Group Article: Sennheiser HD600, 650, & 6XX

[M0N]

This thread is for the creation of a new group article (for more info on articles in general, see here) on the sennheiser 6 series (excluding the 660s).

If you would like to participate, simply create a post below on this thread (one single post here) about your experiences with the headphone(s), and drop a picture in if you feel like it and it will be included in the article as well. There’s no real requirements on what you should have, it’s somewhat free form in formatting as well, I just ask that it’s at least a few sentences and reasonably descriptive to where there’s some value added (for example just something like “it’s good, I enjoy mine” doesn’t really contribute much or add anything for the person reading it lol)

This thread will stay separate from the already existing thread on the senn 6 series for now, will discuss what happens with that later. Once we get all the responses in, we can decide on how the article should be formatted as a group and come up with a title (actually you know what, also in your post, throw out a potential title if you like and we can just vote and go from there)

I will be keeping this open for about a week. If you are seeing this thread after that time window has already expired and still want to participate, just contact me and I can still add you to the finalized post

If you want to have discussion over these headphones, please visit the normal discussion thread

[hifiDJ]

potential titles:

• Sennheiser 6 Series - Even After All These Years…
• Keeping Up With The Times! Sennheiser 6 Series
• A Midrange Staple! Sennheiser 6 Series
• Sennheiser 6 Series: The Definition of Potential (might be too much lol)

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hifiDJ (6XX): So the Sennheiser 6 series of headphones are some of the most well-known and value-driven headphones in the audiophile space. The 6XX, which I personally own, is what I would consider to have an overall detailed, well-balanced, warm-leaning, and forward mid-focus tilt. Its strength, in my opinion, sits on its midrange delivery and tone/timbre. It has an added sense of midrange sweetness, warmth, and tonal density that isn’t overbearing or overly thick, making it very easy and pleasurable to listen to. Its overall weakness, on the other hand, is its lack of extension and its sense of staging. The treble, I find, does have a nice sparkle to it, albeit lacking in a bit of refinement and resolution. The bass, while punchy and relatively quick, does roll-off early resulting in its polite sometimes lacking, delivery. Its staging, while very intimate and in your face, lacks a sense of coherency and is rather disjointed. This means that things don’t pan out evenly across the perceived sound field. Alternatively, I don’t find the 6XX particularly source-picky, meaning it will sound decent and forgiving with just about anything capable of driving it. However, I do find them to be VERY source-rewarding. With its high-scalability potential, the 6XX does improve considerably with well-matched tube or solid state gear. So taking this into consideration, the 6XX transforms into a very refined and effortless sounding headphone that well surpasses its $200 (or however much it costs these days) price tag. Its overall midrange gains even more detail, texture, and clarity without being claustrophobic. Its treble extends quite a bit resulting in more resolution and responsiveness. Its bass, while still rolling-off early, is even more punchy, grippy, and agile. Lastly its staging, while still very intimate, is woven into coherency and is no longer disconnected but evenly spread across the soundscape. For a quick comparison the Hifiman Sundara, another relatively popular headphone in this price bracket, is often pitted against the 6XX. While I do think both are on even footing, I would still take the 6XX based on personal preference. However, when used with well-matched quality gear with great synergy, the 6XX does outperform the Sundara by a pretty good margin in my opinion, with the exception of bass extension. Segueing into some miscellaneous aspects the 6XX is built to last (minus the pads), is handily repairable, is uber comfortable, is relatively inexpensive, is stealthy looking, and is widely available. Every time I revisit this headphone I’m reminded of how great, enjoyable, and pleasurable this “can” can be. It is a superb value and one that I think is worth owning for many more years to come.

[ValentineLuke]

“Classic Senn’s: Why the audio community loves the HD6xx variants”

[ValentineLuke]

There’s actually a few groups dedicated to the mid-fi Sennheisers. They even get into the woods regarding Black Silk, Black Paper, Silver Paper, etc. It’s a sub-culture, and they’re pretty zealot about them. Kind of like the e-stat guys.

[Souldriver]

Title: Classic Sennheiser. The HD 600 & HD 650.

Sub title: An audio community’s take on a timeless headphone series.

[Alan_Cronin]

I will let others describe the sound in more detail, I went for the approach of someone new to the hobby coming in…

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HD 6x0 - A great first step.

The Sennheiser HD 650 was first released in 2003 and it cost around the €500 mark, since then it has been one of the most owned and talked about headphones in this hobby. In recent years Drop has relaunched it as the HD 6XX at a lower cost around €200 and it is still a bargain at that price. In a hobby where so many products are brought out on a regular basis and there are so many contenders for the next best thing it is great to have something that has been so constant for years.

The longevity of the HD 6x0 allows it to be used as a yard stick. Almost a unit of measurement in this hobby. As so many people own a set it can make comparisons easier. When looking to get an understanding of an LCD or a Focal headphone for example it is not always possible to be able to listen to them so people in this hobby will turn to reviews to determine if they would potentially like a headphone. Being able to guide new people based on a familiar product is helpful, “This Focal has slightly more bass than the HD 6x0, with more detail in the mids”. Understanding a reviewers take on a new headphone can be made better if you know what their opinion of a shared product is.

As it is a 300 Ohm headphone this headphone also shows differences in the source equipment more than most. An efficient headphone would let the characteristics of the headphone shine through more than the equipment. This allows people new to the hobby to get a flavour of what different source chains can do and can expose the benefits of synergy. While this headphone does require an amplifier to drive it properly as it is one of the most common headphones a lot of manufacturers in the budget to mid tier will make their products with it in mind.

Having the HD 6XX as an initial headphone when getting into this hobby is a fantastic choice to start realising what type of frequency response you like, whether you prefer detail, tonality, etc. It provides a good feel for what can be exposed in the music and it does it in an enjoyable manner. It is a great introduction headphone or even a great headphone to add a collection. The focus on the mid range is something that everyone should experience even if they prefer or move on to other manufacturers’ ‘house sounds’.

Alternatively, instead of using this to base your future upgrades on, you could pair this with a nice amplifier, call it a day and be content with your setup. Your wallet will thank you in the long run and you would have a great system to enjoy music on.

[FiCurious]

I might have to have a couple of good listening sessions to get inspired, especially since I haven’t pulled my 600 off the shelf in a while. I’d like to contribute, but feel somewhat underqualified to describe things in a very meaningful way. Perhaps, though, I can try to give impressions on how they change between BHC+SB, C9, V200, and CHA-1.

[dB_Cooper]

One item of little discussion among fans of the HD6XX series is the pads. As most people feel the stock pads are the perfect pads to compliment the range. For me, being treble sensitive to the point where I find myself tearing Sundaras and Beyer 17TX GO and HD800s off my head because they were just too much after just ten minutes of listening. I’m exaggerating a little with the HD800s, they weren’t painful, just too detailed. What I found is that pad swaps on the HD6XX line make for very noticeable changes in the signature and it’s something that can be leveraged to bring them closer to your specific tastes.

Enter this world at your own peril as there are a lot of choices out there but as for me the pad I settled on to make me love my HD600 was the Dekoni Lamskin Perforated. I found the Dekoni Suede memory foam too dark. Even though I thought it would be closest to the stock pad with just a little taming. The Dekoni memory foam Elite Fenestrated Sheepskin pads made the HD600 perfect for my taste.

[Souldriver]

A little sleepless so ill get a first phone draft of my take.

The name Sennheiser always seemed to have this great name recognition. Like the names Bose, or Shure even people outside the audio and production world would make an association when hearing the Senn name, an association of quality gear with a touch of that fabled German engineering.

In the mid 2000’s, when I was looking for my first pair of headphones, I really wanted the best I could buy. Doing my online research The Internet at that time seemed to agree either the HD 600 (or it’s newer “better” brother the HD 650) or the Ultrasone Edition 9 was the absolute best you can get, period. So silly me, seeing that the Sennheiser models were older, I immediately went for the Ultrasones. That is until I saw they were retailing for over $1k. Well, ok, this is where the Senns come in right? No. At $500 they too felt insanely expensive. But to this college students luck, Ultrasone had a model that also had a titanium driver, same sized as the Edition 9, and the cup shape matched it too. And it wasnt even $300!!! Buy! Buy! Buy! For many years the Proline 2500, faults and all, was my main headphone. Until one day, seeming out of the blue, there was an announcement and an ensuing media rush by this company called Massdrop…

Oddly enough I heard the news of the HD 6XX via all the tech YouTubers I followed. It seemed too good to be true. The now classic HD 650 was going to be offered for less than half it’s normal cost. Outside of concert tickets, this was the only thing I set an alarm for and “camped out” to buy. Fighting through an overloaded and breaking site I got my order in on the first batch. I was so excited as no one knew if there would be more runs, and contrary to the Edition 9s, the legend of these Sennheisers only grew with time.

A few weeks later they arrive and I unknowingly unplug the Proline 2500 for the last time. The HD 6XX did not immediately impress. Compared to what I had the sound was much flatter, rounder, softer, and very opposite of the V shape I was used to. I stuck with it, break in improved it a little but not much. The real staying factor was the comfort, both physically and sonically as it was the only pair I could wear during frequent sinus and ear issues. I kept with them for years despite falling away from the hobby. I always heard how good these were so I figured maybe it was just me.

Around the start of the pandemic I figured it was time for some audio upgrades. It had been a solid 5 years since I touched or looked at anything audio related so there had to be some advances. Well a lot changed but somehow the HD 600 and 650 never left the conversation. I made a choice that instead of selling them to fund other gear, I would give them another shot on an amp that seemed to have equal staying power and one I wanted to build for more than 10 years. The Bottlehead Crack.

I think the first listen to my HD 6XX on the BHC may have knocked my socks clean off and across the room. It was as if they transformed into a totally different headphone, a headphone I had been reading about for so many years. The small smooth round ball was replaced by this big textured landscape. The sound grew these broad shoulders and there was extended treble and actual bass. The stage reached so deep and wide and the sound presented itself in a warm welcoming bloom. One-more-song-itus set in quickly. I do not know what this headphone was or what it did to my old HD 6XX, but whatever it was it solidified a permanent rotation spot from that day on.

[dB_Cooper]

BHC/HD6XX

I hate you for getting it right the very first time.

[Souldriver]

Nah that was only after 5 years and 1 pad change of having it on very mediocre chains and wondering why people loved it so much.

[rgdelato]

I already had my camera out for other reasons, so I took a couple photos of my HD600. Might be useful for the article!

[dB_Cooper]

I want to get some renewed momentum on this group article. I’m curious to know whether or not I wind up picking up a pair of Drop 6XX because of it.

[dB_Cooper]

Let’s get this one off the ground guys! Add your contribution about the 6XX line even if it’s anecdotal. I’m eager to see this get to the production phase.

And since I couldn’t think of a better place to ask than here, would you guy describe the HD600 as a relatively fast headphone in the mid base and even taking that speed to the sub bass, (what it can muster in the sub bass) I’m trying to analyze why I’m getting the synergy in the amp pairing I’ve got with it at the moment.

[Souldriver]

Tbh im not sure how i would describe their speed. Basing it off the HD6XX its not sluggish but not super quick. I feel it really lets the amp dictate it in that respect.

[TechnicolourDunk]

Tailored to Interest

I wanted to take a moment to put into words my impressions surrounding the HD6xx, headphones I regard quite highly. Full disclosure, I have had these headphones for just over three years and the first listening session was one that sent me on the “quest” up audio mountain. Lets get into the meat and potatoes, shall we?

The sonic qualities of these headphones are no well kept secret and you can poke your head into any forum and get a deluge of opinions. For good practice sake, here are my notes on it’s sonic properties. Mids, Mids, and more Mids. Healthy vocals rich with timbre, and a centralized presentation that gets you immersed in the sound. Don’t venture beyond these walls for there is no hope and all you will find is misery and death. I joke, this is actually where the strengths of the HD6xx hides and that is it’s openness to customization. Being unafraid to try new sources, and with a gymnastic enthusiasm, reveal sonic characteristics of your audio chain. Something I treasure about these headphones are their staying power due to that “customization”. Pair that with ear pad swaps, cables, and the plethora of odd ball mods leaves you with something truly remarkable.

What do these headphones make me feel? It’s difficult to stray away from dumb metaphors that inarticulacy convey and ultimately don’t express how I feel about a product… but gosh darn, its all I got. Brief is the blinding glare of a lighthouse that reassures you there is in fact something you’re going crash into on the sonic waterways. I keep these headphones in the rotation for the sole purpose of grounding myself back to a familiar sound that does it’s best at adapting as I do. No, these are not the perfect headphone at least not without some Crack or so I am told.