Sennheiser HD 650

I purchased the Sennheiser HD650s as I was looking for a set of open backed headphones with a neutral frequency response. After reading a lot of reviews and opinions I was convinced that this was the best choice in this price range and I have not been disappointed.

The sound is beyond anything I have experienced before, even while being driven from my Mackie audio interface's output. While the impedance of these headphones is high (300 Ohm) they are still fairly easy to drive, so do not feel pressured into buying an amp before trying them on your current setup, even my laptops inbuilt sound card could drive them to a satisfactory volume.


These are the most comfortable headphones I've ever owned and I have regularly worn these through long production sessions and work days. After the first couple of weeks, the clamp force reduced and they are very secure and light.

To note: The first set I purchased had a defect in the cable connection and Thomann was quite responsive, despite the brexit shipping disruptions and replaced my set within a month. The version currently being sold is produced in Romania not Ireland doesn't come with a storage / carrying box.

To conclude, the clarity and reproduction of these headphones is fantastic, even after 15 years in production, they are still competitive, truly an eternal sound!

I mainly use these headphones for mixing and mastering (along with my Adam A5X monitors).

Comfort & Quality:

They are very comfortable to wear for long hours. The headband and the earpads are soft but still firm enough. The plastic used on the headphones looks and feels somewhat cheap, although I personally didn't have any issues with it so far. I've read comments online from people with broken headbands though. So, let's just say that I'd expect a higher quality feel on headphones that cost more than 300 euros.

Only (very minor) problem I've had with these headphones so far has been the cable connection on the headphone end getting loose. Maybe the connector wasn't properly in place to start with, cause this only happened to me two times in the first few days of use. I can't really comment more on the built quality / durability yet, since I've only owned them for a couple of months now.

Sound:
Very happy with the monitoring experience. It's very easy to work for long hours with these headphones and the mixes translate very well. The soundstage is not so huge (compared to some AKG open-back models) but it is still there. I generally use them in combination with Sonarworks Reference, which gives them the boost they need in the low end (where they originally lack a bit of energy) and a minor correction in the high mid range, but really, the correction Sonarworks does on these is very minor, which shows that the headphones are quite flat to start with.

Oh and a very important note: I've read a million comments online about how it's super difficult to drive these headphones / one would need a powerful headphone amp and so on... Not really!! My Original RME Babyface (which is notorious for having not enough juice on the headphone output) can drive these headphones perfectly well, that is, to hearing-loss-inducing levels with great clarity.. but then again, loudness is very subjective, so you should try and see(hear) for yourselves.

All in all, I'd definitely recommend these headphones!!

I was having a bit of a nightmare finding headphones I could afford that were flat/transparent enough to mix with. After doing a LOT of research and reading reviews and watching comparison videos and people's views, I bought some Beyerdynamic DT990s. However, whilst people LOVED them, I found the 'smile' bass and treble too distracting, so did a load more research - till I found these Sennhiesers.

They were so much more expensive and so far out of my budget, that I was reluctant to risk it…but I di and I am so thrilled with them! The sound quality is amazing! I almost feel as though I am mixing through my speakers. I can trust the sound, it is very vibrant and not tiring - and work so well just straight out of the headphone socket too.... in fact, I prefer that to via a headphone amp (which makes it a little bassier - but still good).

I haven't used them yet for long periods of time, but I can feel they are a little tight on the head grip (width), hence one star off for comfort, but it's a small price to pay for such an amazing sound quality. As for build quality, they feel very solid, have a decent weight behind them and again, feel like you can trust them to perform for a long while! Thank you Thomann for the great price - I definitely couldn't have afforded them from anywhere else!

These have gone around as being reference headphones since the HD580 was launched. I have to say I cannot disagree with that at all. I am using them with a JDS Labs Element 2, and have compared them to the HD580s which I also own, as well as a couple of pairs of Beyerdynamic, the DT 770 Pro 250 Ohm and the DT 1770 Pro. The nature of those being closed back, a direct comparison is not exactly fair, however! The Sennheisers are more confortable, and sit very well in terms of sound quality. Bass is not as punchy, but it's still full of detail, they have excellent mids, I have noticed male voices sound beautiful on them. Highs are not fatiguing, nor faded, for my ears they are just right. One good comparison with the Beyers would be the soundstage. Although Sennheisers are open back, the soundstage is close and intimate. Overall I am very happy with the HD 650 and I can recommend them for everyone who wants a good pair of mid-range headphones.