Sennheiser HD 660 S Review - In the Shadows of Legends

[Volbet]

Introduction

 

In their infinite hubris, Sennheiser decided to update their HD-line with the HD 660 S, placing it at a prime spot to be compared to the now famous HD 600 and HD 650. 

That's not a great place to be, since both the HD 600 and the HD 650 are very well regarded headphones, and both have been so for over two decades. 

 

So let's see if the HD 660 S can stand with its brethren or if it's eternely condemned to be overlooked in favor of its two older brothers. 

 

 

Product Overview

 

First of all, the box:

 

 

 

Here's our very first warning. It has a "Hi-Res Audio" - sticker. The hallmark of many a chi-fi product, both good and bad, 

If anyone was wonder, that little logo can be bought from Sony and is essentially meaningless. It's therefor a bit weird that a well regarded and established brand like Sennheiser would spend money on such nonsens.

But as with boxes of chocolate, it's what's on the inside that counts. 

 

Within the box you'll find the headphones themselves, a 3 meter (10 feet) 6.3mm TRS cable, a 3 meter (10 feet) 4.4mm balanced cable, a 6.3mm to 3.5mm converter dongle and various pamphlets of documentation you won't read. 

 

 

 

Honestly, the two cable aren't great. They're kinky (and not in the way that'll get you off) and they're way too long for regular desk use. Also, the 4.4mm balanced standard is pretty much non-supported by anyone but Sennheiser, so good luck finding an amp or DAP that'll let you run balanced through that connection. 

My recommendation is that you tell both cables to go fuck themselves and factor in the cost of a third-party cable into your budget. Luckily, such cables come in abundance. 

 

 

Build Quality and Comfort

 

It's a tried and true design, so the HD 660 S is good, although not great, in both quality and comfort. There, you don't need to read more in this category.

 

For those of you that want a bit more:

Apart from the side grills, the entire construction is plastic. The headphones do feel like a paradoxical mixture of reassuring and fragile. Like, this design has lasted for decades without issue, but the lightweight nature of the frame makes it feel like the headphones could break at any moment. 

 

 

In terms of comfort they're just fine. Due to the lightweight construction, the headphones won't put unnecessary stress on your noggin'. The only problem I have is the foam on top:

 

 

It's a bit too weirdly shaped for my weirdly shaped head.Due to both stiffness and shape, the pressure is placed only on the two innermost point on my head. It's not uncomfortable, but it is kinda annoying once you notice it. 

 

The earcups are as such: 

 

 

 

The cups measure 7cm x 4cm x 2,5cm (2.8" x 1.6" x 1"). They are therefor on the shallower side of headphones, so if your ears stick out far from your head, then you might wanna look elsewhere. 

 

Out of the box the clamping pressure is also a bit too much for my liking and they do take a while to break in on that front. 

 

 

Sound Quality

 

I'm generally against comparing headphones to one another, but I'm breaking that today. 

But placing the HD 660 S in the now legendary 600-series, Sennheiser is basically encouraging us compare them to each other. 

 

Just to get it out of the way, I'm not going to discuss sound from a basis of measurement graphs. Everything I say will be based on what I hear. 

But if you're into spec sheets, here's something for you:

 

 

 

In that regard, the HD 660 S take up a rather logical spot in the Sennheiser's line-up. They essentially sound like a mixture of of the HD 600 and the HD 650. 

Both in terms of soundstage and sound signature, they're smack in the middle of the two. The HD 660 s aren't as narrow as the HD 600, but aren't as wide as the HD 650. The HD 660 S isn't as laid back in its sound as the HD 650, but also isn't as direct and forward as the HD 600. 

 

Treble and bass are certainly things that exist on the HD 660 s, but they're rather recessed when compared to the middle frequencies. Essentially, this is the prime example of the Sennheiser "house-sound". If you like vocals, this is the pair of headphones for you. The presentation is overall extremely clear, which is honestly to be expected. 

 

What really sets the HD 660 S part from the pack is their imaging. The way these image, both in music and in games, is absolutely amazing. You can pinpoint instruments, footsteps, moans and whatever else you're listening to. This is some of the closest you'll get to surround sound in terms of sheer stereo imaging. 

 

 

Pairing

 

As with their brethren, the HD 600 and HD 650, the HD 660 S is a very revealing headphone. They will scale well with your equipment and will show flaws and graces in your source. 

Although, as something new the HD 660 S has an impedance of only 150 ohm, with a sensitivity of 104db/v, meaning you can power these off an original Gameboy if you were so inclined. These will run and sound great on pretty much everything.  

 

They also do pair well with tube amps. Or at least one tube amp, since I only have the one to test them with. 

 

 

The Two Elephants In the Market

 

There's not really an honest way to talk about Sennheiser headphones in 2020 that doesn't involve the Drop exclusive HD 58x Jubilee or the HD6xx. Two headphones that have disrupted the headphone market and are direct competitors with the HD 660 S. 

 

In terms of sheer value, especially for those of you in North America, there's no contest. If you can wait for the items to ship, the Drop headphones is the best bang for your buck. Even though the HD 660 S is different from the HD6XX, which is based on the HD 650, but they aren't different enough to warrant double the cost.  

If video games is you modus operandi, then the HD 58x Jubilee is probably worth looking at. What they lack in overall quality compared to the HD 660 S and HD 6xx, they make up for in soundstage and imaging. It's almost on par with the HD 660 S and will run circles around the HD 6xx. 

[HumdrumPenguin]

Sundaras are better than HD660S in my opinion and cost far less. Sennheiser priced the 660S badly given they don't sound that much better than the other 2 on the 6 series.