originally posted on july 8, 2010
posting my impressions on the hd 650
i wanted to do a comparison between these and the twin beyers, but i promised myself that i will give the hd 650 a week of solo listening... 'versus beyer' articles to come in the following days...
these are very comfortable cans, just a shade bit less than the beyer comfort. very easy to slip on and forget about them. theres a wee amount of clamping force around the skin next to the ears but its not bothersome. the open headphone style lets the air breathe out of the cups, perfect for hot humid environments like my dorm... excellent!
design is simply superb: these are great looking cans for me. black and gray colors are subtle and easy to the eyes. the marble like finish on the gimbal-like area and the headband is kinda sleek. i really like the look! these are cans that can be appreciated off the ears
cable is detachable, and kinda long for my taste (but better long than short). plug looks tough and solid enough to endure years of abuse. box looks as if it can double as storage bin to keep away dorm food from rodents and roaches. might try that in the future...
to the sound and meat of the matter. at first listen, i wasn't as floored with these as compared to when i first heard the 600 ohm beyer dt880. i think the 880 spoiled my ears and mind for so long, preventing me from appreciating the resolving potential of the hd 650. that was the reason why i wanted to spend time with the hd 650 alone. i just wanted to be impressed...
using the c-2c (wow this is just like Insyte's setup before!), i can hear detail and nuances slightly less than what the dt880 can resolve. its a very small difference really. c-2c can drive these cans, but the sound came out as disappointingly dull for some reason. switched genres to determine what music the hd 650 was great for, but i could not get these cans to excite me as much as the beyers do. this was when i decided to use the amp with tubes: little dot mkii. honestly i was expecting a big letdown because most of my gear had better sound coming out of the c-2c...
the tube amp. the lowly mkii tube amp. who would have thought... i did not. and the sound was alive in my ears in so sudden a moment! everything was airier, so much cleaner. the first word that came to my mind was: 'decongested'. tried rock, classical, some utada and john mayer, plus a bit of OPM true faith... it wasn't a fluke! the highs were effortlessly reached, and very beautifully too. how the heck did i even think of comparing these to the ie8? these are entirely wonderful sounding cans worthy of the label: flagship!
well, former flagship
kenny g. is stunning on the hd 650. never heard his greatest hits album portrayed as so vivid, so life-like, so alive! the thought that was running in my mind was that the senn engineers who designed this didn't aim for critical music reproduction but for sheer audio enjoyment! damn they are good!
my verdict on sound: life-like. highs extend very well without any hint of sibilance. bass is ample and better in quantity dt880-wise, but not as tight as i would have wanted, but who cares... everything else sounds so good! vocals are up there with the highs - inviting, hypnotic... soundstage is great, just a bit less than what the beyer can project, ample enough to give each instrument it's own space. acoustic guitar sound is rendered so well its creepy...
these cans are brilliant!
one gripe is that to achieve the total enjoyment effect, i have to turn up the volume...
maybe i can find a better amp for these in the future...
YMMV!
