finetuning. I am going to listen to the Empyrean.
Agree...i felt confident it would be for me. And i have a few more things to look into before I choose a different direction. What I can say is...I know why a lot of people consider it a true flagship worth of being compared with far more expensive flagship headphones. However, those 1-2 areas are standing in the way (for me) at the moment. More to come.
Hmmm. All good points and well made.
Personally I'm still considering a higher end headphone set up - but frankly at the prices of the higher end headphones, and the front end + amplification - I am drawn back to a simple HD6xx / DT 880 etc, and half decent converter/streamer like a Naim HP4.
Best wishes to everyone.
Personally I'm still considering a higher end headphone set up - but frankly at the prices of the higher end headphones, and the front end + amplification - I am drawn back to a simple HD6xx / DT 880 etc, and half decent converter/streamer like a Naim HP4.
Best wishes to everyone.
Think so. I need an SUV as well - so I think the SUV is going to win out over a stereo system...
Interview with Axel Grell the designer of the Sennheiser HD600/650 and 800S (and $50,000 Orpheus headphone set!) speaking about his designs, his design philosophy...as he goes to set up his new company.
audio-head.com
An Interview With Axel Grell - Designer of the Sennheiser HD800/650/600
An interview with Sennheiser designer and Grell Audio founder Axel Grell. The Occasional Podcast sits down with Axel Grell to discuss his...
audio-head.com
So after 8-10 weeks the headphone cable arrive...the Transparent Ultra Gen 5...it is stupendous. Thanks to those who provided guidance on this as few have heard it let alone compared with some other great options. A definite keeper.
As for the 800S with the 6khz filter, it is materially ameliorated with the cable. That said, I also am borrowing a Meze...no, does not appear to be as linear, particularly in upper bass which sometimes feels to roar over the lower mids. But it does have excellent detail while being absolutely sumptuous to listen to.
As some have said, I have given the 800S every chance..and having only just arrived with the transformationally good cable (certainly relative to stock)...I will not rush. But the Empyrean is such an easy headphone to listen to while working late in the evening for hours...
...more to come.
As for the 800S with the 6khz filter, it is materially ameliorated with the cable. That said, I also am borrowing a Meze...no, does not appear to be as linear, particularly in upper bass which sometimes feels to roar over the lower mids. But it does have excellent detail while being absolutely sumptuous to listen to.
As some have said, I have given the 800S every chance..and having only just arrived with the transformationally good cable (certainly relative to stock)...I will not rush. But the Empyrean is such an easy headphone to listen to while working late in the evening for hours...
...more to come.
Which Meze? Elite has less upper bass emphasis than the Empyrium but keeps that Meze sumptuous sound.
Thanks for that Heihei...I have been listening to the Empyrean original. As for your comments about Elite, that is exactly what I have read about the 'linearity'...but naturally, one always wonders what the end result is. After all, the 800S Sennheiser sounds nothing like almost any other Sennheiser I have ever heard (bought/owned at least 5 over many years)...and that includes everything I have hread about their own flagship HE1/Orpheus which apparently is voiced much more like an insanely well executed HD650 (which we also still own and like, despite its [slightly] gentle shortcomings in relation to today's reference level performance).
I will give some thought to Elite, but for now, am really trying to figure out if we are going to keep 800S and make it work. The treble is ameliorated dramatically by the much higher quality TA Ultra cable...so that is something I just want to test over the next few weeks.
What else have you heard that sounds more like Empyrean? I do like the overall style/sound presentation, despite its imbalances.
I think I [may] have discovered why the ringing with the Senn800S...will try again this week to double check. I kept coming back to the quality of the sound now being in and of itself really great...not strident in any way. And yet the ringing.
...so I disconnected the headphone cable on a hunch and just put them on (like ear muffs basically)...5 minutes later...loud ringing. I had felt a slight pressure when I put them on (like air pressure). Turns out 'some' tinnitus can be aggravated by changes in air pressure/barometric pressure.
Could that be it? It certainly ties with the sensation of pressure which i do not feel with the Senn HD650 nor the Empyrean for some reason. No explanation and again no entirely sure its correct...but why the ringing gets piercingly loud after 5 minutes of wearing the Senn800S 'completely disconnected!' must have a physical wearing explanation since it cannot possibly be sound at that point obviously.
Fortunately, got an exceptional deal on them...will speak with my dealer if my hypothesis gets corroborated with further random trials this week...for him to take them back.
...and who knows, maybe that's a great chance to pick up the Empyreans! Or just stick with the very excellent if not entirely reference class HD650s.
...so I disconnected the headphone cable on a hunch and just put them on (like ear muffs basically)...5 minutes later...loud ringing. I had felt a slight pressure when I put them on (like air pressure). Turns out 'some' tinnitus can be aggravated by changes in air pressure/barometric pressure.
Could that be it? It certainly ties with the sensation of pressure which i do not feel with the Senn HD650 nor the Empyrean for some reason. No explanation and again no entirely sure its correct...but why the ringing gets piercingly loud after 5 minutes of wearing the Senn800S 'completely disconnected!' must have a physical wearing explanation since it cannot possibly be sound at that point obviously.
Fortunately, got an exceptional deal on them...will speak with my dealer if my hypothesis gets corroborated with further random trials this week...for him to take them back.
...and who knows, maybe that's a great chance to pick up the Empyreans! Or just stick with the very excellent if not entirely reference class HD650s.