

Concluding thoughts:

Because the HD 600 is as relevant to personal audio today as it ever has been! The HD 600 is IMHO the best value in high end audio today. Over time the quality of this item remains the same but the price keeps going down. How often can that be said.Three years ago, I happened to be content with my closed back tank, the Sony MDR-7506 until………. I happened to be at a friend’s house and he said “try these out.” I put on his HD 600’s and WOW the light came on. That was the first time I heard in a headphone crisp, clean, sound with space for all the instruments. I said to myself I need to have one of these. The mistake I made at that time was thinking that the quality came from the HD 600 being an open back headphone, not from being what they are: true, neutral, engaging headphones.I went straight into the Oppo open back headphone world, then into the Audeze LCD world and then into the ZMF headphone world. The Oppo PM 1 was not engaging enough. Yes, Audeze and ZMF Headphones are engaging but at a price. About a year ago I convinced myself I needed an open back headphone at work. One I could take on and off a lot. One that I could hear if someone needed something from me. One that was relatively affordable and solidly built. That brought me back to the HD 600’s and also back to the day the light came on! My first kiss, the HD 600 is my go to palate cleanser when I want to truly taste the music as intended to be tasted.Dynamic12Hz-40,500HzOpen back over the ear102 dB SPL/V300 Ohm260g3 meters1/4thplug with 3.5mm adapterCurrently can be purchases from Amazon Prime for $2671997! Yes 22 years ago is when these Headphones first arrived. They evolved from the Sennheiser HD 580. Then in 2003 Sennheiser introduced the HD 650, the HD 600 partner in crime. I have been reading incessantly about headphones for three years now. It is amazing how often HD 600s and HD 650s are referenced when talking about the sound signature of other HPs. Drop (formerly known as Prince, I mean formerly known as Massdrop) introduced not too long ago the HD 6XX. It is an HD 650 with a different color and a shorter cable. The HD 6XX can be had for $220. I will compare the HD 6XX sound to the HD 600 toward the end of this review.Sennheiser sells these direct for $400 so the obvious choice would be purchasing from Amazon for $267. That is exactly what I did a little over a year ago. The Amazon box they come in fits perfectly with the Sennheiser box. So, note to self: keep the original box they come in just in case there is ever an issue needing repair under warranty or um Gottes willen you ever decide to sell these (they go quick used for about $180-200 these days).The box it comes with is very nice and protective. I would feel safe shipping these in the original box with all the foam cushioning. The velvety cloth earpads do supposedly go flat after a few years. We all do but with these everything can be replaced. EVERYTHING. That is such an added bonus. Replacement parts are easy to come by and are affordable.The cable it comes with is my only minor gripe. It comes with a 3 meter cable (9.84 ft.). That works well when the main rig is a bit away but is too long for when the rig is next to the bed or next to a comfy chair. A 6 ft to 8 ft cable would make more sense to me. Once you start talking about main rigs then people start getting into balanced connections anyway. I ended up getting an aftermarket 8 ft balanced cable to use with my main rig and a 4ft cable to use at work where I do not want much slack to get in the way.Schiit Mjolnir 2Schiit Lyr 2Schiit Gungnir (USB 5)Schiit Bifrost (USB 5)Schiit ModiYes, I know I need to branch out into OTL tube amps with such high impedance headphones. That day will come.I listen to mainly “HiFi” quality of music through Tidal.These headphones feel super light. They clamped a little tight when I first got them. Now they fit perfectly and I honestly forget I have them on sometimes. Now that is rare with a Headphone. The cloth pads are comfortable and welcomed when it is a little warm.There is 100% leakage and no blockage of outside noise. More than any other open back headphones I have tried. This is not a negative but is part of the open back worldI will start where some people feel the HD 600 is lacking and that is in the bass. I disagree with the lacking part. The mid bass is not colored. It is present and to my ears what makes the bass of the HD 600 so special is the very small hint of colored sub bass. If you close your eyes and focus on each instrument the sub bass is what comes out more than any other individual sound. This in my mind is what makes the HD 600 engaging.I have owned other headphones (Oppo PM 1 for example) that are not lacking anything specific. Overall coherency may be excellent but the joy of listening is not sustained. That in my mind is the fault of a lot of neutral headphones. The sub bass of the HD 600 is what sustains the joy of listening. This small hint of elevated sub bass is what keeps me engaged and coming back for more.The treble could be a weak point of these. I would disagree. The treble is present and accounted for. The treble does not jump out at you. This lack of sibilance is another factor that allows longer listening sessions.The midrange is the key to these. The midrange quality can go head to head with any other headphone. The mids are what allow longer listening sessions to still be a joy. Vocals are neutral. They are not forward and not too far in the background like a lot of headphones that have colored bass or too sibilant of treble. Acoustic guitars sound so natural. The best word I come up to describe the mids of the HD 600 is lush!The HD 600 provides a super clean sound. These are not so clean that they are bright. I would consider them to have a warm clean sound. There is a lack of distortion with very good instrument separation. Clean, lack of distortion, and good instrument separation are not things said at this price range.A weakness of these headphones is the lack of a wide soundstage. Both horizontal and vertical soundstage does not extend very far. A positive side to this weakness is that these headphones do sound intimate.The HD 600 can be your open back headphone end game. What a cost saver that would be and what a spousal relationship sustainer that would be. Of course, audiophiles lack this reasoning. Therefore the HD 600 is an excellent addition to any audio collection. It is my go to palate cleanser along with my ZMF Auteurs. I do have other headphones and IEMS for when I want to get into daytime or nighttime fun and games. The ZMF Atticus or NCM Bella V2 fit perfectly into this role.A huge benefit of the neutral sound of the HD 600 is that you can listen to them for endless hours. There is literally no fatigue and no boredom. They are engaging enough to keep interest but the interest is to be had when you want to be interested. Now that is a relationship we long for. There is no fatigue from the HD 600 demanding your attention all the time like forward sounding headphones tend to do over time.300 Ohms is a rather high impedance. A caveat to this discussion is that that the HD 600 needs ampage. You can run it through your phone and most anything but at a loss. The dynamics of this headphone do not come to light properly until you are using an amp that does it justice. Then it opens up and shines. This is not a headphone for on the go nor was it intended to be. It is for someone that cannot have their 2 channel speakers playing. It is for someone that is in a quiet environment and sound leakage will not annoy anyone else.No HD 600 conversation can happen without a reference to the HD 650. I think the HD 650 is Sennheiser’s attempt to add color to the HD 600. People tend to prefer one or the other. The difference is the warmth added to the 650. The notes are rounded rather than coming to a point as they do with the 600. They both have quality treble and stellar mids. The biggest difference to me along with the rounded notes is in the bass. The 650 has a slightly elevated mid bass while the 600 has a mild sub bass lift. I thought I would enjoy both the 650 and 600. I was wrong. I did not find the 650 engaging enough to keep.The Auteur is the grand HD 600. The Auteur is 6 times the cost of the HD 600. Should they even be compared? Yes, they should and that says a lot for the HD 600. They are both revealing. They are both neutral, they both have a slight bump in sub bass (hence the engagement factor). With both of them I feel like I am sitting perfectly in the center of a concert hall. The Auteur is a few rows forward as compared to the HD 600. The stage is wider and the instrument separation is better with the Auteur. But for $267 vs. $1600 there should in reality be no comparison to be had. The greatest gift of the HD 600 is that is can be compared to an indisputable amazing sounding $1600 Headphone. The HD 600 is 80% of the Auteur at 1/6ththe cost. Drop the mic right there and walk away!I have discussed the qualities of the HD 600. It is neutral sounding. It is engaging. It is detailed. I use it as a palate cleanser when I want to get back to the heart of the sound. I use it when I want to get back to how the sound was intended to be heard.In my opinion the best qualities of the HD 600 is what it is not. It is not tiring. It is not boring. It is not sibilant. It is not annoyingly colored. It is not expensive. It is not flimsy. In my opinion it is a must have!