The type of headphone I am looking for is (Closed-back, open-back, in-ear, wireless, etc):
My price range is: flexible
I like to listen to: whatever
I will be using them for: (Travel, commuting, home, gym, etc…): Home, mostly.
OK, I’ve seen the Sennheiser HD-6XX for a while on Massdrop. And the AKG K7XX (red) at the same price.
And I’ve not pulled the trigger. I have a very early HD-580 for years. I like it well enough. Is the HD-6XX going to be that much of an improvement? I’ve never listened to the AKGs, and haven’t seen much here on them. Both look like good buys.
But those of you who’ve read my posts know that my real next target is a STAX SR-L700 or better. After all my STAX phones are standard bias from the early 80’s. And I’m not even getting much resistance from the better half.
So what do y’all think" Up to 2 choices. Poll automatically closes in 2 days. Responses are confidential, but you can always spill your guts in a reply.
Yes, you should get the Sennheiser HD-6XX
Nah, the AKG’s are just the ticket
What, Pennstac, you just crazy
Keep your powder dry and hold out for the STAX you want
The K7XX was a very good headphone… Until the HD6xx came out at the same price. I don’t really know if you will be wow’d by either, the 580 is pretty good.
If it’s still good, then I, too, would look toward the HD6XX. If it’s not so good the K7XX might be a better fit. I have both, and definitely prefer the former.
That said, I’m also a proponent of making a smaller number of larger upgrades. It is a far more cost and time effective, at the expense of some immediate gratification. So unless I was going to keep the Massdrop model for other purposes (another rig, reviews/comparisons etc.), I would just wait on getting the STAX.
Still pretty good high frequency hearing. I don’t think I’d be doing much trading. If I got the HD6xx, I might get rid of the HD580s which are in very good shape. But it’s mostly idle curiosity about the K7xx and vague thoughts that the HD6xx might be worth it as an upgrade. Of course, I have the Hifiman HD-560s which are keepers, so I suspect that any $200 headphone, no matter how good a bargain, will be in my middle range.
I am very much wanting to get the STAX. The SR-L700s look to be the best price point in the upper levels of STAX. I’m tempted by the top models, but am reluctant to spend what it takes for the flagship, and know that if I bump my budget up to the SR-007, I’ll just be wondering for the rest of my natural life if the SR-009s would have been worth it.
The psychology of stupid spending applies just as much as the law of diminishing returns.
The Staxen do sound pretty damn good if that’s your preferred sound profile, at least the few L700 builds I’ve gotten to demo over time, but I tossed in a vote for the Senns nonetheless. It’s really a great pair of cans that you can listen to for hours upon hours without issue, and sources say they pay returns when paired with better upstream gear (I’d not know, still effectively mid-fi for the foreseeable future haha).
From another angle though: as mentioned earlier the mere fact that you want to get the Stax might take some shine off getting anything else. I’d be concerned using the L700 or so for commutes, or anything outside of home really, though I haven’t had trouble lugging around an HD650 to school/work and back. The isolation, or lack thereof, did leave something to be desired though.
I would too. Not so much the headphones, but the ten pound tube amp is power hungry, so I’d need to set up a backpack with a couple of car batteries and a good 12v DC to AC power inverter to power the amp. And a good power filter, followed by $800 cryogenically approved power cables, have to make a belt from Audiosnoot Unobtanium interconnects, and still find a place for change for the bus… .
.