Sennheiser HD650 Hell yeah! or Hell no!

[Recon97]

I love the HD600s, but never heard the 650s.

LoL.They are on Amazon.Anyway do you use HD600 for gaming?

[Recon97]

Hells yeah!!! HD650 is not over kill. Get the HD650, one of the best purchases I have ever made. The price is justified, imo. They sound beautiful and still blow me away every time I listen to music.

 

How much do you want to spend? I personally think that the neutral bright Schiit sound signature matches well with the warm rich sound of the HD650. I have used both the Modi/Magni combo and the Bifrost uber/Asgard 2, I kept the latter but they really both do sound fantastic and you should be happy with either combo and it depends on how picky you are about minor details. The O2+ODAC is also a popular route to take.

For DAC/AMP I can spend upto 120$.So i am like stretching and stretching my budget.I fee like i am gonna break it

Your suggested one is too expensive.

[Recon97]

http://www.amazon.com/E17-Alpen-Portable-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B0070UFMOW/ref=pd_bxgy_e_text_y

 

Found this on Amazon.Shed some light here?

[Lays]

http://www.amazon.com/E17-Alpen-Portable-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B0070UFMOW/ref=pd_bxgy_e_text_y

 

Found this on Amazon.Shed some light here?

 

 

I'd recommend this, it's cheap & has relatively the same performance as more expensive counterparts.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Syba-Stereo-Headphone-Amplifier-SD-DAC63057/dp/B009WN7QT4

[Joshua Ondangan]

I have the fiio e17 and works pretty good.

 

I don't have the hd650 but it's on my buy list some how my list keep going long but my cash can't keep up QQ.

 

but I tried listening to them at a local audio shop they were just fucking totally sexy my friend.

[BoredErica]

Agreed, I've heard that all the master soldering work is done by Dre himself

He's a doctor, you can trust him. He knows what he's talking about. Bet he has a PHD (in marketing).

[Nadeemz]

I think i will hit on 650.What DAC/AMP to use? Is mobo sound card enough? its formula vii

my recommendation would be just to buy the 650 and then see if the mobo can deliver the sound that you are looking for because your mobo does have decent on board audio on it and it should be able to drive them to a nice level with no problem.

if not satisfied buy an amp/dac combo such aa the meridian explorer it has resently been reduced from 300 to 150 dollars and it offers a great combo at its price point

and just correction from before Linus has hd 600 not 650s sorry for that got a little confused but they are very similar sounding with some people preferring 600 over 650s and vice versa

[ShearMe]

650 master race

 

[Feveredbike]

EDGI MEMEZ BRO 2 MCUH SWEG 3 HANDEL 5 9GOG

I KEM HEAR 2 SAI(MPAI) LITERALLY THIS

[Crion]

Both HD600 and HD650 have 300 ohm impedance so absolutely need an amp and no integrated audio is not enough. 

[creatip123]

Both HD600 and HD650 have 300 ohm impedance so absolutely need an amp and no integrated audio is not enough. 

 

Please change the mindset of 'the ability to drive a headphone properly is determined by the impedance alone'

 

Headphone's impedance rating is only 1 part of the equation, with the other one, the most significant part is the sensitivity/efficiency rating.

 

I know this for a fact: plugged to ipad 3, my 35 ohms HE400 only got to around 80% of my desired volume, while 300 ohms HD650 plugged to the same ipad can get to 100% and still got power to spare. This is because the HE400's efficiency is rated at 92.5, while the HD650's is at 103, a lot more efficient.

 

Another fact: 50 ohms HE6 is considered as one of the hardest to drive headphone in the market, A LOT harder to drive properly than the 300 ohms HD650.

 

For any of you who wants to see numbers and equation:

 

There's a free, downloadable headphone calculator in Excel file. Just have to open it, and change the numbers, it will calculate the power needed accordingly. Download here: http://www.apexhifi.com/downloads/hp_power.xls

 

Now let's put said headphones (HE400 and HD650) specs into the calculator

 

HE400 spec:

Efficiency: 92.5 dB/mW

Impedance: 35 ohms

Source: https://head-direct.com/Products/?act=detail&id=115

 

Put the number in the calculator, to see how much power, in milliwatt, it needs to drive it to 110dB:

 

 

HD650 specs:

Efficiency: 103 dB

Impedance: 300 ohms

Source: http://www.cnet.com/products/sennheiser-hd-650/specs/

 

 

You can see to get to the same desired loudness, 110 dBSPL, HD650 needs 5 mW of power, while HE400 needs 56 mW of power, more than 10x of what HD650 needs. So if one of those 2 headphones need an amp, it would be the 35 ohms one, not the 300 ohms one. 

[Crion]

Please change the mindset of 'the ability to drive a headphone properly is determined by the impedance alone'

 

Headphone's impedance rating is only 1 part of the equation, with the other one, the most significant part is the sensitivity/efficiency rating.

 

I know this for a fact: plugged to ipad 3, my 35 ohms HE400 only got to around 80% of my desired volume, while 300 ohms HD650 plugged to the same ipad can get to 100% and still got power to spare. This is because the HE400's efficiency is rated at 92.5, while the HD650's is at 103, a lot more efficient.

 

Another fact: 50 ohms HE6 is considered as one of the hardest to drive headphone in the market, A LOT harder to drive properly than the 300 ohms HD650.

 

For any of you who wants to see numbers and equation:

 

There's a free, downloadable headphone calculator in Excel file. Just have to open it, and change the numbers, it will calculate the power needed accordingly. Download here: http://www.apexhifi.com/downloads/hp_power.xls

 

Now let's put said headphones (HE400 and HD650) specs into the calculator

 

HE400 spec:

Efficiency: 92.5 dB/mW

Impedance: 35 ohms

Source: https://head-direct.com/Products/?act=detail&id=115

 

Put the number in the calculator, to see how many power it needs to drive it to 110dB:

 

 

HD650 specs:

Efficiency: 103 dB

Impedance: 300 ohms

Source: http://www.cnet.com/products/sennheiser-hd-650/specs/

 

 

You can see to get to the same desired loudness, 110 dBSPL, HD650 needs 5 mW of power, while HE400 needs 56 mW of power, more than 10x of what HD650 needs. So if one of those 2 headphones need an amp, it would be the 35 ohms one, not the 300 ohms one. 

 

Thank you for actually posting some facts about this rather than just the typical response I've generally gotten of "you're wrong" without any reasoning.  I now know a bit more about this. 

[BoredErica]

There is a link in my siggy for this which nobody that needs to read it will.

[creatip123]

Thank you for actually posting some facts about this rather than just the typical response I've generally gotten of "you're wrong" without any reasoning.  I now know a bit more about this. 

 

Most probably people just say 'you're wrong' because it's a bit of work to do the proper explanation, over and over again, because there are so many people still think that way (the ability to be driven properly is determined solely by the impedance rating). 

 

I'd say it's actually soundcard producers' fault, by starting the hype 'can power up to X ohms headphone' culture. 

[BoredErica]

Most probably people just say 'you're wrong' because it's a bit of work to do the proper explanation, over and over again, because there are so many people still think that way (the ability to be driven properly is determined solely by the impedance rating). 

 

I'd say it's actually soundcard producers' fault, by starting the hype 'can power up to X ohms headphone' culture. 

Whoa, deja vu.

Anyways, that's why I wrote a long ass thread and plugged it in my siggy. I should start just saying "look at the thread in my siggy" in the future.

[GamerDude]

Most probably people just say 'you're wrong' because it's a bit of work to do the proper explanation, over and over again, because there are so many people still think that way (the ability to be driven properly is determined solely by the impedance rating). 

 

I'd say it's actually soundcard producers' fault, by starting the hype 'can power up to X ohms headphone' culture. 

Hey, thanks for that explanation.....I did learn something new today!

 

I was gonna chime in with my Asus Xonar Phoebus (before I'd gotten an external DAC/AMP), powered my HD800 (300 Ohms) quite easily. I was wondering about that since I hear all this talk of > Ohms = harder to drive. Your explanation cleared that up. So, two main factors are involved, impedance and sensitivity/efficiency which determines whether a pair of cans is hard or easy to drive. Live and learn is all I can say.

[JR1911]

For any of you who wants to see numbers and equation:

 

There's a free, downloadable headphone calculator in Excel file. Just have to open it, and change the numbers, it will calculate the power needed accordingly. Download here: http://www.apexhifi.com/downloads/hp_power.xls

 

Let's see if I understood this correctly using that spreadsheet (I don't understand anything about electricity).

 

I've got a Naim Headline headphone amp. The manufacturer lists the specs at:

 

Line output variable (level) - Maximum 3.7V RMS into 2000 Ohm.

Power output: 560mW/channel, 8 Ohm

 

So the maximum SPL I could achieve without distortion with my HD800 (300 Ohm, 102db/V sensitivity) would be about 113.5db? At 114db the voltage required would exceed 3.7V?

[Valhallatier]

HD650 for gaming?...ehm HELL NO
imo its purely for music.

[GamerDude]

I'd just realized that I've not weighed in on the OP's question, and my feeling is.....HELL YEAH!  If OP has the budget for it, why the heck not?! Unless the OP uses it at excessive volume, talking about loud enough to burst the eardrums and thereby possibly damaging the cans,then I don't see what harm using the HD650 for gaming can do. When OP decided to use the cans for more than just gaming, perhaps something as radical as actually listening to music  , the HD650 would more than suffice.

[Ardacer]

I'm considering going for Hd 650s or waiting a couple of months and shoot for 800. Any advice? I'd mostly do gaming, but not competitive, I want the best possible immersion and soundstage possible (I do listen to music too). (not above 1000 usd)

[BoredErica]

HD650 for gaming?...ehm HELL NO

imo its purely for music.

 

I'm considering going for Hd 650s or waiting a couple of months and shoot for 800. Any advice? I'd mostly do gaming, but not competitive, I want the best possible immersion and soundstage possible (I do listen to music too). (not above 1000 usd)

What sound signature do you like? That's the #1 thing in a headphone. HD800 is in-your-face hyper, artificial clarity with large soundstage and a hot treble. HD650 has a much more laid back sound signature with much less treble. You should try out HD800 before buying, and the HD600 is a bit brighter version of HD650s.

[Ardacer]

I'll have to try to find them to try them out then..

thx for the info

it's not easy to find them where I live

[Gert]

Best for all things

]

I hope this is sarcasm.

[Captain_Slow]

dont listen to these guys

 

the HD650 is by FAR and away the best sounding headphones I've ever owned.

 

and its open back

and has removable cabling

 

with the right AMP it's fantastic.

 

 

sure, you can get the hyperx cloud and save like $400

 

but if you want to be wow'd every time you listen to your headpones, get em!

[BoredErica]

dont listen to these guys

 

the HD650 is by FAR and away the best sounding headphones I've ever owned.

 

and its open back

and has removable cabling

 

with the right AMP it's fantastic.

 

 

sure, you can get the hyperx cloud and save like $400

 

but if you want to be wow'd every time you listen to your headpones, get em!

HD800/HD600 checks all those boxes. I don't know what you're implying here.