Sennheiser HD650 - The classic beauty in a grey dress Appreciation thread!
- Thread starter Ryanr1987
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- 20 Jan 2003
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I got a pair just before xmas and to be honest i wasn't overly impressed, they felt a bit sluggish to me. However, I picked up a Little Dot II last week which has made a world of difference, just listening to Abbey Road - pretty nice. Gonna upgrade the dots valves, liking valves but I sense a disturbance in the wallet 
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They won't sound great if they are under amped but when they get an amp that can give them a healthy voltage swing, they really sing and a decent output transformer-less (OTL) tube amp is perfect for doing this.
Think I'm gonna have to build a music orientated version of this "balanced" amp - originally designed it to have as minimal impact on any positional cues in the audio for surround use over listening pleasure but once the vocals kick in combined with my 600s it just sounds like nothing else I've heard. Plus the bass is quite nice especially with https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fbl85i9st1U
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I bought some before. Awful... just dont go there, sound is worse and they just are not comfortable.
I had some joy using the HM5 Velour angled, Soundstage was better as a bonus but comfort was an issue for my ears (the angles were making them hang off my big ears) im sure they might be ok for some other people.
Im affraid you just have to suck it up and pay the silly price for the original, The HD650/600 is worth looking after.
I got a pair just before xmas and to be honest i wasn't overly impressed, they felt a bit sluggish to me. However, I picked up a Little Dot II last week which has made a world of difference, just listening to Abbey Road - pretty nice. Gonna upgrade the dots valves, liking valves but I sense a disturbance in the wallet
I have the DotII with my HD600 i highly recommend the Mullard M8100 £18 for two tubes, such a massive difference over stock.
I got a pair just before xmas and to be honest i wasn't overly impressed, they felt a bit sluggish to me. However, I picked up a Little Dot II last week which has made a world of difference, just listening to Abbey Road - pretty nice. Gonna upgrade the dots valves, liking valves but I sense a disturbance in the wallet
Don't go crazy with tube rolling so many people get sucked in and it just gets to a point where you are just listening to tubes.
Grab some Mullard M8161 tubes, if no luck then grab the M8100 as an alternative then call it a day.
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Just bought the Marantz HD-DAC1. Got a good deal on a part-ex one online.
Will update once delivered and will sell on my TEAC UDH-01
Will update once delivered and will sell on my TEAC UDH-01
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Interesting let us know as have the TEAC (which I am happy with tbh)
I know.
Happy with mine, but had an itch for some reason. I get these itches and am normally disappointed. The UDH is one of the few purchases which exceeded my expectations!
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Welcome to the club!
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One of us!
I know.
Happy with mine, but had an itch for some reason. I get these itches and am normally disappointed. The UDH is one of the few purchases which exceeded my expectations!
Ha yeah got it on your recommendation. Great price from RS as well
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It's amazing.
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It's amazing.
You can't just say that
How does it sound? Warm, bright, how are the mids/bass?
How does it compare to your old headphone amp?
What gain setting are you using for the 650's?
How are you getting along with the relay clicks?
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If you have a good experience with this amp I think I'll grab myself one.
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It does look a beast but we want details
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Well I have been playing with it for a few hours now and am very impressed. Firstly, it is thing of absolute beauty. It weighs 6kg as well! God knows what they have packed inside but it works wonderfully with my HD650's.
I was a little hesitant about buying it as some have mentioned the Marantz 'laid back' sound, which as we all know, is also a characteristic of the HD650 and I was wondering if both combined might be a little too laid back, but I have been very surprised.
It is hard to describe, but the amp inside is clearly more powerful than the one in the TEAC. I have been using the Marantz on mid-gain, which seems to be the best fit. Apparently the amp can drive up to 600 ohm headphones, which I expect you might want to put the gain to high.
The tone is calm but very detailed all the way through the frequencies, but is strange as what is apparent is that it seems to highlight the air between the sounds, if that makes sense? It makes the Senns seem more airy than I have heard them before but so much richer sounding as well. There is zero distortion or blur between the frequencies and man the bass! It is wonderful and rich but makes no influence on the midrange and higher frequencies.
Negatives? None really. You can hear a click when starting and stopping music but is very quiet and is a lot quieter than the clicks of the TEAC.
It retailed for £679 when it came out and would have been well out of my budget but for what I paid, which was £350 along with my 650's which I bought on here for £150, for £500 in total think I am now done. End game complete.
I'm again going through my favourite tracks with this setup and finding new things with a smile on my face.
The spec sheet is full of stuff I don't understand, like jitter remover and dual master clocks, Marantz HDAM® (Hyper Dynamic Amplifier Module) and HDAM-SA2 modules used in analog circuitry for faster signal transfer and better transient response and ground isolator for USB DAC mode operation eliminates noise from computer connection. Anyway, it works. Getting zero pops and stuff as well which did happen sometimes with the TEAC.
I was a little hesitant about buying it as some have mentioned the Marantz 'laid back' sound, which as we all know, is also a characteristic of the HD650 and I was wondering if both combined might be a little too laid back, but I have been very surprised.
It is hard to describe, but the amp inside is clearly more powerful than the one in the TEAC. I have been using the Marantz on mid-gain, which seems to be the best fit. Apparently the amp can drive up to 600 ohm headphones, which I expect you might want to put the gain to high.
The tone is calm but very detailed all the way through the frequencies, but is strange as what is apparent is that it seems to highlight the air between the sounds, if that makes sense? It makes the Senns seem more airy than I have heard them before but so much richer sounding as well. There is zero distortion or blur between the frequencies and man the bass! It is wonderful and rich but makes no influence on the midrange and higher frequencies.
Negatives? None really. You can hear a click when starting and stopping music but is very quiet and is a lot quieter than the clicks of the TEAC.
It retailed for £679 when it came out and would have been well out of my budget but for what I paid, which was £350 along with my 650's which I bought on here for £150, for £500 in total think I am now done. End game complete.
I'm again going through my favourite tracks with this setup and finding new things with a smile on my face.
The spec sheet is full of stuff I don't understand, like jitter remover and dual master clocks, Marantz HDAM® (Hyper Dynamic Amplifier Module) and HDAM-SA2 modules used in analog circuitry for faster signal transfer and better transient response and ground isolator for USB DAC mode operation eliminates noise from computer connection. Anyway, it works. Getting zero pops and stuff as well which did happen sometimes with the TEAC.
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Sounds like a very nice piece of kit. The extra air around instruments means the imaging is top notch, nice to see the USB isolation too and looks wise, it's a stunner.