Amazon.com: Customer reviews: Sennheiser HD 800 S Over-the-Ear Audiophile Reference Headphones - Ring Radiator Drivers With Open-Back Earcups, Includes Balanced Cable, 2-Year Warranty (Black)

Reviewed in the United States on April 6, 2024

I own Senn HD650 and the Audeze MX-4 together with some other common headphones in the mixing and mastering world of music. The MX-4 got bored after a while to me, while the HD650 is unbeatable. (If you have read to this point, you would easily know that I’m a musician, not a gamer, and I use these headphones for mixing and mastering music. Thus, I have NO idea how these cans work with XBox or Playstation. My review is for those who work with music. My apology, gamers).

So, should I buy the HD800s? Is it a good upgrade from the HD650? Is it worth the price tag? Short answer: I fell in love with the HD800s right away.

- Build quality: It’s German quality, so you can rest assure it will last long with you. These are also huge cans. They almost cover all of the sides of my face.

- Design: It’s open-back, so your ears do not get hot after wearing these for some time.

- Sound: My point of comparison is the HD650. These cans sound brighter, crispier, and clearer than the HD650 in the mid frequencies, but they do not make my ears fatigue. Since the HD650 sounds warmer, I have the feeling that the HD800s sounds thinner. But that’s my feeling. Different ears may feel different.

The only cons that I have against the HD800s is the lack of bass. If you like bass, these cans may not make you happy.

Now, what I said above is filtered by the EQ correction that I applied to the headphones. In the photos that I attached with this review, you’ll see the EQ curve for frequencies corrections of the HD800s. With this EQ curve, the headphones become completely flat and very suitable for mixing and mastering. So, people without this EQ correction will hear differently from these headphones.

I found this EQ correction online and it is called Oratory 1990 EQ Correction. RME Audio uses these EQ curves to correct headphones that connect to their ADI-2 audio converters. I use Fabfilter Pro Q3 for this correction to the headphones I use for mixing and mastering and it works well for my purpose. I don’t have RME ADI-2 converter, though.

In conclusion, is it a good upgrade? It is absolutely yes. Is it worth the money? Well, I would not pay the original price for these headphones. I got them during the sales, so it’s worth it. Will I buy it again? Yes I surely will. Should you buy it? If you mix and master using headphones, you should buy them. You won’t regret.

That’s all I have to say. Thanks for reading my review.

3 people found this helpful

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Virtuoso Fan

Expensive But Quality That Matches The Price

Reviewed in the United States on September 17, 2016

Verified Purchase

There's a distinct law of diminishing returns when it comes to high-end audio gear. I suppose that can be said for any kind of product but weighing the pros and cons and determining the "value" of a headphone like this is purely up to the beholder since sound is so subjective and people hear things differently.

I work in the musical instruments (high-end electric guitars) and music (artist/band management) industry so I'm around high-end gear and people who take sound very seriously all the time. When it comes to sound people can be very opinionated and one cannot prove or dispute that one piece of high-end gear is better or worse than the other at relatively similar price points. And as we get to higher and higher price points, we are sure to find more and more people arguing about the justification of such prices.

Some new custom electric guitars can cost $5000 and up. Does that make a custom guitar from company "A" twice as good as a custom guitar from company "B" that's priced at $2500? Of course not. This also applies to amplifiers, speaker cabinets, effects pedals, cables and everything else involved in producing a good sound. Ultimately, all that matters is that the gear you choose works for you.

Obviously, this applies to audiophile gear as well. I've had some good headphones from the likes of AKG, Grado and Sennheiser and I've noticed that all manufacturers have their distinctive sonic stamp. For me, the Sennheiser's character seemed to suit me best as I highly value clarity, balance and prefer "brilliance" over "mellow" and "warmth". Again, it's personal taste and I perfectly understand why some people would prefer more bass or mellowness. I, for one, do not like bass to be emphasized at all and despise boomy bass that overwhelms all the other frequency ranges.

So I decided that I could afford to splurge on the one "ultimate" (for me, anyway) over-ears open-back headphone that I've always wanted. After going over various options, I settled on the HD800S and I can honestly say that I'm very pleased with what I'm hearing. I use it with Chord Electronics' Hugo and Mojo DAC/headphone amps and they match up perfectly. I only play ALAC, high-res FLAC and DSD files to listen to my favorite music with a heavy emphasis on classical music and jazz. For rock, metal and modern pop, ALAC in my iTunes library is fine but for classical and jazz that have much greater dynamic range I definitely prefer high-res FLAC and DSD.

The soundstage of the HD 800S is superb - extremely broad but also with detailed depth that I have not heard from my previous headphones. There is a three-dimensional quality in where the instruments are placed in the stereo spectrum - not only left to right but front to back. It's by far the largest soundstage I've heard from a headphone but it should be noted that high-res FLAC and DSD files along with a superb DAC like the Chord Hugo have a lot to with that as well. To get the most out of a headphone like the HD800S, you do need other critical components to work in conjunction with it.

As for the overall sound quality, it is what I expected out of Sennheiser - bright and super clear but not strident, firm and defined lows, rich mids that are beautifully balanced but with a tad bit more emphasis on the high-mids. I can understand why some would consider this kind of "voicing" to be too bright and prefer something more mellower and warmer but, as I said before, everyone hears things differently. I love the clarity and the definition of the HD800S but also the smoothness of the highs. I haven't heard the 800 but I can say the 800S' highs are silky smooth - especially the string sections of an orchestra which, to me, is the benchmark to check during listening tests.

The lows are big and firm but play more of a "supporting" role to everything else than being out at the front which is, again, exactly the way I like to hear things. Listening to some techno-electronica kinds of stuff, the bass has more than enough punch with plenty of definition along with a nice smooth balance amongst the bass frequencies. The truly beautiful thing about the HD 800S sound is its smoothness across the entire sonic spectrum without any noticeable peaks and valleys. It's not just a matter of balance but a very musical "sheen" around the edges.

The all-critical mids where the ears naturally tune into is rich but super clear with excellent separation between instruments (including voice) across the stereo field. Whether it's Beethoven's 'Eroica' symphony or Miles Davis' 'Kind of Blue' or The Rolling Stones' 'Let It Bleed', I'm hearing details that I've never heard before in all their sonic glory and every one of those little details sounds sublime.

Yes, the HD 800S is certainly an expensive piece of gear but if music and sound quality matter that much to you, it's worth a shot. I certainly didn't expect a $1600 headphone to sound "three times" better than a $500 headphone (and I've had a few in that range). Anyone who expects that doesn't understand the law of diminishing returns when it comes to high-end gear. But in the end, if that last 5~10% in greater clarity, depth and detail can be experienced over the previous headphone and greatly increases your overall enjoyment of the music, then it becomes worth every extra dollar and penny.

It's easy to feel a sense of "buyer's remorse" after purchasing a headphone like this. Expectations can be too high. I had very realistic expectations and in which areas I expected to hear improvements. In those areas, the HD 800S actually exceeded all my expectations and sounds even better than I thought it would. And, as expected, the sound keeps improving as I'm only now reaching the 100th hour with it. It's a great audio device - one of the best I've ever owned and heard. The industrial design and the workmanship are about as good as they get but, ultimately, it's the sound and the HD 800S really delivers like none that I had ever heard.

Addendum: I believe my HD 800S now has surpassed the 150-hour mark. It really does sound so much better than the first few hours. The bit of stiffness I heard around the edges of the notes is now gone. I can sense more "elasticity" in the way the different frequencies and instruments interact with each other. The highs sound smoother, the lows have more bounce and the mids sound richer with even greater detail. The first 100~120 hours really do make a big difference. It just keeps sounding better and better and that's a mighty good thing.

458 people found this helpful

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Matthew F Wells

Upgrade from my AKG K712 Pro

Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2023

Verified Purchase

I am an amateur in the hi-fi hobby but nonetheless I appreciate top quality sound. For the past several years, prior to purchasing these HD 800 S headphones, I have been enjoying the AKG 712 Pro. For reference my setup is:

PC (MSI MAG B550 Tomahawk MAX WiFi motherboard) > Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD sound card > Optical cable > Schiit Modi Multi bit > RCA cables > Schiit Magni 3 > headphones

When I first got my AKG 712 Pros I was stunned by the clarity, detail, and sound stage but deeply disappointed by the bass. But I stuck with it and after months of listening it was much like acquiring a taste for fine wine... I ultimately fell in love with that clarity and even the detail of the bass despite it not having much oomph. In fact, I started trying out more bass heavy headphones and they just sounded muddy in comparison. So, after years of using the 712s I have reached a point where I found myself wondering is there something that does everything the 712 does but better? All my research pointed to the HD 800 S as the big boy version of the AKG 712 Pros. Basically, very similar sound but better in every way.

I am happy to report that this has been true! I've been listening to the HD 800 S for about a week now and they're everything the 712s were but more. Folks frequently complain about the bass being weak on these but it's definitely an upgrade from the 712s which I personally grew accustomed to.

TLDR: Would I recommend these over the AKG 712 Pros? If you have a ton of disposable income and don't care about value, then YES. I can definitely tell a difference and I was worried I wouldn't be able to. But it's not massive.... Maybe 25% better? So, huge diminishing returns for the price.

If you are going for value, my personal opinion would be to stick with the $300-500 price range like the 712s or HD 600/650s.

6 people found this helpful

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tommygun

I would recommend and feel they are worth the price

Reviewed in the United States on March 24, 2018

Verified Purchase

I tend to ignore every headphone review I come across especially the ones that are obviously someone else's ideas and data or a regurgitation of previous thoughts.

I have always felt the HD800 is the benchmark and no matter how hard they try to change that.....it still is. It is affordable and available and a known quality. If you have never owned this model and you felt like skipping owning one and buying the HD800S you will not be disappointed.

The differences over the HD800 is less accuracy and added bass but the HD800S is more enjoyable. They have greatly improved or boosted the lower end and they have tamed the high-end. I feel at the cost in reduced accuracy. With the older model poop in is poop out but with the HD800S that's not so. Meaning it's very forgiving for weaker systems and reducing annoying interference . You will not struggle to find the right amp or an ultra pure source .

I have over the years written headphone amplifier makers to add tone controls this way headphones can be used to their full potential . So far only the McIntosh MHA series makes a amp with tone preference controls but still lacks full and separate bass and treble . With the HD800S they seem to EQ the headphones to make up for this whereas the HD800 is true to accuracy and seems to have no signature .

What the HD650 is to the HD600 the HD800S is to the HD800 which is just a more enjoyable option . I have heard a HD660 and that confuses me because I feel they just repackaged the HD700 which I have always been disappointed in . The HD800S is not a repackaged HD800 it is different and in my opinion more enjoyable . I will always own the HD800 and I feel justified in keeping the HD800S as a totally different set of headphones with its own unique quality . The price and its value is up to you but for me it's worth every penny .

I have purposely left this for the end . If you are just getting into HD800 the MSRP has been around 1400.00 plus or minus 100.00 dollars . The HD800S MSRP has been 1600.00 plus or minus 100.00 dollars making it only slightly more expensive . The problem is one is the older model which is slowly being phased out and the other one is the new flagship . Even a loaf of bread is more expensive now than 12 years ago and Sennheiser is including a very high quality set of balanced cables .

Cables are cables right ? except for true balanced amps that perform better and by that I mean if you look at a amps specs the output is greatly increased by them . Example Schiit Jotunheim which outputs are much greater with XLR . So XLR cables are not trivial .

10 people found this helpful

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Peter Givler

As Close to Live Music as it Gets

Reviewed in the United States on November 7, 2016

Verified Purchase

For a variety of reasons, some economic, some social, in the last few years I have been doing more and more of my quality listening--as opposed to background listening--through headphones. Anybody who has gone this route quickly discovers that, for all their sonic advantages, headphones have two significant drawbacks: comfort or wearability, and a soundstage that always sounds as though it is located in your head (which it obviously is) instead of creating the illusion, as speakers do, that what you're hearing is being performed in a room somewhere, be it concert hall, club, studio, whatever. I currently own five different sets of headphones, both planar and dynamic, and they all share these two limitations.

I'd made my peace with the comfort question and was on the verge of spending, for me, a significant amount of money on a new headphone amplifier that I hoped would deal with the "in your head" issue, but in reading about the various amplifiers available people kept referring to the Sennheiser HD 800Ss as setting a new standard for both comfort and fidelity. Pricey, but still cheaper than the amplifiers I was considering. So I decided to try them.

The rest is history. Sennheiser says the HD 800Ss need about 150 hours of playing time to break in, and sure enough, when I tried them right out of the box they sounded terrible: thin, metallic, cold, horrible. But they warmed up after a day of playing CDs through them while they sat on a shelf, and now, maybe 100 listening hours later, I don't know how I lived all these years without them.

Comfort is easy to describe; they're very light, but also the headphone cup itself is ear-shaped, rather than circular, like every other pair of headphones I have. And they're circumaural, which just means they press against your head, not your ear. The combination is terrifically comfortable.

And the sound quality is like nothing I've ever heard before; there may be speakers that can recreate the specific tone and timbre of individual instruments as clearly as the HD 800Ss, but if they exist, I could never afford them. The soundstage is wide, with instruments so precisely located that you can follow individual parts. And the "in your head" quality is simply gone; you're listening to music that sounds as though it's being played in a real, three-dimensional space. They're really quite astounding, as close to listening to a live performance as it gets.

For the record I should say that I listen mostly to classical, some jazz, and some opera, and that the other components in my system are a Cayin CD player (with built-in D/A converter), a Schiitt Lyr amplifier, Pangea Audio power cables, and MIT 330 Plus interconnects. The HD 800Ss come with both single-ended and balanced headphone cables; I'm using the single-ended, which is what the Lyr will accept, and they seem to be of pretty high quality.

43 people found this helpful

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John Frerichmann

and i can confidently say that i am not sure i've ever been happier with a purchase in my life

Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2017

Verified Purchase

I purchased these headphones just a few weeks ago, just as a test to see for myself if $1,800 of headphones could really be worth the price, and i can confidently say that i am not sure i've ever been happier with a purchase in my life. Now i'm not some sound engineer who has been working with headphones all my life and is here to tell you the indepth technical specs of these headphones, there are other reviews that do that much better than i could. This is simply my personal opinion as a consumer who enjoys a high quality sound. From the second you open the box you can tell these headphones are something special, with the solid hindged box, nestling these headphones in a silk holder, to just the polished sturdy look of the headphones themselves. They are unbelievably light, with cushions that are not overly large but still very comfortable, making it easy to forget that i'm even wearing them. Now, knowing that these headphones would require a little extra power i went ahead and order a DAC to pair with them, and would highly recommend doing the same, but even going through a four dollar adapter and plugged into my phone these headphones still provided a better sound then anything i have owned before. As someone who has a broad taste in music, and enjoys some online gaming in my spare time, these headphones appealed to me because of how versatile their range and tone are.

These headphones are open-backed, something you should look into before considering these headphones as it could change your mind entirely, basically this allows for the headphones to deliver a much wider sound stage. I kinda like to explain this as "it's like having the worlds best home speaker an inch for your ear." but that doesn't truly do these justice. The open back makes you feel as if you're actually in the same room as the people playing the music, it's hard to describe and understand until you've felt it yourself, and after a few days adjusting to how it feels, i can't say i'll ever miss closed back headphones. That being said the main draw back to open-backed headphones is that they don't stop noise, from coming in or going out. As someone who uses these alone in a quiet studio or room this doesn't bother me, but if you're in a place where you don't want other people heading your music, or don't want to hear other people, then you might want to rethink these headphones.

Most people say that headphones in this price range are all about opinion and music taste, and i would agree with that completely, but as someone who listens to almost any type of music, i've come to really appreciate the HD 800 S's range and sound quality. I like to make a little bet with my friends when they come over by telling them to pick their favorite song and see if they can hear something they've never heard before, and every time they have. These headphones are perfect for instrumental music, such as jazz or classical music. They easily balance a whole band allowing you to hear not just every note the melody plays, but every not from the counter-melody, harmony, bass line, you name it. That being said, listening to things like the Hamilton Soundtrack where you would want the voices to shine out give you just that. They are a bit bass light, but they still pack enough of a punch to give me chills on a good bass drop.

The HD 800 S also excel in online gaming. The open sound stage and lightness of the headphones makes for a completely immersive feeling that no close back gaming headset could ever replicate. It feels as though you could find something in the game after closing your eyes with how accurate the sound is.

Over all the HD 800 S perfectly fit my musical and gaming needs all while providing a sleek comfortable feel, giving me something that i look forward to putting on at the end of the day.

27 people found this helpful

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Darin Boyle

End game headphones/But wait….

Reviewed in the United States on December 2, 2022

Verified Purchase

I’m changing my review to one star because as other people have reported, while attempting to change the cable, the locking mechanism pulled out of both sides. It was/is absolutely ridiculous how difficult it was to attempt to change it and even following the directions, they were defective. Sennheiser needs to update this immediately! For this price, it’s completely unacceptable!!!……..The most unreal, amazing, spatial listening experience, I have ever heard. I have been through so many pairs of headphones and I will never buy another pair. These are perfect in every sense of the word. You need an amp with these! Other than that, be prepared to listen to your music all over again and have your mind blown!

12 people found this helpful

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Vincent Pellegrino

Works great, when they work.

Reviewed in the United States on September 30, 2020

Verified Purchase

I loved these headphones and I've been dreaming for a pair, but a deal too good is a deal worth avoiding.

I ordered these on July 23'rd and it only took about a week to get them. When I received them they were in perfect condition, the only thing that seemed off was the headphones slightly out of their foam mold in the case.

Sound quality: Fantastic, matched with the right equipment these babies are ready to impress. Everyone I personally know who has tried mine has been impressed with its sound stage and how well vocals and string instruments shine through on these. The bass isn't o overwhelming and it's right in that sweet spot where a thud is a thud and not a BOOM that crushes your skull.

Comfort: As light as can be, these aren't that cheap plastic, say like the Drop x Sennheiser HD58x/6xx, These are that firm thick plastic that doesn't make noises as you move it around. They feel premium in the hand.

Quality: Externally I believe these are built super well. Internally...I have my doubts and concerns due to a problem that managed to occur 26 days after the return policy ended. Read Below.

Fast forward to this week, they now have a rattle in the right driver and I've tested it with other equipment and headphones to make sure it wasn't a side effect of something else. Now I have a $1500 paper weight with no eligibility on a return as it's 1 month outside return policy. Figures as much.

Over all, sound wise these are amazing. Quality wise they feel good in the hand, but apparently the internal materials cant hold up for scrap. I expected much better internals after seeing a tour of the factory and how they're made by hand in Germany on youtube.

I mark these as an AVOID and look elsewhere at other brands. Will update review if anything changes or I manage to get support if at all.

Update: 10/4/2020
Found a shop 7 towns over that repairs higher end equipment thats a senn dealer, getting them shipped out and repaired for a fair price no questions asked. With that kinda support i'll change it to worth while purchase if u buy from a reputable senn dealer and not amazon.

3 people found this helpful

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Adam Wood

Very nice headphones...but still deciding if they were worth the money

Reviewed in the United States on March 3, 2017

Verified Purchase

I've purchased two pairs of these. I bought a pair of these for my older brother as a present for a milestone birthday, and then splurged and got myself a pair a few months later around Christmas after listening to him rave about them throughout 2016. My brother would give these 10 stars, and while I think that they are very good headphones, I'm not convinced that they're worth the price tag. My brother is, but he got them for free. :D My impressions of their sound are those of a 44-year-old that has listened to headphones since I was a kid, but I'm not a professional reviewer.

I'd like to give you my brother's impressions first, then give you mine, so you get the opinion of two people with different prior experiences with headphones. Before that, though, a brief discussion of headphone amp impedance that I think might help you either before and/or after you get these (if you decide to).

(*) Headphone Amp Impedance. In general, you want the impedance of your headphone amp (either a dedicated amp, AV receiver, smart phone, or whatever) to be quite a bit smaller than that of your headphones (some say 1/8 the impedance). This value is rarely specified except for on dedicated headphone amps. Usually items like smart phones are designed for ear buds/headphones with low impedance, so they have a low output impedance. AV receivers, on the other hand, seem to be have higher output impedance. I mention this because these headphones have a pretty high impedance at 300 Ohms, so they'll sound good on many sources if the source has enough power to drive them. Other headphones, like my pair of HD 598's with an impedance of 50 Ohms, sound great on low impedance sources but sound very muddy and plain horrible on my Pioneer Elite receiver. On my amps with lower impedance, my 800 S sound better but not "oh my goodness" better than my 598's. On my Pioneer Elite, it's night and day in that the 800 S are so (soooo) much better - but not because the 800 S sound that much better than they do on the other amps, but because the 598's sound so much worse than normal on that receiver. So...if you're unsatisfied with your current headphones, perhaps try them with a lower impedance source and see if they sound better to you.

(*) Some background: my brother has owned a pair of HD 600's for several years and loves them. On Black Friday in 2015, we both bought a pair of HD 598's from Amazon, and that was my first pair of "real" Sennheiser headphones. I love them. I think the 598's are super comfortable and have a wonderful sound to them. Wanting a pair for work that wouldn't let so much sound out through the open ear design, I bought a pair of HD 598 Cs on Black Friday 2016 (as did my brother for the same reason). I don't like those as well as the 598's, but they're still good headphones. We both also have experience with other headphones in the $100+ price range, including Audio Technica and others, as well as many less expensive headphones.

Enter the 800 S. After my brother told me that he was putting his beloved 600's into storage because they were getting so worn, I decided that I wanted to get him a new pair for his birthday. I thought perhaps a pair of HD 700's instead, but reviews made me think that they weren't worth the extra cost. Then I saw these...and I just knew he'd love them. And he does. My goodness, he does.

(*) MY BROTHER'S IMPRESSIONS: 10 Stars
One of the first words that he used to describe these was "sublime." He just kept using that word. He'll sit for hours just listening to music on them. When I had asked him how the 598's compare to the 600's, he said the 598's were about 98% as good...not quite as good, but very close. When I asked him how the 600's compare to the 800 S, he said that there was no comparison. The 800 S are just so much better. He jokingly complained that I cost him more money because he subscribed to Tidal in order to get higher quality music because his other digital music no longer sounded good. These made him notice poorly recorded or compressed music that the other headphones didn't. To reiterate, though...he absolutely loves these. However, he'd definitely tell you (and he told me before I ordered my set) that these certainly aren't 17 times as good as the 598's (they cost 17 times as much when I got them). He just thinks that they're worth the extra money.

(*) MY IMPRESSIONS: Good comfort and performance...still deciding on value
You just read a short paragraph on my brother's thoughts, but I heard for months about how amazing these are. I finally broke down around Christmas and bought myself a pair. Now, I admit that my expectations were super high after listening to my brother (even with him trying to temper those expectations), so my first impressions were based on anticipating hearing a choir of angels when I put these on. I did not. Yeah, they sounded good, but I admit that my first impressions of the 598's were a bigger improvement over my other headphones than I thought these were over the 598's.

Outside of those initial impressions, I have some lingering reasons for not giving these five stars. One big one is that (and this seems bizarre to me because I can't remember any other headphone doing this), for whatever reason, sometimes my ears start to feel quite warm when I'm listening to these. It's not from them physically covering my ears, because I can wear them while they're off and not experience that. Something in the frequency response seems to be causing it, and it's not very comfortable. I wonder if the uncomfortable "warmth" that I feel is due to the second harmonic distortion that Sennheiser added to lower frequencies on the 800 S (which you may have already read about if you're shopping for headphones this pricey - if you haven't, you can find professional reviews on these that discuss it).

I do think that the fit and physical comfort of these is very good. I thought that the 598's were comfortable, but these are at a different level. It's not that they have superior padding, but rather that they seem to put less pressure on the sides of my head.

Outside of that odd "warm ear" sensation, the sound quality of these is top notch. While an open ear design tends to have less bass response, I think that these have plenty. Far more than I expected, to be honest, when these are paired with certain amps of mine. I personally prefer the sound of these when connected to a USB-powered DAC/amp of mine because the mids and highs are crystal clear, and the lower amount of bass is more enjoyable to me - perhaps because of lower second harmonic distortion, but I don't know for sure.

(*) Amps
Neither one of us has "high end" headphone amps. My brother uses a Marantz NR1504 receiver that I gave him, and he thinks it's a wonderful pairing with the 800 S. He has also used these and his other headphones with his smart phones, as well as at least one portable headphone amp (and probably other amps that he didn't mention).

I've used these with my Pioneer Elite receiver, as well as a Marantz NR1604 (based on my brother's good experience with his Marantz), a Focusrite Clarett 2Pre, a Focusrite Scarlett Solo, and a Monoprice 111567 headphone amp. I think that they all sound good with these, and the Scarlett Solo is the USB-powered amp that I mentioned above that I find more comfortable to listen to.

I've contemplated getting a more expensive headphone DAC/amp to try with these, but I haven't found one yet that is universally praised (including Sennheiser's own HDVD800, which seems to be a great amp for these but with a so-so DAC).

(*) Conclusion
I do like these, but they are one of the rare purchases that I partially regret having made. It's not just the cost of them, but that's part of it. I'm just not convinced that I'm going to ever really love these, whereas I never once regretted getting the 598's. These get praised by many people on the internet, and my brother absolutely loves them. Had I only heard my 598's on my receiver and then gotten these, I'd be singing their praises, too. However, having heard the 598's and these on amps that (I think) allow them both to sound good, these weren't such a big jump over the 598's. I am keeping an open mind that I just haven't heard these on a truly worthy headphone amp, though, so someday I might come back and update this.

101 people found this helpful

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Jesse

After two years the headband is falling apart

Reviewed in the United States on February 7, 2024

Verified Purchase

These are definitely an upgrade from the HD 650. Superior sound quality. Is it worth paying $1200 more than the HD 650? After two years of ownership I think not.

-The top part connecting the headphones together has a faux leather pad, the glue is coming apart
-The sliding function for the headphones to adjust size drifts requiring nearly daily adjustments
-The slider for the headphones broke at somepoint(yay cheap plastic) and I have to click it in place regularly
-The finish on the padding for the headphones is peeling though not horribly

Are they better sound quality? Of course. Are they worth spending 4x or 5x what the 650HD costs? In my humble opinion, no. Even with a better quality build, I don't think it justifies the price. If money is not a problem, go for it but if you are on the fence because of the price, I think you'd be just as happy with their 650HD. I give it 4/5 stars because of the superior sound quality. I knocked off a star both because of the build quality and the price. FWIW I am still happy with the product but I'm not sure I would buy again.

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Sennheiser HD 800 S Over-the-Ear Audiophile Reference Headphones - Ring Radiator Drivers With Open-Back Earcups, Includes Balanced Cable, 2-Year Warranty (Black)

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Sennheiser HD 800 S Over-the-Ear Audiophile Reference Headphones -... › Customer reviews

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Sennheiser HD 800 S Over-the-Ear Audiophile Reference Headphones - Ring Radiator Drivers With Open-Back Earcups, Includes Balanced Cable, 2-Year Warranty (Black)

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Sennheiser HD 800 S Over-the-Ear Audiophile Reference Headphones -...

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