Sennheiser HD 650 Open Back Studio Headphones (2019 Edition)

Purchased at the start of the Covid-19 lockdown as a present to myself to help keep me sane.



There was an issue with the courier, the item was delayed and then we found out there was an issue but as soon as Bax were informed, they sent out a replacement immediately and it arrived shortly after so no complaints with their customer service and from experience, these things can happen with any courier.



When they arrived, plugged them straight in and had a listen. The sound was really interesting, great separation of instruments, could hear details in recordings I'd never heard before and every texture of acoustic instruments was present. There was some distortion however and Thom Yorke sounded like he had a lisp. Then, after about 50 hours, they completely closed up to nothing but a narrow midrange honk and sounded terrible.



These genuinely do take 300 hours to burn in (or brain burn in, pads softening or whatever you believe) but once they got there, they opened up even more than when they were fresh out of the box and are absolutely incredible. Please be patient and don't be put off by the frustrating wait.



They also need good amplification. I'm running them from a Little Dot Mk 2 tube amplifier with Voshkod driver tubes and the depth of the sound stage and 3D imaging is so real I feel like I have synesthesia and can touch and see the sound. This set up would easily stand up to one of many thousands of pounds.



The Vokshods minimise the (so called) veil however, from other sources, you do notice the slight roll off of the higher end but once you do become used to that, they are just as enjoyable as they are none fatiguing and there is no loss of detail.



These aren't particularly bass heavy and perhaps could do with a touch more sub base but in the bass guitar and kick drum register they really shine so a minor quibble. The mids are fabulous and for vocals, you really feel the emotion of the singer.



I've bought them primarily for my listening pleasure but dabble a bit in production and these perform really well. Yes, they colour the sound with the mid bass hump and treble roll off however, that colouration is incredibly lifelike and matches that of a slight increase in warmth of cross-feed from monitors or the slight roll off of treble being a distance from acoustic live instruments. They'd be really good for production as part of a mix with decent monitors and some other, cold and critical cans.



Highly recommended and you will not get even remotely close to these for the price so long as driven properly.