Sennheiser HD-598 or HD-650?

JNicko

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Nov 30, 2015
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Hey guys
My wireless sony headset is on its last legs, it's lasted me over 4 years, but I guess the build quality has surrendered itself to wear and tear

I was looking into other wireless gaming headsets, but after reading quite a bit into it, dedicated headphones and a dedicated mic seemed to be the best value for money, and offered the best quality

I've set my sights on the HD-598 or the HD-650

The HD-650's offer greater sound quality, however they're £40 more at £225 and will cost more once an AMP/DAC is bougt

However, from what I've read, the HD-598 seems to hold up fine without an AMP/DAC and with better sound quality than the HD-650's without a AMP/DAC

Because I've never had a high quality set of headphones, I can't tell if it's worth buying the HD-650's with an AMP/DAC

I'm just looking for great headphones for music and the best immersive experience whilst gaming, I wear headphones for at least 6 hours a day

I'm sorry that I haven't really asked a question, I'm just conflicted on whether or not I'm going above my needs

Thanks!

 

JNicko

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Nov 30, 2015
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Very true, sound is also subjective, so it's definitely worth a test first

Although, I don't believe there's anywhere near me that has these on display to be tested, the only store I can think of is pc world or maybe maplin

I'll take a look tomorrow in store, but I don't know anyone who has a pair that I'd be able to have a listen to





 

kanewolf

Judicious
Moderator


Sometimes DJ or musician stores will have quality headphones also ...
 
the hd650 is similar in nature to the hd598 but will be bassier and warmer and overall having better quality to the sound. they are generally "slower" headphones which makes them more laid back and easy listening (non fatiguing). they are a good choice if you like this kind of sound.

some onboard audio and portables can handle the h598 fine while some low power audio or portables can not. it really depends. you absolutely would need an amp for the hd650 though..

since you are in uk.. one of the better deals is the beyerdynamic dt770, 880 or 990 as they are around 100gbp. they require an amp but given the price difference its in budget easily. they are completely different sounding than the sennheiser cans though. instead of being more neutral they will be v-shaped with boosted treble and bass (880 is most neutral with very slight v-shape). they are also very bright with detailed treble and much faster than the sennheisers which will make them seem more articulate and detailed but at the same time some people may find them fatiguing.

generally people who dislike sennheisers like beyerdyamics and vice versa. both are great cans depending on what preferences you have.
 

shotgunz

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Dec 17, 2011
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If you're going to get a HD598, id recommend you get the HD558 instead. It's cheaper, more comfortable and sounds practically identical after the foam mod. You just take off the removable ear pads, unscrew three screws, the driver assembly comes off and remove the piece of foam in the ear cup.

Are you gaming on a pc or a console?
 

JNicko

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Nov 30, 2015
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*sigh* looks like reply feature is broken

@ssddx
Thanks for the detailed response
From your input and reading around, I'm going to give the 650's a try, I need to buy an amp anyways for my rig and I have headphones atm that have a lot of bass and treble for when the mood strikes, I'm just looking for headphones that produce the sound that the sound engineer wanted to be heard, nothing being exaggerated like bass or so on

P.S Aura is best girl



@shotgunz
I've read that, but a few people have said that it just isn't the same, although I guess it's all subjective
Gaming on pc, I'll update my build specs now
 
if you mean the "quote" function... yes we are aware that it is not working perfectly.

its worth noting products like the planar magnetic hifiman headphones such as the he400s which are only a bit more. read here http://www.head-fi.org/products/hifiman-he400s.

it is worth noting that the hd650 is not neutral and is a bit heavier on bass than the hd598. the hd600 is a bit less bassy and closer to neutral than the hd650 is though even the dt880 could be called fairly neutral to some. while they are all great headphones, it depends on what you're looking for and why if at all possible listening in person is a great idea.

the hd598 shares drivers with the hd558 and hd518 and in terms of audio are very similar. due to design differences the 518 tends towards a bit more bassy and the 598 tends towards a bit more soundstage and neutral. build quality is also much better the higher you go up the ladder. for all intensive purposes the 558 is a cheaper 598 (and personally i find it less hideous.. that tan color is certainly deplorable)

thanks for the shout out on my avatar and sig. i thought it was a well done character as well. you might not be aware but we do have an anime thread here on toms for recommendations and i do offer some via pm or steam as well for those interested.
 

JNicko

Estimable
Nov 30, 2015
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Now I'm even more confused ):

The hd600's and 598's seem to be for classical music and such from what I've read - Yeah, the 598's are pretty ugly in the tan colour, I'd definitely have to buy the special addition!

So I'm torn between the 400S and the 650 now since they both provide what I need
I really wish I could listen to them, but the music shops in my city don't have these stocked, and certainly not out for testing
The 400S and 650 seem quite similar and offer the same quality, rather each is just tailored to a different style, the 400s are bright and the 650's are dark

I'm going to order the 650's since they'll get here tomorrow if I order now, and the HE400S wouldn't get delivered until the 7th of Jan
I'll just return the 650's if I don't like them, but Amazon has an extended returns for January, so I'll have a fair bit of time to try them out
I'm just gonna have to hope it works out

Just realised that everyone is always up in arms about headphones weighing like 30 grams more than another pair, say 320g against 350g.. My sony headphones I've been using for the past few years are 700 grams 0.0

I hold hope that there'll be a season 2 (I can dream)
Mind linking the thread for me?



 
jnicko, dont have time right now to do much linking.. send me a pm about it and i'll get you a link. (to remind me, as i read so many threads i'll forget). there will not be a season 2 likely because they covered a whole story arc. there are some other titles i could recommend which you may like though, again, put that in the pm or add my steam (this username.. TH has a steam group as well).

both headphones are great, depending on your preferences of course. it is a very hard thing to suggest something exactly to fit someone unless they have a very clear idea what they like and dislike so i like to do comparisions and some basic descriptions. until you have a good baseline about what you like... or dislike its hard to really know for sure.

 

JNicko

Estimable
Nov 30, 2015
7
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Got my HD650's earlier today, I've been listening to them for an just over an hour
The sound is amazing and so is the comfort

The only thing I've noticed is that they don't dig deep into the low end bass, but my headphones I've been using for the past few years are very bass heavy. Once I listen to the 650's for a minute or two, I just forget about it, but going from one headphone straight to the other, it's easy to pick out. Besides that, the sound quality is day and night compared to my old cans. My amp/dac gets here tomorrow, I bought a Fiio10K (People would have me spend more on an amp than the headphones), but I expect the amp will bring out a bit of the low end bass, then these headphones would be perfect
 
the hd650 should have fairly significant bass (in the bassy classification of headphone) though its not going to be a bass cannon by a long shot (like sony xb cans.. but those sound like crud in a can).

the fiio e10k is fine for music, though if you care about virtual surround for gaming you would lose out. not a big deal really though.
 

JNicko

Estimable
Nov 30, 2015
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Yeah, after a few more hours with them, the bass is definitely there
My Sony Pulse Elite headset that I've been using has enough bass the knock out a baby elephant, it even has two 'strips' going across the headband from one ear to the other that acts kinda like a subwoofer, they 'pulse' due to bass, so it kinda bridges the bass from each ear and provides bass to the whole head, it's great, but even with that turned off, the exaggerated bass on the headphones just overpowers any mids

Why is that? Can the Fiio E10k not output virtual surround sound?
 
the fiio e10k is a dac+amplifier. looking at the dac portion, it is a stereo 2.0 dac so is not capable of outputting virtual surround.

now, you MIGHT be able to get the free razer virtual surround software http://www.razerzone.com/surround working with an external usb dac like the e10k has but i can not guarantee it. its a free software to try though. out of virtual surround options its likely the worst quality one, but some may find it better than nothing (while of course some like not using virtual surround at all).

if you want virtual surround and an external amplifier there are three options:

-pc soundcard (or onboard audio) with virtual support to external amplifier only via 3.5mm analog. preferably line-out (unamped) for more quality control and less distortion (instead of double amping) but you can use a speaker front or headphone output and still be fine. creative cards have cmss3d (now called sbx) and asus cards have dolby headphone.

-pc soundcard (or onboard audio) to external dac which accepts optical input then going to an amplifier. notably, products like the schiit modi 2 (optical input ver) and similar going to an amp. the soundcard/onboard will provide virtual surround support before exporting the digital audio signal out to the dac. this method is not very cost efficient so many people will not run it although a user recently was nice enough to clarify if his setup (he used soundcard->modi->magni) worked with virtual surround just fine.

-specialized external dac/amp units such as the creative e5 which (i believe) have virtual support built in. extremely pricey though.. and for less cost you could use a fiio a3 + soundblaster z (about $140 compared with $200 for the e5!!!) the z has a line out which is great. technically the xonar dg would even work (total cost $90 or using high quality onboard instead $60 for just a3) but its not much better than onboard audio (which you could use if it supports virtual). no line out so you would be double amping.. but if you keep windows volume far from max (about 1/3 to 1/2 i would suggest) you should not have any issues at all.

the last option... just using a pc soundcard, also works for virtual surround but that is a given. external amplifiers tend towards better quality and more power output though.
 

JNicko

Estimable
Nov 30, 2015
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4,510
Thanks for the detailed answer
Seems my mobo has virtual surround sound integrated
It runs Sonic Studio II

I think this is E10k will be my best bet atm, especially since my budget has been reached and I'm forking out for a ROG Swift PG279Q next week
Uni loans straight out of the window, gonna have to get a job!

Thanks for all the help, I appreciate it